Amanda Seyfried starring in “The Testament of Ann Lee” and Bravo’s hit reality show “The Valley” returning for Season 3 are some of the new television, films, music and games headed to a device near you.
Also among the streaming offerings worth your time this week, as selected by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists: Jon Hamm is back stealing in his Apple TV series “Your Friends & Neighbors,” Sydney Sweeney teams up with Seyfried for the steamy thriller “The Housemaid” and Grammy-nominated country singer Charley Crockett offers his album, “Age of the Ram.”
New movies to stream from March 30-April 5
— Amanda Seyfried probably should have been nominated for an Oscar for her performance as Shakers founder Ann Lee in Mona Fastvold’s audacious and euphoric musical “The Testament of Ann Lee,” which will be streaming on Hulu as of Tuesday. “The film is absolutely not for everyone,” Jocelyn Noveck wrote in her AP review. “But Fastvold has undeniably created something we’ve never quite seen before; speaking of visions, her singular artistic vision fills every frame. And Seyfried is a marvel, in yet another role that stretches this fiercely talented actor in ways we might not have predicted.”
— Another movie that scored with critics but didn’t necessarily find a massive audience in theaters was “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple,” which comes to Netflix on Tuesday. The zombie film, directed by Nia DaCosta working off of an Alex Garland script, stars Jack O’Connell and Ralph Fiennes. In his AP review, Mark Kennedy wrote, “The fourth entry in an ever-more engrossing franchise is absolutely bonkers — and a triumph. It mixes dark, queasy disembowelment and laugh-out-loud humor in a way that both subverts the genre and leads a way out of it, too.” For something completely different, the Broadway production of “Merrily We Roll Along” starring Jonathan Groff and Daniel Radcliffe is also coming to Netflix, on Saturday, April 4.
— The box office sensation “The Housemaid” will be making its debut on Starz on Wednesday. The Paul Feig film starring Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney became a breakout hit in theaters, earning over $396 million against a $35 million budget. Kennedy wrote in his review that it’s a “delicious, satirical look at the secret depravity of the ultra-rich, but it’s so well constructed that’s it’s not clear who’s naughty or nice. Halfway through, the movie zigs and everything you expected zags.”
— AP Film Writer Lindsey Bahr
New music to stream from March 30-April 5
— The Grammy-nominated country singer Charley Crockett enters the “Age of the Ram,” co-produced by Shooter Jennings, the third and final chapter of his “Sagebrush Trilogy.” In true Crockett fashion, it’s equal parts old school country storytelling and forward-thinking future-casting. Singles “Fastest Gun Alive” and “Kentucky Too Long” are good places to start — Crockett’s idiosyncratic voice is all Old West flair.
— Everyone’s favorite Philadelphia-based, Medieval-obsessed punks Poison Ruin will release a new album, “Hymn from the Hills,” on Friday, April 3. Expect more of their classic sound – an inventive intersection of death rock and chain mail – with increased ferocity. Or, as the album description reads, themes that include “spirits traversing sunless deserts and wilted hillsides, demonic torture objects limning the edges of the psyche, bodies transfigured into Luciferian snakes, Sadean prisoners bound to the screaming silence of abandoned castle towers.” You know, the usual.
— The great Swedish post-punk band Makthaverskan will release their first new album since 2021’s “För Allting” on Friday, April 3. Titled “Glass and Bones,” the 10-track LP may very well be the best dream pop album of the year so far: Start with “Pity Party” – a fine reintroduction to singer Maja Milner’s idiosyncratic vocal tone and the band’s addictive guitar melodies – and build from there, to the chilly “Black Waters,” to the gothic confessional “Louie” and the lead track “Won’t Wait.”
— AP Music Writer Maria Sherman
New series to stream from March 30-April 5
— Bravo’s hit reality show “The Valley” is back for Season 3 this week. The show follows former “Vanderpump Rules” cast members who traded West Hollywood for life north of Los Angeles, bringing marriages, kids, divorces and drama with them. Kristen Doute, Brittany Cartwright, Jason and Janet Caperna, Luke Broderick, Danny and Nia Booko, and Jesse Lally return. Former “Vanderpump” regulars Lala Kent and Tom Schwartz also join as full-time cast members. Notably absent: Jax Taylor, Cartwright’s ex, who won’t be returning. The season premiere hits Peacock on Thursday, April 2.
— Jon Hamm is back to stealing from his neighbors. His Apple TV series, “Your Friends & Neighbors,” launches Season 2 on Friday, April 3. Hamm plays a suburbanite who steals from his wealthy New York neighbors to maintain his upper-crust lifestyle. Amanda Peet, Olivia Munn and James Marsden also star.
— Bravo also adds to its “Real Housewives” franchise with the debut of “The Real Housewives of Rhode Island,” streaming Friday, April 3 on Peacock.
— Alicia Rancilio
New video games to play from March 30-April 5
— Darwin’s Paradox! looks like a throwback to classic arcade games, in which colorful mascots ran and jumped through tricky 2D landscapes. Darwin is an octopus who’s minding his own business when he’s suddenly ripped out of the ocean and thrown into a junkyard. As he tries to find his way back home, he stumbles across a conspiracy that “could very well seal the fate of humanity.” Fortunately, Darwin has a big brain to go with all those useful legs. The adventure comes from France’s ZDT Studio, whose founders include the director of the terrific Dishonored series. It launches Thursday, April 2, on PlayStation 5, Xbox X/S, Switch 2 and PC.
— Lou Kesten
