The Most Brutal Parts of ‘Creed III’ Are Outside the Boxing Ring

This is a preview of our pop culture newsletter The Daily Beast’s Obsessed, written by editor Kevin Fallon. To receive the full newsletter in your inbox each week, sign up for it here.

This week:

• Ted Lasso made me smile!

• Creed 3 made me cry!

• Schmigadoon! made me squeal!

• RuPaul made me get all worked up!

• Joaquin Phoenix made me furious!

Creed III Is Great for Surprising Reasons

The cinema landscape today can seem like an overwhelming party where the only invites extended are to films with a sequel number in the title. For some people, it’s like showing up to a crowded orgy only to find that no one is your type. So when you hear that one of those exhaustingly numbered movies is doing well at the box office, and then you see it and think it’s actually good, it can be both a relief and a surprise. That was the case with Creed III, which I enjoyed for reasons that surprised me.

Despite kind of hating sports, I’ve always loved sports movies and TV shows. I don’t understand it. I can’t explain it. I just live with the truth and pretend it makes me even moderately interesting. Like any good American, the Rocky franchise ranks high in the genre for me, and I’ve found the Creed films to be a fascinating, clever continuation. Creed III certainly isn’t the best of the new trilogy, but it’s still a knockout effort (sports phrase!), and one that pulled a punch (another one!) that really impacted me.

I found the movie to be a brutal, difficult watch. That’s not because of the boxing scenes, which were filmed so stylistically that I felt some remove from the violence, or because, as my brothers pointed out, the actual sports of it all made little sense. (Apparently, it would be outrageous for a no-name rival—a figure from Adonis Creed’s past, played by Jonathan Majors—to come out of nowhere to challenge a heavyweight champion.) Instead, it was the family drama that had me wincing and holding my breath.

Michael B. Jordan as Adonis (“Donny”) and Tessa Thompson as his wife, Bianca, have crafted one of the most beautiful marriages I’ve seen on screen, evolving over the course of the three films. You see the mutual respect they have and the grace they give each other because of it.

There’s a tragedy that happens at the movie’s midpoint that I won’t spoil, but it’s the catalyst for an intense, honest conversation between the couple. Filmed in intense close-ups, they reveal just how wounded recent changes in their respective lives have made them, and how they each have struggled to deal with it. It’s terrifying to admit to feeling so broken, especially to someone who knows you so intimately; it’s the kind of confession one might expect to be cathartic, but actually ends up being more painful, because now you have to acknowledge it’s real. As the scene goes on, both Jordan and Thompson telegraph their characters’ hurt, which is amplified by now taking on the weight of their partner’s damage as well.

It’s a fantastic scene that, for me, was as explosive and (at least emotionally) as violent as anything that happens in the ring.

The Schmigadoon! Trailer Will Heal Us All

As a treat for me, exclusively (OK, and maybe you, too), Apple TV+ released the trailer for the second season of Schmigadoon! this week. (Watch it here.)

Season 1 of the musical comedy starred Cecily Strong and Keegan-Michael Key as a couple who stumble upon a fantasy town in which all the residents act as if they’re in a classic Hollywood musical. The likes of Kristin Chenoweth, Alan Cumming, Ariana DeBose, and Aaron Tveit played characters inspired by Oklahoma!, The Music Man, and, of course, Brigadoon, complete with original music and big production numbers that pay homage to those shows.

Season 2 will take place in a new world called “Schmicago,” where everyone seems trapped in the edgier era of musicals from the ’60s and ’70s. To celebrate the trailer, as we wait with giddy anticipation for the premiere in April, here’s a running list of every time I shrieked, clapped, and cheered with glee while watching it:

First, there were the sound effects of medical equipment being used in the intro to recreate the opening pops and squishes from Chicago’s “Cell Block Tango.”

Then, there was this exchange from the leads lamenting that they couldn’t return to Schmigadoon. Key: “Maybe it’s one of those places you only go once and never return.” Strong: “Oh, like SoulCycle.”

Then came the parade of theater vets spoofing iconic Broadway characters, songs, and shows: The Pippin hands when Titus Burgess’ character is introduced, along with the “at one point, a lot of musicals had narrators” line. Dove Cameron sporting a Sally Bowles/Velma Kelly bob. The Sweet Charity “Big Spender” reference. Shots of Cumming and Chenoweth doing Mrs. Lovett and the demon barber from Sweeney Todd! DeBose doing the Emcee from Cabaret! Strong doing the Chorus Line headshots reveal!

I just about lost it when my beloved Tveit shouted, “Who wants to get naked?” in the Hair homage, followed quickly by footage of Jane Krakowski doing her version of Billy Flynn from Chicago, which is just about the best casting I’ve ever seen. Her splits on the jury box alone!

Please join me in watching this teaser once an hour until the new season premieres on April 5.

Posting This Just Because

It should be fairly obvious the level of disgust and outrage that I—a rational and compassionate human being and not a putrid monster with all the enlightenment and class of a sentient porta-potty—feel over the spate of drag ban and anti-trans legislation sweeping the country.

So here is what RuPaul had to say about it:

“Hey, look over there! A classic distraction technique, distracting us away from the real issues that they were voted into office to focus on: jobs, healthcare, keeping our children safe from harm at their own school. But we know that bullies are incompetent at solving real issues. They look for easy targets so they can give the impression of being effective. They think our love, our light, our laughter and our joy are signs of weakness. But they’re wrong because that is our strength… Drag queens are the Marines of the queer movement… Don’t get it twisted and don’t be distracted. Register to vote so we can get these stunt queens out of office and put some smart people with real solutions into government.”

Here’s a link, too, that you might want to click on.

Just Cancel the Oscars at This Point

Todd Phillips and Joaquin Phoenix, you will pay for your crimes.

What to watch this week:

Ted Lasso: Just let yourself enjoy a nice thing. (Wed. on Apple TV+)

The Oscars: I haven’t spent the last four months never sleeping and constantly working just for you not to watch the Oscars. (Sun. on ABC)

You: The final twist in the new season finale still has me laughing. (Now on Netflix)

What to skip this week:

Scream VI: I don’t need a movie to remind me that the New York subway is a horror show. (Now in theaters)

Champions: An impressive new level of schmaltz discovered! (Now in theaters)

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