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October 4th, 2024: In October I'll be at New York Comic Con in NYC and then in November I'll be at YALLFEST in Charleston, SC! Maybe you will too? Maybe we can... MEET?? – Ryan | ||
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This week, we talk about microplastics (the small pieces of plastic that shed from many things), how they may impact your health, and how to mitigate your exposure.
Katie Okamoto, Wirecutter’s sustainability editor, talks to us about some surprising places microplastics pop up, and when it might be worth switching to non-plastic alternatives. She also reveals some easy, actionable advice to reduce your exposure to microplastics in your food, water, and air.
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)—the biggest climate bill in US history—is helping push more Americans toward electric vehicles, solar panels, and other renewable energy sources. It may also change how people cook, do laundry, and heat their homes: The bill sets aside at least $4.5 billion for the first-ever federal consumer rebates on Energy Star–approved electric ranges, ovens, cooktops, heat pumps, and heat pump water heaters or dryers.
Jason Momoa and Jack Black star in A Minecraft Movie.
Minecraft is among the most successful and influential games of the early 21st century, winning many awards and selling over 300 million copies (so far) since its 2011 release. So it was only a matter of time before Hollywood gave us a feature film based on the 3D sandbox game, simply titled A Minecraft Movie. Sure, one might have reservations about yet another video game-based movie, but on the plus side, we've got Jason Momoa and Jack Black co-starring. And the first teaser is full of eye-popping candy-colored cubic visuals and sly references to the game that should please fans.
Within a year of Minecraft's initial release, Mojang Studios was fielding offers from Hollywood producers about making a TV series based on the game, but the company wanted to wait for "the right idea." There was a 2014 attempt to crowd-source a fan film, but game creator Markus "Notch" Persson didn't agree to license that effort since he was already negotiating with Warner Bros. about developing a film based on the game. Thus began a long, convoluted process of directors and writers being hired and leaving the project for various reasons.
When the dust finally settled, Jared Hess (who worked with Black on Nacho Libre) ended up directing. The COVID pandemic and 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike delayed things further, but filming finally wrapped earlier this year in Auckland, New Zealand—just in time for a spring 2025 theatrical release. Per the official synopsis:
Welcome to the world of Minecraft, where creativity doesn’t just help you craft, it’s essential to one’s survival! Four misfits—Garrett “The Garbage Man” Garrison (Jason Momoa), Henry (Sebastian Eugene Hansen), Natalie (Emma Myers) and Dawn (Danielle Brooks)—find themselves struggling with ordinary problems when they are suddenly pulled through a mysterious portal into the Overworld: a bizarre, cubic wonderland that thrives on imagination. To get back home, they’ll have to master this world (and protect it from evil things like Piglins and Zombies, too) while embarking on a magical quest with an unexpected, expert crafter, Steve (Jack Black). Together, their adventure will challenge all five to be bold and to reconnect with the qualities that make each of them uniquely creative… the very skills they need to thrive back in the real world.
Game players will recognize Steve as one of the default characters in Minecraft. The teaser is set to The Beatles' "Magical Mystery Tour" and opens with our misfits encountering a fantastical Tolkien-esque landscape—only with a lot more cube-like shapes, like a pink sheep with a cubed head. We get the aforementioned Piglins and other creatures before Black appears and dramatically announces with great fanfare, "I.... am Steve." Honestly, we'll probably watch it just for Black's performance alone.
A Minecraft Movie hits theaters in April 2025.
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