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Richard Newby

Richard Newby was a freelance contributor at The Hollywood Reporter, covering genre films and comic books for Heat Vision. He is the recipient of a National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Award for his 2020 feature, “Protest Backlash and the Failings of a Superhero Culture.” His work also appears in Fangoria, Vulture, and The A.V. Club. He is the author of the short story collection, We Make Monsters Here. Newby graduated from The Ohio State University with B.A. in Film Studies and English, and earned his M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Adelphi University.

More from Richard Newby

M. Night Shyamalan Movies, Ranked

There is no filmmaker like M. Night Shyamalan. Whatever you may feel about the director’s work, you’d be hard-pressed to call him unoriginal. He is entirely his own and, through that facet, has built a filmography that challenges our contemporary considerations of tone, performance and narrative. While it’s all too easy to get hung up […]

All the ‘Alien’ Movies, Ranked

“In space, no one can hear you scream.” What was true in 1979 remains true in 2024 as the latest entry in the Alien franchise, Fede Álvarez’s Alien: Romulus, terrifies both old and new generations. With a franchise as iconic and oft-revisited as Alien, there’s little need for introduction. The scene is set. The stakes […]

What if … Robert Downey Jr. Didn’t Show His Face as Doctor Doom?

[This story contains spoilers from Deadpool & Wolverine.] Marvel fans are still trying to wrap their heads around last Saturday’s Marvel Panel at San Diego Comic-Con, where it was revealed that Robert Downey Jr. will be taking up the mask of Victor von Doom. The reactions have vacillated between enthusiasm, disappointment and confusion over seeing […]

Ryan Reynolds’ Best Movies, Ranked

Ryan Reynolds has remained one of Hollywood’s most popular actors for nearly 20 years. He’s developed a likable public persona, become a master marketer and entrepreneur, made close friends with the kind of Hollywood talent many people would sell a necessary organ for — and he’s married to Blake Lively. Yet, that popularity often comes […]

Robert Downey Jr. Electrified Comic-Con, but Will He Energize the Marvel Universe?

Doom is coming for the MCU. Kevin Feige dropped the news that the Russo Bros. are returning to the Marvel fold to direct Avengers 5 and 6 at the end of a relatively calm Marvel Studios panel at San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday. This announcement wasn’t shocking given the previous week’s news that the duo […]

‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Is About Much More Than Those Cameos

[This story contains spoilers for Deadpool & Wolverine.] Unsurprisingly, much of the discussion surrounding Deadpool & Wolverine, both positive and negative, has focused on the so-called cameos in the film. Is it simply fan service? Do we care about seeing those characters again? Are they the purpose of the movie? Does it say anything about […]

All the X-Men Franchise Movies, Ranked

For 20 years, 20th Century Fox’s X-Men films and associated spinoffs built up a world that could stand separately from the MCU and DCEU. While the results were not always what audiences, filmmakers or even the actors desired, there was a certain underdog quality to the X-franchise. Just when it seemed like Wolverine had popped […]

The Greatest Disaster Movies of All Time

Disaster is approaching, and we’re all on the edge of our seats to see what happens next. We’re excited, afraid and not devoid of a little morbid curiosity. But this is the movies, of course, where such feelings are validated with the knowledge that safety resides outside the theater doors, or outside of our living […]

The Best Movie Sequels of the Past 20 Years

Since the 1980s, sequels have become a Hollywood infrastructure — and public opinion on their pop-cultural and artistic value has shifted. No longer were sequels just quasi-remakes with few returning faces and significantly cheaper budgets, but events that studios could promote as highlights of their yearly slates. That’s not to say sequels gained favor overnight […]

The Best Slasher Movies of the Decade

Men in masks. Final girls. A steadily increasing body count. A memorable weapon (a knife, a chainsaw, a hook, a… salt shaker). And then, of course, there’s the blood. Lots and lots of blood. Mix them, bend them, subvert them however you wish — these are the core elements of the slasher movie, one of […]

Why You Should Be Watching ‘The Watchers’

[This story contains spoilers for The Watchers.] As an artist, it’s no easy task to define oneself, to showcase a perspective and style that differentiates you from others. And it’s always that “other” that looms large, impacting your and everyone else’s perceptions of you. This is certainly the case for Mina (Dakota Fanning), a young, […]

‘Mad Max’ Franchise Movies, Ranked

Welcome to George Miller’s Wasteland. It’s a post-apocalyptic world not too far removed from our own. A hellscape where resources have run dry, pushing humanity to barbarism, tribalism and a twisted sense of justice. The scarcity of supplies has made gasoline one of Earth’s most precious resources, as the only thing left to do for […]