Entertainment NOW

2 October 22 - 28, 2023 | Entertainment Now By Sarah Passingham TV Media T he end of the trail has just be- gun for some apocalypse sur- vivors in the return of the final season of "Fear the Walking Dead." The "Walking Dead" spi- noff series' midseason premiere airs on AMC Sunday, Oct. 22, just in time for an early celebration of the eeriest holiday of the year. Kim Dickens ("Friday Night Lights") stars as Madison Clark, a high school guidance counsellor before the outbreak who now oversees the reconstruction of a survivors' island colony. "Fear the Walking Dead" closes out an impressive eight-season run with six episodes to go before the big, two-part series finale set to air Sunday, Nov. 19. The first of now six spinoffs of the original se- ries, "Fear the Walking Dead" pre- miered in 2015 and followed an extended family as they tried to survive in post-apocalyptic Los An- geles. The series detailed the survi- vors' journey as they traveled in California, Mexico and now an is- land off the Georgia coast. The island, known as PADRE, was constructed after the walker outbreak as a military operation intended to distribute supplies to new communities of survivors. A tragic walker invasion decimated PADRE, and since then, desperate survivors have used the island's re- sources that once represented a more hopeful future. In the first half of the final sea- son of "Fear the Walking Dead," Madison landed on PADRE after a hard-fought journey to find the is- land with Morgan Jones (Lennie James, "Save Me"). The pair re- united Morgan with his daughter, Mo (Zoey Merchant, "The Price of Fame"), by force at PADRE before the show leaps seven years into the future. Madison is imprisoned on PADRE, while Morgan spends most of the first six episodes of the season on his own mission — trying to save Grace Mukherjee (Karen David, "Legacies") from radiation sickness before sadly losing her and setting off to Alex- andria. With the dangerous former co- leaders of PADRE no longer a problem, Madison attempts to re- invigorate the spirit of PADRE and the island with the remaining re- sources available to them. While the final episodes of "Fear the Walking Dead" could certainly de- tail the establishment of a post- apocalyptic paradise, this is the Walking Dead universe after all, so there will undoubtedly be danger lurking in the shadows of PA- DRE. This season also stars Rubén Blades ("The Counselor," 2013) as re- sistance leader Daniel Salazar; Colman Do- mingo ("Sing Sing," 2023) as antihero Victor Strand; Dan- ay Garcia ("Prison Break") as survi- vor Luciana Galvez; Austin Amelio ("Hit Man," 2023) as PA- DRE member Dwight; Christine Evangelista ("Mrs. Fletch- er") as Dwight's wife, Sherry; Jenna Elfman ("The Twilight Zone") as nurse June Do- rie, who is on the run from PADRE; and one former cast member whose appearance in a trailer for the upcoming return of the series may have come as a surprise to "Fear the Walking Dead" fans. Daniel Sharman ("A Town Called Malice") returns as Troy Otto, a member of the Broke Jaw Ranch community who last ap- peared in the third season of "Fear the Walking Dead." It seemed un- likely that Troy would make any sort of comeback after he was bludgeoned, but leave it to the Walking Dead universe to bring someone back from the dead. In an official trailer for the upcoming season, Troy spits, "Madison, been a while," before removing his sun- glasses, revealing his chilling new appearance. Though one icy-white iris doesn't seem too bad for hav- ing survived a hammer attack. After the original series, "The Walking Dead," concluded its run after 11 seasons in 2022, two ex- citing new series entered the franchise. "The Walking Dead" re- ally made use of its filming loca- tions in Georgia, but these two spinoffs took the stories of survi- vors far, far away from the Peach State. "The Walking Dead: Dead City" plants Maggie (Lauren Co- han, "Whiskey Cavalier") and Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan, "The Good Wife") in Manhattan as they search for her son while Marshal Perlie Armstrong (Gaius Charles, "Friday Night Lights") is on Negan's tail. "Dead City" premiered this June and was renewed for a sec- ond season by AMC, along with the second new 2023 addition to the Walking Dead universe. "The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon" fol- lows Daryl (Norman Reedus, "The Bikeriders," 2023) after he finds himself on the shores of France with no memory of exactly how he got there. AMC promoted the se- ries alongside the travel docuse- ries "Ride With Norman Reedus" airing immediately after the post- apocalyptic drama as "A Night With Norman." Daryl is a fan fa- vorite in the Walking Dead fran- chise, having starred in nearly ev- ery single one of the original se- ries' 177-episode-long run. The future of the franchise rests in continuing spinoffs, in- cluding the upcoming se- ries, "The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live." Ex- pected to premiere in 2024, the drama re- unites beloved lovers Rick Grimes (Andrew Lin- coln, "Guillermo del To- ro's Cabinet of Curiosities") and Michonne (Danai Gurira, "Black Pan- ther: Wakanda For- ever," 2022) and is set after the events of the original se- ries' finale. Don't miss the return of "Fear the Walking Dead" Sunday, Oct. 22, on AMC. Cowan's Drugs 1 x 3" 'Fear' the undead 'Fear the Walking Dead' returns with final episodes Jenna Elfman in "Fear the Walking Dead" Meg 2: The Trench Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water — a megalodon makes an ap- pearance. Five years removed from defeating a massive, man- eating shark, deep-sea diving expert Jonas Taylor (Statham) is contacted by his former peers at the Zhang Institute to help map unexplored sections of the Mari- ana Trench. Believed to be the breeding site of megalodons and other oceanic giants, Taylor, accompanied by his brother-in- law Jiuming (Jing), discovers the intended sanctuary to be host to a disruptive mining operation, led by the mercenary Montes (Peris-Mencheta). Caught be- tween the protective plunderers and the territorial sharks, Taylor must once again lead his family and friends to safety. Director: Ben Wheatley. Stars: Jason Statham, Wu Jing, Cliff Curtis, Page Kennedy, Sergio Peris-Mencheta, Skyler Samuels, Sienna Guillory, Shuya Sophia Cai. 2023. 116 mins. Action. Til Death Do Us Part Breakups are never easy, espe- cially when you're marrying someone aligned with mysteri- ous agencies. Learning of past secrets regarding her future husband (Blain), a soon-to-be bride (Burn) leaves her ex at the altar, triggering the fury of the groom and his wedding party. What was once a romantic des- tination wedding descends into chaos when the seven grooms- men, led by the best man (Gi- gandet), seek their revenge. Re- vealing themselves to be associ- ated through an international fraternity of assassins, the wed- ding party teams up to track down the bride, who must fight for survival. Director: Timothy Woodward Jr. Stars: Cam Gigandet, Jason Pat- ric, Natalie Burn, Orlando Jones, Ser'Darius Blain, Pancho Moler, Nicole Arlyn, Neb Chupin, D.Y. Sao. 2023. 109 mins. Horror. Scooby-Doo! and Krypto, Too! Earth's greatest heroes, the Jus- tice League, mysteriously disap- pear, prompting reporter Lois Lane (Strong) and photographer Jimmy Olsen (Taylor) to investi- gate the case. Spooked by a phantom at the Hall of Justice, Lois summons the supernatural world's greatest experts: Scoo- by-Doo (Welker) and the Mys- tery Inc. team. Looking for clues, Scooby and the gang — Shaggy (Lillard), Fred (also Welker), Daphne (Griffin) and Velma (Mi- cucci) — are rescued by Super- man's loyal best friend, Krypto, another one-of-a-kind dog, searching for his lost owner. Director: Cecilia Aranovich. Stars: Frank Welker, Matthew Lillard, Grey Griffin, Kate Micuc- ci, P.J. Byrne, Charles Halford, Nolan North, Tara Strong, Victo- ria Grace, James Arnold Taylor. 2023. 78 mins. Animation. Videoreleases Jason Statham in "Meg 2: The Trench"

• Cover