1x1 With Kristian Harloff

Julia Garner has amassed an incredibly varied filmography over the years. Her first feature credit was the Sundance darling Martha Marcy May Marlene, she won three Emmys for playing Ruth Langmore in Netflix’s hit crime drama Ozark, and she’s about to make her franchise debut in one of the most anticipated films of the year, The Fantastic Four: First Steps. However, there’s one particular genre she keeps coming back to, and given it’s a personal favorite genre, I’m thrilled about it. Garner is delivering a steady stream of horror movies.Her latest in that department is Leigh Whannell’s Wolf Man, a new spin on the 1941 classic. In this version, Christopher Abbott and Garner play Blake and Charlotte, a husband and wife struggling with their relationship. When Blake receives a death certificate for his estranged father and the keys to his childhood home, he thinks that could be just the getaway they need to get things back on track. Along with their young daughter, Ginger (Matilda Firth), they head out

Just a year after celebrating a Best International Feature Film nomination at the Oscars for The Teachers’ Lounge, which marked her first lead role in a feature, Leonie Benesch is back on the awards circuit with a filmmaking feat, Tim Fehlbaum’s unique approach to depicting the devastating events at the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics, September 5. The film features a top-tier ensemble that includes Benesch, John Magaro, Peter Sarsgaard, Ben Chaplin and more as the ABC Sports broadcasting team in Munich, a team that must shift from sports reporting to live coverage of the Israeli athletes taken hostage, marking the very first time such an event was covered by a live broadcast. In September 5, the story is told entirely from their perspective, exploring the intricacies of high-tech broadcast capabilities and the responsibilities that come with them, a combination that’s become increasingly relevant with each passing day.With September 5 expanding nationwide on January 17th, I got the opportunity to sit down w

Maria Bakalova knows what she’s doing when it comes to finding top-tier creative partners in film and television. As a student studying at the National Academy for Theatre and Film Arts in Bulgaria, she gravitated toward acclaimed filmmakers Kristina Grozeva and Petar Valchanov, a directing duo she still works with to this day. She met Julian Kostov in 2019 when he shared a casting notice for Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, the movie that’d ultimately earn Bakalova an Oscar nomination. Now, Kostov is Bakalova’s producing partner. Under their Five Oceans banner they produced Triumph with Grozeva and Valchanov directing. The film was selected as the Bulgarian entry for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film. Next up on Bakalova’s list of dream collaborators she’s hoping to establish a long-standing creative partnership with? James Gunn. In fact, during her Collider Ladies Night interview, Bakalova noted, “If I have to choose one person that I want to stick with the rest of my life, it will be him.”Ba

Robbie Williams is a hugely popular singer and songwriter. He set a record by winning 18 Brit Awards and has two Grammy nominations to his name. Williams has churned out six of the top 100 best-selling albums in British history, amassed an audience of 375,000 fans over three nights performing at Knebworth, setting a record that’s yet to be surpassed, and has sold 85 million album worldwide. The list of achievements and accolades goes on and on, but he insists, “I didn't derive any joy from all the success that I had.” However, at 50, things have changed. “I am experiencing joy and I'm experiencing happiness. I'm also experiencing gratitude, a great deal of gratitude where I didn't have gratitude before. So, these are my golden years.”Williams has been enjoying a different kind of spotlight since August 2024. That’s when his film, Better Man, premiered at the 51st Telluride Film Festival before moving on to the Toronto International Film Festival, Fantastic Fest, and more. Based on Williams’ true rise, fall an

As I note during this new edition of Collider Ladies Night, while watching a A Complete Unknown, during Monica Barbaro’s first scene of the film, I scribbled down one note — “Monica — WOW,” and then proceeded to underline it quite a few times. She’s downright electric as Joan Baez, the renowned singer, songwriter and musician who developed a professional and personal relationship with Bob Dylan.Timothée Chalamet plays Dylan in the James Mangold-directed film, which follows the all-time great from meeting his icon, Woody Guthrie (Scott McNairy), to becoming one himself. With guidance from Pete Seeger (Edward Norton), Dylan begins his rise in the New York City folk scene. However, the higher he rises, the more he feels constrained by the expectations of the folk community, constraints Dylan opts to demolish via a controversial and groundbreaking performance.With A Complete Unknown now playing in theaters nationwide and surging on the awards circuit, I got the opportunity to sit down with Barbaro for a

I had to wait until December 19th, but I finally got my greatest belly laugh of 2024 courtesy of Ghosts. In "A Very Arondekar Christmas Part 1,” while attempting to fix the water heater, Sam and Jay (Utkarsh Ambudkar) suffer a shock, sparking another possession. Pete (Richie Moriarty) possesses Jay while Rose McIver’s Sam, a certified people-pleaser with a big heart who’s often quite concerned about what others think of her, is possessed by Betsy Sodaro’s Nancy, the super brash Cholera ghost who marches to the beat of her own drum to the fullest. Not only is the idea genius, but McIver and Sodaro’s execution of the concept is brilliant.In celebration of the release of the double dose of Christmas special episodes, McIver returned to Collider Ladies Night to look back on some pivotal moments of her career, like working with her acting coaching and moving to Hollywood, and to dig into two unforgettable aspects of these new episodes — McIver channeling Sodaro’s one-of-a-kind work as Nancy, and Jay finally being

Jessica Barden is an undeniable force on screen. I first saw her in The End of the F***ing World on Netflix and immediately knew she had a one-of-a-kind energy that was bound to make any project she was part of sizzle. Sure enough, she did just that for a number of independent features, including Nicole Riegel’s Holler, which was named one of the Top Ten Independent Films of 2021 by the National Board of Review. Now Barden is busy stealing scenes in yet another significant way. She’s doing so in one of the most popular franchises out there opposite some of the industry’s greatest icons.Barden plays a young Valya Harkonnen in Dune: Prophecy. While living on Lankiveil, Valya frequently butts heads with her family who seemingly have no urgency to restore the Harkonnen name by taking revenge on the Atreides. After her brother’s murder, allegedly at the hands of Vorian Atreides, Valya joins the Sisterhood where she quickly discovers she holds great power and has few limitations when it comes to using it on others

Brady Corbet’s The Brutalist is epic. In fact, it’s a three hour and 35 minute epic that afforded Felicity Jones a rather unique performance opportunity. Her character, Erzsébet Tóth, doesn’t appear on screen until about halfway through the film, after its 15-minute intermission. The Brutalist begins by focusing on Adrien Brody’s László Toth, a famous architect who flees post-war Europe with hopes of building a new life in America. Separated from his wife, Jones’ Erzsébet, during the war, he settles in Pennsylvania alone with hopes she’ll join him there soon. Eventually, László gets what appears to be a dreamy offer from a wealthy industrialist, Guy Pearce’s Harrison Lee Van Buren. After coming to learn about László’s famed work overseas, Harrison hires him to craft his own dream project, to build a grand scale community center in honor of his late mother. It’s an opportunity for László to establish a foundation in his new home no doubt, but it’s also one that’s riddled with complications involving legac

Thanks to the success of the beloved Comedy Central series, Broad City, Abbi Jacobson is widely known as a comedic force in film and television. But, as of late, she’s busy uniting her comedy skillset with more dramatic performance opportunities, and the power of her ability to do both is undeniable. After soaring in the canceled-too-soon Prime Video series, A League of Their Own, Jacobson joins the ensemble of yet another brilliant comedy and drama combo, Netflix’s No Good Deed.At the center of Liz Feldman’s (Dead to Me) latest for the streamer, we find Lisa Kudrow and Ray Romano as Lydia and Paul Morgan, a couple gearing up to sell their gorgeous 1920s Spanish-style Los Feliz villa. The appeal of the property sparks a bidding war, a war Jacobson’s Leslie finds herself right smack in the middle of. Leslie and her wife Sarah, played by Poppy Liu, are ready to do just about anything to snag the house, but then they start to suspect there might be some dark and dangerous secrets tied to the property — secrets t

As we near the New Year, awards season has come into focus and things are looking quite good for international feature contender I’m Still Here. Set in Brazil in the 1970s, a time of military dictatorship, the biographical drama puts the spotlight on Eunice Paiva (Torres), a mother of five who’s forced to forge forward after the disappearance of her husband, former Brazilian Labour Party congressman Rubens Paiva (Selton Mello). Based on Marcelo Rubens Paiva’s book, I’m Still Here chronicles the deeply profound fortitude Eunice exhibits as she both keeps her family together and earns a law degree in hopes of contributing to holding the government accountable for the human rights abuses committed during this period.While the movie itself appears to be in good shape in Best International Feature, Best Actress has proven to be an especially competitive category this year. Many prognosticators are favoring the work of Mikey Madison in Anora, Karla Sofía Gascón in Emilia Pérez, Cynthia Erivo in Wicked, Nicole Kidma

June Squibb is a legend. She’s a legend with a slew of stage experience, dozens and dozens of film and TV credits to her name, and an Academy Award nomination for her performance in Nebraska. However, it wasn’t until just now, in her 90s, that she finally scored her first lead role in a film, Josh Margolin’s feature directorial debut, Thelma. An absurdity, in my opinion. But, that’s not how Squibb looks at it. As she noted during our Collider Ladies Night conversation, “It's never occurred to me that what I was doing was not the most important role in the film.” This year, however, the most important role in the film put her at #1 on the call sheet.Not only did Squibb finally get the chance to headline a film, but she plays the title character in one of the best movies of 2024. In Thelma, Squibb plays Thelma Post, a 93-year-old woman living alone in Los Angeles. Her grandson, Danny (Fred Hechinger), checks on her often, but not often enough to stop her from giving up $10,000 in a scam. Determined to fix

Get ready for the rise of Chloe East. She headlined 2016’s Jessica Darling’s It List, appeared in a number of episodes of Liv and Maddie, and was a series regular on both Kevin (Probably) Saves the World and the 2021 HBO Max series Generation, but the one-two punch of The Fabelmans and Heretic in the feature film realm will undoubtedly put East on the map in a wholly different way. In fact, it already has. She’s got a number of highly anticipated projects on the horizon including Liz Feldman’s new Netflix series No Good Deed, Kogonada’s A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, and At the Sea starring Amy Adams.East was a scene-stealer in Steven Spielberg’s Academy Award nominated feature playing Monica, Sammy’s devoutly Christian (Gabriel LaBelle) girlfriend. However, it’s Heretic that proves she’s a true powerhouse in a leading role. She headlines alongside Sophie Thatcher as Sister Paxton and Sister

If you frequent Collider Ladies Night, you’re likely well aware that I’m a massive Scream fan. The franchise heavily contributed to making me the movie lover I am today, and it’s also a big reason why I pursued a career in the industry. Given that, it’ll probably come as no surprise that I especially love seeing Scream alum soar in film and television, and one particular Scream star is having a game-changing 2024. It’s Scream 2022’s Mikey Madison, who’s currently in the midst of an awards season run courtesy of her electrifying performance in Sean Baker’s Anora.The Palme d'Or winner stars Madison as Ani, a young sex worker from Brooklyn who finds herself in the middle of a rather unusual and frequently madcap adventure of sorts after meeting Vanya, the son of a Russian billionaire. After hiring Ani a few times, Vanya offers her a larger sum to be exclusive for the week. During that week, the two impulsively marry in Vegas. Convinced the love is genuine, Ani is excited to begin her new life as Vanya’s wife, bu

I first became aware of Wunmi Mosaku at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. Her feature, His House, premiered there and not only was the film itself exquisite, but Mosaku herself was a top-tier interview, brimming with passion and enthusiasm for her craft. From that point on, I’ve made it a priority to seek out Mosaku’s past work and keep up with all of her new releases, and it’s paid off big time.Since His House’s release on Netflix, Mosaku became a scene-stealer in Lovecraft Country, she joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe via Loki, she did her first voice performance for the acclaimed animated series Scavengers Reign, and now, for the very first time, she’s at the top of the call sheet for a series, ITV’s Passenger, which is now available to stream on BritBox.Mosaku leads as Riya, a former Metropolitan Police officer who decides to relocate to the tiny town of Chadder Vale to care for her mother-in-law. After the one-two punch of a gruesome discovery and a strange disappearance, Riya becomes convinced that s

The pressure was on for Genesis Rodriguez in Lioness Season 2. Not only is the show, in general, a heavy lift, tackling complex subject matter loaded with hugely demanding story beats, but she also had to follow in the footsteps of Laysla De Oliveira, the titular Lioness of Season 1.Special Ops: Lioness stars Zoe Saldaña as Joe, the head of a clandestine CIA operation — the Lioness program. Joe recruits female operatives called Lionesses to essentially put everything on the line to fight the war on terror. In Season 1, De Oliveira was an absolute powerhouse as Cruz Manuelos to say the least. There was a staggering ferocity to her performance, and it gave the show an energy that felt uniquely hers. Given that, one couldn’t help but roll into Season 2 wondering, how could they possibly do that again, but with a different Lioness? From the moment Rodriguez appears on screen as US Army Apache pilot, Captain Josephina Carrillo, it’s instantly undeniable that Taylor Sheridan and co. had done it again. They found an

Phillipa Soo first saw her star soar courtesy of one of the greatest successes in Broadway history, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton. Ever since scoring a Tony nomination for Best Actress in a Musical for playing Eliza, Soo’s been scooping up new opportunities on stage and screen, prioritizing being grateful and present for every single one of them, including her latest, Ryan Murphy's new show, Doctor Odyssey.In the ABC medical drama, Soo headlines alongside Joshua Jackson, Sean Teale and Don Johnson. Johnson plays the captain of a luxury cruise ship called The Odyssey, while Soo and Teale step in as Avery and Tristan, the ship’s nurses who are well versed in both the social drama and medical challenges the ships' passengers tend to pose. Now, however, they’re led by a new head physician. It’s Jackson’s Max Bankman, an experienced doctor who thinks he knows best, but quickly learns he’ll need to lean on Avery and Tristan’s experience dealing with and caring for f

What Sophie Thatcher’s managed to accomplish in recent years, in general, is downright phenomenal. But, as someone who proudly dubs horror her #1, I can’t help but be especially excited about how Thatcher’s solidified herself as a dominant force in the genre. Soon after Yellowjackets proved Thatcher was an all-around powerhouse when it debuted in late 2021, she scored the lead role in Rob Savage’s big screen adaptation of Stephen King’s The Boogeyman, became a part of Ti West’s X trilogy via MaXXXine, and now she stars opposite Hugh Grant and Chloe East in A24’s latest release, Heretic.The wickedly sharp and chilling feature stars Thatcher and East as Sister Barnes and Sister Paxton, two young missionaries who are busy ringing doorbells in suburban Colorado. Trouble is, on this day, they ring the wrong one. When Grant’s Mr. Reed welcomes them inside, they think it’s an opportunity to get out of the rain while also telling him all about

Rosemarie DeWitt may not love watching horror movies, but she’s certainly an absolute ace when acting in them. Soon after Smile became a genre sensation in 2022, Paramount green lit a sequel. While it was abundantly clear that first-time feature filmmaker Parker Finn was a next-level creative with an exceptional eye for top-tier talent and eerie imagery, the truth of the matter is, we don’t often see sequels do the “bigger and better” thing well and with purpose. That’s not the case with Finn’s Smile 2, however.The sequel focuses on Naomi Scott’s Skye Riley, a global pop sensation who hit a rough patch courtesy of substance abuse struggles and a terrible car accident. With her mom and manager, played by DeWitt, at her back, Skye readies herself for her comeback tour. The pressure is astronomical, and her mom often reminds her of just that; she’s only getting one second chance. As though the stakes couldn’t be higher, Skye then has a downright nightmarish encounter. She witnesses someone take his own life and,

Horror films are rarely embraced on the awards circuit, but there’s no denying that Naomi Scott gives one of the very best performances of 2024 in Smile 2. After depicting an intimate and grounded nightmare in 2022’s Smile via Sosie Bacon’s Rose, a therapist, writer-director Parker Finn is putting the Smile curse on a bigger stage in the sequel. Scott headlines the new film as Skye Riley, a hugely successful pop star whose career took a downturn due to substance abuse struggles and a devastating car crash. Now, however, Skye is gearing up for a comeback tour. She’s already feeling the immense pressure to deliver while constantly being in the public eye, but then she gets an added challenge — not only must Skye make the most of her one and only chance to relaunch her career and brand, but she’s got to do so after catching the Smile curse.How exactly does one hit the point in their career when they’re enthusiastic about a hugely ambitious role that demands

“I really wanted to be the number one on the call sheet in every movie I’ve ever done. It just never went that way.”Perhaps it never went quite that way for Matthew Lillard, but his career in film, television and beyond has taken a unique turn over the years, and it’s an important one. Lillard isn’t headlining films — although I do have high hopes that will change — but he is getting supporting roles in some especially wonderful gems. Five Nights at Freddy’s, of course, was a hit for Universal and earned a sequel, and he’s also in Mike Flanagan’sThe Life of Chuck, which just scooped up the coveted People’s Choice Award at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival. Both wonderful wins in which Lillard delivers big as an actor, but a personal favorite aspect of seeing Lillard’s star soar especially high in recent years is watching how he’s used his success to foster community. Or rather, as he puts it, he’s become “the grandfather of geek culture.”I witnessed this for the first time at MegaCon 2023. I was qu