Entertainment
Disney's New Movie Pushes Animal And Human Rights As Equal, While Looking Beautiful
By Chris Sawin
| Published
The main appeal of Hoppers was that it was co-written and directed by Daniel Chong. Chong created We Bare Bears for Cartoon Network, which was the last CN show I really obsessed over after the likes of Adventure Time and Regular Show ended. Interestingly enough, Chong spent six years on the entirety of We Bare Bears (four seasons and 140 episodes), and Hoppers (a single 100-minute film) also took six years to create. The spinoff We Baby Bears is currently airing on Cartoon Network, which Chong executive produces.
The animated sci-fi comedy film is written by Daniel Chong and Jesse Andrews (Elio, Luca). Chong has actually been working for Pixar on and off since 2008, as a storyboard artist on Bolt, Cars 2, and Inside Out, and as part of the senior creative team on Turning Red, Lightyear, Elemental, Inside Out 2, Elio, and the upcoming Toy Story 5 and Incredibles 3.
How Hoppers Sets Up Its Fuzzy Story
Hoppers follows Mabel Tanaka (Piper Curda), who struggles with anger and cares for animals. After attempting to free her school’s classroom animals, she is dropped off at her grandmother’s, where she finds a peaceful glade in the forest. Mabel returns to this relaxing, safe spot whenever overwhelmed.
Today, Mabel is 19. The mayor of Beaverton, Jerry Generazzo (Jon Hamm), intends to demolish the glade to finish building a highway that will shave several minutes off Beaverton drivers’ commutes. All the animals have mysteriously left the glade, prompting Mabel to seek help from her college professor, Dr. Samantha Fairfax (Kathy Najimy).
Mabel discovers that Dr. Fairfax has developed a technology called hopping, which allows a human to transfer their consciousness into a robot animal of their choosing. Mabel forces her way into the body of a robot beaver and seeks counsel with King George (Bobby Moynihan), a fellow beaver and king of the land animals. Mabel’s plan is to bring the animals back to the glade in order to keep Mayor Jerry from building the highway, but things are much more complicated than she realizes.
A Stunning Visual Achievement
Hoppers is so gorgeous to look at. The visuals are similar to those of The Angry Birds Movies (two of the funniest animated films of the 2010s, by the way), where beaver fur looks so fluffy that you want to reach out and pet it, human hair is ridiculously detailed, and grass looks far too realistic for its own good. The idea of the eyes changing depending on whether we can understand them is a lot of fun, even if Brother Bear did it better. The subtle Back to the Future references (Mabel calling Dr. Fairfax “Doc” while being in a panic, the van chase on the skateboard, and the camera placement during that sequence) are certainly appreciated, as well.
The way the film highlights the preciousness of a tranquil space is extraordinary. Having somewhere to escape everyday noise that is both quiet and calm, and that just naturally exists, is a rare, wonderful thing. The more adventurous aspects of the storyline are the most entertaining aspects of Hoppers. When the film starts introducing the king council with the other animal kings, the apex predator, and what happens to Jerry in the second half of the film are some of the film’s most amusing moments. The car sequence where Loaf (Eduardo Franco), Mabel, King George, and Tom Lizard (Tom Law) talk to Jerry via text-to-speech on Jerry’s phone is the funniest and most memorable.
Hoppers Pushes The Idea That Animals Have The Same Rights As Humans
Hoppers is written somewhat awkwardly. The film revolves heavily around doing what’s best for the environment and seeks what’s best for animals since their rights are just as important as human rights. If you feel that way towards animals, you probably won’t have an issue with it, but the concept is thrown into a standstill game of tug-of-war between Mabel and Jerry, two extremely selfish and unlikeable human characters.
There’s an argument about the film’s suitability for children. Hoppers treats a gruesome death as comic relief. I think the sequence is great and unexpected, but some might find it problematic. A Pixar film lacking the usual emotional gut punch and a likable main character is also unusual.
Mabel uses the animals, particularly the trust of King George, to get what she wants while hiding the fact that she’s actually human. Jerry is using shady tactics to keep the animals away from the glade to build the highway and maintain his “mayor of the people” reputation, which he hopes to celebrate at a political rally originally scheduled for after the highway’s completion. It’s an eco-friendly message in the hands of two individuals you don’t really have any emotional investment in.
Is This Just Avatar In A Pixar Suit?
The film has drawn many comparisons to Avatar, which Hoppers references in the actual film as soon as the hopping technology is introduced. But Hoppers also has a lot in common with The Wild Robot, which is a far superior animated film. Looking past its lack of emotional connection with its audience and its sci-fi body-swap concept, the main comparisons lie in Mabel’s initial introduction as a beaver, when she suddenly understands animal dialogue, and in the forest’s suffering during the film’s resolution.
Hoppers is fun and is probably Pixar’s best film since Turning Red (I’m not an Inside Out fan, but that’s another article), but it’s also being overhyped by its marketing. It’s cute with some beautiful animation and a few chuckle-worthy moments, but it is not “the funniest Pixar film ever.” Tom Lizard, the character who blew up on TikTok after being featured in the Hoppers teaser trailer attached to Elio, is only in the film for a handful of minutes.
Beautiful Animation And A Clunky Story
Hoppers is fantastically animated, with some impressively high comedic moments, but its clunky story and funky exploration of morality keep it from being one of the Pixar greats.
Hoppers is now playing in theaters. Despite its flaws, it’s still recommended viewing.
Entertainment
Stephen King's Forgotten R-Rated 80s Hit Led By Star Trek's Most Evil Seductress
By Jonathan Klotz
| Published
There’s been a lot of Stephen King adaptations over the years. In the early 90s, King decided to write a story as a screenplay first, and the result was the insane Sleepwalkers, about a mother and son pair of vampiric werecats terrorizing a small town in Indiana.
It’s one of those films that has to be seen to be believed, especially for a pre-Borg Queen performance by Star Trek: First Contact’s Alice Krige as one of the sleepwalkers. The 1992 horror film recently arrived on Netflix, making it even easier to play “spot the famous horror director” from among the many cameos jammed into the brisk, 89-minute runtime.
Don’t Think Too Hard About Sleepwalkers
Stephen King has been very upfront about the copious amounts of drugs he consumed during the 70s and 80s, particularly cocaine, which helps explain Sleepwalkers’ plot. Alice Krige is Mary, the mother of Charles (Charmed’s Brian Krause), and the two happen to be energy-draining werecats who feed off the energy of female virgins. Tanya (Twin Peak’s Madchen Amick) is targeted by the two after Charles fakes his way into the local high school, but the elaborate plan, which consists of make out in a cemetery, is thwarted when Tanya fights back using a corkscrew.
The two sleepwalkers may be powerful night creatures, but they have one weakness, and it just so happens that Tanya’s bonded with one of the beings who can easily kill them in a fight: Clovis the housecat. Sleepwalkers is very simple in its storytelling, and absolutely insane with its bizarre face-morphing CGI (at the time, it was cutting edge), cats flying in off the side of the screen, cars blowing up with a single bullet, and an “interesting” mother-son relationship.
Sleepwalkers Was A Surprise Box Office Hit
Alice Krige manages to again be off-putting, terrifying, and charming at the same time, similar to her later performance as the Borg Queen, the original “hear me out” meme of the 90s. Her performance helped propel the off-kilter feature to top the box office the weekend it debuted on the way to earning $30 million, unadjusted for inflation, that still tops the 2025 box office for horror films Him and The Woman In The Yard.
One of the fun parts of Sleepwalkers comes from director Mick Garris’ mission to include as many horror directors as possible, leading to cameos from Stephen King himself, John Landis (An American Werewolf in London), Tobe Hooper (Texas Chainsaw Massacre), Clive Barker (Hellraiser, Scream), and Joe Dante (Gremlins). Mark Hamill and Ron Perlman also pop in for brief appearances.
Sleepwalkers was savaged by critics and still only has a 29 percent rotten rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with an equally low audience rating of 32 percent. Those people clearly don’t know how to have fun. King’s story may have, allegedly, been drug-induced, but it’s so weird and off the wall that the film is a blast. While it’s special effects aged like milk, Krause and Krig managed to create some great scares, and in an era of bloated runtimes, 89 minutes makes it feel like it’s ending as soon as it gets going.
Sleepwalkers is now available to stream on Netflix, and we suggest you sit down with your cat to watch it.
Entertainment
Ben & Jerrys Free Cone Day is back for 2026 — everything you need to know
TL;DR: On April 14, visit your nearest Scoop Shop and grab a free cup or cone of your favorite Ben & Jerry’s flavor.
It’s that special time of year when free ice cream becomes the norm. Hot on the heels of Dairy Queen announcing the date of its Free Cone Day, Ben & Jerry’s has done the same.
Ben & Jerry’s celebrates Free Cone Day around the globe every year, sharing the love with free cups and cones of your favorite flavors. There’s no catch. Simply visit your nearest Scoop Shop and grab a scoop for free. Ben & Jerry’s is giving away free ice cream at a host of locations between 12-8 p.m. on April 14. You can check participating locations here.
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Ben & Jerry’s is aiming to spread more joy than ever before. They served up 1 million scoops in 2023, but they’re targeting more in 2026. And you can help out with that ambitious target, because unlike a lot of these free giveaways, there’s no limit on the number of times you can score a free cone. Can’t decide what flavor to order? Don’t worry — try them all.
Mark your calendars: Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry’s takes place on April 14.
Entertainment
The Best Show On Streaming Has Been Canceled, End Of An Era
By Chris Snellgrove
| Published
The advent of streaming completely changed how we watch television, allowing fans to watch whatever they wanted with the press of a button. This is perfect for avid entertainment lovers always looking for their next fix, but as an aging Millennial, I can’t help but think the prominence of streaming took something special away from the overall experience. Television used to be a communal ritual where we all watched the same things at the same time, excitedly sharing our thoughts on the latest shows with fellow fans; now, everyone is siloed in their own entertaining bubbles, enjoying their favorite programming in the stifling comfort of complete isolation.
However, one streaming show set out to change all that: The Last Drive-In on Shudder featured iconic horror guru Joe Bob Briggs hosting scary movies, offering commentary segments throughout where commercials might have gone way back when. While the Last Drive-In segments are available to stream on demand after a couple of days, they would premiere on Friday nights in a live broadcast that superfans would watch at the same time, all while chattering with each other and with Joe Bob (and his perky co-host, Darcy the Mail Girl) on social media. This made this the best show on streaming, but it’s the end of an era now that Shudder has canceled the show.
The Man, The Myth
Since he is something of a cult figure, you may need a primer on Joe Bob Briggs, especially if you’re a younger horror fiend. Joe Bob (real name, John Bloom) started out as a reporter for The Dallas Herald, and he specialized in a niche no one else cared about: shlocky exploitation films and gruesome horror movies you could only find at the local drive-in theater. To cover these movies, Bloom developed the persona of Joe Bob Briggs, a quippy, quirky redneck whose rants offered great insight into genre films while serving as a parody of the prim and proper reviews from film critics like Siskel and Ebert.
In 1985, Briggs made an unexpected jump from the printed page to the stage with a very successful one-man show, An Evening With Joe Bob Briggs. This raised his profile and proved he could entertain large crowds, and this led to an unexpected opportunity: he guest-hosted Drive-In Theater on The Movie Channel, which led to him getting his own show, the appropriately named Joe Bob’s Drive-In Theater. There, he hosted shlocky movies (typically horror films), complete with a tongue-in-cheek tally of things like how many dead bodies and naked breasts appeared in the film.
When Joe Bob’s Drive-In Theater ended, he took his unique brand of entertainment, hosting MonsterVision on TNT. There, he once again hosted a variety of films, but he offered more commentary than ever: rather than appearing only at the beginning of the film, Joe Bob would also pop up on commercial breaks, offering further insights into each movie. When MonsterVision ended, though, Joe Bob largely dropped out of public life, popping up two decades later in a farewell performance that ended up reigniting his career.
A New Era
In 2018, Joe Bob Briggs hosted a 24-hour marathon of movies for Shudder, all of which were initially broadcast as part of the horror streamer’s live feed. This was meant to be a final performance for Joe Bob, giving this old cowboy one last time on the saddle before he rode off into the sunset. However, the marathon proved to be insanely popular, with Shudder’s servers crashing due to the high number of fans all rushing to watch this genre legend dish dirt on spooky movies.
In response, Shudder ordered more specials from him before greenlighting The Last Drive-In With Joe Bob Briggs, a regular series. For the next seven years, Joe Bob hosted one of the most popular series on the streaming platform, and his most ardent fans tuned in to each live broadcast, using social media to connect the entire fandom (affectionately nicknamed “The Mutant Family”). Due to the show’s success, it really looked like Joe Bob would be doing this forever, but just a few days ago, he dropped some devastating news on his fans.
An Emotional Rollercoaster of Announcements
Joe Bob Briggs typically hypes up his upcoming shows on Shudder, offering cryptic hints and funny commentary on platforms like Facebook and X. Ahead of the season finale of The Last Drive-In With Joe Bob Briggs, he made a somber-sounding announcement about how important it was for all of the fandom to tune in for this episode. This led to rampant speculation from fans: some thought Joe Bob needed more live views to get his show renewed, and others thought he would be announcing his retirement because, at 73, he’s one of the oldest entertainers in the business and may be dealing with unknown health issues.
When the episode aired, Joe Bob and co-host Darcy the Mail Girl offered fans some good news and some bad news. The good news is that Joe Bob is quite healthy (or, in his words, “spry as f*ck”), but the bad news is that Shudder is canceling The Last Drive-In. The hosts have apparently known this was coming for a while, but they are currently forbidden from saying exactly what went down and why Shudder (which just updated its app in an attempt to gain more subscribers) suddenly decided to kill the only show that countless fans (myself included) subscribe to this streamer to watch.
An Unknown Future
The silver lining in all of this is that Joe Bob Briggs and Darcy the Mail Girl plan to take their show somewhere else, but they have not yet confirmed where this will be. We likely know where they will not go, and that is Tubi. On X, Joe Bob retweeted a post from Damian Maffei that didn’t explicitly name Tubi but accused “that free streaming app with all the ads” of being a streamer that has been known “to edit movies. Cut things down, and zoom in on scenes.”
Many have pointed out that Tubi doesn’t do this and just streams whatever print of the film they can get, but the implication of the retweet is that Joe Bob doesn’t like the free streaming service and is unlikely to take The Last Drive-In over there. Unfortunately, this brings us no closer to knowing where Joe Bob and Darcy will land and when they’ll start hosting movies again. Until they confirm anything, all fans can do is speculate while mourning the loss of the best show on streaming.
The Drive-In Will Never Die
The Last Drive-In With Joe Bob Briggs was unlike anything else in the streaming world: it featured eclectic horror classics, insightful commentary, and gonzo humor, all while letting fans share the magic together through live broadcasts. It brought the entire Mutant Family together, allowing us to bond over everything from Joe Bob’s signature rants to the shlockiness of our favorite films. Fortunately, the man himself has confirmed he will be returning and keep gracing us with his unique brand of comedic criticism powered by decades of arcane horror film knowledge.
That announcement fulfills the prophecy of something Joe Bob has been reminding us of at the end of every episode since the new show began. A promise, a mantra, and a fervent hope, all rolled into five little words that the Mutants are clinging to now more than ever: “the drive-in will never die.”
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