Amongst a sea of generic, algorithm-feeding, instantly forgettable Netflix action movies (usually led by a big-name star collecting a big-number paycheck), 2020’s The Old Guard stood out as one of the actual good ones. Charlize Theron as the leader of a team of ancient, immortal mercenaries not only sounded fun and cool on paper, but the movie managed to deliver on that pitch on screen, with some clever lore thrown in for good measure. Now, after a seemingly interminable delay, the sequel is a case of notably diminished returns.

Greg Rucka returns as screenwriter, once more adapting his own comic book series, but this time it feels like too much is being juggled at once. That’s mainly apparent through the two main antagonists. The first movie left off with the reveal that Quynh (Veronica Ngô), the longtime companion (“longtime” meaning centuries in their case) of Charlize Theron’s Andy had somehow finally been freed from the iron maiden she’d been locked inside 500 years before, when she was dumped into the ocean as an accused witch.

Now Quynh, understandably pissed after the anguish she went through as she continually drowned and then came back to life thanks to her immortality, is on a quest for vengeance against all of mankind, putting her at odds with her former friend (and maybe lover? Like in the first film, their dynamic is still kinda vague), Andy. This should be enough for a main plotline, but The Old Guard 2 overcomplicates things with the introduction of a woman known as Discord (Uma Thurman, collecting that paycheck), a previously unknown immortal with her own grudge against humanity.

Thurman’s presence feels like there was a decision made up the food chain to give this movie a bigger hook and boost of star power. And look, is it innately exciting to have Charlize Theron and Uma Thurman square off? Sure! There are compelling parallels between these two talented, statuesque women who both rose to fame in the 1990s and are iconic enough to be instantly identifiable by their first names only – not to mention bring with them previous action movie cred, and that helps make this an intriguing pairing. And yet it feels like it should have been held for a different film, because as is, The Old Guard 2’s actual dramatic weight is about Andy and Quynh’s history and conflict… and Discord is there too, feeling underwritten and extraneous much of the time while rarely actually sharing the screen with Andy.

Unfortunately, Thurman’s performance reflects the thin nature of her character, as she resorts to a lot of snarling, generic bad-guy delivery. And even the inevitable fight between Andy and Discord feels rather ho hum, not helped by giving Thurman a sword – something that will clearly evoke her fantastic fights in the Kill Bill movies — and then not being able to hold a candle to the exciting scenes that Quentin Tarantino provided.

In general, the action in The Old Guard 2 is decent but unremarkable. Director Victoria Mahoney doesn’t match the more stylish flair the first film’s director, Gina Prince-Bythewood, brought to the proceedings, but a couple of sequences do stand out. This includes a well-done fight between Andy and Quynh and some early sequences that have some darkly comedic fun with the idea that Andy’s teammates Joe (Marwan Kenzari) and Nicky (Luca Marinelli) can receive grisly injuries in battle and then be fine moments later. However, Mahoney relies more on a shaky-cam, jittery aesthetic that can sometimes be distracting and diminish the impact of the fight scenes.

The large ensemble cast seem more adrift here, particularly the last film’s big new recruit, Nile (KiKi Layne), and the immortals’ human ally, James Copley (Chiwetel Ejiofor), both of whom had major story arcs in the first movie but feel much more along for the ride this time out. This feels particularly egregious when you have an actor as fantastic as Ejiofor and he’s really got nothing of note to do. Better served is Matthias Schoenaerts’ Booker, who has some soul searching to go through after he was banished by the others in the last film for a betrayal (again, there are a lot of ongoing plots). Henry Golding also has a large supporting role as yet another immortal, Tuah, who is mostly there to explain backstory that it feels like it could’ve been delivered in more efficient ways.

At the center of it all though, Theron once more proves just what a fantastic leading lady she is, even in a weaker film like this. She continually brings such gravitas and believability to Andy – who lost her immortality at the end of the first film and is now reeling from Quynh’s return – and makes the most of her character’s mixture of angst, inner strength, and impressive physical prowess. Her innate talent, credibility as an action star, and movie star charisma goes a long way to helping The Old Guard 2 through its clunkier moments.

She might’ve been enough to carry it and make it a movie I could lightly recommend, if not for how it ends… or rather, how it doesn’t end. Going far beyond following the first movie’s lead by leaving off with a setup for a sequel, this one ends with an outright cliffhanger in a way that’s meant to be exciting but instead is just frustrating. There’s really no genuine resolution here at all, and given the fact that this film took five years to still come out as muddled as it is, it’s a major miscalculation. There were clearly some troubles behind the scenes (including reshoots last year, after the initial production occurred back in 2022) and you would think maybe the creative team would’ve taken that opportunity to give this movie a proper ending as they worked to fix things and finally complete it. Instead, it seems that Netflix’s bosses just threw up their hands and decided to leave as is.

It’s completely possible we still get The Old Guard 3 and an actual conclusion to this story, if Netflix decides enough people watched this one. Maybe that movie could right the ship and complete a trilogy that stands stronger than the sum of its parts, with a sagging middle propped up by two stronger pillars. But none of us is immortal, so if we have to wait another five years for it, that prospect is a lot less exciting to ponder.

This article contains spoilers for the finale of Ironheart.

They say the devil is in the details, but it turns out that the devil is also finally in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). As of the season (series?) finale of Disney+’s Ironheart, “The Past is the Past,” Mephisto has finally, officially arrived in the form of actor Sacha Baron Cohen… Thankfully, not giant and red, wearing only his underwear, as per Marvel Comics’ depiction of the bad guy. Though we wouldn’t put the Borat actor past that.

That said? The reveal of Mephisto is just the tip of the iceberg in hell that Ironheart dropped in its closing hour, including a wild twist cliffhanger, a mid-credits scene that sets up some potentially big things for the MCU, and a general, even bigger question as to whether given the circumstances surrounding Ironheart if any of this will be followed up, ever.

Ironheart Ending Explained

For context, the episode starts off as we discover how Parker Robbins (Anthony Ramos) got his demonically powered hood. After trying to rob his own father, he escaped thanks to some help from a mysterious stranger (that would be Mephisto), munching pizza in Desperito’s Pizza. We’ll ignore that the pizza is decidedly not Chicago style, which is either Mephisto playing a classic trick in the Windy City, or a missed opportunity to tie deep dish pizza to the devil. This leads to the present, where Parker is losing control of his powers and becoming more demonic by the minute.

Enter Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne), who now has magic armor, but as a cost, has lost N.A.T.A.L.I.E. (Lyric Ross), the AI modeled after her dead best friend. Undeterred, she heads to Desperito’s to confront Parker before he can attack her family, and discovers Ezekiel Stane (Alden Ehrenreich) is there, desperate to escape from Parker’s control over his biological implants. Riri knees him in the groin, resets his controls, and Zeke thanks her but assures her that in the future they won’t be friends. “Just know you and I aren’t done,” Zeke says, still salty after Riri ruined his life and landed him in jail.

Anyway, that’s a series wrap on Zeke, and it’s on to the final battle with Parker. The Hood loses it, literally and figuratively, with Riri beating him up, taking his hood and leaving him, to paraphrase the immortal words of Natalie Imbruglia, cold and shamed, lying hoodless on the floor. That’s when Riri heads to the seating area of the pizza place and discovers Mephisto is once again eating non-Chicago style pizza. This guy won’t quit it! He loves pizza!

In case you’ve lived through the whole Mephisto saga online for the past half a decade: yes, it is 100% definitely Mephisto, he even says it out loud. Speculation that Marvel’s devil could show up stretches all the way back to the beginning of the Disney+ era and WandaVision in 2021, continued through 2022 when Cohen was cast on Ironheart, and was fired up big-time when they dropped the name of the baddie on Agatha All Along. And now, here he is in the flesh, tempting Riri Williams alongside a slice of pizza… Even if the pregnant pause Cohen adds delivering his character’s name lands like a thud with Riri. “Oh,” she says, nonplussed. “Is that supposed to mean something to me?”

…Well, it definitely means something to the viewing audience at home. And it also quickly means something to Riri, as – shocker – she makes a deal with the devil. While not explicitly stated, she clearly asks for Mephisto to bring N.A.T.A.L.I.E. back. But the twist is that Mephisto doesn’t bring the AI back… He brings the real Natalie back to life, after being gunned down prior to the events of the series. And the stinger at the end as Riri hugs her confused friend? The same devilish veins that grew all over Parker Robbins the more he used his hood have begun to snake their way up Riri’s arm. Yuh-oh!

What does this all mean? And what about that mid-credits scene?

Ironheart’s Cliffhanger Teases Projects That May Never Happen

So, here’s the deal: Ironheart was announced in 2020, mostly filmed in 2022, and then there was reportedly some added production in 2024. There was clearly some retooling of the series last year, but this is also a project that comes from a version of the Marvel Studios overall plan that doesn’t quite exist the same way in 2025. From a slowing down of the release of movies and TV shows, to a rethinking of how Marvel Television approaches the small screen in general, a project like Ironheart that is “more of a six-episode movie” is – at least as Marvel has explained – not how they’re doing projects anymore.

And while we won’t know whether the stingers on Ironheart will be continued or not until they are (or are not), there are plenty of plans that have been either announced or denounced in the half a decade that Ironheart has been in the works.

Armor Wars is the first that comes to mind, formerly a Disney+ series starring Don Cheadle as War Machine, spinning off the end of Secret Invasion. That was “upgraded” to a movie in 2022, but perhaps due to the less-than-enthusiastic response to Secret Invasion, or the tightening behind the scenes, we haven’t heard much since. Thorne was reportedly going to reprise her role as Ironheart in the Disney+ version; the film, TBD.

Similarly, it would make sense that a rivalry between Ezekiel Stane and Riri Williams could have (and could still) continue in a movie that’s all about various Iron Man-related characters fighting. But again, with that movie in doubt, it’s up in the air whether Enrenreich is building a one-and-done franchise curse between this and Solo: A Star Wars Story.

How about the mid-credits, though? This is pure speculation, but educated speculation as to what this could have been leading up to. In the mid-credits scene, Parker goes to Stanton’s, the combo candy store/magic store that is home to Zelma Stanton (Regan Aliyah). He wants help and is interested in Zelma’s magic, but she’s dubious (as she should be). But Parker won’t quit, he wants to see the real magic stuff in the back of the store. “I know you don’t know me, at least not yet. But if you’re up for it, how about a little abracadabra?” Parker says as we cut to black.

While never officially greenlit, back in February Marvel paused development on a TV show version of the comic Strange Academy. Per the title, it’s a magic school set up by Doctor Strange, and it was expected that the TV show version would be run by Wong (Benedict Wong). In the books, Zelma Stanton is a key character and works as the school’s librarian. On Ironheart, she’s probably a little young for that, but repeatedly mentions how interested she is to study magic at Kamar-Taj, the monastery where Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) trains in the first titular movie, and later America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez) in Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness.

It’s not too much of a stretch to think that a potential Strange Academy series could feature both Zelma and The Hood – or whatever Parker becomes without said demonic hood. At the very least, this is the most likely suspect for what this mid-credits scene was leading up to… Another possibility that doesn’t seem very likely to happen any time soon.

The other possibilities for following up on some of these characters could include Black Panther 3, given Riri debuted in the second Black Panther movie. That movie has at least been announced and is in the works from director Ryan Coogler, though we don’t have a timeline on when that will appear on screen… Nor any announced cast members, other than Denzel Washington in a mystery role.

Less sure but leaning into the magical aspects of Ironheart is Doctor Strange 3, something rumored given the blockbuster status of the previous movies, and a cliffhanger at the end of the second film. But that hasn’t been confirmed other than in the rumor mill, nor is it clear if it was greenlit that it would follow up on any of these plotlines, what with it being a Doctor Strange movie and not Ironheart 2 (feat. Doctor Strange).

And in terms of projects that are definitely in motion, the entire MCU seems to be set to appear in either Avengers: Doomsday and/or Avengers: Secret Wars. It seems unlikely that either movie would have the room to deal with the weird veins growing on Riri’s arm, given the scale, but stranger things have happened.

But what of Mephisto? He’s a Thanos-level villain in Marvel Comics, and fans have been anticipating his debut for years now. It seems a little crazy to think they’d leave him on the shelf. A Doctor Strange movie could be the likeliest possibility for Mephisto’s next pizza date, as the hero and villain have tangled multiple times in the comics. But again, we just don’t know where he’ll be seen next.

And in fact, it’s unfortunately likely that none of this will be followed up on in any significant way. Times have changed for Marvel, strategy has changed, and the company that greenlit Ironheart way back in 2020 is not the same Marvel that we see today. Things could change again, of course. Most likely, what you see on screen in this finale is the end of the road for these characters, for the moment. Like Riri and Parker’s deals, we got what we wanted when it comes to Mephisto… But at what cost?

Mecha Break speaks to a very specific kind of sicko: the kind of person who plays multiplayer games looking for perfection. Not overall – there’s no such thing as a “perfect” piece of art. But perfect moments? The perfect shot, the clutch dodge, confirming the last kill that wins you the match? They’re out there, in that things come together just the way you need them to. I’ve only gotten to play a couple hours of Mecha Break ahead of launch (which, if you’re reading this, has just happened) so I have a lot more to see, do, and unlock in this robot-themed hero shooter, but I can already say it’s a game that lets you build your own stories.

Over the course of a two-hour preview event (playing on PC) I got to play five matches and try out five of the 15 different mechs available (with the free-to-play model Mecha Break is using several of the ones I tested will need to be unlocked once it goes live, but we had free reign for our preview). One of the things I appreciated most was how much variety there is, both in mechs and match types. Mecha Break has every kind of mech you could want: heavies like the Stego with the ability to plant itself in the ground, sit behind a shield, and launch a massive missile barrage; the Falcon, which transforms into a plane, Starscream-style, making it an ideal choice for folks who like to zoom across the expansive battlefield and rain death from above; and my personal favorite, the Alysnes: a medium-weight, more traditional mech that becomes smaller and more agile after its armor is blown off. Survive long enough in this form and you can reapply your armor, like some kind of mech-flavored Magical Girl. Everyone has different armaments to manage, and I had to tailor my playstyle to the mech I tried. Picking the right one is important, because once you’re locked in and the match starts, you’re stuck with it.

This list catalogues a small amount of what’s available, and since the mode we were playing kept our six-person team from having duplicate mechs, it led to some really great fights. I had a particularly tense rivalry in one game where my Alysnes faced off against another player’s camo-enabled, melee-focused Stellaris. We clashed several times, and they were long, drawn-out duels that tested everything from our overall map awareness and positioning to when we decided to attack. We were building rivalries in real time, and it made for some memorable moments. Some I lost, others I clutched out, but the fights were all exciting.

Other matches showcased that there’s a ton of variety when it comes to modes, even if none of them is anything too far out of the box. We started in a traditional deathmatch (first to eight kills wins), but we also played King of the Hill, another mode where you have to destroy points that appear on the map, one that asked us to capture launch keys and deliver them to a launch facility, and good ol’ fashioned payload escorts. I had fun no matter what the objective was, and I appreciated that Mecha Break let me contribute no matter what I was doing. Even keeping another mech distracted while your team hits the objective (or killing them outright) can swing a game, especially because respawns take a hot second longer than they do in most comparable games. If you can take a piece off the board for a bit, that matters. For example, while piloting a Stego against another player in the same heavy-hitting mech on the opposite team, keeping him out of the fight long enough for us to secure the last objective helped decide that match.

The maps themselves are a smorgasbord of interesting locations. One is a combination mountain range with a valley and a destroyed city. I could set up and snipe at other mechs from the high ground with the Stego, but to get the objectives (and stay in the fights over them) I needed to head down where I was more vulnerable. Another is at a missile launch facility where you can choose between fighting outside with limited cover, or getting up close and personal in the tight corridors of the facility itself. There’s even one set on the moon that includes both open skies and large craters and small canyons just big enough to squeeze through, ideal for dodging enemy fire or moving around out of sight. The real trick there is the pulse storms, which damage your mech unless you take cover.

Each map felt distinct and forced me to approach situations in different ways depending on where I was and what mech I was piloting. A Stego’s long-ranged firepower is amazing in open space, but its slow speed makes it a liability in areas with less elbow room. The Alysnes’s versatility, on the other hand, means it’s right at home in both but never hits quite as hard as a Stego in the right conditions. You’ll probably just make use of its melee weapon less when you’re fighting across open ground.

Naturally, two hours isn’t nearly enough to wrap up a review of a game like this, so I have a lot left to see in Mecha Break: I want to get a feel for more of the mechs and the other modes, and see what progression feels like. But so far it’s made a good first impression. I’ve come away liking the little moments, and the stories I’ve already been a part of in a short session. Now we just have to figure out if Mecha Break has the juice to keep telling them for the long haul. If you’re jumping in to play at launch, let us know if anything cool has happened to you thus far.

Summer has arrived and neck fans are once again increasing in popularity. These portable fans wrap around your head and are a simple and effective way to keep your noggin cool and breezy. If you're not sure whether a neck fan is worth it for you, at least you can give it a try with minimal risk with this early Amazon Prime Day deal. Amazon is currently offering 50% off the FrSara Rechargeable Portable Neck Fan with coupon code "CWE2O6ER". For Amazon Prime members, prices start at just $13.50 after the code is applied. To be honest, most of these inexpensive neck fans on Amazon look like they came from the same factory, so it really just comes down to finding the lowest price. Also, if you don't like it, Amazon offers an easy 30 day return policy.

FrSara Rechargeable Portable Neck Fan for $13.49

Feeling the pinch but still itching for the best in pixels and/or polygons? My daily haul of discounted gaming delights has something for every playstyle, whether you're a trophy fiend, a couch co-op junkie, or just overdue for a solo narrative binge. The price drops are deep, the genres are varied, and the digital shelves are practically begging for your thumb.

This Day in Gaming 🎂

In retro news, I've made a big cake with a 26 on it for Ape Escape, the first game to explicitly require a DualShock controller. In these modern times where the dpad is a vestigial limb, it's difficult to explain just how exciting it was to transition from that clunky cross to twin analog sticks. Cameras could be controlled like we were Spielberg. Platforming through a 3D space could be done with a finer degree of accuracy. Using the right stick to swing our weapons was...er, way less intuitive than just pressing a button.

This Day in Gaming

Aussie birthdays for notable games.

- Ape Escape (PS) 1999. Get

- Spider-Man 2 (GC,PC,PS2,XB) 2004. Reboot

- Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 (PC,PS3,X360) 2009. Sequel

- Fight Night Round 4 (PS3,X360) 2009. Sequel

Contents

• Nintendo
• Xbox
• PlayStation
• PC
• PC Gear
• LEGO
• Headphones
• TVs

Nice Savings for Nintendo Switch

Nintendo fans can enjoy a brutal brawler history lesson with Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection, a pack that includes the ultra-rare Red Earth arcade release from 1996. Or revisit Sonic Frontiers, a divisive but ambitious open-world experiment that drew design inspiration from Breath of the Wild. Yes, really.

• Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Col. (-19%) – A$57
• Sonic X Shadow Generations (-39%) – A$49
• Sniper Elite 4 (-80%) – A$12
• Sonic Frontiers (-65%) – A$34.80
• Persona 4 Golden (-50%) – A$14.90

Expiring Recent Deals

• Animal Crossing: New Horizons (-20%) - A$64
• Super Mario RPG (-20%) - A$64
• Gang Beasts (-60%) - A$15.90
• Dragon Ball Fighterz (-45%) - A$49.80
• Valkyria Chronicles 4 (-80%) - A$12.70

Or gift a Nintendo eShop Card.

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Exciting Bargains for Xbox

• Monster Hunter Wilds (-59%) – A$47
• Resident Evil 4 (-48%) – A$31.40
• PGA Tour 2K25 (-47%) – A$64
• WWE 2K25 (-47%) – A$64
• Death's Door (-75%) – A$7.40

Xbox One

• Wolfenstein: The Old Blood (-63%) – A$14.70
• Mafia: Def. Ed. (-85%) – A$10.40
• Red Dead 1 & 2 Bndl (-60%) – A$59.90

Expiring Recent Deals

• Kingdom Come: Deliverance II Gold (-29%) - A$102.30
• Lego 2K Drive (-25%) - A$41.30
• Warhammer 40K: Darktide (-26%) - A$44.40
• Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 (-11%) - A$249
• Hot Wheels Unleashed (-85%) - A$8.20
• Borderlands 3 Ult. Ed. (-75%) - A$36.20
• Carrion (-75%) - A$7.40
• Prince of Persia The Lost Crown (-50%) - A$29.90
• Broforce (-80%) - A$4.40
• Watch Dogs: Legion (-85%) - A$14.90

Or just invest in an Xbox Card.

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Pure Scores for PlayStation

• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (-26%) – A$89
• Elden Ring Nightreign (-20%) – A$44
• PGA Tour 2K25 (-47%) – A$64
• Borderlands 4 (-17%) – A$99
• Horizon Forbidden West (-44%) – A$69.90
• Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot Leg. Ed. (-47%) – A$96

PS4

• Red Dead Redemption 2 (-79%) – A$19
• The Yakuza Rem. Col. (-28%) – A$39.40
• XCOM 2 Col. (-78%) – A$11.30

Expiring Recent Deals

• Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart (-50%) - A$62.40
• Dragon's Dogma 2 (-60%) - A$43.10
• Resident Evil Village Gold Ed. (-70%) - A$20.90
• Persona 5 Royal (-42%) - A$55.10
• Rise of the Ronin (-50%) - A$62.40
• Doom: The Dark Ages (-42%) - A$69
• Diablo III: Eternal Col. (-67%) - A$32.90
• Octopath Traveler (-60%) - A$36.30
• Spyro Reignited Trilogy (-65%) - A$24.40

PS+ Monthly Freebies
Yours to keep from Jul 1 with this subscription

• Diablo 4 (PS5/PS4)
• The King of Fighers XV (PS5/PS4)
• Jusant (PS5)

Or purchase a PS Store Card.

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Purchase Cheap for PC

• Ghost of Tsushima Dir. Cut (-43%) – A$54.10
• The Quarry (-87%) – A$12.10
• Hogwarts Legacy (-78%) – A$20.20
• Metaphor: ReFantazio (-46%) – A$62
• Gris (-90%) – A$2.10
• Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy (-90%) – A$8.90

Expiring Recent Deals

• Elden Ring (-40%) - A$53.90
• Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake (-25%) - A$53.90
• FF7 Remake & Rebirth (-40%) - A$89.90
• Crisis Core FF7 Reunion (-60%) - A$29.90
• God of War Ragnarök (-28%) - A$68.30
• Mass Effect Leg. Ed. (-90%) - A$8.90
• Fallout 4 GOTY (-75%) - A$13.70
• Age of Empires II: Def. Ed. (-65%) - A$13.90

Or just get a Steam Wallet Card

Laptop Deals

• Apple 2024 MacBook Air 15-inch (-12%) – A$2,197
• HP Laptop 15.6" 15-fd0233TU (-20%) – A$799
• Lenovo ThinkPad E14 Gen 5 (-36%) – A$849
• Lenovo Yoga 7i 2-in-1 14", Gen 9 (-41%) – A$1,229

Desktop Deals

• Lenovo neo 50a G5 27" AIO (-47%) – A$1,379
• Lenovo neo 50q G4 Tiny (-35%) – A$639
• Lenovo neo 50t G5 Tower (-20%) – A$871.20
• Legion Tower 5i G8 (-29%) – A$1,899

Monitor Deals

• Samsung QE50T 50" (-31%) – A$596
• ARZOPA 16.1" 144Hz (-55%) – A$159.99
• Z-Edge 27" 240Hz (-15%) – A$237.99
• Gawfolk 34" WQHD (-28%) – A$359
• LG 27" Ultragear (-42%) – A$349

Component Deals

• MSI PRO B650M-A WiFi Motherboard (-41%) – A$229
• AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D (-7%) – A$876
• Corsair Vengeance 32GB (-35%) – A$82
• Kingston FURY Beast 16GB (-30%) – A$48

Storage Deals

• Seagate One Touch Portable HDD (-24%) – A$228
• Kingston 1TB USB 3.2 SSD (-17%) – A$115
• SanDisk 128GB Extreme PRO (-63%) – A$29
• SanDisk 32GB Ultra SDHC (-53%) – A$9.90

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Legit LEGO Deals

• Mobile Police Dog Training (-39%) – A$20
• Off-Road 4x4 Mountain (-33%) – A$20
• Captain Rex Y-Win (-32%) – A$13.60

Expiring Recent Deals

• The Bat-Pod Bike (-42%) - A$69
• Mario Kart – Baby Mario vs. Baby Luigi (-33%) - A$33.60
• Jango Fett Helmet (-32%) - A$89
• Home One Starcruiser (-32%) - A$75

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Hot Headphones Deals

Audiophilia for less

• Bose QuietComfort Ultra Wireless (-38%) – A$399.95
• Soundcore by Anker Q20i (-43%) – A$68.79
• Sony MDR7506 Professional (-30%) – A$169
• Technics Premium (-46%) – A$299
• Bose SoundLink Flex (-31%) – A$171
• JBL Charge 5 - Portable Speaker (-28%) – A$144
• JBL Flip Essential 2 Waterproof Speaker (-26%) – A$96
• Sony SRS-XB100 Travel Speaker (-41%) – A$84.15
• Ultimate Ears Boom 3 Portable Speaker (-41%) – A$134.95
• Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro (-26%) – A$259.29
• Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless (-46%) – A$275

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Terrific TV Deals

Do right by your console, upgrade your telly

• LG 43" UT80 4K (-24%) – A$635
• Kogan 65" QLED 4K (-50%) – A$699
• Kogan 55" QLED 4K (-45%) – A$549
• LG 55" UT80 4K (-28%) – A$866
• Prism+ Q75 Ultra 75" 4K QLED (-47%) – A$1,229
• Gaimoo Mini Projector 1080p w/ 4K (-33%) – A$119.99
• GooDee 4K Projector (-58%) – A$169.99
• VOPLLS Mini Projector 4K (-19%) – A$168.99
• XuanPad Mini Projector (-36%) – A$128.99
• LG S70TY Q Series Sound Barn*-22%) – A$546
• Sony HTG700 Atmos Soundbar (-15%) – A$594
• Yamaha NS-SW050 Subwoofer (-13%) – A$270

Smart Home Deals

• Arlo Video Doorbell 2K (-53%) – A$107.76
• Google Nest Doorbell (-44%) – A$183
• Ring Battery Video Doorbell Plus (-40%) – A$149
• TP-Link Tapo Smart Doorbell (-20%) – A$183
• XTU Doorbell Camera Doorbell (-40%) – A$59.99
• D-Link DCS-8302LH Wi-Fi Cam (-62%) – A$75
• Google Nest Cam (-25%) – A$247
• Ring Spotlight Cam Pro Battery (-43%) – A$187
• Swann 4 Channel DVR with 4 x 4K Cams (-34%) – A$399
• WUUK 2K Outdoor Cam (-32%) – A$249.99
• PS VR2 PC adapter - $94.95
• TP Link Bluetooth 5.0 adapter - $12
• UGREEN Display Port 1.4 2m (-17%) - $19.94

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Halloween has come and gone, but horror movies have no limit on enjoyment. As one of the most prolific and profitable subgenres in cinema, audiences are always in the mood for some spooky scaries. Fortunately, thanks to the accessibility of streaming services, places like Netflix are home to a plethora of chilling choices. Between original offerings and licensed titles, there’s a horror movie for anyone and everyone. To get you started, we’ve tracked down some of the must-see horror titles currently available to stream on Netflix.

Those original offerings are becoming more important. Netflix's horror section has eliminated many titles released before 2000, except maybe around Halloween. The platform is all-in on exclusives and international titles, which often get added with little fanfare. Netflix is letting other streamers keep their Conjurverse entries and familiar classics. We're here to try everything and let you know what's worthwhile.

Oh, and when you're done here, be sure to also check out our list of the Best Horror Movies of All Time.

Please note: This list pertains to U.S. Netflix subscribers. Some titles may not currently be available on international platforms. This article is frequently amended to remove films no longer on Netflix and to include more horror movies that are now available on the service.

Psycho (1960)

What’s there to say about Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho that hasn’t been written by eleventy-billion film scholars already? It’s a masterpiece of tension and suspense, as Marion Crane checks into the Bates Motel … but never checks out. Anthony Perkins’ charming mamma’s boy of a psychopath is the definition of creepy, all while Hitchcock toys with our minds. We hear Norman’s mother, see Norman’s mother kill a few victims—or so we believe. There’s a reason movies are described as “Hitchcockian,” because so few filmmakers have done it better.

47 Meters Down (2017)

I’ve reviewed quite a few shark movies for IGN over the years. Not to be too negative, but it’s been choppy waters to say the least. That’s why when I say 47 Meters Down is one of the better shark-based horror films of the last decade, you know I mean it. Mandy Moore and Claire Holt are divers stranded on the sea’s floor, trying to survive as sharks continually thwart their escape attempts. Filmmaker Johannes Roberts excels at tracking action underwater and delivers some expertly horrifying shark encounters, whether in almost complete darkness or lit by red flares. You better believe this fin flick has bite.

Barbarian (2022)

One of the wildest horror movies of 2022 hit Netflix this month. Zach Cregger’s Barbarian opens as a riff on Airbnb horrors, but quickly proves — again and again — to be something incredibly uncontainable. What begins as tense banter between renters, played by Georgina Campbell and Bill Skarsgård, evolves into a no-holds-barred genre buffet that’s better experienced without any reveals. Justin Long interjects as Barbarian dares to express the meanest of streaks, as Cregger explores decades of evil without any safeguards. You can check my full review for more, but I’d suggest hitting play blind to details.

Smile (2022)

Smile is a textbook definition horror movie that is scary enough, composed enough, and does pretty much everything just enough. Sosie Bacon stars in a film where haunting grins signal that you're about to become the next victim of an evil entity. Storytelling lacks a tightness as characters come and go from the absurd scenario, but the scares are all aces. Writer and director Parker Finn understands the bread and butter of most horror experiences comes down to primetime chills. Finn's movie exists to make you scream and scream you shall. I'm not sure everything about the ending works for me personally? But it's still worth the stream for the adrenaline spikes alone.

Dawn of the Dead (2004)

When I say Zack Snyder does best when directing someone else's script, I'm talking about Dawn of the Dead. It's one of the best modern zombie movies (the 2000s are still modern, right?), living up to the prestige of George A. Romero's original Dawn of the Dead. But it's also a unique take with fast-moving zombies that bring a viciousness to the subgenre. Snyder's eye for horror is cutthroat as a cast of survivors—including Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames, Mekhi Phifer, and Ty Burrell—try to survive zombie hordes outside their locked-down mall fortress. It's the perfect formula for a remake, standing on its own merits while respecting Romero's source material.

Dead Talent's Society (2024)

I've said it before and I'll say it again: John Hsu's Dead Talents Society is a cutesy and buoyant Taiwanese horror-comedy guaranteed to put a smile on your face. Expect shades of Monsters Inc. and Beetlejuice, as the dead compete in afterlife competitions as scare celebrities. It's partially a sports comedy as Gingle Wang's rookie specter strives to become a legendary scare master, but there are also creepy paranormal thrills and hilarious gore moments. Dead Talents Society is a bit of everything as a horror-comedy, and always for the better. Be sure to give this import a shot.

Talk To Me (2022)

The Philippou brothers made the jump from YouTube maniacs to feature-film directors with A24's efficiently creepy Talk to Me. It's a spin on traumatic horror themes told using a party game mechanic. Teens make bad decisions and allow dead souls to inhabit their bodies so they can record viral videos, which takes an appropriately devastating turn. The Philippous bring that social media energy to Talk to Me, but impress more as horror filmmakers who can nail a solid scare. It's their feature debut but hardly feels like one — Talk to Me summons the genre goods.

Death Note (2017)

Adam Wingard’s Death Note adaptation failed to start a franchise for Netflix, but I think the overall reception was a bit harsh. I don’t mind Death Note, Willem Dafoe’s Ryuk, or Wingard’s translation of manga pages to screen. Lakeith Stanfield ends up stealing the show as prodigy detective “L,” but that’s not to dismiss a cast that includes Margaret Qualley and Shea Whigham. Sure, it’s uneven when considering how gory some scenes are followed by something oddly neutered, but the overall experience is worth a watch if you’ve been avoiding Death Note since its less-than-glowing debut.

Shadow in the Cloud (2020)

So have you seen the World War II gremlin movie starring Chloë Grace Moretz yet? Why not? The majority duration takes place in a B-17 bomber, where Moretz and her co-stars must thwart a pesky gremlin from disassembling their craft. It’s a play on old wartime stories about mischievous creatures on flights, turned into a chamber piece about a crew’s best efforts to face the unexpected while flying through the sky. Moretz is the anchor here, really selling the B-Movie elements in a story that can be a little turbulent, but due to its audacity, I can’t help but urge others to give this zany thriller a shot.

Grave Torture (2024)

Joko Anwar’s been busily putting modern Indonesian horror on the map with titles like Satan’s Slaves and Impetigore (streamable on Shudder). Now he’s taking over Netflix with his latest feature film, Grave Torture. Anwar’s style blends cultural touchstones with universal horror vibes, in this case depicting Siksa Kubur (aka grave torture), a punishment inflicted on sinners after death. It’s a religiously coded nightmare complete with frightening visuals and harrowing death sequences, confronting beliefs and traditions with grim tones. It’s what Anwar does best, and while I’d rate Grave Torture on the lower end of the filmmaker’s catalog, that’s only to emphasize the quality of his other works.

Till Death (2021)

"A woman finds herself shackled to a corpse as part of a revenge plot." Megan Fox plays the previously mentioned woman handcuffed to her stone-cold dead ex in one of her recent indie horror ventures. It's not that Till Death is revolutionary; more how Fox carries a gimmick film through engaging thrills as she drags her co-star's lifeless body around a house and away from killers. Till Death knows it's only ever trying to be a chilly Friday night stream at barely ninety minutes, and that's the proper mindset. Fox's "comeback tour" raises eyebrows with Till Death, a movie worth a gamble based on the premise's better-than-expected execution.

It’s What’s Inside (2024)

I’m a sucker for “party horror” movies like Talk to Me or Bodies Bodies Bodies, where gameplay becomes a nightmare for characters. Greg Jardin’s It’s What’s Inside is the latest example, blending sci-fi ambitions with parlor entertainment for pre-wedding festivities. It’s a story that relies on twists and turns, which won’t spoiled here, so trust my praise when I say it’s one of the year’s most thrilling and addictive mysteries. Expect an existential, out-of-body whodunit, playing blame games versus pursuing bloodcurdling frights. Put this one on with a group and have a blast — those are the vibes.

Under Paris (2024)

Xavier Gens’ Under Paris reverses the curse on a recent drought of good shark horror movies. It’s a ridiculous hybrid that somehow stays afloat between Jaws themes and a Geostorm-bonkers disaster scope. A mako shark gets loose in the ​​Seine River just before a massive triathlon that Paris’ leadership refuses to reschedule. It’s not an all-out action flick until about two-thirds through, but that doesn’t sink the experience. For those who love Dick Maas movies like Uncaged or Amsterdamned, Under Paris flows with the same vibes. Early patience is rewarded with a high-intensity third act filled with bloody waters, frantic swimmers, and enough governmental incompetence to make Mayor Larry Vaughn blush.

Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016)

It’s wild to think how a prequel as good as Mike Flanagan’s Ouija: Origin of Evil could follow something as forgettable as 2014’s Ouija. Flanagan goes back to basics with Habro’s Ouija board storytelling, stepping in as a fixer who brings legitimate terror and tension to the series. A cast including Flanagan regulars like Kate Siegel and Henry Thomas execute a possession tale influenced by The Changeling that delivers solid 1960s genre vibes. It’s Flanagan operating within his wheelhouse - what more of a recommendation do you need?

Thanksgiving (2023)

If I’m being honest, part of me thought we’d never see a feature-length version of Eli Roth’s Thanksgiving. Kudos to the slasher filmmaker for pressing studios to make Thanksgiving until Spyglass Media Group finally caved, rewarding patient fans with a Massachusetts massacre that carves with the best of ‘em. Roth sells every delicious Thanksgiving detail and indulges holiday horror accents, utilizing everything from pilgrim costumes to corn cob holders to parade floats at ramming speed. It’s a hybrid slasher that updates the subgenre for modern tastes while remaining dedicated to the splattery golden age of horror violence, finding that sweet spot between storytelling and grotesqueries. I’ll be in line for seconds, thirds, and more if allowed.

The Conference (2023)

Work sucks, but luckily The Conference doesn’t. It’s a furious “Worksploitation” slasher that puts a knife to the throat of scummy corporate culture. Kills all have a taste of the great outdoors since the film takes place at a woodland work retreat, from machetes through hammocks to a splashy jacuzzi death. The Swedish commentary on greedy business folk comes with a nasty savageness and cheeky workplace satires, comparable to other winning work retreat horror tales like Severance.

Circle (2015)

Clever indie filmmakers can make something out of nothing. Aaron Hann and Mario Miscione’s Circle is an excellent representation of that idea, about 50 people who wake up in a dark room arranged in a circular formation. The premise is simple: someone has to die every two minutes. That’s it. Hann and Miscione turn social experimentation into a thriller about characters arguing their point about why they should be the one who lives another round, relying on dialogue to sell the existential dread at the script’s core. Minimalism is the film’s secret ingredient: getting straight to the point and keeping a quick pace in a way that never loses our attention.

Eli (2019)

Eli can feel like a horror movie Mad Libs as the story keeps evolving, but that becomes the film’s ultimate charm. It’s about a boy suffering from an auto-immune disease trapped in a quarantine environment who begins to ponder his imprisonment. The “Bubble Boy” beginning turns into a haunted house thriller that becomes an even crazier third act that I won’t spoil for you now. I’m not saying every big swing is successful, but I’ll go to bat for Eli as a horror film that loves to prove expectations wrong. Give me weird and wild over conventional any day — especially when you have the freedom of streaming releases over theatrical constraints.

Nobody Sleeps In The Woods Tonight (2020)

In the mood for a 2020s Polish slasher created by lovers of 80s American horror trends? Bartosz M. Kowalski uses the campground massacre template to execute a contemporary slasher that feels as throwback as rereleases of Crystal Pepsi. It's a familiar brand of campers meeting gruesome fates one by one with a massive emphasis on practical effects, the goriest and most obscene of which become an overall saving grace. Kowalski aims to prove that Polish slashers can hack 'em up with the best of them, even if there's not much else to praise with the same enthusiasm. If you want blood, you've got it by the truckload.

Girls With Balls (2018)

It’s killer rednecks versus a championship volleyball squad in Girls With Balls. Expect a horror comedy with exploding heads and a musical cowboy acting as a narrator who sings about the gratuitous violence on screen. Don’t expect a brilliant subversion of gender tropes in slasher movies — Girls With Balls is an effects-heavy slaughter spree that doesn’t try to be anything else. International approaches to comedy make some jokes harder to laugh at stateside, so as long as you can focus on the balls-out aggression on screen, you should find entertainment in another bloody backwoods fight for survival.

The Block Island Sound (2020)

Kevin McManus and Matthew McManus summon a creepy coastal caper from the depths of Rhode Island waters. It’s more eerie than aggressive as multiple subgenres swirl together in this unsettling waterlogged mystery. You can expect psychological horror, eco-horror, aquatic horror, even possession horror as Block Island community members try to understand the unexplainable events washing upon their shores. The Block Island Sound weaponizes the idea of "siren songs," toys with out-of-body nightmares, and mixes a spoonful of grief into the batter as storytelling churns like a storm that won’t pass.

Before I Wake (2016)

It’s the Mike Flanagan movie that gets talked about the least — in my experience — yet deserves the world. Flanagan does what he does best: tell a powerfully emotional story using fear, family, and creatures. Jacob Tremblay plays an adopted child who’s terrified of falling asleep because of a ghoulish figure known as “The Canker Man.” Butterflies and fantasy worlds don’t detail the scariest horror experience, as Flanagan leans on childhood imaginations that turn traumatic memories into inescapable boogeymen. Maybe it’s that softness of scare volumes — coupled with unfortunate studio bankruptcies that forced an unceremonious Netflix dump premiere — that caused such comparatively little fanfare over the years (considering Flanagan’s hype elsewhere). Hopefully my recommendation can help Before I Wake find new streaming life.

Under The Shadow (2016)

Babak Anvari’s Under the Shadow is a phenomenal cross section of national trauma invaded by nightmare demons. A family in war-torn Iran is plagued by visits from djinns as if exploding bombs outside and military threats weren’t enough. Anvari manipulates shadows and creates haunted architectures under Iraq-Iran conflict conditions, highlighting the terrors of both. There are some extremely effective scares and fresh deliveries of otherwise common fright-flick molds because, when in doubt, turn to international flavors for something original.

Incantation (2022)

Kevin Ko’s Taiwanese found footage flick Incantation speaks in clichés, but that doesn’t make them any less frightening. You’ll get a few good jolts as a mother must protect her daughter from evils she called upon by breaking religious taboos. Translation: foolish viral video ghost hunters defy the unknown and pay consequences both then and later. The script is murky on the camera’s rules regarding who is filming from a found footage sense and taboo happenings around the entity’s curse. Nevertheless, there’s an interesting concept around interactive found footage horror that smacks of the Ring franchise in its social media focuses, and you’ll yip a few scared noises — you could do way worse on Netflix.

Read our review of Incantation.

There’s Someone Inside Your House (2021)

Patrick Brice’s slasher adaptation accomplishes two massive feats for modern horror flicks: keeps us guessing and slaughters without restraint. It’s another film about teenagers getting sliced and diced by a masked killer, but it’s stylish and fierce enough to carve its own path. Situational misdirects keep audiences guessing who could be guilty of mass murder as characters point fingers while blood runneth everywhere from church confessional booths to aflame corn mazes. Don’t expect the next Scream or anything, just a solid contemporary slasher that succeeds when it matters most.

Cargo (2017)

One of Netflix's first original horror films is still one of my favorites. Ben Howling and Yolanda Ramke's Cargo stars Martin Freeman as a father traversing the Australian outback with his daughter — also, there are zombies. Think The Walking Dead as an undead film that's more about its human characters facing survival drama than zombie action, except this one packs sturdy emotional stakes. Freeman's traveler encounters psychos, ferocious walkers, and weather elements that add thrills to Cargo, but what's unexpected is how a baby doesn't weigh the narrative down. Child subplots in horror are a tricky formula to crack that Cargo gets right, as the fears of protective parents translate into a hearty zombie experience.

Read our review of Cargo.

The Babysitter (2017)

Does The Babysitter indulge McG’s tendencies as a director who loves popular needle drops and quotes pop culture like a middle schooler who discovered HBO? Yes. Is it also written by Brian Duffield of Spontaneous fame — a magnificent young adult dark comedy – and does it star modern scream queen in the making, Samara Weaving? Thankfully, these saving graces play into McG’s bounce-about take on horrific humor as a child realizes his babysitter is performing a cult ritual while mom and dad are out for the night. A supporting cast including Robbie Amell, Bella Thorne, Hana Mae Lee, and Andrew Bachelor all have their moments subverting specific “hunted home alone” tropes — still, The Babysitter is Samara Weaving’s showcase. Tune in, share some laughs, soak in a devilish Weaving performance, and check out Netflix’s funniest spooky original so far.

Read our review of The Babysitter.

The Ritual (2017)

Netflix's original horror game rose to another level with The Ritual, David Bruckner's directorial debut outside segments in The Signal, V/H/S, and Southbound. Four friends take a northern Swedish hiking trip in memory of their deceased fifth, only to become victims of a woodland nightmare. Visions begin by layering psychological horror as the characters confront fears or guilt, then cultism adds communal dread, and lastly, Bruckner delivers on creature-feature goods. One source of terror feeds into the next and provokes future traumas, all interconnected as Bruckner weaves in and out of multiple horror subgenres with ease. There's so much to enjoy as Swedish forestation becomes an isolated outdoor prison, and then all hell breaks loose. Bruckner flaunts his filmmaking chops in a significant way.

Blood Red Sky (2021)

Peter Thorwarth’s Blood Red Sky boils down to vampires on a plane — but not like the SYFY channel throwaway such a title suggests. Nadja (Peri Baumeister) is a bloodsucking mother whose only motivation is to keep her son alive from hijackers who want to crash a commercial flight. It’s far tenser and emotionally comprehensive than expected, staying far away from being another Snakes on a Plane knockoff. Performances are substantial, whether gruff terrorists or ferocious mothers, while intensity drives home an action-horror experience like airliner blockbuster Non-Stop but with more sucked blood. It's a solid vampire movie worth your time.

Apostle (2018)

Director Gareth Evans did not come to play with the gorgeous and gory Apostle. While the Netflix original is several years old at this point, it still feels like this one never got the attention it quite deserved. Before the era where Netflix original films were super prevalent, Apostle follows Thomas Richardson (played by none other than Dan Stephens) as he seeks out to rescue his sister from a strange, secluded cult.

#Alive (2020)

No one does a zombie movie quite like South Korea, and #Alive is one of the absolute best. A video game streamer decides to lock himself in his apartment while a zombie outbreak destroys the surrounding city of Seoul, but just as he’s losing all hope, he discovers that his neighbor in the apartment across from him is also still alive. The two create a zipline to share food, and share walkie-talkies to communicate with one another, while zombies terrorize the world outside of their walls. It’s a film as much about the human need for interaction as it is about survival, and the constant threat of zombies keeps keeps every moment filled with exhilarating tension.

Creep (2014)

Fans of POV/found footage horror films, rejoice, because Creep is one of the best in this style. In Patrick Brice’s directorial debut, Creep follows a filmmaker named Aaron who answers a strange man named Josef’s online ad to film him for the day, the final request of a man claiming to be dying of cancer hoping to make a video for his unborn child. Upon arrival, Aaron realizes that there’s something super weird about Josef and with the camera constantly rolling, we witness the absurdity and danger in store for Aaron. Come for the wild as hell Mark Duplass performance, stay for the Peachfuzz mask. If you love it, Netflix also has the sequel — Creep 2.

The Fear Street Trilogy

Leigh Janiak was the talk of the summer when Netflix dropped the cinematic trilogy based on the popular book series by “Goosebumps” author R.L. Stine, Fear Street. The Fear Street trilogy brought three separate movies to tell one cohesive story about the cursed town of Shadyside and the inhabitants impacted by generational horror. Each film is predominantly set in a different time period, delivering a little treat for fans of slashers, hauntings, teen horror, queer horror, and folk horror. The three films work best when watched all together, but each film can successfully stand on its own, making it a must-see trilogy.

Gerald’s Game (2017)

Stephen King’s Gerald’s Game was considered to be his “unfilmable” work, but if anyone is capable of proving King wrong, it’s Mike Flanagan. The man behind The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, Midnight Mass, Hush, Doctor Sleep, and others successfully tackled Gerald’s Game and provided one of Netflix’s best original horror releases. Gerald’s Game is a terrifying descent into madness and home to a dynamite leading performance by Carla Gugino.

His House (2020)

Remi Weekes truly made something special with His House, arguably one of the scariest films on the Netflix roster. A haunted house story on the surface, His House centers on a refugee couple escaping war-torn Sudan only to find that the English town they’ve fled to may be just as harrowing as the land they left. The source of the film’s horror lies not just with the supernatural elements, but also with themes of grief, guilt, abandonment, xenophobia, and assimilation. It’s a powerful haunt that will linger with you long after the credits roll.

May The Devil Take You (2018)

If there’s one area where Netflix thrives with their horror offerings, it’s with their international selection of scares. Genre fans have been praising the work of Timo Tjahjanto for years with his standout shorts in The ABCs of Death and V/H/S/2, but his feature film work in Indonesia is arguably his best, and Netflix’ acquisition has brought his work to mainstream Western audiences. In May The Devil Take You, a young woman visits her father’s former home trying to find the answer regarding his mysterious illness, only to discover the horrifying truth about his past.

The Perfection (2018)

Go into The Perfection as clueless as possible (but be aware of some triggering rape stuff), because half the fun of this psychological horror film is trying (and failing) to guess just what happens next. Allison Wiliams plays a former cello prodigy who returns to her prestigious music school to find that she’s been replaced by the new star student, Lizzie played by Logan Browning. The Perfection plays with exploitation film conventions and completely subverts them on their head in absolutely unpredictable ways. It’s a wild thrill ride and truly, perfection.

Vampires Vs. The Bronx (2020)

Vampires have been used as metaphors for a variety of othering, but Vampires Vs. The Bronx highlights humanity’s true villain –gentrification. After a trio of young best friends discover a brood of vampires are preparing to destroy The Bronx, they take matters into their own hands and get the community together to fight back against the monsters invading their home. Calling it The Lost Boys for a new generation feels too easy, but the Frog Brothers would be proud do see how Miguel, Bobby, Luis, Gloria, Lil Mayor, and the rest of the gang tackle the aptly named Murnau real estate film. Leave the stake, take the adobo.

See our list of the best vampire movies for more like this.

A good night's sleep is essential for a healthy and productive day. If you're having trouble sleeping, especially when you're travelling and bedded in unfamiliar accomodations, then you might when to check out this early Amazon Prime Day deal. Amazon is offering the diminutive Dreamegg portable white noise machine for just $9.49 after you apply 50% off coupon code "6TVMPOMB" during checkout. I bought one the last time this went on sale and it has worked as intended in a nursery, keeping the baby soundly asleep.

Dreamegg Portable White Noise Machine for $9.49

The paperback box set of the core five Witcher books is on sale at Amazon, which has a surprising amount of book deals ahead of its Prime Day sales. You can pick up the full collection for $35.40, which is 61% off the original list price of $89.99.

The collection doesn't include the two prequel short stories, The Last Wish and Sword of Destiny, or the standalone prequel Season of Storms, but you can pick those up individually or in their own box set. These all share the same red spine design as the main box set, so displaying them on a shelf won't drive you insane as it would for me if they didn't match.

Get the Entire Witcher Series on Sale

The Witcher centers around Geralt of Rivia, a monster-killing, bounty-hunting Witcher with magic powers and a penchant for toxic relationships. Throughout the saga you'll meet a colorful cast of characters like Princess Cirilla, who Geralt is tied to in a twist of destiny, Dandelion, Geralt's close friend and wandering bard, and Yennefer of Vengerberg, a sorceress and subject of Geralt's aforementioned complicated love life.

If you're new to the Witcher series, the reading order can be a bit complicated with jumping timelines, the prequel, and the short story collections. Here's a quick TL; DR on how to read the Witcher books in order:

• The Last Wish (short stories)
• Sword of Destiny (short stories)
• Season of Storms (you can also read this last)
• Blood of Elves
• The Time of Contempt
• Baptism of Fire
• The Towers of Swallows
• The Lady of the Lake

I'd highly recommend these books to anyone who enjoys CD Projekt Red's loose adaptation of them in the form of The Witcher games. As we wait (probably quite a long time) for The Witcher 4, what better opportunity is there to dive into the original lore?

When Will The Witcher Return on Netflix?

Aside from the games, The Witcher books have also been adapted by Netflix... relatively faithfully. Henry Cavill played the titular character for seasons 1-3, with Liam Hemsworth replacing him for season 4 onward. The new season is likely arriving in the second half of 2025.

In our review of season 3, volume 2, we said "[it] closes out its most compromised season yet by once again losing Henry Cavill in the clunky, plot-heavy shuffle", and gave it a five overall.

Myles Obenza is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Bluesky @mylesobenza.bsky.social.

Let's make this easy. You want to know if there are any post-credits or mid-credits scenes in Jurassic World Rebirth. Well, we'll tell you right here:

There are not.

But read on about the new movie all the same!

Life finds a way, and so does the Jurassic franchise, thanks to the seventh film in the series, Jurassic World Rebirth. But with the adventure on Ile Saint-Hubert in the rearview mirror, is this film setting up a new trilogy, or is it a standalone movie? The answer is “maybe” to the first question, and “maybe” to the second one. A lot, you may not be surprised to hear, depends on how well the movie does this week/weekend at the box office.

Directed by Gareth Edwards (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Godzilla) and starring franchise newcomers Scarlett Johansson as Zora Bennett, Mahershala Ali as Duncan Kincaid, and Jonathan Bailey as Dr. Henry Loomis, Rebirth received a 5 out of 10 score from IGN's Clint Gage. "For a movie that promises a 'Rebirth,' the latest Jurassic World plays it frustratingly safe, falling back on the blueprint of the original film, but not shedding any of the problems with the more recent movies," reads the review.

Still, if you’re looking for an explanation of the ending of the movie, and how it could set up a sequel – or even a new trilogy – then be sure to check this space on Friday when we update this page with full spoilers.

Does Jurassic World Rebirth Have A Mid- or End-Credits Scene?

Nope! As stated above, after the final shot, there are just credits for the movie. You should always hang out to pay tribute to the awesome folks who worked on a film, but if you’re wondering whether Blue pops up for a last-second surprise, or Mr. D.N.A. is back for revenge, you’ll have to wait for Jurassic World Rebirth 2: Reborn Again.

Check back on this page on Friday for all the Jurassic spoilers you could ask for!

Sonos is offering a fantastic deal on one of its most popular speakers. I think it's going to beat any Sonos deal we'll see during Amazon Prime Day. The Sonos Era 100 retails for $200. Normally, you could purchase a certified refurbished model for $159, but Sonos has jut discounted it even further to $119, or 40% off compared to the price of buying new. This is the lowest price I've seen for an Era 100 speaker. Sonos refurbished products are like new, include pristine packaging and all original accessories, and come with the same one year warranty as a brand new product.

Sonos Era 100 Smart Speaker for $119

Certified refurbished with 1 year Sonos warranty

The new AMC and AMC+ series Nautilus revisits the iconic antihero Captain Nemo from Jules Vernes’ classic sci-fi adventure novels Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and The Mysterious Island, chronicling the submarine commander’s quest for revenge against the ruthless East India Mercantile Company.

Star Trek: Discovery and Penny Dreadful actor Shazad Latif plays Nemo, and IGN was recently able to chat with him about the series, the first two episodes of which have now debuted. (This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.)

IGN: How much does this version of Captain Nemo stick with what Jules Verne eventually revealed about that character and how much of it is just a necessary reinvention for this show?

Shazad Latif: It's [in] The Mysterious Island where we learn that he might have an Indian background, because of a prince called Dakkar. So the book takes that element and we run with that. And we still run that his wife and child have been killed and his hell-bent revenge on the East India Company, which sort of plays into what Verne was still talking about.

But then we have 10 episodes of exploration, so we have a lot of free rein to follow this guy's story and eventually find out how the Nemo we meet in the books and how we get there, really. There's free rein, but we also stick quite true to it. … Xavier [Marchand], our producer, was obsessed with Jules Verne himself.

IGN: One of the inventions of the show that I liked, I thought it was really smart, is the idea of the development of the Nautilus itself. In the books Nemo just basically makes it on his own. But you would think, if you don't have any money left, that's a lot of work for one guy.

Shazad Latif: Yeah. No, exactly. It's good to see in the first episode, that that's what they're doing, I really like that touch, and how they escape with it. And then it's not his ship then, but it becomes his ship, and he sticks his daughter's shell on it later in the series. It's nice, the emotional connection he has to this ship, which seemingly is just this big piece of metal in the junkyard.

IGN: Nemo’s fellow prisoners become his crew. What do they think of him? Do they trust him?

Shazad Latif: Well, I think at first it's like, "Who the hell is this guy telling us what to do?" And suddenly he's just become captain and taken charge. And you need someone to take the lead. Yeah, it becomes a bit of a poison, because he's just ordering people about and not really explaining his reasons. So I think that we see that come to a head in the series, I think, around episode seven or eight, and it builds throughout.

But there's a moment where he realizes you can't really do that. And if he needs and wants this team to help him on his revenge mission, then he has to be truthful with them, and the truth will set you free. And then being vulnerable around the people you need is a good lesson, I think, in life in general, especially for hot-headed dudes like Nemo. It is a great thing, and it's necessary in his journey.

IGN: He seems morally dubious at times, at least in the first episode.

Shazad Latif: I think the morally dubious stuff, he's almost willing to do that because he's seen as a prisoner anyway. And also, revenge is clouding his judgment, so he's like, "I'm going to kill these guys, I'm going to kill everyone, and they killed my wife and child." So that's where we start, with the seething anger. And he slowly dissipates that by realizing that's not the only way to do it and you need other people. But yeah, that is the starting point, where he's willing to do anything, and that includes breaking the law, as it were, which he doesn't respect anyway, especially if the law has been made by the East India Company or the British Empire.

IGN: What was the actual production like? Because it looks really good and really expensive. How much of this was actually shot on the water? Or was it all green screen?

Shazad Latif: No, I think it was a great mix of everything. We were on the [water] tank and three sound stages, which had all the interiors and the submarine. But then there was the tank which had the exteriors, and we'd do water scenes there, underwater scenes there, submarine on top, and then the CGI surrounding all of that. I think they had to do layers of CGI on top of the water. It was a whole mix and blend of everything. And we did locations and everything.

IGN: What's the thing about that character that has stayed with you or maybe something surprising that you discovered about him as you were mining that material?

Shazad Latif: The 210-day shoot and playing someone who's so angry, you carry these emotions with you, whether they're small or big. But I think that thing of learning to be vulnerable was a nice lesson which I could take into my own life as well. And then on the outside of that, just getting a chance to play representation of a South Asian character on screen in this way, an action hero. I loved all the action movies and stuff I watched growing up. But it's Harrison Ford, it's Brendan Fraser, it's all those characters. So if there's even one little brown kid or kid who watches this and sees me jumping around a ship, and enjoys it, then that reminds me of when I was young and felt the same thing. So it's a nice thing to be part of.

IGN: Is there an intention to do another season or was this meant to be a one and done?

Shazad Latif: I have no idea. That's a producer question, I guess. I'm just an actor, so I don't get let into those meetings. But we'll see. We'll see.

New episodes of Nautilus premiere Sundays on AMC and AMC+, leading up to the two-episode season finale on Sunday, August 17. Read IGN's Nautilus, Season One review.

As part of its 4th of July Sale, Best Buy is slashing 40% off the price of the GameSir Super Nova Wireless Controller. It's normally $50, but right now the red and white model is down to just $29.99. This is a an excellent price for a controller packed with a plethora of practical features like Hall-Effect joysticks and triggers, tri-mode connectivity, button mapping, included charging dock, and more. This is a PC gaming controller at its core, but it's also compatible with the Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 consoles. The red and white color scheme that complements the Switch is a Best Buy exclusive.

40% Off GameSir Super Nova Wireless Gaming Controller

The latest in an incredibly long line of LEGO Star Wars sets is the Battle Droid with STAP. This is a big, impressive build that can be used for play (as suggested by its 12+ age rating) or for display (as suggested by the included stand and placard). As such, it’s one of those LEGO releases that works just as well as a set for kids as it does for adults.

The droid in question is one of the B1-series battle droids that pop up all over the place in the prequel trilogy. They look seriously cool, even if they might fall in battle at the mere suggestion of a blaster bolt or a lightsaber swing. This LEGO battle droid is a bit stockier than the ones in the movies, but that’s probably because a droid this size with thinner limbs might fall apart under its own weight.

This set comes with 10 bags of LEGO blocks, plus a full-color instruction manual and a sticker sheet of decals. First you build the bot’s torso, followed by its legs, feet, arms, and head. Its hands are particularly neat, as they’re comprised of two fingers and a thumb, all of which can move independently (the better for gripping a blaster, or the STAP's handlebars).

Its legs, arms, and feet are all attached using ball joints, so you can pose them in all kinds of ways. This comes in handy when you want to stand it up, because it lets you find the center of gravity for the pose you want to use.

With my son, I’ve built a number of the LEGO action figure sets, like Iron Spider-Man and New Captain America. This battle droid is similar to those, but it looks way better. Its limbs are too thick to look movie-accurate, but unless you’re comparing them side-by-side, you likely won’t notice. The gears on the knees and the thin rods connecting the forearms to the elbows are a nice touch. It’s just a great looking droid overall.

While most of the detail on the droid comes from how the LEGO pieces fit together, you’ll need to affix decals on some of the pieces. As with all stickers, you need to place them carefully, or else your droid may look a little wonky and amateurish.

After building the battle droid in full, you assemble its weapon, the E-5 blaster rifle. Next up is the minifigure version, which is like an artfully shrunken-down clone of the whole set. It looks terrific.

Lastly, you assemblie the STAP speeder and stand (the acronym stands for Single Trooper Aerial Platform). In Star Wars lore, a STAP is a repulsorcraft used by the Trade Federation, most famously in the Invasion of Naboo, as depicted in The Phantom Menace.

The STAP is a pretty standard build that starts with the skeleton of the structure, using various colored bricks that will later be hidden by the brown exterior of the vehicle. I love it when LEGO sets have colorful bricks hidden within them. First, the colors break up the visual tedium of what may otherwise be a bland build. Second, the colorful bricks make it easier to see which brick goes where in the instruction manual.

Once the inside of the vehicle is assembled, you add the exterior bricks, which are all a uniform brown color in this case. The end result is an exterior that’s satisfyingly smooth and curvy. The STAP has handles you can clamp the droid’s hands onto and foot rests you can secure its feet to. It’s a big, sturdy set, with a base that’s just wide enough to hold it up. The end result is really impressive. I’d easily recommend this set to any fans of the Star Wars prequel trilogy.

More New LEGO Releases

Chris Reed is a commerce editor and deals expert for IGN. He also runs IGN's board game and LEGO coverage. You can follow him on Bluesky.

Postapocalyptic open-world survival game Once Human is launching its Annual Version 2.0: Dreamveil, and developer Starry Studio is hosting a special program to mark the occasion. There will be a celebration of all the game has achieved so far, as well as news and updates about what’s coming in the future. IGN will carry a livestream of the full program, so here’s all the details for how you can watch and what to expect as part of the show.

Once Human Special Program Date, Time, and How to Watch

If you’re in the United States, the program will be streaming at night. It’ll begin on Wednesday, July 2 at 9 p.m. Pacific, which means it’ll be at midnight that night in the Eastern time zone. You can watch it live on any of these IGN channels:

IGN.com (our homepage)

IGN’s Facebook

IGN’s Twitter

IGN’s Twitch

IGN’s YouTube

If you can’t stay up late to watch it live, don’t worry. We’ll save the show in its entirety on our YouTube page, so it’ll be waiting for you the next morning.

What to Expect from the Once Human Special Program

This being the game’s annual version, there’s sure to be a look back at the past year and what’s happened in the Once Human universe since release. That includes the game’s four scenarios so far: the PVE-focused Manibus and The Way of Winter, and the PVP-focused Evolution’s Call and Prismverse’s Clash. It also includes the game’s mobile version that was released in April. There have been rumblings of a console version also being in the works, but nothing official has been confirmed so far. Could that be part of this show?

There have been trailers and dev logs that have given some sense of new content that’s on the horizon, but the special program will go into more detail. We know a nightmare-themed scenario called Endless Dream is already in Early Access, but if you haven’t played it for yourself, expect a deep dive into the new story and deviants you’ll face and new content and locations being added.

We also know a new class system is being introduced with three classes available: Chef, Gardener, and Beastmaster. Expect a breakdown of each of the classes and what makes them unique. There also will be announcements of new events, in-game rewards, and other updates to celebrate the new annual version. Plus, the developers are likely to reveal a roadmap of future content. If you haven’t played Once Human yet and want to give it a try before seeing the updates, you can play it for free right now on PC and mobile.

The Secretlab 4th of July Sale has officially commenced and runs through July 10. Save up to $139 off Secretlab's popular Titan line of gaming chairs, Magnus gaming desks (including the Magnus Pro electric standing desk model), and accessories like the Secretlab Skins upholstery covers, desk mats, cable management, and more. Newer releases like the Titan Evo Nanogen chair and the recliner add-on are exempt from this sale.

It's no secret that we love our Secretlab gaming chairs. Three of the eight chairs in our best gaming chair roundup are Secretlab models. Of all the gaming chairs we covered in our "Budget to Best" roundup video earlier this year, my colleague Akeem Lawanson considered the Secretlab Titan Evo to be the most comfortable. No good chair comes cheap and Secretlab chairs definitely cost a premium, but we think the craftsmanship, materials, and customizability are worth it.

TL;DR - The 7 Best Secretlab Deals

You can quickly browse through all of the listed products on sale above. For more information on each product and why they are worth your consideration, read through below.

Secretlab Titan Evo

Secretlab Titan Evo Lite

Secretlab Titan 2020

Secretlab Titan Evo Nanogen Edition

Secretlab Titan Recliner Add-On

Secretlab Magnus and Magnus Pro

It’s the week of Independence Day, which means tons of retailers are running major sales. You can save money on just about everything in this year's Fourth of July sales, from desks and mattresses to gaming PCs and handhelds. If you’ve had your eye on something, this might be the time to pick it up.

To help you out, we’ve scoured the internet and gathered all the biggest sales in one handy list below. Or, if you want to see a selection of the best deals, you can take a look at our Fourth of July sale page. Let’s take a look.

The Best Fourth of July Sales Live Now

Mega-outlets like Amazon, Target, and Walmart have sales going, as do more specialized retailers like Dell, Home Depot, and Old Navy. Basically, if it's a well-known retailer, it's having a Fourth of July sale.

When Do Fourth of July Sales End?

The sales listed above end at a variety of times. Target's Fourth of July sale ends on July 5, so you don't even get the full weekend to grab your deals. Best Buy's sale ends on Sunday, July 6, when the new weekly sale begins. Home Depot's sale ends on July 9. So it's really a toss-up when it comes to end points, which most of the sites above have listed. And as long as you make your purchases by the end of July 4, you're definitely in the clear.

Should You Wait for Prime Day?

With Amazon’s annual Prime Day sale event coming right up (it runs July 8 - 11 this year), you might be wondering if it’s better to buy the items on your list now or wait for Prime Day. As with most things, it kind of depends.

For starters, you have to be a Prime member to take advantage of the best Prime Day deals. So if you’re not a Prime member and you’re not interested in becoming one, you can certainly buy whatever you want in the Fourth of July sales.

However, some other retailers are also planning their own sales events to compete with Prime Day. Walmart's Deals sale is set to run July 8 - 13 (with Walmart+ members getting one day early access). And Target's Circle Week runs July 8 - 11 - though you do need to be a Target Circle member to take advantage of those deals (you can sign up here for free). Those sales will likely have similar discounts to what we're seeing now in the Fourth of July sales.

All that said, if you're a Prime member and you can wait for Prime Day, it doesn't hurt to hold off and see what kinds of deals are available starting July 8. Prime Day deals are typically quite good, and even if the items you're after aren't on sale for low prices, one of the other retailers will may have it for cheaper than you'll find it now during the Independence Day sales. Or you can just wait for one of the other upcoming sales. Your call.

Chris Reed is a commerce editor and deals expert for IGN. He also runs IGN's board game and LEGO coverage. You can follow him on Bluesky.

The first teaser trailer for Oscar winner Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey is playing in theaters, paired with fellow Universal release Jurassic World Rebirth, but if the director and the studio were hoping to keep the first look video as an exclusively theatrical experience that’s now how it’s playing out. Cell phone recordings of people watching it in cinemas are popping up all over social media and on YouTube (IGN doesn’t link out to pirated material).

We’ve inquired with Universal Pictures about whether they plan on officially releasing the teaser trailer for The Odyssey online.

The trailer opens with what seems to be voiceover from Eumaeus, who was Odysseus’ slave and friend as the character refers to him as “my master.” It’s not clear who is voicing the role.

The teaser shows quick shots of the Mediterranean Sea and the Trojan Horse on a beach before cutting to Telemachus, Odysseus's son played by Tom Holland, meeting with Jon Bernthal’s King Menelaus.

LEGO has a handful of free gifts with qualifying purchases for a limited time. Depending on how much you spend, you can pick up a couple of free sets, and can even grab multiple if you spend enough. Some of these used to be available for purchase, but are now included as fun little gifts and incentives to shop at LEGO directly. Keep in mind, you have to buy sets that are already out; preordering sets don't qualify you for a free gift with purchase, even if it meets the spending requirements. So you can't pick up the recently announced castle set and get the free gifts.

Gifts with purchase are only available to LEGO Insiders members, which is free to join.

LEGO Celebration: Ferris Wheel with Fireworks Free Gift With Purchase