EXPLORER

THIS MOTTH

WELL, THIS IS a big one. In fact,

TALK TO US

COMMENT TO THE MONTH

No./1 Hang on tight for Star Wars’ grittiest adventure yet

Telling a five-year story across 24 episodes, ANDOR will delve into the franchise’s legacy like never before

No./2 How Ahsoka is launching a new wave of Rebels

ROSARIO DAWSON and more tell us what to expect in their live-action spin-off

No./3 Where Star Wars goes next…

Expect fresh stories and familiar faces from the upcoming slate of adventures

No./4 RETURN OF THE FRIK

Babu Frik (or at least, his Anzellan species) will return in The Mandalorian Season 3. Here’s why we’re Frikkin’ excited

No./5 “Emily is sad and dark. Barbie is funny and silly and pink”

[ THE Q&A ] From the school corridors of Sex Education to Parisian biopics and Hollywood comedies, EMMA MACKEY is making waves

No./6 Why Bradley Cooper was destined to make Maestro

The actor-director’s Leonard Bernstein biopic is the perfect showcase for his sensibilities

No./7 OFF-BRAND ICONS

These warped movie riffs on classic, much-loved figures are the stuff of chaos and nightmares

Black Adam

Unfiltered, uncensored, uncompromising trailer reactions from team EMPIRE

No./8 NEXT IN THE SERIES

You fell in love with that incredible new TV show. And then it ended! Don’t despair — Boyd Hilton recommends the sibling shows to watch next

No./9 Joker Face

With rumours of Lady Gaga playing Harley Quinn in a musical Joker sequel, we compile a list of the pop star’s suitable megahits

No./10 She-Hulk is ready for her close-up

TATIANA MASLANY on stepping up as Marvel’s brainy, brawny new addition

No./11 “Ray was just fucking magnetic”

Joe Carnahan remembers his longstanding collaborator and friend, the late  RAY LIOTTA

No./12 How Totoro made his stage debut

Director Phelim McDermott on the daunting challenge of adapting My Neighbour Totoro for the theatre

No./13 Inside Henry Selick’s demonic return

The stop-motion master is back with WENDELL & WILD, with help from Jordan Peele

No./14 The stories breaking motherhood taboos

A group of rising fiction-makers are using horror to present unexpected tales of the expecting

No./15 Wholesome fantasy is back!

Willow sees Warwick Davis return for family-friendly, wizardy fun

No./16 The Gen Z fable with a killer edge

BODIES BODIES BODIES puts a fresh spin on the slasher film

Ben Ashenden & Alexander Owen

THE BRITISH COMEDY DUO THE PIN STEAL SCENES AS TYLER AND ANGUS IN JURASSIC WORLD DOMINION

No./17 Jon Snow’s next chapter

The brooding Game Of Thrones character is getting his own sequel series. Here’s what he could get up to

No./18 How to teach an old monster new tricks

Director Dan Trachtenberg is breaking new ground with his Predator companion film, PREY

No./19 The art of creating dark and devious characters

THE FORGIVEN showcases John Michael McDonagh’s flair for shady personalities

No./20 TOM CRUISE TAKE TWO

AS TOP GUN: MAVERICK CONTINUES TO

BLACK IN FOCUS

AMON WARMANN chews over the main moment in Black film and TV this month

PINT OF MILK

JOHN CHO When in your life were you

LIGHTYEAR

★★★★★ EXCELLENT ★★★★ GOOD ★★★ OKAY ★★ POOR

JURASSIC WORLD DOMINION

Clockwise from main: Mosasaurus attack; Dino danger; Isabella

HUSTLE

★★★ OUT NOW (NETFLIX) / CERT 15 /

THE GOOD BOSS

Gutter credit ★★★ OUT 15 JULY / CERT

MINIONS: THE RISE OF GRU

“I am pretty despicable…” Young Gru (voiced by

THE RAILWAY CHILDREN RETURN

★★★ OUT 15 JULY / CERT PG /

HIT THE ROAD

Taking a trip: Rayan Sarlak as the little

THE DEER KING

★★★★ OUT 27 JULY / CERT 15 /

KURT VONNEGUT: UNSTUCK IN TIME

Gutter credit ★★★★ OUT 22 JULY / CERT

THE PRINCESS

★★ OUT NOW / CERT 12A / 106

ITHAKA

★★★ OUT 8 JULY / CERT TBC /

SHE WILL

★★★★ OUT 22 JULY / CERT 15 /

DON’T MAKE ME GO

★★★ OUT 15 JULY (PRIME VIDEO) / CERT

SPIDERHEAD

En route to Spiderhead, about as pleasant a

DONNA

★★★★ OUT 15 JULY / CERT TBC /

McENROE

★★★ OUT 15 JULY / CERT TBC /

WESTWORLD: SEASON 4

Back in black: Ed Harris. Top to bottom:

MS. MARVEL

Clockwise from main: Iman Vellani as Kamala Khan/Ms.

OBI-WAN KENOBI

Lightsabers at dawn: Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) and

STAR TREK: STRANGE NEW WORLDS

“I like what you’ve done with the place”:

THE OFFER

★★ OUT NOW (PARAMOUNT+) EPISODES VIEWED 10 OF

THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH

★★★ OUT NOW (PARAMOUNT+) EPISODES VIEWED 3 OF

WE OWN THIS CITY

Police and thieves: Jon Bernthal as Sergeant Wayne

GOING DEEPER

PRAISE EYWA! THIRTEEN YEARS AGO, JAMES CAMERON GAVE US THE BIGGEST MOVIE OF ALL TIME. NOW, AS WE RETURN TO PANDORA WITH AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER, HE EXPLAINS WHY HE’S QUADRUPLING DOWN — AND HOW HE’S SET TO CHANGE CINEMA ALL OVER AGAIN

AVATAR: THE NEXT GENERATION

MEET PANDORA’S BRIGHT YOUNG THINGS

FLUID DYNAMICS

JAMES CAMERON HAS ALWAYS HAD A WAY WITH WATER

PUPPET MASTER

After the one-two sucker punch of Get Out and Us, Jordan Peele is back to terrify us with UFO thriller NOPE. He tells us why he keeps flipping horror on its head

GOD OF FUN

Think Thor: Ragnarok was nuts? Well, THOR: LOVEANDTHUNDER — flying goats and all — may well out-nut it. Yet, as director Taika Waititi and his cast tell us, this one wants to make you cry, too. Let the cosmic romcom commence

SCENE OF THE CRIME

NEARLY 30 YEARS AFTER UNLEASHING HIS EPIC CRIME DRAMA HEAT, DIRECTOR MICHAEL MANN IS BACK WITH A SEQUEL - IN B0OK FORM. HE TELLS US WHY THESE CHARACTERS ARE A LIFELONG OBSESSION... AND WHY NOT EVEN DEATH CAN REEP THEM DOWN

LIVING THE DREAM

AFTER THREE DECADES OF FAILED ATTEMPTS, NEIL GAIMAN’S SEEMINGLY UNFILMABLE FANTASY-EPIC SAGA THE SANDMAN IS FINALLY MATERIALISING ON OUR SCREENS. EMPIRE REVEALS HOW IT BECAME A REALITY

BACK IN BUSINESS

DECADES AGO, TWO NOBODIES CALLED ROGER AVARY AND QUENTIN TARANTINO WORKED AT VIDEO ARCHIVES, A VHS EMPORIUM IN LA’S MANHATTAN BEACH. NOW, AS DEFINITE SOMEBODIES, THE OLD FRIENDS WITH A NEW PODCAST REUNITE TO TELL EMPIRE HOW THEY’RE REKINDLING THOSE MAGNETIC-TAPE GLORY DAYS

GODS AMONG US

In our regular series, we pay tribute to the towering, mega-watt stars who still roam Hollywood

Get Back

As GET CARTER is reissued in 4K, writer-director Mike Hodges reflects on the making of a British crime classic

THE VIEWING GUIDE

A deep dive into the must-see moments from the month’s big release

The Magnificent Ambersons

We reassess the greatest films of all time, one film at a time

WELLES, WELLES, WELLES

NO FILM DIRECTOR HAS BEEN PORTRAYED ON SCREEN

In the pink

John Waters on PINK FLAMINGOS’ slow climb from cult controversy to classic status

MOVIE PLAYLIST

THE CRITIC AND SCALA RADIO PRESENTER CHOOSES SCORES HE’S BEEN PLAYING ON HIS WEEKLY SHOW

Planet Of The Apes films

Four Empire writers. Nine movies. Ordered definitively

THE TOP NINE

= 1 WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE

THE CULT OF KIM NEWMAN

The critic and novelist selects the month’s weirdest home-ent releases

The Brody Bunch

Oscar-winning actor — and now writer — ADRIEN BRODY on the standout roles of his career

Throne Of Blood

How iconic images came to life

6 OF THE BEST

Team Empire on the month’s essential movies

CROSSWORD AND COMPETITION

Mad Max 2

Standout sequences from the great movies