Survivor 42 S42E04: Vibe of the Tribe

© CBS

‘Survivor’ sends someone out after people talk a little too much.
by Jeremy Fogelman

As we look back at a particularly chaotic episode, we ask the question: Why did Swati lose and get voted out? The simple answer is that she played a bit too hard and got noticed by another good player, mainly Romeo.

Although I think that’s true, it’s also true that it was down to a bunch of cascading dominos, one of which was Swati’s mistake -- which is telling Tori that Drea was targeting her, because she wanted to get the target on Drea instead. It’s not a terrible idea, but it relies on the premise that Tori would keep that to herself, which she didn’t -- she also managed to keep her heavy annoyance with Rocksroy to herself and the confessionals and got useful information from him while telling him about Swati’s reveal.

Going through all of these people and back and forth, it is revealed that Swati was playing the “young, shy, unassuming girl” game and telling everyone she was their number one. It’s theoretically a good game, except that she pushed too hard, too early -- if she had simply allowed Rocks or Tori to get voted out (as they were the easy targets) I think she could’ve lasted much longer in the game. Or even to the end, as that was sort of how Erika won Season 41.

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So we say goodbye to a smart, pretty decent player, but one that was a little too careless with her plans. It’s a shame that we’ve lost two interesting people these last two weeks that weren’t simply screwing things up, but at least Swati is more the author of her own demise -- makes a better tale if she ever returns.

As for Tori, I was a bit concerned about her mentioning her therapy work and that Rocks was acting like a narcissist -- if she’s saying he has a narcissistic personality disorder, that’s pretty specific and unreasonable. If not, she’s being irresponsible from a professional perspective -- but then again, I can see how she might simply have been trying to simply add color to her confessional by making it personal about her unique perspective.

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As for the other tribes, we get a little bit with Taku with a weirdly troubling backstory from Jonathan but also some acknowledgement that he is aware he is a physical shield for others on his tribe. I wonder how things will blow up when it becomes a liability to keep him around -- I mean the dude is called “Goliath” and “Thor” by people on the other tribes after helping Taku dominate two challenges in a row.

Otherwise we have another “obvious tribe loss” edit situation here, where we focus nearly entirely on the tribe that’s going to lose. Although it’s useful to get information about what’s going on, I feel like it’s an easy pattern to notice, so I hope the show shakes things up as we move forward. Can Taku even lose at this point? A tribe swap is likely inevitable, considering that only Taku hasn’t lost anyone.

As for our friends back on Vati, Daniel acknowledges to us that both he messed up and Chanelle is refusing to admit her role in things. Both true, of course, but because of Daniel’s frenetic behavior last time, people are clearly less interested in listening to him -- we do see Mike agree to switch to Hai and Lydia instead, which certainly does not bode well for Daniel.

Altogether a messy but entertaining episode -- I prefer watching people lose because they’re playing too hard then by twists and circumstances, so I can’t be mad about that, even if I’ll miss another interesting player.

Next time on Survivor, more fights and more potential problems.

Survivor 42 S42E03: Go For The Gusto

© CBS

Survivor showcases a great physical performance and a lot of terrible strategic ones.
by Jeremy Fogelman

It was a ridiculous series of unforced errors that answered the perennial question: Why did Jenny lose and get voted out? Unfortunately despite clearly being smart and good at  puzzles (she certainly helped with that triangle one), both she and Lydia were on the “not strong” part of the targets. But it was also about a very specific split team and a mistake made in multiple places.

I don’t really think Jenny made a particular mistake, at least that we saw, so instead we need to look at the bizarre situation where she was betrayed by an ally.

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After Jonathan absolutely destroyed the challenge, Omar and Chanelle get sent to the risk your vote island -- and both give excellent, correct reasons to protect their vote -- and then both switch at the last minute and lose it! Chanelle should’ve realized how precarious her position was and protected herself -- that would’ve been enough to protect her alliance.

As for noted superfan and paranoid Daniel, he had quite a few “epic fails” -- he dropped Mike’s idol for one, and spiraled out of control when it came down to the unprecedented “two votes left” situation at the tribal council. Hai immediately had a stronger position since Daniel was saying he didn’t want to go to rocks -- but if he had a stronger reason other than uncertainty, we didn’t hear it.

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Daniel kept throwing Chanelle under the bus to make himself seem less of a strategic thinker, which she correctly pointed out -- and of course, he eventually backed down and voted out Jenny. So Daniel leaves this episode in a pretty bad social position, and poor Jenny is the victim -- although if Chanelle had not lost her vote, likely Lydia would’ve been voted out instead.

Most of the episode focused on these strategic choices, but we did see Maryanne find the second of the threeway shared advantage and pretty cleverly drop her odd phrase at the immunity challenge. Mike noticed but didn’t say anything (smartly), as the third one hadn’t yet been found. And of course, it was highly impressive to watch Jonathan manage physical feats no one else could manage, and acted fairly humbly afterwards about it -- he’s an interesting player so far, certainly. Not the cliché of the physical dude who brags about his prowess.

So two firsts for the episode, one that was Jeff skipping half a challenge due to safety reasons and the other where it was literally down to two people with votes. But that made the episode both exciting and frustrating, because I don’t really like watching people make errors when they shouldn’t have to -- everyone makes mistakes, especially as the game continues and people get hungrier.

But at this early stage of the game, it’s less enjoyable and forgivable. Still, there are plenty of interesting players left in the game, even if it’s likely Vati may be permanently damaged. Curious to see how these people will act after this terrible situation.

Next time on Survivor, even more arguments seem to arise.

Survivor 42 S42E02: Good and Guilty

© CBS

Survivor  humanizes our cast further to really make sure we hurt more when they get voted out.
by Jeremy Fogelman

This week on Survivor, we ask the question of questions: Why did Marya lose and get voted out?

As per usual in this early part of the game, people are looking for any port in a storm and any weak link to vote out. On the previous losing tribe Ika, things go back and forth a lot as they consider who to target -- at first Drea confirms an alliance with Rocksroy and Romeo, but then mentions her extra vote to Tori and Swati for a ladies’ alliance, and then the latter notes that Drea is charismatic and possesses power in the game -- so she turns the potential vote, Tori, who figured she was already doomed.

So on Taku, Marya unfortunately fell under the umbrella of “not great at challenges” even if she didn’t specifically screw anything up. Jonathan and Lindsay are both highly athletic, while Omar and Daniel are both reasonably strong and have very tight relationships with Jonathan. Omar connected to his tribe by disclosing his Muslim faith and he seemed to be a firm “easy ally”. So we hear Jonathan as the main point of narration, discussing his JT/Stephen style alliance with Omar, but also how well he connects with everyone else.

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And the only one he isn’t really connected to is Marya, and the only positive vote in her direction is from Omar, who does say he trusts Marya more than Maryanne -- but thinks Maryanne has the drive to keep the tribe in a successful direction. Since this is only the first loss for their tribe, it’s not like it’s a losing streak they have to be particularly concerned about, just reversing a bad trend.

So ultimately although Maryanne was clearly annoying people to some extent, she was also entertaining them -- a pretty vital part of the isolated and often boring island life. Maryanne was also a pretty funny part of the episode as they was a lot of discussion about her “love life” and her crush on recently exited Zach. So Marya was not great in challenges and not solid enough socially, despite opening up about her tragic backstory -- so that became an unfortunately easy vote, and with Maryanne’s extra vote, a sure thing.

As for the other tribes, there’s only a bit from Romeo and his strategic mind, planning on voting Tori out in the future -- but Vati is a different story. We get a lot from everyone, Jenny narrates finding hermit crabs, Channelle discusses becoming a provider, and Hai goes through a more difficult time feeling guilty about eating meat (giving us the episode title of “Good and Guilty”).

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The funniest part though is the little adventure with Mike, who has found the pretty fun three way phrase challenge idol that was introduced last season. He discloses the idol to his top ally Jenny, but also to Daniel to create more of a bond -- except that Mike initially forgets where he buried the advantage, leading to Daniel being unable to hold back laughter.

It’s a lot of great setup for the rest of the season, and I hope to see the other two phrases unveiled too. It’s a legitimately great cast so far, with no duds I can think of -- maybe I’m not specifically rooting for everyone, but I have too many possible winners to narrow it down. That’s definitely a great sign for the season. No terrible twists so far either.

Next time on Survivor, Maryanne got bait and switched, Mike’s idol is missing, something is done that has never done before, which sounds ominous.

Survivor 42 S42E01: Feels Like a Rollercoaster

© CBS

Survivor 42 starts off a new season with a new cast of delightful weirdos to cheer for.
by Jeremy Fogelman

As the sun rises on a new season of Survivor, we get our first glimpse of the ragtag set of players that are striving for that big prize. As per usual with most recent seasons, it’s quite a diverse cast of characters, with a common thread that many of these people are fans and sometimes superfans. And so we start with the ending, which is the simple question of:

Why did Zach lose?

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As per usual, the first few episodes are tricky in terms of getting voted out, because even the smallest of grievances can easily explode in your face to make you an easy target, because everyone is looking for easy targets at the start. So although Zach successfully connected with Romeo, and to a lesser extent, with fellow youngsters Swati and Tori, none of those three were willing to rock the boat enough to try and change the vote.

And Tori was already willing to point fingers, so that wasn’t so difficult -- Romeo had his “older folks” alliance with Rocksroy and Drea, Drea had to be dissuaded from her quest against Rocksroy (who himself was a bit of that annoying “leader” type), and Swati explicitly targeted Zach. Zach didn’t make things any easier with his exhausted immunity performance, where he seemed to be “giving up” (although it’s likely he was just unable to move much) and couldn’t defeat the puzzle as fast as the other two teams.

So adios to our skinny boy superfan Zach, who is representative of one particular type of superfan, but at least he was clearly just glad for the experience. Similarly we get pleasant vibes from Jackson, who shares his own fascinating backstory about reconnecting with his anti-trans father over his mother’s passing, and Maryanne, who is so immediately excited that Jeff Probst does need to point it out.

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Unfortunately Jackson does get medically evacuated because of a recently disclosed lithium withdrawal issue, leaving his tribe mates Lindsay and Maryanne in tears (with the latter literally crying out loud). As for Maryanne, she’s a self-acknowledged “weirdo” with a clear emotional connection to everyone -- for her it could go either very well or very poorly.

In terms of the rest of the gang, we get a little from everyone here and there. Of note are a few people that give some narration for us. Omar gives us some color, talking about being a secret predator, and Jenny saves her tribe from getting their triangle challenge wrong. Superfan Daniel dislocates his shoulder but continues to “shoulder” through the challenge and seems to be getting along swimmingly with his tribe. And others get little moments to shine too.

In terms of the twists, we get the classic “risk or protect your vote” idea which had mixed results last season, and a revamped 'Sweaty vs Savvy' that heavily pushed players towards the puzzle (which they both got -- 51 triangles exactly!). The dice roll for your life still hasn’t done much except ensure Zach’s departure, so that’s also a bit of a question mark for now. All well and good but the new twist, the shared amulet trap, now that’s a fascinating twist -- there are really so many possible ways that can go. I think it’s one of the better ones in a while.

All in all, a pretty fun new cast and an entertaining episode -- I can see that some players will immediately become divisive and others favorites, but I’m not hitching my wagon to anyone yet. I know how that one goes. But it’s great to see more Survivor with people that really want to play and win.

Next time on Survivor, here’s Maryanne, Tori wants Drea out, and David wants Mike out?

HOTCHKA Movie Review: Fresh

© Searchlight Pictures

Fresh is a gruesome metaphor for dating that tips entirely in a disturbing way
by Jeremy Fogelman

Cast: Daisy Edgar-Jones, Sebastian Stan, Jojo T. Gibbs, Andrea Bang, Dayo Okeniyi, Charlotte Le Bon
Rating: ★★

Body horror is a particularly complicated thing to review, because it has that odd note that strikes some people as disgusting to the point of being unable to watch further, but others as a radical, daring take that pushes the envelope in positive, artful ways. In the realm of horror movies, it can be a crutch to make things worse when there’s an iffy script, so the real challenge is how to balance it effectively with the underlying message.

Fresh comes from director Mimi Cave and writer Lauryn Kahn, in Cave’s first feature film. Here we follow city gal Noa (Daisy Edgar-Jones), who is suffering from terrible online date after online date, with all manner of typical microaggressions and problematic behaviors along the way. She confides her frustration to her black best friend Mollie (Jojo T. Gibbes), who ends up having a decent storyline in the film.

After it seems like nothing will work, Noa is randomly approached by a handsome stranger in the grocery store, a man named Steve (Sebastian Stan) -- and his lines aren’t the worst, even if being approached like this in public is rarely, if ever, appreciated. Noa is charmed despite herself, falling into a quick, whirlwind romance with the mysterious Steve, and it’s all very rom-com for the first thirty minutes or so, but this is a mirage.

Steve convinces Noa to come away with him for a weekend at his remote fancy cabin, far away from the boring old things like good or working cell phone service. The creepy vibes rise and rise until we’re simply in an actual horror movie, one that is absolutely disgusting and troublesome. The specifics may be easy to guess (the marketing of the film makes it pretty easy to figure out, and I certainly got it without much help), but then we’re in the “how do we get out of this?” part of the movie.

Noa is imprisoned for unsavory reasons in the cabin, with only another girl through the wall for company (Andrea Bang), while back home Mollie is suspicious and tries to figure out what’s going on with her friend. Noa decides to try a new charm offensive, and maybe convince Steve (or whatever his real name is) that he could spare her long enough to escape or something else.

© Searchlight Pictures

The movie delves lightly into body horror, sparing us from the truly gruesome moments by use of related or metaphorical imagery, with an underlying message about the nature of terrible dates for women -- that is ultimately the point of it all, underneath the bizarre trappings. The two lead performances are quite good, with Daisy Edgar-Jones able to show all of the emotions between lies and truth in the midst of her terror.

Sebastian Stan is also really good, starting in a more family friendly charming mode before shifting into a more off-putting, deranged manner with ease (reminds me more of his roles in I, Tonya or Pam & Tommy). The other side roles aren’t quite as interestingly written, but at least they provide a bit more than the standard horror movie cliches.

As a horror movie it isn’t that bloody, but it’s particularly wince-inducing at times, so it’s best to consider it as one -- as a horror/thriller though, it’s an interesting one, even if it does get a bit long in the tooth at times. I feel like it will hit a lot of people pretty hard, in the right sorts of ways.

Fresh has a run time of 1 hour 54 minutes and is rated R for strong and disturbing violent content, some bloody images, language throughout, some sexual content and brief graphic nudity. Fresh is streaming exclusively on Hulu.

HOTCHKA Movie Review: Bite Me

© Adventure Kid/Blue Firefly Films

Bite Me attempts to combine a rom-com with an unsubtle metaphor
by Jeremy Fogelman

Cast: Naomi McDougall Jones, Christian Coulson, Naomi Grossman, Annie Golden
Rating: ★

It’s funny that I was recently thinking about how common rom-com movies are without any originality when this movie comes along, which is theoretically very original -- even if the underlying unoriginal concept is simply a “two different types attract” tale that happens to be about a very odd, based on the real world, concept.

Bite Me comes from director Meredith Edwards and writer Naomi McDougall Jones, who also stars in the movie as Sarah, a so-called “real life vampire”. These unusual folk are not supernatural nor do they claim to be, they are based on a real set of people who believe that they require regular blood drinking to maintain their “energy” or similar concepts that are not medically validated.

Sarah is a particularly strident, self-assured version of this sort, but her annoyances really come out when fellow local vampire Stacz (Antino Crowley-Kamenwati) outs himself on a reality show about “freaks”. Suddenly everyone is staring at Sarah as she walks down the street as a “freak” although I don't know how they’d know -- her green hair? Her tribal tattoo on her face? None of those things mean “vampire”, but part of the problem that this movie has is an issue with its metaphor.

We run into some other vamps, including also annoying Chrissy (Naomi Grossman) and hijab-wearing Lily (Mahira Kakkar), who all commiserate how absolutely hard it is to be vampires with their questionable “medical” condition. Lily talks about how it’s unfair not to treat her as a Muslim simply because she’s a vampire, even though it is absolutely not permitted -- a blood infusion, that’s a different matter, but all these people are feeding off of each other because it’s all about “energy”.

© Adventure Kid/Blue Firefly Films

This is all well and good (if internally inconsistent in its logic) but the real story comes when the IRS has decided to audit their “church” because, well, it’s not a real religious organization! And nothing the movie manages is able to convince otherwise, not the tiny amount of congregants (fewer than twenty) or the fact that they claim it’s a medical condition and not a religion (Lily claims to be a Muslim, after all).

Sparks of a sort fly when Sarah meets IRS agent James (Christian Coulson), a sort of charming British dude, who is legitimately intrigued by Sarah and her bizarre lifestyle. The two start a sort of odd "will they won’t they" of a kind, which is pushed back by her vampy friends that claim that a “mundane” (eye roll) and a vampire can never be a couple. James has a kind of nerdy, pleasant energy, and Sarah eventually becomes a bit more layered and considered.

Ultimately it all comes to a stupendously stupid confrontation where they seem to simply be saying, hey, we’re all freaks one way or another, aren’t we? So why judge? Well, I don’t judge the vampires’ fake psychosomatic condition nor their ill-considered fake religion because they don’t seem to be hurting anyone. And I worry that their metaphor might be so broad as to be considered offensive in some ways.

My issues with the story and metaphor aside, the movie is competently made -- there is an indie feeling to some of the acting, some of which are so over the top as to be parodic, or so muted as to feel forgettable. But from a visual and editing perspective, it isn’t poorly made -- it’s really the underlying odd story that I really doubt anyone will truly enjoy.

Bite Me has a run time of 1 hour 23 minutes and is not rated.

HOTHCKA Movie Review: The Contrast

© Mill Creek Entertainment

The Contrast has big aspirations but has trouble reaching any of them
by Jeremy Fogelman

Cast: Joy Villa, Lee Donoghue, Jermain Hollman, Deanna Rashell
Rating: ★

Adapting old stories is always a bit of a big swing, regardless of who is swinging and what they are swinging at. If the story is well known, it likely has been adapted many times prior and perhaps with beloved examples. If it’s an unknown or obscure tale, there’s pressure on the adapting creative to tell the tale properly while still understanding that current social mores and morality may have rendered the original version unplayable now. It’s a tough tightrope to walk, even more so if you don’t realize the tightrope is there at all.

The Contrast comes from writer Chris Johnson and directors Sean Dube and Presley Paras, based on a play by the same name by Royall Tyler from 1787. When I saw this movie I didn’t realize it was based on a play. If I had I would’ve understood some of the decisions better, which I’ll get to. We follow primarily Maria (Joy Villa) as she’s headed to a little B&B in the middle of the countryside for her small wedding. Her intended husband is odd hipster Dimple (Lee Donoghue) and indeed that name is from the original play -- although it’s his last name so I don’t know why the movie changed that.

Maria has arrived with her two friends, Charlee (Deanna Rashell), who is one of those “flirty” girls, and Jenny (Thanh Ta), who is one of those “snarky” girls. Maria is not particularly enthused about marrying Dimple, mainly doing it because he has money and her dad (Lance E. Nichols) wants it that way -- this is a weird angle that’s never fully explained, because it’s attempting to adapt the play where Maria was required to marry as her father asks.

Things get shaken up when Charlee’s brother Colonel Henry Manly (Jermain Hollman) arrives, and yes, that is also his name in the original play as well -- it feels like a joke here but doesn’t really play like one. Instantly Maria and Henry are far more attracted to each other than Maria was with her fiance, while romantic entanglements arise between everyone else in what are sometimes interesting ways.

At the same time, Dimple is actually having money problems and is dealing with the mysterious Mr. Hazard (director Sean Dube), who is putting on a questionable British accent -- and he also derides Dimple’s attempt at an even worse one, which feels like the director didn’t realize his accent wasn’t particularly amazing either.

© Mill Creek Entertainment

Otherwise the movie adapts the play in a sort of general way, using a similar set of characters but modernizes their situation -- even if the two main pieces (why the old relationship lasted so long and why Henry and Maria are so into each other so suddenly) aren’t really modernized so effectively. The writing is really just okay, sometimes decent, sometimes cringey.

From an acting perspective, it’s a bit of a mixed bag -- they are hampered by the material but some performances manage to squeak by (mainly Maria’s friends) and become at least a little entertaining. Unfortunately it’s also a bit of a flat movie visually, not really getting into any dynamic visual language -- although this is an indie movie, I always tend to respect an indie that tries hard and fails then one that is taking a more easy approach and is technically competent.

I can’t say I hated the movie or anything so severe, and I tend to cut indie movies more slack as they don’t have the budget for a lot -- and filming in the pandemic makes things harder still. But unfortunately I can’t really see anyone that would really enjoy this one, not even any fans of the original play, which may only be relevant because of its history as the first professionally produced play in the US -- although I wonder how many theater fans even know that.

The Contrast has a run time of 1 hour 22 minutes and is not rated.

HOTCHKA Movie Review: No Exit

© 20th Century Studios

No Exit is a simple horror film with plenty of twists
by Justin Moore

Cast: Havana Rose Liu, Danny Ramirez, David Rysdahl, Mila Harris, Dennis Haysbert
Rating: ★★

Damien Power’s new film, No Exit, hit Hulu this weekend. The film was supposed to be released in theaters, but Disney decided to pull the film after the Fox merger. Disney’s decision was a smart move as it certainly feels like a film fit for a streaming service.

Darby (Havana Rose Liu) is stuck in rehab and wants nothing to do with her therapy sessions. She gets a call about her mother, who suffered from a brain aneurysm, and decides to hot wire a nurse’s car and head to her mother. She gets caught up in a snowstorm and is forced to stop at a remote rest stop with four strangers and no cell phone service. Darby discovers a young girl tied up in a van and must determine the identify of the kidnapper to save the girl’s life.

No Exit is adapted from the 2017 novel by Taylor Adams but feels like a story that would be released in 2006. The mid 2000s had plenty of solid horror films that felt simple and isolated. They weren’t relying on supernatural elements to further their story. I appreciated the more simpler horror films that the mid 2000s offered and that’s probably why I enjoyed No Exit so much.

© 20th Century Studios

No Exit comes with plenty of twists that kept me engaged with the film. With having not read the story, it was thrilling to see how the characters interacted with each other. With its quick pace, the characters hardly had any time to grow but there was enough mystery surrounding the characters to where I started forming my own theories about the situation. The film does an excellent job creating a tense atmosphere that allows for every character that Darby meets at the rest stop feel like the main suspect. The most trustworthy characters were Sandi (Dale Dickey), a retired nurse, and Ed (Dennis Haysbert), a former Marine. Even though they were the characters that most likely weren’t the kidnappers, the film manages to still give you moments to make you think otherwise. Liu serves as the final girl in the film and handles the role well. She is a complex character who uses her drug addiction as a way to fight in the final showdown.

Twists and turns come early in the film, which did worry me a bit, but luckily there were more surprises down the road. After a few different twists, the film started to lose its touch and the reveals were less exciting. Some moments were surprising but there were some that were painfully predictable. The film offered one too many twists but by the end of it all, it worked for what it was.

It’s a simple horror that manages to create a tense atmosphere with limited number of characters and nowhere for them to go. It’s not reinventing the wheels but uses its limited setting to deliver thrills and chills. It's worth a watch for its simplicity, its quick pace, and its familiarity. If you’re looking for a suspenseful film that won’t require much attention, No Exit is worth your time.

Marvel Live-Action Series And Updated Parental Controls In The U.S. Coming To Disney+ On March 16

Fan-Favorite Titles include “Daredevil,” “Jessica Jones,” “Luke Cage”, “Iron Fist,” “The Defenders,” “The Punisher,” and “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.,” Giving Fans Access to More from the Marvel Collection, All in One Place

 

All U.S. Subscribers will be Prompted to Set Parental Controls Using Enhanced Content Ratings and PIN Protection

 

On March 16, Disney+ will add more Marvel live-action series titles to its expansive content offering in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand with the addition of “Daredevil,” “Jessica Jones,” “Luke Cage,” “Iron Fist,” “The Defenders,” and “The Punisher,” plus “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” in the U.S., giving fans access to more from the Marvel collection, all in one place. With the addition of these titles, Disney+ will concurrently release an update to its Parental Controls in the U.S. that will prompt all subscribers to update their settings.

“Disney+ has served as the home for some of the most beloved brands in the industry, and the addition of these live-action shows brings more from the Marvel brand together, all in one place,” said Michael Paull, President of Disney Streaming. “We have experienced great success with an expanded content offering on Disney+ across our global markets and are excited to continue that here in the U.S. as well by offering our consumers not only great content with the new Marvel additions, but also a set of features that help ensure a viewing experience most suitable for them and their family.”

These Marvel series will also be available across all other Disney+ markets later this year.

Marvel on Disney+
The dedicated Marvel brand page on Disney+ already serves as home to the largest Marvel collection with hundreds of hours of movies and shows. This includes the Marvel Studios movies from the Marvel Cinematic Universe such as “Avengers: Endgame” and “Black Panther” as well as other Marvel movie franchises like “X-Men”; Disney+ Original series like “WandaVision,” “The Falcon and The Winter Soldier,” “Loki,” and “Hawkeye”; animated series, including the Disney+ Original series from Marvel Studios, “What If…?”; specials and shorts, and documentaries that go behind the scenes like “Marvel Studios Assembled.”

Updates to Parental Controls in the U.S.
When opening Disney+ for the first time on or after March 16, all subscribers in the U.S. will be prompted to update their Parental Controls. This includes the option to select content ratings restrictions for each profile as well as to add a PIN to lock profiles. Those that choose to keep their settings the same will continue to enjoy Disney+ as they always have within a TV-14 content rating environment, with the option to make changes at any time under Profile settings.