Hello friends! I’m Kelsey, your guide to all things pop culture for Yahoo Entertainment, and this is it the It list, our weekly roundup of what’s new and noteworthy. This week, my culturally savvy colleagues recommended a slew of upcoming releases to watch, stream, listen, read, and binge. Let me walk you through my favorites.
What to watch
🎥 Federer documentary gives a legend a fitting farewell
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When: Federer: Twelve Final Days begins streaming on Prime Video on June 20.
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What to know: The documentary, which consists of home video footage never intended for the public, follows the period between Federer’s retirement announcement and his final competitive tournament.
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Director Asif Kapadia added 30 minutes of archive material and interviews with former players to turn it into a feature film.
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Entertainment reporter Taryn Ryder told me we’ll learn more about tennis’s “Big Four”: Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray.
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Why I’m going to watch: The film Challengers has changed my life and I see tennis core looks all over social media. I guess it’s time to meet some real tennis players!
🎥 Activate alert reignites Jessica Alba‘s film career
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When: Activate alert begins streaming on Netflix on June 21.
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What to know: Jessica Alba stars as a Special Forces commando who confronts gang members after she returns home to take over her father’s bar.
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“I was grieving for my grandfather, who was a father figure in my life, and it was quite a cathartic experience because my character was going through grieving her father,” Alba shared. Entertainment tonight.
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Entertainment reporter David Artavia told me it’s been a while since we’ve seen Alba “sink her teeth into such a strong, complicated character.” It is even her first film in five years.
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Why I’m going to watch: I’m here for the Alba-ssaince!
🎥 Types of kindness brings shock and awe
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When: Types of kindness hits select theaters on June 21 and “kind of everywhere” on June 28.
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What to know: The film is a ‘triptych fable’ that tells three different stories about characters seeking control.
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Director Yorgos Lanthimos is known for his bizarre films like Poor things And The favorite.
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The cast is stacked: Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Willem Dafoe, Margaret Qualley, Hong Chau, Joe Alwyn and Mamoudou Athie play three different roles in the nearly three-hour film.
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“Types of kindness opens with Eurythmics’ ‘Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)’ and to me the verse essentially previews the film’s plot without the viewer even knowing it,” entertainment editor Alexis Shaw told me. She is right.
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Why I’m going to watch: You better believe I’ve already seen it, but I’m going back to the theater to decipher any plot points I missed. To quote Alexis, it is “a puzzle that needs to be solved.”
🎥Lily Gladstone leads Fancy dance to the big screen
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When: Fancy dance opens in select theaters on June 21 and streams worldwide on Apple TV+ on June 28.
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What to know: Lily Gladstone stars as a woman who cares for her niece while searching for her own missing sister and preparing for an upcoming tribal meeting.
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The Oscar nominee told CBS News that this is the “most important” role of her career.
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“Forget the story of the white savior: Fancy dance brings visibility to the ‘Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women’ crisis, as well as the struggles modern Native Americans face today – all through the lens of Indigenous filmmakers and stars,” editor-writer Laura Clark told me after watching the film.
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Why I’m going to watch: If you’re not already on the Gladstone hype train, you’re going to be late. It won’t be slowing down anytime soon!
What you should listen to
🎧 Rising pop star Gracie Abrams releases her second album
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When: The secret of us comes out on June 21st.
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What to know: Maybe you were introduced to Abrams as a Grammy nominee for Best New Artist or as one of Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour” openers.
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With her second effort, she is establishing herself as a pop star with singles already trending on TikTok.
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Abrams told Billboard that she co-wrote her new song “Us” with Swift, whom she calls her childhood hero.
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“She has a sad, moody girl vibe, and that’s what I try to be,” entertainment reporter Neia Balao told me. I have to agree.
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Why I’m going to listen: Her single ‘Close to You’ is already one of my most played songs of the year – if you’ve ever been so overcome with emotion that you had to dance around your room, you’ll get the idea.
We’ll be back next week with our latest picks. Want more recommendations? Checking out our guides to the best summer entertainment.
Is there anything else you’re excited about? Let us know in the comments below.
