Culture
Culture Guides
The 40 Best Shows on Hulu Right Now
English Teacher, The Bear, and Futurama are just a few of the shows you should be watching on Hulu this month.
Jennifer M. Wood and WIRED Staff
James Earl Jones’ Darth Vader Has Already Been Immortalized With AI
James Earl Jones died Monday at the age of 93. But long before he did, he gave Lucasfilm permission to recreate his iconic Darth Vader voice for shows like Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Angela Watercutter
Concord’s Death Offers a Bleak Look at Gaming’s Future
After eight years of development, Sony pulled the plug on Concord today after just two weeks. Fans loved it, but seemingly not enough. Is the future of the industry blockbuster-or-bust?
Adam Morgan
The End of ‘Brat Summer’ Doesn’t Mean What You Think
Yes, it means we’re moving into Demure Autumn or even PSL Time, but it also indicates seasons themselves are getting warped by meme culture.
Angela Watercutter
How the Cyber-Thriller Red Rooms Became a Cult Classic Before It Was Ever Released
Red Rooms is about things that happen in the dark corners of the internet. Naturally it found an audience of fans who pirated it there.
John Semley
New AI Model Can Simulate Super Mario Bros. After Watching Gameplay Footage
Despite its limitations, the makers of MarioVGG think AI video could one day replace game engines.
Kyle Orland, Ars Technica
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom Gives the Princess Powers That Link Never Got
After playing Nintendo’s highly-anticipated Switch game, we can confidently say it supplies Hyrule’s new hero Zelda with more than a sword.
Megan Farokhmanesh
The Best Nintendo Switch Games for Every Kind of Player
From Animal Well to The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, these are our absolute favorite escapes for the best portable console.
Gear Team and Megan Farokhmanesh
Black Myth: Wukong Devs Told Streamers to Avoid Politics in Their Playthroughs. It Backfired
The Chinese studio granted early access on the condition that topics like “feminist propaganda” and “Covid-19” go unmentioned. What followed is the Streisand effect in full force.
Megan Farokhmanesh
The 42 Best Shows on Netflix Right Now
Kaos, The Perfect Couple, and Sweet Home are just a few of the shows you need to watch on Netflix this month.
Matt Kamen and WIRED Staff
The 41 Best Movies on Netflix Right Now
Wicked Little Letters, Rebel Ridge, and Godzilla Minus One are just a few of the movies you should watch on Netflix this month.
Matt Kamen and WIRED Staff
The 40 Best Shows on Max (aka HBO Max) Right Now
Chimp Crazy, Industry, and City of God: The Fight Rages On are just a few of the shows you need to be watching on Max this month.
Jennifer M. Wood and WIRED Staff
The 30 Best Movies on Max (aka HBO Max) Right Now
Furiosa, Love Lies Bleeding, and Beetlejuice are just a few of the movies you should be watching on Max this month.
Jennifer M. Wood and WIRED Staff
NaNoWriMo Organizers Said It Was Classist and Ableist to Condemn AI. All Hell Broke Loose
Last weekend several authors cut ties with National Novel Writing Month after the nonprofit issued a statement seemingly greenlighting the use of AI in writing.
Meghan Herbst
Ticket Bots Leave Oasis Fans Enraged
The online ticketing “fiasco” for the band’s upcoming reunion tour has led to pushback against dynamic pricing models and calls for more consumer protections.
Angela Watercutter
Martin Shkreli Made Copies of His $2 Million Wu-Tang Album—and Hid Them in ‘Safes All Around the World’
The one-of-a-kind album is apparently now anything but.
Nate Anderson, Ars Technica
Twitch’s New DJ Program Has Flaws, But It’s the Best There Is
Twitch is finally giving DJs a place to get paid for streaming their sets—and compensate the artists they spin. Its limited catalog of songs and opaque earnings plan may leave some streamers cold.
James Trew
The Creators of Industry Know Banking Is a Rigged Game
The HBO drama about the Machiavellian world of high finance is an undeniable hit—and cocreators Mickey Down and Konrad Kay say “coke and boats” is just the beginning.
Jason Parham
He Started Out as the ‘Dear Abby’ of Grindr. Now Everyone Wants His Advice
With the advice column ¡Hola Papi!, JP Brammer tackles life’s most eccentric and heart-wrenching issues—like what to do after realizing your fiance is catfishing you.
Jason Parham
Drew Afualo Will Never Stop Making Fun of Misogynist Men
The TikTok influencer and podcast host amassed millions of followers for her roasts—and swears she’ll keep doing it even if TikTok goes away.
Jason Parham
The Inevitability of Big Tech Backing Trump
Silicon Valley, fueled by greed and acting in its own calculated interest, seeks to influence the 2024 presidential election. Political scientist Jared Clemons is certain capitalism won’t save us.
Jason Parham
The Trademark Tug-of-War Over ‘Demure’ Shows a Massive Meme Power Shift
Going back to the days of “on fleek,” creators have had a hard time benefiting from their memes. TikTokker Jools Lebron is poised to change that.
Angela Watercutter
The Australian Breaker Who Broke the Internet
It’s been a week since Rachael Gunn, aka Raygun, competed in the breaking competition at the Paris Olympics. The memes—and the controversy—haven’t stopped since.
Angela Watercutter
How Camo Hats Became an Instant Meme
This week, Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz cemented their bid for the White House with some camouflage caps. The headgear is on its way to red MAGA hat status.
Angela Watercutter
Welcome to the Weird Era
You can call politicians castigating the childless and companies marketing AI assistants a lot of things, but it's au courant to call them weird. The Era of Weird has been a long time coming—but may have a cringey future ahead.
Angela Watercutter
Latest
Gamergate at 10
Assassin’s Creed Shadows and How ‘DEI’ Became Gamergate 2.0’s Rallying Cry
Laurence Russell
Control Alt Escape
He Made a Movie About Humans Rising Up Against AI. Now He’s Doing the Real Thing
Brian Merchant
knight moves
A Russian Chess Player Allegedly Poisoned Her Opponent With Mercury
Nate Anderson, Ars Technica