The It List: Harry Styles and Florence Pugh star in new movies, 'Killer Sally' looks at true crime case of bodybuilder Sally McNeil, new doc covers Phil Spector's career and killing of Lana Clarkson and all the best in pop culture the week of Oct. 31, 2022
The It List is Yahoo's weekly look at the best in pop culture, including movies, music, TV, streaming, games, books, podcasts and more. Here are our picks for Oct. 31-Nov. 6, including the best deals we could find for each. (Yahoo Entertainment may receive a share from purchases made via links on this page.)
STREAM/WATCH IT: Don't worry, darling — new movies from Harry Styles and Florence Pugh are out now
With Olivia Wilde's headline-grabbing movie (and wild press tour) in their rearview, Don't Worry Darling stars Harry Styles and Florence "Miss Flo" Pugh are moving on to other projects, both of which premiered at last month's Toronto International Film Festival. The British pop star gets seriously dramatic in My Policeman, playing a gay police officer in '60s-era England who gets married to schoolteacher (Emma Corrin) while also carrying on a torrid affair with a museum curator (David Dawson). Styles won cheers and applause from the crowd when he took the stage following the movie's TIFF premiere, and he thanked his co-stars for creating a friendly atmosphere on set. "In the more intense scenes, there's a lot of trust and safety there," he said. "All of that benefits form a real connection."
Pugh also travels back to the '60s — the 1860s, to be exact — in The Wonder, adapted from a novel by Room author Emma Donoghue. The Oscar-nominated actress plays a nurse who travels to a village in a remote corner of Ireland to diagnosis what could be ailing a young girl who has been on an extended fast. Unlike Don't Worry Darling, Pugh has actively been on the press trail for The Wonder. At one recent screening, she praised director Sebastián Lelio as a "thoughtful and sensitive creator." Don't worry, darlings — we're pretty sure that's not shade. — Ethan Alter
My Policeman premieres Friday, Nov. 4 on Prime Video; The Wonder premieres Wednesday, Nov. 2 in theaters and Nov. 16 on Netflix.
STREAM IT: Bodybuilding's Killer Sally tells her own story
The latest from Oscar-nominated director Nanette Burstein (1999 boxing documentary On the Ropes) is this docuseries about one of the bodybuilding world's most notorious crimes: former pro Sally McNeil's killing of her husband and fellow bodybuilder Ray McNeil, on Valentine's Day 1995. Sally argued that she shot Roy in self-defense, because he had long abused her and was, in fact, choking her in the moments before he died. The McNeils' own son says that he was also abused by Ray. "I remember how torturous it used to be to have to sit there and watch him abuse my sister and to know that I was next," he says here. However, prosecutors argued that the murder was premeditated. Over three episodes, Sally herself, along with family members and friends, tell the story of the couple's marriage, one that was more complicated than it appeared. — Raechal Shewfelt
Killer Sally premieres Wednesday, Nov. 2 on Netflix.
WATCH IT: Ghosts are real — and really spooky — in Mali Elfman's Next Exit
As the daughter of Nightmare Before Christmas maestro Danny Elfman, Mali Elfman knows a thing or two about how movies can be both spooky and funny. Her directorial debut, Next Exit, is a clever blending of the two, taking place in a world where the existence of ghosts appears to have been confirmed by science. In the midst of this seismic shift in reality, two strangers (Katie Parker and Rahul Kohli) hit the road on a cross-country trip that involves bickering, bonding and discovering their own ghosts. This exclusive clip teases what could be a scary encounter in a world where spirits really do walk among us. — E.A.
Next Exit premieres Friday, Nov. 4 in theaters and on most VOD services.
WATCH IT: The documentary Good Night Oppy takes you to Mars and back
Nearly twenty years ago, Opportunity didn't just knock... it blasted off into the space. The Mars Exploration Rover program dispatched the robotic rover — and its companion, Spirit — in 2003 on a one-way exploration mission that was only supposed to last 90 days. In 2018, "Oppy" finally shut down for good, having traversed 28 miles of red planet terrain over its fifteen-year lifespan. The rover's story is re-told in Ryan White's new documentary, Good Night Oppy, which features fresh interviews with the engineers and scientists that created it, as well as images beamed directly from Mars alongside recreations overseen by the F/X wizards at Industrial Light & Magic. This exclusive clip teases ILM's evocation of Opportunity's out of this world adventure. — E.A.
Good Night Oppy premieres Friday, Nov. 4 in theaters and Nov. 23 on Prime Video.
WATCH IT: Jillian Bell and Natalie Morales are two of our finest in I’m Totally Fine
If there’s one thing that immediately pops out about the new comedy I’m Totally Fine it’s that it’s a meeting of two of the totally most underrated actresses in the game. Jillian Bell plays a woman coping with the death of her best friend (Natalie Morales) — when said BFF turns up in her kitchen one day swigging olive oil and claiming to be an extraterrestrial. Yep, sounds super-weird, but we trust these two. Check out an exclusive clip of Bell and Morales (alongside Harvey Guillén’s Molly-peddling DJ Twisted Bristle) from the movie above. — Kevin Polowy
I’m Totally Fine opens in theaters and on demand Friday, Nov 4.
WATCH IT: Spector explores how one of the most important figures in 20th century pop music could also be a monster
Coming to Showtime this week is the 4-part docuseries Spector, which takes a look at Phil Spector and what happened on February 3, 2003 when actress Lana Clarkson was shot dead in the legendary music producer's mansion. "This guy went in the studio and created magic," an investigator says in the trailer. "We needed to know who he really is and what he's capable of."
Spector premieres Friday, Nov. 4 on Showtime.
READ IT: George R.R. Martin’s new Targaryen visual history will cure your House of the Dragon withdrawal
With Season 2 not set to debut until 2024, we House of the Dragon fans are facing a long wait to find out what happens next as the Targaryens, Hightowers and their flame-throwing pets battle for the Iron Throne. To help bide our time, George R.R. Martin is out with this eye-popping (not in the Aemond way) visual history that serves as a giant spoiler for the entire HBO prequel series. Adapted from the author’s Fire & Blood by controversial collaborators/Westeros.org curators Elio M. García Jr. and Linda Antonsson, the real draw of this encyclopedic tome is the nearly 200 illustrations depicting the fiery rule of the dragonlords from inception through civil war. — Marcus Errico
The Rise of the Dragon: An Illustrated History of the Targaryen Dynasty, Volume One is now available at Amazon and other booksellers.
STREAM IT: God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty explores the high-profile fall of Jerry Falwell Jr.
In the summer of 2020, evangelical leader Jerry Falwell Jr., president of ultra-conservative Liberty University and a friend of President Trump, was already mired in scandal, when along came Giancarlo Granda. And the Falwell dynasty was completely knocked off course. Falwell was forced to resign from the institution his father had founded a generation earlier, after Granda alleged that he and Becki Falwell had a sexual relationship for seven years, and that her husband sometimes watched them have sex. Jerry Falwell Jr. has denied the accusations, although he and his wife have both confirmed that Granda, whom they met when he was a 20-year-old pool attendant at the Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami, had a relationship with Becki. Now, Granda is, ahem, diving into the details of his story, which he also included in his newly released memoir on the subject, Off the Deep End: Jerry and Becki Falwell and the Collapse of an Evangelical Dynasty. — R.S.
God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty premieres Tuesday, Nov. 1 on Hulu.
STREAM IT: The new Weird Al biopic is stranger than… facts
Sure, all music biopics take liberties when it comes to telling rock stars’ life stories. But viewers will really have to suspend their disbelief and take everything with a mountain of salt when watching Roku’s hilarious Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, which manages to out-Spinal Tap This Is Spinal Tap and out-Dewey Cox Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. Inspired by a Funny or Die’s fake movie trailer that went viral in 2010, Weird has little in common with the comedy/accordion icon’s rather PG-rated real life. For instance, no, Al didn’t have a torrid affair with Madonna, and no, he didn’t flatline and come back to life on an emergency room operating table after swilling a bottle of whiskey and crashing his car. But an unrecognizably mustachioed, poodle-haired, Hawaiian-shirted Daniel Radcliffe is absolutely believable in the title role, and Evan Rachel Wood is such an uncanny Madonna, she ought to be cast in Madge’s future biopic. — Lyndsey Parker
Weird: The Al Yankovic story premieres Friday, Nov. 4 on the Roku Channel.
READ IT: Ghostbusters: The Official Cookbook offers recipes to satisfy even the hungriest spirits
So you've got the munchies — who ya gonna call? Put the phone down and pick up Ghostbusters: The Official Cookbook, which features a plethora of paranormally-inspired food-and-drink recipes based on the beloved franchise. Start off with a plate of Dana Barrett's deviled eggs, dive into a bowl of Slimer Salad and then wash it all down with a cider fit for a Class 5 Free-Roaming Vapor. And remember: When someone asks you if you're a chef, you say, "Yes!" — E.A.
Ghostbusters: The Official Cookbook is available now at most major booksellers, including Amazon.
WATCH IT: Top Gun: Maverick lands on 4K Ultra HD
To say Top Gun: Maverick absolutely crushed it at the box office still somehow feels like an understatement. The long-awaited sequel to Tom Cruise’s 1986 favorite took off to the tune of a staggering $714 million in the U.S. — that’s the fifth highest number of ALL TIME, just shy of James Cameron’s Avatar (and in total TGM made nearly $1.5 billion). Why? Because it was really freaking good, and really freaking entertaining. It doesn’t always work out this way, but sometimes the best movies make the most money. Now Maverick lands on 4K Ultra HD with bonus features including making-of docs, music videos and more. — K.P.
Top Gun: Maverick releases on 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray Tuesday, Nov. 1 on Amazon.
READ IT: Celebrate the 100th birthday of Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz with a new book and other events
Halloween may be short, but It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is forever. Animation cels from the classic Peanuts animated special are among the many mementos on display at California's Charles M. Schulz Museum, where the late cartoonist's work lives on. Released just in time for what would have been Schulz's 100th birthday, a handsomely-illustrated new book brings 100 of those mementos— including classic Peanuts strips and toy versions of Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus and Lucy — directly to fans along with expert commentary from curators and collaborators. For California residents, the museum also has a host of centennial events planned, ranging from a conversation with superstar children's author, Mo Willems, to a party thrown on Schulz's Nov. 26 birthday complete with birthday cake. (Visit the official site for more details.) Happiness is a warm puppy... and plenty of Peanuts. — E.A.
Charles M. Schulz: The Art and Life of the Peanuts Creator in 100 Objects is available Nov. 1 at most major booksellers, including Amazon.
READ IT: It’s Not TV plugs you in to the drama behind HBO’s greatest hits — and misfires
The Larry Sanders Show. Sex and the City. Wired. The Sopranos. Game of Thrones. Succession. Euphoria. HBO has dominated the pop culture landscape for decades with an unparalleled run of classic TV. And the stories behind the scenes are just as captivating. Veteran media reporters Felix Gillette and John Koblin go deep into the network’s 50-year history with an unfiltered account of the both the good and bad, from the creative breakthroughs to the botched deals to the HR hellscape. — M.E.
It’s Not TV: The Spectacular Rise, Revolution and Future of HBO is available Tuesday, Nov. 1 from Amazon and other booksellers.
— Video produced by Kyle Moss and edited by Jason Fitzpatrick
