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TL;DR: Watch Chicago Sky vs. Minnesota Lynx in the WNBA with WNBA League Pass. Avoid blackouts and watch the WNBA from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
The WNBA 2024 playoffs kick off this month, and teams who have not yet secured their position will be fighting for a spot. Next to the court are Chicago Sky and Minnesota Lynx. The Lynx have already qualified for a post-season spot, but it's still all to play for Chicago Sky as they sit in eighth place in the standings.
If you want to watch Chicago Sky vs. Minnesota Lynx in the WNBA from anywhere in the world, keep reading to find out all the information you need.
When is Chicago Sky vs. Minnesota Lynx?Chicago Sky vs. Minnesota Lynx in the WNBA starts at 3 p.m. ET on Sept. 1. This fixture takes place at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
How to watch Chicago Sky vs. Minnesota LynxBasketball fans can watch the WNBA 2024 season from anywhere in the world with the WNBA League Pass.
The WNBA League Pass may however not show locally televised games live in the participating teams' local areas. But you can get around this by using a VPN. These are tools that work by hiding your real IP address (digital location). With this, you'll be able to connect to secure servers in other locations and watch every WNBA League Pass game live, excluding games hosted by Amazon Prime Video.
To access every WNBA League Pass game, follow these easy steps:
Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)
Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
Open up the app and connect to a server in a location with no broadcast deals for the WNBA
Log in to WNBA League Pass
Stream every Chicago Sky vs. Minnesota Lynx plus other WNBA games live (except games hosted by Amazon Prime Video)
ExpressVPN is the best choice for hiding your real IP address and streaming more sport, for a number of reasons:
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Stream Chicago Sky vs. Minnesota Lynx in the WNBA from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
Summer is in the rearview, but fret not. Though 2024 has already offered us some absolutely sensational (and sexy) cinema with the first half of the year, fall means FYC season is upon us. And with that comes an avalanche of tantalizing movies.
For Your Consideration, we've not only highlighted festival favorites and prestige dramas sure to gain Oscar buzz, but also heartwarming sequels, pulse-pounding thrillers, nail-biting horror, gut-busting comedies, eye-popping adventures, and mind-bending musicals. Whatever kind of movie you're looking for this season is serving it up.
Here are the fall 2024 movies you'll want to know about.
SeptemberBeetlejuice BeetlejuiceIt's showtime! 36 years since Beetlejuice introduced us to the ghost with the most, Tim Burton is reuniting with collaborators Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, and Catherine O'Hara for the long-awaited sequel.
SEE ALSO: 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice': Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Jenna Ortega, and Catherine O'Hara on how they brought back the iconic Tim Burton storyThis time around, Lydia Deetz (Ryder) has an angsty teen of her own in Astrid (Wednesday's Jenna Ortega). When Astrid — like her mother before her — gets too cozy with the dead, Lydia and her stepmother Delia (O'Hara) must team up with their former foe, Beetlejuice (Keaton), to outwit the rules of the afterlife. And he'll need their help against his vengeful ex-wife (Monica Bellucci).
Bursting with familiar iconography, spookiness, and kookiness, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is sure to thrill fans new and old. — Kristy Puchko, Entertainment Editor
Starring: Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Catherine O'Hara, Justin Theroux, Monica Bellucci, Jenna Ortega, and Willem Dafoe
How to watch: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice opens in theaters Sept. 6.
Rebel RidgeWhen a corrupt small-town police force gets in the way of a former Marine posting bail for his cousin, all hell breaks loose in Rebel Ridge.
This no-holds-barred thriller comes courtesy of director Jeremy Saulnier, whose gnarly Green Room pitted a punk rock band against neo-Nazis in a similar tale of underdogs facing down evil. Expect brutal action and a star-making turn from lead Aaron Pierre. Don't believe me? Just watch the trailer above. The way he fakes out his foes by asking, "What if we just walk away?" only to turn follow up with a deadpan, "but then I was like, 'nah,'" is seared into my brain. — Belen Edwards, Entertainment Reporter
Starring: Aaron Pierre, Don Johnson, AnnaSophia Robb, David Denman, Emory Cohen, James Cromwell, Steve Zissis, Zsané Jhé, and Dana Lee
How to watch: Rebel Ridge premieres Sept. 6 on Netflix.
Look Into My EyesLana Wilson, the director behind Miss Americana, is back with a new documentary, and this time the subject matter isn't Taylor Swift — it's psychics.
The trailer above shows a series of conversations between mediums and their clients in New York City, teasing an insight into the psychology around grief, healing, and human connection. Whether you're a believer or a cynic, this A24 offering could make you reconsider what you think about clairvoyants. — Sam Haysom, Deputy UK Editor
How to watch: Look Into My Eyes opens in theaters Sept. 6.
The Front RoomBrandy Norwood goes head-to-head with an insidious mother-in-law in A24 horror The Front Room.
Directed by Max and Sam Eggers (brothers of The Northman's Robert Eggers), this thriller stars the screen and music icon as Belinda, who finds her life upended when her mother-in-law Solange (Poor Things' Kathryn Hunter) moves in. Newly pregnant and overwhelmingly done with Solange's unsettling behavior and constant commentary, Belinda realizes the old woman might actually be dangerous to her — and her unborn child. Convincing her husband (Andrew Burnap) seems impossible, so it seems Belinda might have to take matters into her own hands. — Shannon Connellan, UK Editor
Starring: Brandy Norwood, Andrew Burnap, Neal Huff, and Kathryn Hunter
How to watch: The Front Room opens in theaters Sept. 6.
His Three DaughtersOne of Mashable's favorites out of TIFF 2023, His Three Daughters centers on three sisters struggling to cope as their elderly father enters his final days of at-home hospice care. Stuck together in a cozy but emotionally claustrophobic New York City apartment, they face sibling rivalry, philosophical differences, and heated emotions.
Each member of writer/director Azazel Jacobs' cast is stellar. And as I wrote in our review, "His Three Daughters is a simple but elegant drama that grapples with the ugliness of grief and comes out with as happy an ending as a shattering death might bring. It's chaotic, charismatic, and ultimately cathartic. Don't miss it." — K.P.
Starring: Carrie Coon, Natasha Lyonne, Elizabeth Olsen, and Jovan Adepo
How to watch: His Three Daughters opens in theaters Sept. 6, and debuts on Netflix Sept. 20.
My Old AssWhat if you could go back in time and talk to your younger self? Would you provide comfort? Advice? Warnings? Or maybe a hasty mix of all of the above?
This is the comedic premise of writer/director Megan Park's buzzed-about Sundance movie, My Old Ass. 18-year-old Elliott Labrant (Maisy Stella) is on a camping trip with friends, hanging out and getting high, when a 39-year-old version of herself (Aubrey Plaza) crashes the party. Far from the sentimental meeting either might wish for, their connection across time proves a mind-blowing trip, peppered with laughs and life lessons. — K.P.
Starring: Maisy Stella, Percy Hynes White, Maddie Ziegler, Kerrice Brooks, and Aubrey Plaza
How to watch: My Old Ass opens in theaters Sept. 13.
Speak No EvilOne of the scariest movies of 2022 is getting a Hollywood remake, courtesy of The Woman in Black director James Watkins.
The premise of this psychological thriller seems simple: It's a holiday-turned-horror story. But the specifics (at least of Christian Tafdrup's Danish original) are soul-scorchingly harrowing. When a family of three visits the home of a family they befriended on vacation, things go from amiable to awkward to nerve-shreddingly tense. But which red flag would have you fleeing? Dare you find out? — K.P.
Starring: James McAvoy, Mackenzie Davis, Aisling Franciosi, Alix West Lefler, Dan Hough, and Scoot McNairy
How to watch: Speak No Evil opens in theaters Sept. 13.
Omni LoopMary-Louise Parker brings her signature smirk to a time-travel tale that's sure to mess with your head — and heart.
Imagine if you learned there's an actual black hole growing in your chest. For most, that'd be a death sentence. But when a condemned-to-die quantum physicist (Parker) learns her medication allows her into a time-loop, she digs in Groundhog Day-style to find a solution. The cast alone should have you marking your calendar. — K.P.
Starring: Mary-Louise Parker, Ayo Edebiri, Hannah Pearl Utt, Chris Witaske, Carlos Jacott, Harris Yulin, Steven Maier, and Eddie Cahill
How to watch: Omni Loop opens in theaters and on digital Sept. 20.
WolfsFrom Jon Watts, the director who brought us Spider-Man: Homecoming, Far From Home, and No Way Home, comes an assassin comedy that looks like it has killer laughs.
Ocean's Eleven stars George Clooney and Brad Pitt re-team to play "fixers" who are used to working solo — but now have to work together on a particularly messy job. Visual gags, bickering banter, and wild turns are teased in the trailer, along with an anti-bromance vibe that's undeniably amusing. Let the funny business begin! — K.P.
Starring: George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Amy Ryan, Austin Abrams, and Poorna Jagannathan
How to watch: Wolfs opens in theaters on Sept. 20, and debuts on Apple TV+ on Sept. 27.
The SubstanceCoralie Fargeat's sci-fi body horror The Substance won best screenplay at Cannes, and now it's crawling into cinemas. Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley lead this sinister satire, which scrutinizes the beauty industry, Hollywood, and ageism through the titular product known only as "The Substance." This injectable solution lets you "generate another you" with whom you must share time. Of course, that's not as simple as it sounds.
"While visceral in spurts, The Substance is never quite in control of its satire on sexualization, an excess in which it revels without always meaningfully subverting," writes Siddhant Adlakha in his review for Mashable. "Its lead performances are fine-tuned — especially from Demi Moore, who delivers intrepid, career-best work — but the film is more a collection of mild jabs than a full-throated deconstruction of a cultural gaze." — S.C.
Starring: Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley, Dennis Quaid, Hugo Diego Garcia, Joseph Balderrama, Oscar Lesage
How to watch: The Substance hits theaters Sept. 20.
The Wild RobotSatisfy your cravings for animated adventure with The Wild Robot, based on the book series by Peter Brown and directed by Chris Sanders (Lilo & Stitch, How to Train Your Dragon).
Lupita Nyong'o lends her voice to Roz, a robot who's been shipwrecked on a faraway island. There, she'll grow close to the island's animal inhabitants — voiced by the likes of Pedro Pascal, Kit Connor, and Catherine O'Hara — and raise an orphaned gosling, all while learning to live and feel beyond the demands of her programming. If the heartstring-tugging storyline and killer voice cast haven't already lured you in, The Wild Robot's vibrant, painterly animation certainly will. — B.E.
Starring: Lupita Nyong'o, Pedro Pascal, Kit Connor, Catherine O'Hara, Bill Nighy, Stephanie Hsu, Mark Hamill, Matt Berry, and Ving Rhames
How to watch: The Wild Robot hits theaters Sept. 27.
Apartment 7AReady for a horror movie that's going to make you rethink the hatred of sequels?
Playing as a predecessor to Roman Polanski's 1968 classic Rosemary's Baby, Apartment 7A focuses on aspiring dancer Terry Gionoffrio (Julia Garner), who has made some powerful friends in 1965 New York. Specifically, when she was down on her luck, she was welcomed into the posh parlors of the Bramford apartment building by a beguiling, elderly couple (Dianne Wiest and Kevin McNally). Terry begins to suspect something strange and sinister lurks behind their friendly faces — and their odd-smelling presents. Fantastically frightening with a contemporary sensibility for scares and political commentary, Apartment 7A is a horror offering that demands to be seen. — K.P.
Starring: Julia Garner, Dianne Wiest, Jim Sturgess, Marli Siu, Kevin McNally, and Rosy McEwen
How to watch: Apartment 7A debuts on digital and Paramount+ Sept. 27.
MegalopolisOut its world premiere at the prestigious Cannes International Film Festival, Francis Ford Coppola's latest got mixed reviews. But the trailer above would have you thinking critics have never understood the genius of the mind behind such epic films as The Godfather, Apocalypse Now, and Bram Stoker's Dracula. Well, that bold trailer pulled those quotes out of thin air — or possibly ChatGPT.
Whether Megalopolis is great or a great disaster is almost beside the point. With a cast like this and a controversy like that, don't you want to see for yourself what this movie is really all about? — K.P.
Starring: Adam Driver, Giancarlo Esposito, Nathalie Emmanuel, Aubrey Plaza, Shia LaBeouf, Jon Voight, Laurence Fishburne, Talia Shire, Jason Schwartzman, Kathryn Hunter, Grace VanderWaal, Chloe Fineman, James Remar, D.B. Sweeney, and Dustin Hoffman
How to watch: Megalopolis opens in theaters Sept. 27.
Rez BallBased on the nonfiction sports novel Canyon Dreams by journalist Michael Powell, Rez Ball focuses on the Chuska Warriors, a high school basketball team made up of Indigenous teens from New Mexico. When their star player dies unexpectedly, the team could be lost to grief. But with the state championships approaching, there's a chance to be winners who can cement their friend's legacy. To do that, they're going to have to turn to their Native American roots to play a game all their own.
Sterlin Harjo, the co-creator of Reservation Dogs, teamed with writer/director Sydney Freeland on the adapted screenplay. NBA all-star LeBron James produces. — K.P.
Starring: Jessica Matten, Kauchani Bratt, Cody Lightning, Dallas Goldtooth, Ernest David Tsosie, Kusem Goodwind, Zoey Reyes, Amber Midthunder, and Julia Jones
How to watch: Rez Ball debuts on Netflix Sept. 27.
Will & Harper Will Ferrell and Harper Steele go on a road trip. Credit: TIFFThe titular duo of this road trip documentary is responsible for such big-swing comedies as Casa de mi Padre, A Deadly Adoption, and Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga. But long before these, they were buddies, building a bond working at Saturday Night Live.
Will Ferrell and Harper Steele have known each other for decades. But when at 61, Harper came out as a trans woman, the time came for the friends to reconnect. A 16-day road trip across America was not only a way for Will to better understand Harper, but also for Harper to revisit dive bars, sports arenas, and other once-treasured spaces that might not be as welcoming as they once were. Together, they explore friendship, privilege, and what it means to be trans in the U.S. And while the content can be heavy, under the direction of Josh Greenbaum, who helmed the supremely hilarious Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, the tone is light, accessible, and resoundingly heartwarming. — KP
Starring: Will Ferrell and Harper Steele
How to watch: Will & Harper debuts on Netflix Sept. 27.
OctoberIt's What's Inside A woman screams in "It's what's Inside." Credit: SXSWFrom Talk to Me to Bodies Bodies Bodies, cursed party games have become a bit of a thing in horror of late. Greg Jardin's genre-fusing thriller is one such film, promising a group of college buddies, a pre-wedding party game, and a whole lot of body-swapping that leads to an existential mind-fuck. The Netflix film was executive produced by Colman Domingo and his husband Raúl Domingo, and got a lot of buzz out of Sundance and SXSW.
In his review, Mashable contributor Siddhant Adlakha wrote, "Wielding devilishly enjoyable visual language, it provides winking hints of catharsis that make even its most audacious, galaxy-brained genre swerves feel like a couple's therapy session atop the world's tallest, fastest rollercoaster. It's a frenetic and fascinating film that can't be missed." — S.C.
Starring: Brittany O'Grady, James Morosini, Alycia Debnam-Carey, Devon Terrell, Gavin Leatherwood, Reina Hardesty, Nina Bloomgarden, and David Thompson
How to watch: It's What's Inside debuts on Netflix Oct. 4.
Joker: Folie à DeuxTodd Phillips' Joker was polarizing, to say the least. But between winning the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival and dancing its way to becoming the sixth-highest grossing movie of 2019, it was almost guaranteed a sequel. And even the movie's haters had to do a double take when Lady Gaga signed on to play Harley Quinn opposite Joaquin Phoenix's titular villain.*
With each new bit of information — be it rumors about a Looney Tunes opening sequence or shots of some compelling costumes — Joker: Folie à Deux intrigues. Set two years after its predecessor, this supervillain sequel promises a story full of mayhem, musical numbers, and even romance. — K.P.
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson, Catherine Keener, and Zazie Beetz
How to watch: Joker: Folie à Deux opens in theaters Oct. 4.
The OutrunDirected by Nora Fingscheidt and co-written with author Amy Liptrot, The Outrun adapts Liptrot's 2016 memoir with a spectacularly raw performance from Saoirse Ronan. Set on the remote Orkney Islands, off the northern coast of Scotland, it's a brilliant, authentic depiction of a young woman in recovery from alcoholism. Rona (Ronan) leaves her turbulent life in London behind, returning to her seaside hometown where apologies await and past trauma simmers. Healing and self-forgiveness are also on the horizon. — S.C.
Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Paapa Essiedu, Saskia Reeves, Stephen Dillane, Lauren Lyle, Izuka Hoyle, Nabil Elouahabi, and Naomi Wirthner
How to watch: The Outrun opens in U.S. theaters Oct. 4, and UK cinemas Sept. 27.
The Platform 2The idea for Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia's The Platform is so good that it pretty much had to get a sequel.
The original (one of Mashable's best sci-fi movies on Netflix) takes place in a vertical prison where a giant table of food is gradually lowered top to bottom, and prisoners wake up in a random new cell each month. If they're at the top, they have plenty to eat; lower down, it's a fight for survival. The Platform 2's teaser takes us to the same prison with a new cast of characters — and what looks like just as much chaos and bloodshed. — S.H.
Starring: Milena Smit, Hovik Keuchkerian
How to watch: The Platform 2 debuts on Netflix from October 4.
Saturday NightFor 50 years, Saturday Night Live has been a staple of American television. But as Jason Reitman's upcoming film Saturday Night tells it, the hours leading up to SNL's first-ever live broadcast were an absolute disaster. Fighting actors, onset accidents, NBC executives hoping for the show to fail — you name it, it's going wrong in Saturday Night.
The movie follows SNL head honcho Lorne Michaels (The Fabelmans' Gabriel LaBelle) as he attempts to weather the behind-the-scenes chaos. It also introduces members of the original SNL cast, including Gilda Radner (Ella Hunt), Chevy Chase (Cory Michael Smith), Garrett Morris (Lamorne Morris), and Dan Aykroyd (Dylan O'Brien). Can this troupe of relative unknowns band together and put on the greatest 90-minute live sketch show NBC has ever seen? Or at least, a good enough show to keep them on the air? — B.E.
Starring: Gabriel LaBelle, Rachel Sennott, Cory Michael Smith, Ella Hunt, Dylan O’Brien, Emily Fairn, Matt Wood, Lamorne Morris, Kim Matula, Finn Wolfhard, Nicholas Braun, Cooper Hoffman, Andrew Barth Feldman, Kaia Gerber, Tommy Dewey, Willem Dafoe, Matthew Rhys, and J.K. Simmons
How to watch: Saturday Night hits theaters Oct. 11.
Piece by PieceAmerican music mogul Pharrell Williams has given audiences a barrage of hit songs, collaborated with some of the biggest artists in rap, and has won 13 Grammys (so far). It's about time someone told his story. But a bog-standard bio-doc of talking heads and concert footage was never going to fully grasp the creativity of this icon. So, Academy Award–winning documentarian Morgan Neville (20 Feet from Stardom) brings a bold new angle by reenacting this story with Lego-inspired animation. Williams not only lends his voice, but also produces, welcoming in a flood of famous friends and collaborators all reimagined as mini-figs. It looks bonkers, and we're absolutely stoked to see it. — K.P.
Starring: Pharrell Williams, Jay-Z, Timbaland, Gwen Stefani, Justin Timberlake, Busta Rhymes, Snoop Dogg, Daft Punk, and Kendrick Lamar
How to watch: Piece by Piece opens in theaters Oct. 11.
We Live in TimeReady to cry your eyes out?
John Crowley, the director of the gloriously romantic Brooklyn, has teamed with two of England's most in-demand young stars, Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield, to absolutely knock us out. We Live in Time is a romance, and sure, you might easily swoon watching these critically heralded hotties flirt and fall in love, all while wearing cozy sweaters. But these two heavy-hitters don't tend toward light-hearted fare. So, expect this decades-spanning romantic drama — that kicks off with a nearly deadly meet-cute collision — is definitely going to be laced with loss and tragedy. What is it the Brits say? Keep calm and carry on? — K.P.
Starring: Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh
How to watch: We Live in Time opens in theaters Oct. 11.
AnoraThis summer Anora took home the prestigious Palme d'Or prize at the illustrious Cannes International Film Festival. But don't let its posh pedigree have you mistaking Sean Baker's latest with some stuffy art house drama. The writer/director behind such deeply poignant yet brightly funny films as Tangerine, The Florida Project, and Red Rocket has done it again, delivering a drama that is lusty and alive.
Mikey Madison (Scream 5) stars as Anora, a Brooklyn sex worker whose fling with a Russian playboy swiftly leads to wedding bells. But the fantasy of wealth and wonder comes crashing down when the cronies for her new oligarch in-laws come banging at the mansion door. You might think you know how this story goes. You'd be wrong. — K.P.
Starring: Mikey Madison, Mark Eydelshteyn, Yura Borisov, Karren Karagulian, Vache Tovmasyan, and Aleksei Serebryakov
How to watch: Anora opens in theaters on Oct. 18.
Nickel BoysColson Whitehead's harrowing Pulitzer Prize–winning novel The Nickel Boys has been adapted for the screen by director RaMell Ross and co-writer Joslyn Barnes, and it's sure to be a stunner. Ross made his feature-length debut in 2018 with Hale County This Morning, This Evening, which snagged an Oscar nomination for best documentary feature. This is his first feature-length narrative, and it's premiering on opening night of the prestigious New York Film Festival.
Like its source material, Nickel Boys is based on the true story of a state-run juvenile reform school in Jim Crow-era Florida where the students, the majority of whom were young Black boys, suffered extreme abuse. It was all covered up, only to be discovered by students of archaeology decades later. This story is told through a powerful friendship between two Black students, Elwood and Turner, whose experience will stay with you long after the credits roll. — S.C.
Starring: Ethan Herisse, Brandon Wilson, Hamish Linklater, Fred Hechinger, Daveed Diggs, and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor
How to watch: Nickel Boys opens in theaters Oct. 25.
The Remarkable Life of Ibelin Mats Steen is at the center of "The Remarkable Life of Ibelin." Credit: NetflixOnline communities are often under-appreciated as real human connections, with the idea of genuine friendship constantly dismissed by those less online. But in these groups, digital worlds offer endless possibility, and for the gamer at the center of this doc, that would be incredibly freeing. In The Remarkable Life of Ibelin, documentarian Benjamin Ree examines the power of such a community through the experiences of 25-year-old Norwegian gamer Mats Steen.
The film is a posthumous ode to this young man, born with a degenerative muscular disease, who forged a whole life online within World of Warcraft under the avatar Ibelin. Steen's online community responded to a post from his parents after he passed away, revealing a large, connected world of friends and experiences they never knew he had, and one that provided a huge amount of comfort — and adventure — to him. —S.C.
How to watch: The Remarkable Life of Ibelin debuts on Netflix Oct. 25.
Venom: The Last DanceTom Hardy is back as investigative journalist Eddie Brock and the alien symbiote Venom, who has become his greatest friend and biggest pain in the neck. To conclude the Venom trilogy, this gruesome twosome must face off against forces on Earth and beyond that will do anything to track them down. Sure to be the wackiest buddy movie of 2024, Venom: The Last Dance promises plenty of action, plenty of punchlines, and the kind of unhinged spectacle only Spider-Man's weirdest foe can deliver. —K.P.
Starring: Tom Hardy, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Juno Temple, Rhys Ifans, Peggy Lu, Alanna Ubach, and Stephen Graham
How to watch: Venom: The Last Dance opens in theaters on Oct. 25.
NOVEMBEREmilia PérezPer Siddhant Adlakha's review out of Cannes, "The tale of a vicious cartel boss who undergoes gender-affirming surgery, Emilia Pérez places women front and center in a traditionally male-led gangster genre. But rather than subverting its visual and tonal hallmarks, French filmmaker Jacques Audiard compliments them with a liberating sense of expression through song and dance."
That's right, a gangster musical. We've gotten a taste of what Audiard has in store for us with the Cannes Jury Prize–winning film's tantalizing teaser. But we can't wait to see what leading ladies Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofía Gascón, Selena Gomez, and Adriana Paz deliver to this intriguing crime movie, as all four collectively won Cannes' Best Actress honor. — K.P.
Starring: Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofía Gascón, Selena Gomez, Adriana Paz, and Édgar Ramírez
How to watch: Emilia Pérez opens in select theaters on Nov. 1, and debuts on Netflix Nov. 13.
ConclaveBased on Robert Harris' 2016 novel of the same name, Conclave ushers audiences behind the scenes of one of the Catholic church's most sacred and secretive traditions. When the pope dies, the college of cardinals gathers to vote on who will ascend to lead the church and be God's voice on Earth. It's a heavy responsibility, but the politicking and pettiness among these men of the cloth can be shocking — and I confess! — quite thrilling.
Following a festival run that includes the Toronto International Film Festival, Conclave will open in the thick of For Your Consideration season. So Focus' ambitions for this Edward Berger-directed psychological thriller are quite clear. And with a cast like this, Conclave is gathering buzz fast. —K.P.
Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, Lucian Msamati, Carlos Diehz, Sergio Castellitto, and Isabella Rossellini
How to watch: Conclave opens in theaters Nov. 1.
HereticHugh Grant was best known as a romantic lead back in the day, but in Heretic he's in full-blown creepy horror mode.
In writer-director duo Scott Beck and Bryan Woods' Heretic, two missionaries knock on the door of a seemingly friendly older man who invites them in with the promise that his wife is making a pie. But instead of pie, they find themselves locked inside and forced to play a life-or-death game. A24's latest has Barbarian vibes with a dose of religious horror. — S.H.
Starring: Hugh Grant, Sophie Thatcher, and Chloe East
How to watch: Heretic opens in theaters Nov. 15.
Gladiator IIPaul Mescal and Pedro Pascal face off in the long-awaited sequel to Ridley Scott's five-time Oscar–winning drama Gladiator.
Set 20 years after the death of Russell Crowe's Maximus, Gladiator II follows Lucius (Mescal) who was a boy when his uncle, the vicious Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), ruled. As a man, he enters the Colosseum to do battle — not only against determined warriors, but also against the cruel overlords who make sport of the enslaved's suffering. Expect epic fight scenes, macho drama, and smolders so hot they could burn the movie theaters to the ground. — K.P.
Starring: Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, Joseph Quinn, Connie Nielsen, and Paul Mescal
How to watch: Gladiator II opens in theaters Nov. 22.
The Piano LessonIn 2016, Denzel Washington won critical acclaim for his movie adaptation of playwright August Wilson's Fences. Now, his son Malcolm Washington follows in his footsteps, making his feature directorial debut with another work from Wilson's Pittsburgh Cycle of plays, The Piano Lesson.
Set in 1936, the drama centers on a Black family recovering from the Great Depression, when the fate of an heirloom piano gets heated. John David Washington (Malcolm's brother) stars as Boy Willie, who wishes to sell the instrument, while his sister (The Harder They Fall's Danielle Deadwyler) wants to keep it in the family. Dealing with issues of identity, resilience, and legacy, The Piano Lesson is sure to hit hard. — K.P.
Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, John David Washington, Ray Fisher, Michael Potts, Erykah Badu, Skylar Aleece Smith, Danielle Deadwyler, and Corey Hawkins
How to watch: The Piano Lesson debuts on Netflix Nov. 22.
SpellboundFrom Shrek co-director Vicky Jenson comes a fresh fairy tale about princess and monsters, but not quite like you'd expect.
West Side Story's Rachel Zegler lends her voice to a plucky princess who's on a quest to break the spell that's turned her parents — Javier Bardem and Nicole Kidman in the Meet The Ricardos reunion we didn't see coming — into rampaging but adorable monsters. Behind the colorful aesthetic and the star-studded cast, this animated adventure also boasts new songs from The Little Mermaid composer Alan Menken and Tangled lyricist Glenn Slater. All these ingredients seem destined to make magic happen — K.P.
Starring: Rachel Zegler, John Lithgow, Jenifer Lewis, Tituss Burgess, Nathan Lane, Javier Bardem, and Nicole Kidman
How to watch: Spellbound debuts on Netflix Nov. 22.
Wicked: Part 1For 20 years, Wicked has lit up Broadway with its magic and song. Now, the musical — based on Gregory Maguire's 1995 novel, which turned the tables on the tale of the Wicked Witch — is coming to movie theaters. Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande star as the green-skinned Elphaba and her bubbly bestie Glinda, who will defy gravity on the big screen!
Stephen Schwartz, the stage show's lyricist, and playwright Winnie Holzman collaborated on the screenplay. Jon M. Chu, who directed Crazy Rich Asians, In the Heights, and several Step Up sequels, is helming. With beloved song numbers, a star-stacked cast, and the promise of getting into some of the storylines the stage show cut, this movie had to become a two-parter. And we suspect the first half will prove popular.* — K.P.
Starring: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, and Bowen Yang
How to watch: Wicked: Part 1 opens in theaters Nov. 22.
Moana 2Moana (voiced by Auli'i Cravalho) and trickster demigod Maui (voiced by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) are back for more adventures on the high seas.
The sequel to 2016's Moana sees our titular character, now a full-fledged wayfinder, following her ancestors' call on a new quest to unite all the peoples of the ocean. Cursed islands and terrible storms await, along with the return of the pesky Kakamora from the first film. But the real question remains: Will any of Moana 2's songs hit as hard as "How Far I'll Go" and "Shiny"? — B.E.
Starring: Auli'i Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Temuera Morrison, Nicole Scherzinger, Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda, Rose Matafeo, David Fane, Hualālai Chung, Rachel House, Awhimai Fraser, Gerald Ramsey, and Alan Tudyk
How to watch: Moana 2 hits theaters Nov. 27.
DECEMBERNightbitch Amy Adams goes for a run with dogs in "Nightbitch." Credit: TIFFHave you ever wished you could run out into the night, free as a bird with nothing to fear? That seems to be the appeal of Nightbitch. Based on Rachel Yoder's 2021 novel, the upcoming comedy-horror movie that stars six-time Academy Award nominee Amy Adams as a stay-at-home mom who occasionally transforms into a dog.
If that pairing of premise and talent isn't enough to get you pumped (and it should be!), consider that at the helm is Marielle Heller, the brilliant director behind three superb movie adaptations: coming-of-age dramedy The Diary of a Teenage Girl, the Mr. Rogers biopic A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, and the Academy Award–nominated biographical comedy Can You Ever Forgive Me? Now tell me you're not howling in anticipation. — K.P.
Starring: Amy Adams, Scoot McNairy, Arleigh Patrick Snowden, Emmett James Snowden, Zoë Chao, Mary Holland, Archana Rajan, and Jessica Harper
How to watch: Nightbitch opens in theaters Dec. 6.
The Order Jude Law plays an agent on the trail in "The Order." Credit: TIFFFrom director Justin Kurzel (Macbeth, The Snowtown Murders) comes a crime thriller unearthed from a dark corner of the U.S.'s not-so-distant history.
Based on Kevin Flynn and Gary Gerhardt's non-fiction book The Silent Brotherhood, The Order takes audiences into the 1983 FBI investigation into a band of white supremacists in the Pacific Northwest. Jude Law stars as an a hardened agent who suspects a spate of bank robberies and bombings are tied to a sinister conspiracy, dreamed up by a dangerously charismatic domestic terrorist named Robert Jay Mathews (Nicholas Hoult). Between a disturbing true story and sharp turns from Law and Hoult, this showdown is sure to leave audiences rattled. — K.P.
Starring: Jude Law, Nicholas Hoult, Tye Sheridan, Jurnee Smollett, and Marc Maron
How to watch: The Order opens in theaters Dec. 6.
Y2KNostalgia and sci-fi shenanigans collide in Y2K, the deranged directorial debut from Saturday Night Live alum Kyle Mooney. Set on New Year's Eve 1999, this teen comedy follows a bunch of high schoolers' whose holiday house party turns homicidal when our worse fears of the Y2K bug are realized. Yes, I mean our household electronics and beloved Tamagotchis turn Terminator and try to kill all humanity.
In our SXSW review, I cheered Mooney's movie as "a solid stoner comedy, gleefully dumb and unapologetically wacky." However, "As a teen comedy, Y2K lacks the emotional awareness of classics like Clueless, the original Mean Girls, or Superbad." But with your expectations managed, Y2K should prove wild fun in its watching. — K.P.
Starring: Rachel Zegler, Jaeden Martell, Julian Dennison, Kyle Mooney, and Alicia Silverstone
How to watch: Y2k opens in theaters Dec 6.
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the RohirrimMiddle-earth gets the anime treatment in The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, directed by Kenji Kamiyama and executive produced by Peter Jackson.
Set 183 years before the Lord of the Rings trilogy, The War of the Rohirrim returns us to the kingdom of Rohan, headed up by King Helm Hammerhand (voiced by Succession's Brian Cox). When an attack from Dunlending lord Wulf (voiced by Luke Pasqualino) leaves Rohan in peril, it's up to Helm and his fearsome daughter Héra (voiced by Gaia Wise) to save the day. Together, they and all the Rohirrim will make a last stand at the ancient stronghold of the Hornburg, otherwise known as Helm's Deep. You know the full-body chills you get whenever you hear Howard Shore's Rohan theme from the original Lord of the Rings movies? Yeah, get ready for a whole movie of that feeling. — B.E.
Starring: Brian Cox, Gaia Wise, Luke Pasqualino, Miranda Otto, Lorraine Ashbourne, Yazdan Qafouri, Benjamin Wainwright, Laurence Ubong Williams, Shaun Dooley, Michael Wildman, Jude Akuwudike, Bilal Hasna, and Janine Duvitski
How to watch: The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim hits theaters Dec. 13.
Kraven the HunterNo, really this time. When the trailer for this Spider-Man spinoff hit last summer, we were quick to rejoice. But the bumps kept coming, so this supervillain offering made our summer movie preview for 2024 as well. But this December, we'll finally see what director J.C. Chandor has in store.
Where the MCU has been wallowing in grief post-Snap and the DCEU got bogged down in dramas onscreen and scandals off, Sony was chasing the weird spirit behind the Venom movies with this story about an animalistic anti-hero who oozes sex appeal and rips off his foe's noses without blinking an eye. Sure, Madame Web (another Spidey spin-off) got thrashed in theaters and online. But hey, it was better than Morbius. So even with this delayed release, we're cautiously optimistic.* — K.P.
Starring: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Russell Crowe, Ariana DeBose, Fred Hechinger, Alessandro Nivola, and Christopher Abbott
How to watch: Kraven the Hunter opens in theaters Dec 13.
Mufasa: The Lion KingSimba isn't the only Lion King who's been on an epic adventure through the Pride Lands. In Disney's upcoming Mufasa: The Lion King, we learn that a young Mufasa (voiced by Aaron Pierre), went on a life-changing journey of his own.
As an orphaned cub, Mufasa crosses paths with lion prince Taka (voiced by Kelvin Harrison Jr.), and the two become as close as brothers. That's sweet for now, but Taka will one day grow up to be Scar, meaning that somewhere down the line, the two will become foes. (Maybe it's because Mufasa actually usurps the throne that was Taka's by blood? Just spitballing.) Disney's live-action The Lion King was a mixed bag, but maybe Mufasa director Barry Jenkins (Moonlight, The Underground Railroad) can bring something new to this story. — B.E.
Starring: Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, Theo Somolu, Anika Noni Rose, John Kani, Tiffany Boone, Preston Nyman, Mads Mikkelsen, Thandiwe Newton, Lennie James, Keith David, Donald Glover, Blue Ivy Carter, Folake Olowofoyeku, Abdul Salis, and Beyoncé Knowles-Carter
How to watch: Mufasa: The Lion King hits theaters Dec. 20.
Babygirl Nicole Kidman and Harris Dickinson get close in "Babygirl." Credit: A24The premise of Babygirl: A high-powered CEO risks their career and personal life when they begin hooking up with a young intern. But writer/director Halina Reijn, who enthralled us with the high-energy whodunnit Bodies Bodies Bodies, turns the tables by casting Nicole Kidman as this all-mighty businessperson, and Triangle of Sadness' Harris Dickinson as the object of her desire. What other twists does Reijn and company have in store? We can't wait to find out. — K.P.
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Harris Dickinson, Antonio Banderas, and Sophie Wilde
How to watch: Babygirl opens in theaters Dec. 25.
NosferatuFilmmaker Robert Eggers has created such gnarly films as period-set horror movie The Witch, the surreal thriller The Lighthouse, and Viking epic The Northman. Now he's turned his lens to vampires, specifically F.W. Murnau's iconic 1922 film Nosferatu.
You see, as an unauthorized adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula, Murnau's movie boasted characters like Count Orlok and Ellen Hutter. The trailer above shows Lily-Rose Depp as Ellen Hutter, a haunted young lady who has caught the eye of a blood-sucking creature of the night. What fresh blood (and thrills) will Eggers mine from this horror landmark? We'll find out this Christmas. —K.P.
Starring: Bill Skarsgård, Nicholas Hoult, Lily-Rose Depp, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Emma Corrin, Ralph Ineson, Simon McBurney, and Willem Dafoe
How to watch: Nosferatu opens in theaters Dec. 25.
* denotes that this blurb appeared in a previous Mashable list.
If you're reading this, you're looking for a little help playing Strands, the New York Times' elevated word-search game.
Strands requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There's always a theme linking every solution, along with the "spangram," a special, word or phrase that sums up that day's theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.
SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on MashableBy providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.
If you're feeling stuck or just don't have 10 or more minutes to figure out today's puzzle, we've got all the NYT Strands hints for today's puzzle you need to progress at your preferred pace.
SEE ALSO: NYT Connections today: See hints and answers for September 1 SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Here's the answer hints for September 1 NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: Serve ginger-lyThese words are a delicious combo.
Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explainedThe answers all relate to items in a type of sushi.
NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?Today's NYT Strands spangram is vertical.
NYT Strands spangram answer todayToday's spangram is CaliforniaRoll.
NYT Strands word list for September 1Avocado
Crab
Mayo
Cucumber
Rice
Seaweed
CaliforniaRoll
Looking for other daily online games? Mashable's Games page has more hints, and if you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now!
Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.
Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Strands.
TL;DR: Through Sept. 1, jump on limited-time savings and get a lifetime license to Microsoft Office Pro 2021 including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and more for £30.36.
Opens in a new window Credit: Retail King Microsoft Office Professional 2021 for Windows: Lifetime License £30.36 at the Mashable ShopIt's not just that PowerPoint, Excel, Word, and all their mates are popular. They're also incredibly useful. The downside is that normally, Microsoft 365 isn't something you just buy once. Paying for a subscription just means you're renting your productivity. If you want to own it instead, you have to get a license that doesn't expire.
Microsoft Office Pro 2021 for Windows has a few years on it, so this version might not have all the bells and whistles of the latest Microsoft 365 update, but you also don't have to pay for it every year. Once you've got your lifetime pass, you hold onto your access for the rest of your device's life, and it only costs £30.36 (reg. £167.11). That price is actually marked down a little extra, but you have to hurry to take advantage.
Stop paying annually for MS OfficeHere's what you get with this Office license: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher, Access, and the free version of Teams. You can use these apps at work or at home for as long as you like.
If you're used to Microsoft 365, Office may look a little different, but the important features are all there. Word still has great templates and Publisher is still an easy way to make flyers and posters. The big difference is you don't have to pay for them every month or year, so there's finally time to figure out what all the formulas in Excel do.
Just remember that once your apps are installed on your device, that's where they live. This license only allows you one installation on one computer. That's what makes this such a good gift for office workers and students. The software you buy today could still be useful for years to come.
Marked down for a limited timeDon't miss your chance to get lifetime access to essential productivity programs at a discount.
Sept. 1 at 11:59 p.m. PT is the deadline to get a lifetime license to Microsoft Office Pro 2021 for Windows for just £30.36. No coupon needed.
StackSocial prices subject to change.
TL;DR: Unblock TNAFlix from anywhere in the world with a VPN. The best service for unblocking porn sites is ExpressVPN.
Your access to porn sites is often restricted, which is probably a good thing. However, there is a time and a place for everything. And when the time is right, you shouldn't have to put up with online restrictions.
If you're looking for the best way to unblock porn sites like TNAFlix from anywhere in the world, we have the information you need.
How to unblock TNAFlix for freeVPNs can unblock porn sites by connecting you to secure servers in other locations.
VPNs can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in another location, bypassing geo-restrictions to secure access to porn sites like TNAFlix from anywhere in the world. This might sound complicated, but you can unblock your favorite porn sites in just a few simple steps:
Sign up for a VPN (like ExpressVPN)
Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
Open up the app and connect to a server in a location that supports access to TNAFlix
Visit TNAFlix
Watch TNAFlix content from anywhere in the world
The best VPNs for unblocking porn sites are not free, but most do offer free trials or money-back guarantees. By taking advantage of these offers, you can unblock porn sites and then recover your investment at a later date. This obviously isn't a long-term solution, but it works well if you're traveling or temporarily away from home.
If you want to retain permanent access to sites like TNAFlix from anywhere in the world, you'll need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPN for bypassing online restrictions is on sale for a limited time.
What is the best VPN for porn?ExpressVPN is the top choice when it comes to unblocking porn sites like TNAFlix, for a number of reasons:
Servers in 105 countries
Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more
Strict no-logging policy
Fast streaming speeds free from throttling
Up to eight simultaneous connections
30-day money-back guarantee
A one-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $99.95 and includes an extra three months for free — 49% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee.
Unblock TNAFlix for free with ExpressVPN.
TL;DR: Unblock Kick from anywhere in the world with a VPN. The best service for unblocking Kick is ExpressVPN.
There are times in life when you won't be able to access your favorite sites. In these moments, you should really consider using a VPN. These handy tools can bypass restrictions to secure access to everything the online world has to offer. And you shouldn't need to spend anything.
If you're looking for the best way to unblock Kick for free from anywhere in the world, we have the information you need.
How to unblock Kick for freeVPNs can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to secure servers in other locations. This process bypasses geo-restrictions so that you can access Kick from anywhere in the world. The process is actually really straightforward.
Access Kick from anywhere in the world in just a few simple steps:
Sign up for a VPN (like ExpressVPN)
Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
Open up the app and connect to a server in a location that supports access to Kick
Access Kick from anywhere in the world
The best VPNs for unblocking sites like Kick are not free, but most do offer free trials or money-back guarantees. By taking advantage of these offers, you can retain access to your favorite sites without spending anything. This obviously isn't a long-term solution, but it works well if you're traveling or temporarily away from home.
What is the best VPN for Kick?ExpressVPN is the top choice when it comes to unblocking sites like Kick, for a number of reasons:
Servers in 105 countries
Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more
Strict no-logging policy
Fast streaming speeds free from throttling
Up to eight simultaneous connections
30-day money-back guarantee
A one-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $99.95 and includes an extra three months for free — 49% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee.
Unblock Kick for free with ExpressVPN.
TL;DR: Watch Seattle Storm vs. Connecticut Sun in the WNBA with WNBA League Pass. Avoid blackouts and watch the WNBA from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
We're getting close to the WNBA playoffs, which means teams are more determined than ever to earn a postseason place. Connecticut Sun have already clinched a playoff spot, while Seattle Storm are close, but not quite there yet.
What's exciting about this game is that both team sits near the top of their respective conferences. Ultimately, they're two of the best performing squads this season. The action should be fast and furious, particularly with Seattle out to prove themselves.
Fortunately, we have all information you need to watch Seattle Storm vs. Connecticut Sun in the WNBA for free, no matter where you are around the world.
When is Seattle Storm vs. Connecticut Sun?Seattle Storm vs. Connecticut Sun in the WNBA starts at 1 p.m. ET on Sept. 1. This fixture takes place at the Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut.
How to watch Seattle Storm vs. Connecticut SunBasketball fans can watch Seattle Storm vs. Connecticut Sun plus the remainder of the WNBA 2024 season from anywhere in the world with a WNBA League Pass.
It's worth noting that the WNBA League Pass doesn't show locally televised games live in the participating teams' local areas. But you can bypass this restriction by using a VPN. A VPN is a useful online tool that can hide your real IP address (digital location) and then connect you with secure servers in other locations, enabling you to watch every WNBA League Pass game live, excluding games on Amazon Prime Video.
To access every WNBA League Pass game, follow these easy steps:
Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)
Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
Open up the app and connect to a server in a location with no broadcast deals for the WNBA
Log in to WNBA League Pass
Stream every WNBA game live (except games hosted by Amazon Prime Video)
ExpressVPN is the best choice for hiding your real IP address and streaming more sport, for a number of reasons:
Servers in 105 countries
Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more
Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure
Fast connection speeds free from throttling
Up to eight simultaneous connections
30-day money-back guarantee
A one-year subscription to ExpressVPN is currently on sale for $99.95 but for a limited time only. This deal — 49% off — includes an extra three months for free, along with a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee.
Stream Seattle Storm vs. Connecticut Sun in the WNBA from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
TL;DR: Live stream Manchester United vs. Liverpool in the Premier League for free with a seven-day trial of Fubo. Access Fubo from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
After a promising victory over Fulham in the first round of Premier League fixtures, Manchester United suffered a disappointing defeat to Brighton last weekend. And it certainly doesn't get any easier for Manchester United, because Liverpool are coming to town on the back of two impressive wins.
If you want to watch Manchester United vs. Liverpool in the Premier League for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.
When is Manchester United vs. Liverpool?Manchester United vs. Liverpool in the Premier League kicks off at 11 a.m. ET on Sept. 1. This fixture takes place at Old Trafford.
How to watch Manchester United vs. Liverpool for freeManchester United vs. Liverpool is available to live stream for free with a seven-day trial of Fubo.
Fubo offers coverage of all 380 matches of the 2024-25 Premier League season in Canada, but anyone can access this package with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in Canada, meaning you can unblock free live streams of the Premier League from anywhere in the world.
Access free live streams of the 2024-25 Premier League by following these simple steps:
Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)
Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
Open up the app and connect to a server in Canada
Sign up for a seven-day free trial of Fubo
Watch Manchester United vs. Liverpool in the Premier League for free from anywhere in the world
The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch Manchester United vs. Liverpool in the Premier League without committing with your cash. This isn't a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to stream this weekend's Premier League fixtures before recovering your investment.
What is the best VPN for the Premier League?ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport, for a number of reasons:
Servers in 105 countries including Canada
Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more
Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure
Fast connection speeds free from throttling
Up to eight simultaneous connections
30-day money-back guarantee
A one-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $99.95 and includes an extra three months for free — 49% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee.
Live stream Manchester United vs. Liverpool in the Premier League for free with ExpressVPN.
TL;DR: Live stream Newcastle United vs. Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League for free with a seven-day trial of Fubo. Access Fubo from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
Another weekend, another round of Premier League fixtures. There are a number of intriguing matchups this weekend, but Newcastle United vs. Tottenham Hotspur might be the best. Both teams have picked up four points so far, but something has got to give at St. James' Park.
If you want to watch Newcastle United vs. Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.
When is Newcastle United vs. Spurs?Newcastle United vs. Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League kicks off at 8:30 a.m. ET on Sept. 1. This fixture takes place at St. James' Park.
How to watch Newcastle United vs. Spurs for freeNewcastle United vs. Tottenham Hotspur is available to live stream for free with a seven-day trial of Fubo.
Fubo offers coverage of all 380 matches of the 2024-25 Premier League season in Canada, but anyone can access this package with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in Canada, meaning you can unblock free live streams of the Premier League from anywhere in the world.
Access free live streams of the 2024-25 Premier League by following these simple steps:
Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)
Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
Open up the app and connect to a server in Canada
Sign up for a seven-day free trial of Fubo
Watch Newcastle United vs. Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League for free from anywhere in the world
The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch Newcastle United vs. Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League without committing with your cash. This isn't a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to stream this weekend's Premier League fixtures before recovering your investment.
What is the best VPN for the Premier League?ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport, for a number of reasons:
Servers in 105 countries including Canada
Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more
Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure
Fast connection speeds free from throttling
Up to eight simultaneous connections
30-day money-back guarantee
A one-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $99.95 and includes an extra three months for free — 49% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee.
Live stream Newcastle United vs. Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League for free with ExpressVPN.
TL;DR: Live stream Chelsea vs. Crystal Palace in the Premier League for free with a seven-day trial of Fubo. Access Fubo from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
Crystal Palace have not made a strong start to their Premier League campaign. Two defeats from two games leaves the Eagles desperate to take something from their upcoming game at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea recovered from an opening day defeat to win comfortably against Wolves in the second round of fixtures, and will be looking to build on that positive result this weekend.
If you want to watch Chelsea vs. Crystal Palace in the Premier League for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.
When is Chelsea vs. Crystal Palace?Chelsea vs. Crystal Palace in the Premier League kicks off at 8:30 a.m. ET on Sept. 1. This fixture takes place at Stamford Bridge.
How to watch Chelsea vs. Crystal Palace for freeChelsea vs. Crystal Palace is available to live stream for free with a seven-day trial of Fubo.
Fubo offers coverage of all 380 matches of the 2024-25 Premier League season in Canada, but anyone can access this package with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in Canada, meaning you can unblock free live streams of the Premier League from anywhere in the world.
Access free live streams of the 2024-25 Premier League by following these simple steps:
Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)
Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
Open up the app and connect to a server in Canada
Sign up for a seven-day free trial of Fubo
Watch Chelsea vs. Crystal Palace in the Premier League for free from anywhere in the world
The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch Chelsea vs. Crystal Palace in the Premier League without committing with your cash. This isn't a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to stream this weekend's Premier League fixtures before recovering your investment.
What is the best VPN for the Premier League?ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport, for a number of reasons:
Servers in 105 countries including Canada
Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more
Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure
Fast connection speeds free from throttling
Up to eight simultaneous connections
30-day money-back guarantee
A one-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $99.95 and includes an extra three months for free — 49% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee.
Live stream Chelsea vs. Crystal Palace in the Premier League for free with ExpressVPN.
Connections is the latest New York Times word game that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.
If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for August 30's Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.
SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections?The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.
Tweet may have been deletedEach puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer. If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.
Tweet may have been deletedPlayers can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.
SEE ALSO: NYT's The Mini crossword answers for September 1 Here's a hint for today's Connections categoriesWant a hit about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:
Yellow: Heat up
Green: Lobe is one
Blue: Dark shades
Purple: Not mentioned: Software for pairing with hardware
Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:
Yellow: COOK IN A PAN
Green: PARTS OF THE EAR
Blue: SHADES OF BLACK
Purple: WHERE YOU MIGHT FIND A "DRIVER"
Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.
Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.
Drumroll, please!
The solution to today's Connections #448 is...
What is the answer to Connections todayCOOK IN A PAN - BROWN, CHAR, GRILL, SEAR
PARTS OF THE EAR - ANVIL, CANAL, DRUM, HAMMER
SHADES OF BLACK - CHARCOAL, JET, RAVEN, SABLE
WHERE YOU MIGHT FIND A "DRIVER" - GOLF BAG, LIMOUSINE, MOVIE SET, TOOLBOX
Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.
Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.
If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.
Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Connections.
Oh hey there! If you're here, it must be time for Wordle. As always, we're serving up our daily hints and tips to help you figure out today's answer.
If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for August 30's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.
SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable Where did Wordle come from?Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once.
Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.
What's the best Wordle starting word?The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.
What happened to the Wordle archive?The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles used to be available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it. Unfortunately, it has since been taken down, with the website's creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times.
Is Wordle getting harder?It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn't any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle's Hard Mode if you're after more of a challenge, though.
SEE ALSO: NYT's The Mini crossword answers for September 1 Here's a subtle hint for today's Wordle answer:Not hard.
Does today's Wordle answer have a double letter?There are no reoccurring letters.
Today's Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with...Today's Wordle starts with the letter M.
SEE ALSO: Wordle-obsessed? These are the best word games to play IRL. The Wordle answer today is...Get your last guesses in now, because it's your final chance to solve today's Wordle before we reveal the solution.
Drumroll please!
The solution to today's Wordle is...
MUSHY.
Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.
Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.
Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.
If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.
Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Wordle.
The year is 1983. Talk radio host Alan Berg (Marc Maron) is on the Colorado airwaves comically dressing down racist callers, while elsewhere across the Pacific Northwest, a series of armed robberies becomes a matter of concern — even more than usual — because of possible white supremacist ties. This is the backdrop of The Order, Justin Kurzel's highly engrossing (if politically slight) police story, in which fictitious FBI officer Terry Husk (Jude Law) begins pulling on real-world threads with disturbingly modern implications.
Written by Zach Baylin, the film is based on Kevin Flynn and Gary Gerhardt's late-'80s nonfiction book The Silent Brotherhood, which tells of a real white supremacist splinter group known as "the Order" (or "the Silent Brotherhood"), whose concerns with preserving white supremacy led them to meticulous acts of terror. It is, first and foremost, an incredibly fun movie, even if "fun" may not seem like the right approach for such volatile material.
This is, in part, because Kurzel finally discards his perpetually dour cinematic mindset, and replaces it with the thrills and frills of a Hollywood action drama. However, the film's success is also owed to Law's central performance as a lonely, no-nonsense cop for whom the work comes first, even if it drives him up the wall, and keeps him constantly on the verge of explosion.
What is The Order about? Credit: Vertical EntertainmentWithin its opening minutes, The Order depicts the dueling danger and ridiculousness of white supremacy, thanks to Maron's distinctly Maron-esque version of Berg, a Jewish radio personality who fields calls from frustrated bigots looking for an outlet. His sharp and witty barbs can be heard even before the first images appear, though once they do, they present a stark contrast to this lively soundtrack. In the dead of night, a pair of neo-Nazis guns down one of their own for talking too much about their plans.
Berg is only shown on-screen a handful of times, but his show is the film's de facto narrator, appearing at a handful intervals to remind us of the everyday form that antisemitism and white supremacy can take. While this makes for necessary comic relief, it's also a vital contrast. Much of the movie depicts the more far-flung extremes of white supremacy, through fringe militias ready and willing to take violent action, but the recurrence of Berg's voice keeps the Overton window from shifting too greatly; he reminds us that his easily dismissed callers and the movie's armed factions bloom from the same seed.
Those familiar with Berg's life will know how his story eventually intersects with that of the Order — a disorienting instance of narrator and narrative coming into contact — but outside of this moment, the movie mostly tells the story of two people. The first is Husk, appropriately named for his new lot in life after putting in for a transfer. The temperamental agent sits in the FBI's sparse Idaho branch, waiting for his wife and children to join him, though they may as well be phantoms. He's empty, and has nothing but the job.
The movie's second major character is Robert Jay Matthews (Nicholas Hoult), who goes by Bob; he leads the Order through planning and pulling off armed robberies in order to fund a weapons stockpile. In contrast to Husk, Bob is charismatic, well-liked and always surrounded by people. The neo-Nazis he recruits consider him a brother. He has a wife and son at home, and even a pregnant mistress. Right from its basic premise, The Order establishes the allure of his cult: community and togetherness.
Husk, upon spotting suspicious "white pride" flyers around town, makes inquiries at the local sheriff's office, though no one seems concerned except for rookie cop Jamie Bowen (Tye Sheridan), who more willingly spots these red flags since he has mixed race children, and is married to woman of color (Morgan Holmstrom, an actress of First Nations and Filipina ethnicity). With Bowen's help, Husk begins making inquiries around town in the hopes to identifying the group's ringleader, but Bob is always one step ahead, leading to a an exhilarating cat-and-mouse game involving deviously enjoyable heists and shootouts, albeit at the cost of examining the more challenging corners of its subject matter.
The Order takes a functional approach to white supremacy. Credit: Vertical EntertainmentAs a period-specific film about a white supremacist cult, The Order resembles Spike Lee's BlacKkKlansman at a distance, down to their use of shifting comedic and dramatic tones, urging viewers to take even the most ludicrous facets of white supremacy seriously. Distinguishing them is, of course, the fact that Lee's film was about infiltration from within, while Kurzel's is more of a chase — and the fact that Black experiences and perspectives are central to BlacKkKlansman.
The Order doesn't necessarily have to follow the same path — its one Black FBI agent, played by Jurnee Smollett, delivers forceful dialogue but is mostly perfunctory — though it often leaves material on the table. BlacKkKlansman was by no means an exposé on white supremacy within policing (Lee has been criticized for this), but its haunting conclusion suggests that even the heroic actions of its Black police detective have done little to stymie the rise of American neo-Nazism in the long term. The Order avoids the question of race within policing altogether — the concept barely seems to exist outside of the confines of the cult — but these shortcomings also help streamline The Order, making it a worthwhile pulp procedural.
The film's approach to white supremacy is best labeled "utilitarian." Little by way of action or dialogue works to unearth the group's underlying ideology — neo-Nazi characters discuss America no longer being "our country," and hint at the economic downturn that may have driven them into Bob's open arms — but The Order has an intense an unrelenting focus on the white supremacist playbook. Which is to say: The Order prominently features The Turner Diaries, William Luther Pierce's 1978 neo-Nazi novel that lays out a detailed plan to overthrow the U.S. government, culminating in "The Day of the Rope," i.e. the hanging of traitors at the U.S. Capitol.
If this fiction is eerily reminiscent of the January 6, 2021 insurrection, that's no coincidence. The Turner Diaries has long informed white supremacist rhetoric in America, as well as QAnon-like conspiracy theories. The book and its pages appear throughout the film, both as a blueprint for Bob and a not-so-subtle clue for Husk and Bowen, who use its pages to convince the FBI to divert its resources to taking down the Order. In centering the book to this degree, the film becomes a premonition of sorts, a warning that events which have recently come to pass — and might again, in the near future — don't exist in a vacuum.
The Order is Kurzel's most accomplished piece of filmmaking. Credit: Vertical EntertainmentThere's an argument to be made that The Order is a B-movie in the body of a prestigious "issue" drama. There's just as valid an argument that it's Kurzel's best movie, a metamorphosis akin to the last decade of M. Night Shyamalan's career — which include films like The Visit, Glass, Old, and Trap — in that both filmmakers have finally gotten out of their own way and embraced cinematic "trash."
Kurzel's films have, for the most part, been steeped in grief and death. This has led to some intriguing experiments, like his 2015 Macbeth adaptation, in which Lady Macbeth's plot is born out of mourning the loss of a child (the film, while pleasing to the eye, is far too long). On the other hand, it has also led to oddities like 2016's Assassin's Creed, a video game movie that forgets to have fun. With The Order, Kurzel remembers that fun is still possible even within macabre confines, and he shoulders Law with embodying this energetic paradox.
Law's character, Husk, is a sad sack on the verge of madness. His "bad cop" routine is his baseline, and though he doesn't bounce off the walls like, say, Nicolas Cage in Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, he belongs in the same conversation. His nose bleeds at regular intervals (due to his medication, he claims), though at one point, when he's particularly eager to "lean on" a suspect, he does so quite literally, going freak-mode during an impromptu interrogation and bleeding all over him. It's wildly silly, though thank God for Law's refusal to artificially repair his hairline; the actor's widow's peak not only makes Husk a more realistic presence, but a more menacing one as well.
In contrast, Hoult crafts Bob as a charming, measured, and ostensibly "regular" guy. He would be downright affable, were it not for the Nazi swastikas in his garage. While Husk and Bob have few on-screen meetings, their dichotomy is discomforting. Hoult — who's playing Lex Luthor in James Gunn's just-wrapped Superman: Legacy — plays his neo-Nazi character as though he were a Boy Scout, like Superman. Meanwhile, Law's approach to his altruistic, obsessive lawman can be oddly frightening, as though joining the Order had borne more immediate fruits and payoffs than trying to bring them down; you can see why people join.
However, this upside-down approach to hero and villain also plants the seeds for a typically Kurzel turn. In the film's final act, the unrelenting fatalism of his films like Nitram, True History of the Kelly Gang, and The Snowtown Murders returns with a vengeance, as though he couldn't resist the delayed gratification. Only this time, rather than adding mere texture, the late arrival of this tonal despondency feels earned, as if an extension of these characters' lives. It's reminiscent of Michael Mann's Heat, in that Husk and Bob are men so driven and obsessed with their goals that they push everyone away in the process.
The Order seldom slows down, skillfully building to each new action crescendo with the help of Jed Kurzel's rumbling, unrelentingly energetic score. It may not have anything novel to say about race in America — whether then or now — but its broad reminders of the mechanics of neo-Nazi terror feel mostly justified by the movie's brisk, deftly modulated pace. That it's an action movie in the body of something more "prestigious" or important ought to feel insulting, but really, it's been the key to Kurzel's necessary transformation all along.
The Order was reviewed was reviewed out of its world premiere at the 2024 Venice International Film Festival. It will open in select theaters Dec. 6.
Brazil is serious about this ban of Elon Musk's X (formerly Twitter).
After banning the social network within its borders, one nugget in the New York Times' report about the story stands out: Anyone who tries to access X in Brazil using technical workarounds like VPNs will be fined substantially. To be more specific, those people could be fined as much as nearly $9,000 per day for using X in Brazil.
SEE ALSO: Elon Musk's X is now banned in BrazilWhile a large country's supreme court banning a social network may sound excessive (as if such a thing could happen here), the story of how it happened doesn't exactly paint X and Musk in a positive light. Brazil's government ordered the site to stop hosting disinformation, Musk called it "censorship," and eventually things escalated from there. On Wednesday of this week, X (which shut down its Brazil operations earlier this year) was ordered by Brazil to appoint a legal representative in the country within 24 hours; X did not do this. As such, X is now banned in Brazil.
And if you try to get around that ban, you'll have to pay up. Be careful.
With Boeing's troubled spaceship deemed too risky to bring its crew home from space, NASA has bumped the two female astronauts set for the next International Space Station rotation to free up seats.
Zena Cardman, who would have been the SpaceX Crew-9 commander, and Stephanie Wilson were cut from the upcoming crew. NASA astronaut Nick Hague, who would have served as pilot, will shift into the commander role, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov will accompany him as mission specialist.
The decision to reduce the SpaceX Dragon crew from four astronauts to two leaves a pair of seats empty for Boeing Starliner's crew, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, on the return trip. They will ride home with Hague and Gorbunov at the end of the scheduled rotation in February 2025.
SEE ALSO: The long, thorny history of Boeing's Starliner spaceship Only NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov will fly in the SpaceX Crew-9 capsule to the International Space Station this September. Credit: SpaceXThis summer, veteran astronauts Wilmore and Williams have remained in limbo 250 miles above Earth, as NASA leadership and Boeing mission managers discussed whether Starliner was safe to bring them home. During the test flight in June, the crew discovered perplexing propulsion issues on Starliner.
What should have been an eight-day stint in space for them will now stretch for eight months.
NASA chief astronaut Joe Acaba said choosing who would stay and who would go on the SpaceX Dragon flight was a tough decision. He had to balance selecting one NASA astronaut with experience to command the flight with preserving a spot for a Roscosmos cosmonaut in order to maintain an integrated crew.
"Zena and Stephanie will continue to assist their crewmates ahead of launch," Acaba said in a statement. "They exemplify what it means to be a professional astronaut."
The original SpaceX Crew-9, from left: NASA astronaut Stephanie Wilson, Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, and NASA astronauts Nick Hague and Zena Cardman. Credit: NASA / Bill Stafford / Robert MarkowitzGetting Starliner through the testing phase has been a relentless battle for Boeing, though its representatives have not always been forthcoming on why the program has suffered so many setbacks. A string of issues has spanned a decade.
After the Space Shuttle retired in 2011, NASA hitched all of its rides on Russian rockets to the space station, costing the United States tens of millions of dollars per ride. Some considered it a national embarrassment.
NASA hired Boeing and SpaceX to build commercial spaceships to carry astronauts to and from the station in 2014. While SpaceX's capsule went into service four years ago, Boeing's Starliner has yet to obtain certification for regular flight operations. NASA never intended to have all its eggs in Elon Musk's basket and says Starliner is still crucial to have as a backup.
Starliner attached to the International Space Station. Credit: NASASo long as the weather conditions are good, Starliner will undock from the space station without any passengers on Sept. 6 and will attempt a robotic landing about six hours later, just before midnight on Sept. 7, in a New Mexico desert. The SpaceX Crew-9 capsule bringing up Hague and Gorbunov is expected to launch on a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida, no earlier than Sept. 24.
NASA said Cardman and Wilson will be eligible for reassignment to future expeditions.
As the Perseverance rover rumbled over Mars terrain scoping out rocks, seven companies spent the summer trying to figure out how to help NASA bring its samples back to Earth.
The U.S. space agency's mission to return bits of rock, dust, and even air from the Red Planet, known as Mars Sample Return, is in trouble. An independent review found the unprecedented project would cost upward of $11 billion and take nearly two decades to accomplish.
Problems with the mission's management came at the worst possible time. Hundreds of scientists and engineers working on the project at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory lost their jobs, taking the brunt of NASA's budget cuts over the past two years.
In a desperate plea, NASA announced that it would solicit proposals from the aerospace industry, in addition to asking its other campuses, for input on how to save the mission. Then in June, NASA selected seven companies out of 48 proposals to flesh out their concepts over the following three months: Lockheed Martin, SpaceX, Blue Origin, Aerojet Rocketdyne, Northrop Grumman, Quantum Space, and Whittinghill Aerospace received up to $1.5 million each to pursue studies.
From repurposing moon landers in development for NASA's Artemis campaign to rethinking the last leg of the journey, the companies have put forward some new strategies and approaches, often involving their own hardware, according to public records reviewed by Mashable.
"Mars Sample Return will be one of the most complex missions NASA has undertaken, and it is critical that we carry it out more quickly, with less risk, and at a lower cost," said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson in a statement. "I’m excited to see the vision that these companies, centers and partners present as we look for fresh, exciting, and innovative ideas to uncover great cosmic secrets from the Red Planet."
SEE ALSO: A space company is headed to Mars this fall. No, it's not SpaceX. The Perseverance rover is dropping sets of sample tubes filled with rocks and dirt on the Martian ground for later retrieval. Credit: NASA / JPL-CaltechSince landing on Mars in 2021, Perseverance has filled 25 of 38 sample tubes with rocks and dirt. NASA's goal has been to retrieve at least a few of them and get them to Earth in the 2030s. To do that, the agency planned for the rover to deliver the samples to a robotic lander equipped with a rocket. If the rover couldn't make the drive, drones similar to the recently deceased Ingenuity helicopter would pick them up and fly them to a lander.
Once the tubes were in space, an orbiter built by the European Space Agency would bring them some 140 million miles back to Earth. (With both planets constantly moving, their distance is always changing.)
A core of a Martian rock about the size of a piece of chalk within a Perseverance rover drill. Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / ASU / MSSSThe pressure to find a solution has only increased since July, when NASA announced that Perseverance had just discovered in an ancient dried-up riverbed a leopard-spotted rock, with features that microbes could have formed billions of years ago, when the planet was warmer and wet.
Though NASA stopped short of claiming it had found evidence of life, the rover's instruments detected organic compounds within the rock that are, at the least, building blocks for life in this world. But the only way to know for sure whether those compounds came from living creatures or a geological process is to grab a sample and bring it home for a rigorous analysis.
"It's kind of a reminder that no one is going to care if it costs $6 billion or $11 billion if we discover evidence of life beyond Earth for the first time in human history," Casey Dreier, the nonpartisan Planetary Society's senior space policy adviser, told Mashable.
Mars Sample Return would mark humanity's first attempt at launching off another planet. Credit: NASA How private companies would change the missionA Mashable review of the proposal summaries shows many of the ideas suggested by the seven companies focus on the Mars Ascent Vehicle, the rocket that would blast the samples off Mars and into space — a sign that insiders may have identified the MAV as one of the key problems. The mission would mark humanity's first attempt at launching off another planet. Aerojet Rocketdyne, Whittinghill Aerospace, and Northrop Grumman's proposals all pitch ways to make that rocket — and the lander bringing it down to the surface — lighter and smaller.
Aerojet Rocketdyne went a step farther, urging that if NASA were to reduce the mass of the Mars rocket, the team could potentially reuse the sky crane landing system that brought the Perseverance and Curiosity rovers to the Martian surface for this mission.
Lockheed Martin is looking into how NASA could model the mission after some of its Discovery and New Frontiers-class planetary missions, according to its proposal, which are cost-capped in the millions-of-dollars range. These relatively frugal missions involve private space company partners and are pre-authorized by Congress, generally making them quicker to develop.
And, of course, Lockheed thinks it's up to the task. The company said it would assess how replacing government equipment, as well as reducing the number of samples collected, could help drive down costs. Lockheed has a long track record of developing 11 Mars vehicles for the agency in the past, said Lisa May, the company's manager of deep space exploration strategy, in a statement to Mashable.
"It's kind of a reminder that no one is going to care if it costs $6 billion or $11 billion if we discover evidence of life beyond Earth for the first time in human history."The newcomer space companies are also part of the mix. Elon Musk's SpaceX wants Starship to be incorporated somehow into the mission architecture, and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin is looking into how NASA could leverage the company's own Artemis moon lander, dubbed Blue Moon. Either spacecraft could potentially carry a heavier load than the lander and rocket in development, ensuring the agency wouldn't have to make difficult choices about which samples to leave behind on the Red Planet.
While most of the concepts seem to be centered on cost savings in the samples' retrieval, Quantum Space's proposal seeks to redesign a much later part of the journey. Its plan would involve a handoff of the samples from the European orbiter to Quantum's own moon-orbiting spacecraft that would eventually drop the samples over Earth for a Utah desert landing. The company is calling this its "anchor leg concept" — a way to cut back on near-term costs of the mission, according to Quantum.
"The use of our commercially developed spacecraft to achieve one of the highest priority goals in solar system exploration exemplifies a successful private-public partnership," said Ben Reed, Quantum's co-founder and CIO, in a statement. "Our sleeves are rolled up, and we’re ready to dive in!"
The Perseverance rover on Mars uses tools to bore holes in rocks to collect samples. Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / ASU Why Mars Sample Return is in jeopardyNASA and the broader scientific community have pushed for Mars rocks since 1978, after the success of the Viking mission, said Dreier of The Planetary Society.
In order to insulate Mars Sample Return from inconsistent support from Congress, NASA designed and organized this science endeavor like it would a human spaceflight program, with its development spread across all NASA campuses and jobs posted throughout the country. But that approach apparently resulted in in-fighting, he said: Changes to one vehicle or phase of the mission at one NASA center would then have cascading repercussions, necessitating redesigns on other parts being developed at other centers.
And with a lack of big-picture messaging on the significance of the mission, Mars Sample Return never enjoyed the sort of political buy-in that, for example, kept lawmakers focused on getting moon missions to the finish line in the past, Dreier said. But he's cautiously optimistic that NASA's desire to address the issues now will get the project back on track.
"NASA's trying to find ways to break through the bureaucratic management inertia that had settled on the program, that was just dragging it down," he said. "I think this is a near-death experience that might shake everyone out of complacency."
Imagine not eating for half a year.
For the Alaskan bears of Katmai National Park and Preserve, the long winter famine always looms large. So they eat. And eat. And attempt to grow profoundly fat, because they must subsist off their fat stores for months. That's why, in this wild northern realm, a fat bear is a healthy bear.
One of the largest and most dominant bears of Katmai's Brooks River — a salmon-clogged region of the park that's livestreamed on explore.org — is bear 32, "Chunk." As a large dominant bear, he earns access to the most productive fishing spots, allowing an already large bear to grow huge.
"By all ursine measures, Chunk has been successful. He's perhaps the largest bear at Brooks River," Mike Fitz, a former Katmai park ranger and currently a resident naturalist for explore.org, told Mashable.
Fitz estimates Chunk currently weighs 1,200 pounds. And the bear still has a strong salmon-consuming month ahead.
SEE ALSO: A violent event occurred on Alaska's fat bear livestreamA single sockeye salmon can pack around 4,000 calories. So a bear like Chunk, who repeatedly catches fish in the Brooks River, eats tens of thousands of calories per day. But on Aug. 26, Chunk outdid himself.
Avid bear cam observers, who document bear behavior throughout the summer, informed Fitz that Chunk ate a whopping 45 salmon in about 10.5 hours of fishing. Fitz has personally seen similar achievements, having watched the giant Katmai bear 747 consume 15 salmon in three hours.
"This is direct evidence of his hard work and success in preparation for winter hibernation."The calories in each fish Chunk consumed likely varied this late in the season, as some fish have spawned (releasing eggs into a stream bed), and some haven't. Fitz estimates each fish contained an average of 3,000 calories.
"That would mean that Chunk consumed 135,000 calories in one day," Fitz marveled. "This is direct evidence of his hard work and success in preparation for winter hibernation."
Tweet may have been deleted Tweet may have been deletedThese livestreamed cams capture an unfiltered view of bear behavior. Some of it is endearing, and sometimes it's harsh.
Chunk is often under the eye of the most watched camera, which is attached to a bear-viewing platform next to the river's waterfall. So his exploits are frequently observed. Earlier this summer, for reasons unknown, he attacked a cub that had fallen off the waterfall and passed near him in the river. In their hypercompetitive world, bears do sometimes attack each other or younger bears, but the impetus can remain uncertain.
"We get to see their moments of joy," Fitz said in an online live chat discussing the attack. "However, the webcams are live, the footage is uncensored. We also see bears face hardship, hunger, injury, pain, and even death."
In the coming month or so, Katmai's already rotund bears will continue to exploit any salmon left in the river. They'll lose up to one-third of their body weight during hibernation, so the more fat accumulation, the better odds of survival.
Each year, the park celebrates the success of these animals in their wild realm, an online event called Fat Bear Week. Chunk will clearly be a favorite. Though he'll certainly have some ursine competition.
"Chunk is poised to be a top contender in Fat Bear Week 2024," Fitz said.
I first tried the new Dyson OnTrac headphones for Mashable back in July. After spending a couple of months testing them out, the verdict is in: These headphones sound incredible. They're also supremely comfortable, making it easy to bliss out to my favorite music. I've been bopping my head and doing embarrassing air drums more in the past two months than I have in the last decade.
The OnTrac headphones also have a signature feature that I'm still wrapping my head around, even as the headphones are literally wrapped around my head. I'm talking about the 55-hour battery life — and that's with Active Noise Cancellation engaged.
Overall, I'm loving the new headphones, but I've found some pain points that might make you hesitate before dropping $499.99 on your own pair.
Dyson breaks into consumer audioDyson has released headphones before. You might remember the bizarre and slightly dystopian Dyson Zone, the headphones with a built-in mask and air purifier. (We all got a little weird during the pandemic, right?). With the OnTrac, Dyson is launching a whole new product line, so let's forget about the Zone, which is for the best.
With its headphones, Dyson enters a crowded market. Sonos recently launched the Ace headphones, the brand's new high-end headphones. Dyson also has to contend with Sony, Master & Dynamic, Bose, Marshall, and others.
SEE ALSO: The 6 best headphones for 2024, from wireless earbuds to the best noise-cancelling picksDyson has a reputation for innovative engineering, and when these shiny new cans first dropped, I asked, "Can Dyson do for headphones what it's done for vacuums and hair dryers?" I have an answer this time, and it's not quite. They're impressive, but they're hardly the only headphones worth buying in 2024.
Dyson's new high-end headphones feature customizable accessories. Credit: Timothy Beck Werth / Mashable Dyson headphones, this time without an air purifier. Credit: Timothy Beck Werth / Mashable A clever design hack gets you 50+ hours of batteryWhen you look at the OnTrac headphones, they appear to have three cushions along the inner side of the headband. However, only the top component is actually a cushion. Dyson added batteries in the other pieces, letting them blow other brands away in the race for longer battery life.
For comparison, Sony's flagship XM5 headphones offer 29-ish hours of battery life with ANC. Bose's QuietComfort Ultras offer 24 hours. And the Beats Studio Pro also cap out at 24 hours. (Apple's AirPods Max are now several generations behind, and don't even break the 24-hour mark.)
SEE ALSO: The Marshall Major V headphones claim to have 100 hours of battery life, so I put them to the testWith more than double the battery life of major competitors, this is much more than an incremental improvement. It's the kind of genius Dyson design hack that seems totally obvious in retrospect, and we expect other brands to follow Dyson's lead here. The gains are just too big to ignore.
The batteries live in the headband for even weight distribution and longer battery life. Credit: Timothy Beck Werth / Mashable Credit: Timothy Beck Werth / Mashable(Read more about the battery life in the "How We Tested" section below.)
Colorful, swappable componentsYou can buy these headphones in three pre-set colorways: CNC Copper, CNC Black Nickel, and Ceramic Cinnabar. The machine-cut aluminum ear plates and cushions come in a variety of colors, and you can purchase the ones you like best to customize your headphones.
Via GiphyYou can buy the extra accessories from Dyson, and this is another feature I hope other brands imitate. (I'm talking about expanded personalization, not making people pay extra for it.) The skin-tone headphones and transparent earbuds from Beats are always popular, and Apple's mint AirPods Max are still a popular fashion accessory years after their release.
OnTrac headphones in the CNC Copper colorway. Credit: Timothy Beck Werth / Mashable I swapped out the ear cups for a different color. Credit: Timothy Beck Werth / Mashable Let's talk about the soundHere's the headline: The sound rocks. I've previously tested the Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones and earbuds for Mashable, and I've personally used Beats, Apple, and Jabra products in the past. These are the best headphones I've tested yet.
According to Dyson, “Most headphones operate on a frequency range from 20 to 20,000 Hertz. Our technology expands that range, from 6 Hertz at the low end to 21,000 Hertz at the top." The brand says that results in improved bass, treble, and overall audio clarity, and I believe them.
These headphones sound superb, truly. They're the second-best audio experience I've ever heard. The only sound that beats it? xMems ultrasonic audio technology, which isn't yet available to consumers.
The sound really does sound true to life, and I've been listening on the Bass Boost mode because I have weak hearing on the low end of the spectrum. I can appreciate entirely new details in some of my favorite songs, and I've been listening to more music than I have in years thanks to these headphones.
I wish you could hear how incredible these are. Credit: Timothy Beck Werth / MashableIf you want to disappear into a bubble of sound and enjoy your music to the fullest, these headphones deliver a powerful experience. The spatial audio isn't as advanced as what you get with the newest Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones, but the overall audio experience is mighty impressive.
Noise cancellation: Also very impressiveDyson promises these headphones will deliver 40 decibels of noise cancellation. The over-ear headphones provide plenty of passive noise cancellation, and with active noise cancellation added to the mix, most ambient noises drop away like magic. It's not 100 percent noise cancellation, but it's very good.
SEE ALSO: I flew 3,440 miles on a plane with Apple AirPods Max and Sony XM5: Which has better noise cancellation?The noise cancellation works well on calls, too. During a test call, a friend was able to tell that I was calling on headphones, but they could barely hear the train passing in the near distance.
And did I mention you can listen to music with ANC engaged for up to 55 hours? Again, I say, holy shit.
Comfort is kingI won't expand too much on the comfort of these headphones because I don't need too many words to describe it: They're really comfortable.
Between the design of the headband and the ear cushions, I've had no problems with fatigue, weight distribution, or discomfort while listening to music. You could easily wear these for a cross-country flight without issue. I found that I could angle the precise position of the ear cups, and the cups would stay firmly in that position, which added to the comfortable fit.
One drawback — they're not particularly comfortable around your neck, i.e. when you're not listening to music. So, I don't expect people to wear them as an accessory like you see with the Apple AirPods Max.
Credit: Timothy Beck Werth / Mashable My biggest gripe: The clunky designFor my Dyson OnTrac headphones review, I tried to set aside my feelings about the aesthetics and stay objective. But I have to say it: I hate that these headphones say "Dyson" prominently on the headband. Both sides of the headphones have the brand name above the cups. Unless I'm overpaying for a fancy new Burberry sweater, I hate when products have the brand name written on them.
Overall, I expect the aesthetics to be divisive, in a love-it or hate-it kind of way. Dyson embraced a chunkier design here, I suspect because of the camouflaged batteries in the headband. This contrasts with the slicker, more minimalist approach of other manufacturers.
Controls and connectivityThese headphones feature a mini joystick-like toggle that lets you control your music and volume. I found this a lot better than touch controls, and the headphones have proven to be super user-friendly.
The same goes for setup and the MyDyson app (the app tracks your usage and ambient sound exposure throughout the day). Unfortunately, they do fail in one respect: multipoint Bluetooth pairing.
Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Dyson Credit: Screenshot courtesy of DysonI couldn't get the headphones to easily switch between my devices. If I connected them to my MacBook for a Zoom call but wanted to switch back to my iPhone, I first had to go into my MacBook's Bluetooth settings, disconnect the headphones, then go into the settings on my iPhone to reconnect. It was annoying.
Are the Dyson OnTrac headphones worth it?That's the $499.99 question. In terms of audio quality, battery life, and comfort, these headphones definitely justify that price tag. And if you like the customization aspects of the design, then they're a smart purchase.
But if aesthetics and vibes are as important to you as comfort and audio quality, then your decision comes down to how much you like the OnTrac design.
The Dyson OnTrac headphones are available at Dyson, Amazon, and Best Buy for $499.99.
Dyson OnTrac Headphones with Active Noise Cancellation $499.99 at AmazonTL;DR: Get Microsoft Office 2021 and Windows 11 Pro for $54.97 through September 3 — that’s less than $28 apiece.
Summer’s drawing to a close, and it’s time to get serious about those grades. Whether you’re hitting the books or looking to help your student, check out this ultimate back-to-school bundle: Microsoft Office and Windows 11 Pro, armed to help you tackle assignments and fight procrastination.
Separately, this office suite and OS cost hundreds, but they’re on sale for $54.97 for a few more days. This is your last chance to upgrade your Windows computer for such a deal before school starts.
Microsoft Office 2021 appsEvery student needs reliable productivity apps for those dreaded assignments and presentations. Lean on tools like Microsoft Word and PowerPoint for homework, OneNote for note-taking, and Outlook and Teams to stay connected to peers and teachers.
Microsoft Office for Windows also comes with Access and Publisher. You might use Excel and Publisher for math and data science courses and Publisher if you’re designing materials for clubs or art classes.
Windows 11 Pro + Copilot AIUpgrading your OS isn’t just for the new user design; you’ll also get the new AI assistant, Copilot. Microsoft calls it “the ultimate AI study buddy.”
Copilot uses a custom version of ChatGPT, so it’s like getting the chatbot's premium version without having to pay for it. You could use it to:
Have it explain complex class concepts in simpler terms
Make custom flashcards
Create practice questions
Simulate conversations in a new language you’re learning
You’ll also enjoy how Windows 11 Pro boosts your PC’s load times, gives you new productivity tools, and adds new security features like BitLocker device encryption. It’s like an internal makeover for your computer.
Take advantage of this Microsoft app bundle with Office 2021 and Windows 11 Pro at $54.97 (reg. $438) through September 3 at 11:59 p.m. PT. No coupon is needed for this discount.
StackSocial prices subject to change.
Opens in a new window Credit: Retail King The Ultimate Microsoft Office Professional 2021 for Windows: Lifetime License + Windows 11 Pro Bundle $54.97TL;DR: Save 70% on a portable MagSafe-compatible iPhone charger until September 3.
My purse used to resemble a tech graveyard: A tumbleweed of charging cords and a hefty power bank that weighed me down like an anchor. But the other day, my shoulder was so sore from carrying around my bag, and my cord was so frayed my phone wouldn’t even charge, so I ordered this wireless iPhone charger.
If you remember Apple’s MagSafe Battery Pack (they discontinued it), it’s almost identical to that, except it’s way cheaper. You can get one for only $34.97 (reg. $119.95) through September 3 in white, black, or light blue.
This gadget keeps my phone alive no matter whatInstead of digging through my purse to find my brick of a power bank, I just grab this small battery pack and stick it to the back of my phone. When I’m on the subway after work, using my car mount, or sitting at a restaurant, it's so nice not to worry about my ugly, frayed cord getting in the way.
I have the iPhone 13, but my friends with Androids can also use it as a portable wireless charging pad since it supports Qi-enabled devices. I’m everyone’s favorite friend when their phone is about to die.
Something important to note, though, is that if your case isn’t MagSafe-compatible, it won’t magnetically stick. So, if that’s important to you, you’ll have to get one, grab one of those sticky magnetic rings to make your case compatible (which is what I did), or pop your case off when you charge.
While I love this sleek, minimal wireless charger, my old clunker wins in terms of battery capacity. With 5,000mAh on board, I get about one and a half iPhone charges before I have to recharge this battery, but it’s so incredibly lightweight that I think it’s worth the effort.
Order your magnetic iPhone charger while they’re only $34.97 (reg. $119.95) until September 3 at 11:59 p.m. PT. No coupon is needed for this price drop.
StackSocial prices subject to change.
Opens in a new window Credit: Electronic Avenue Speedy Mag Wireless Charger for iPhone $34.97
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