Meet the cast of Netflix film The Wonder

The Wonder, which is now available on Netflix, features a mesmerising performance from the acting force that is Florence Pugh. But who else is in the cast?

From a middle-aged divorcee in 2013’s Gloria, a bereaved trans woman in 2017’s Oscar-winning A Fantastic Woman and two Orthodox Jewish women in love in 2018’s Disobedience, Chilean director Sebastian Lelio has long championed strong women in his films.

His latest film The Wonder, which is now available on Netflix, is no different, following English nurse Lib (Florence Pugh) as she’s hired to spend two weeks in an Irish village in 1862 and observe what many believe to be a religious miracle: an 11-year-old girl (Kíla Lord Cassidy) who claims not to have eaten for months but remains healthy.

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Ingraham, Arroyo and the WOKE measles

The Hobbledehoy couldn’t give either one of these numpties the time of day usually, but this exchange last night on Fox News between Laura Ingraham and EWTN ‘s Raymond Arroyo was absolutely hilarious

Netflix lands golden ticket by buying Roald Dahl estate

Roald Dahl

The streaming giant will own and control works like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Matilda.

The deal means the streaming giant will own creations like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The BFG.

Netflix will control what happens to them in publishing as well as TV and film – and receive the royalties.

It will also create numerous spin-off games, stage shows and other live experiences. Neither side would reveal how much the deal is worth.

The takeover means The Roald Dahl Story Company – which is run by Dahl’s grandson Luke Kelly and was previously owned by the family and other employees – will now become a division of Netflix.

It earned £26m revenue from the author’s work in 2019, according to its latest accounts.

In a joint statement, Mr Kelly and Netflix boss Ted Sarandos said they were “joining forces to bring some of the world’s most loved stories to current and future fans in creative new ways”.

Source: Netflix lands golden ticket by buying Roald Dahl estate

Television Review: “Sex Education,” Season 3 – Growing Up Grand

Amid the political point-scoring, Netflix’s Sex Education remains effervescently charming.

Sex Education, now in its third season, has always been a show that kicks at boundaries, so it should surprise no one that the third season starts off with some bangs (literally — the first episode opens with a montage of people engaged in sexual acts). The series has always been risqué, but season three takes it even further. The upside is that this move toward the more explicit comes with heartfelt, humorous and, at times, informative storytelling.

Season three starts with a new school year at Moordale High. Otis (Asa Butterfield) is having casual sex with the most popular girl in school, Ruby (Mimi Keene), while Eric (Ncuti Gatwa, always a standout) and Adam (Connor Swindells) have become an official couple. Meanwhile, trouble is a-brewing at Moordale, fallout from the staging of a raunchy musical — a reimagined version of Romeo and Juliet (complete with tentacles). The original headmaster of Moordale, Adam’s father, Mr. Groff (Alistair Petrie), has been fired, so a new headmaster is brought in, Ms. Hope Haddon, played by Girls’ Jemima Kirke.

It’s fascinating to see Kirke in such a different role, a complete contrast to her free-spirited character in Girls. The actress is downright frightening here; Kirke plays Hope to snarky perfection, pettily micromanaging and sneering with aplomb. At first, she manages to win over the student body with a song and dance routine, but quickly we see that she has troubling plans for the school. Hope is far more focused on building up Moordale’s brand than on what her students and staff actually need. She quickly introduces uniforms as well as a homophobic and abstinence-only sex education course that denies resources to nonbinary students. A powerful political message is being delivered here, one that demands that secondary schools refuse reactionary policies. The ironically named Hope reflects the cultural dangers posed by sexism, transphobia, and homophobia, prejudices that, unfortunately, still run rampant in America’s schools. (The satire could be seen as part of the growing pushback to the demonization of Critical Race Theory, the near ban on abortion in Texas, and the continued lack of proper sex education given to high school students.)

Even worse, Hope pits Head Boy Jackson (Kedar Williams-Stirling) against Head Girl Vivienne (Chinenye Ezeudu). It’s very frustrating to watch Hope attempt to tear apart what had become a moving friendship, one that blossomed over the course of the last season. Hope also instills fear into her teachers, who are now terrified to answer their students questions about their sexuality. Thankfully, a few teachers rebel and recommend that students go to a local health clinic with their concerns — but it’s absurd that would need to be done in the first place. Real life students, trapped in abstinence-only programs, may find it worth tuning into Sex Education because the series will honestly and accurately answer some of their own burning questions about sex and relationships.

Much of what makes Sex Education distinctive as a series drama is its ability to subvert its viewers’ expectations. Ruby was introduced as a stereotypical mean girl, but she turns out to be vulnerable and caring in her relationship with Otis. Aimee (Aimee Lou Wood), who started off as Maeve’s rather vapid-brained friend, seeks therapy from Otis’s mother, the enchanting Jean (played by the equally enchanting Gillian Anderson), regarding a sexual assault she experienced in the previous season. The sessions encourage Aimee to embrace who she truly is and she learns to become more independent. Adam, who began as the bully of the series, has become more comfortable with his own sexuality and even pursues additional help to improve his academics. As the episodes go on, each of the characters is becoming increasingly complex, which makes the world of Sex Education more involving. Even Jean, who is now pregnant with her former boyfriend’s child, grows substantially in the third season.

Despite moving into more melodramatic plot realms, Sex Education remains as funny as it was in its first season. There are plenty of amusing moments: Aimee and her boyfriend procure a goat and bring said animal to school; Eric dancing and singing when he learns that he is about to have sex with his boyfriend. Amid the political point-scoring, Sex Education remains effervescently charming, an appeal that will continue, even deepen, with the hoped-for arrival of a fourth season.


Sarah Mina Osman is a writer residing in Wilmington, North Carolina. In addition to writing for The Arts Fuse, she has written for Watercooler HQThe Huffington PostHelloGigglesYoung Hollywood, and Matador Network, among other sites. Her work was included in the anthology Fury: Women’s Lived Experiences in the Trump Era. She is currently a first year fiction MFA candidate at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. When she’s not writing, she’s dancing, watching movies, traveling, or eating. She has a deep appreciation for sloths and tacos. You can keep up with her on Twitter and Instagram: @SarahMinaOsman

Source: Television Review: “Sex Education,” Season 3 – Growing Up Grand – The Arts Fuse

Sex Education: Otis’ New Season 3 Look Hints At His Maeve Issue

BY ANA DUMARAOG

Otis’ (Asa Butterfield) new look in Sex Education season 3 hints at his ongoing problems with Maeve (Emma Mackey). Netflix’s British coming-of-age story is nearing its return [September 17]  with fresh episodes. To drive-up hype, the streaming giant has released promotional stills from the show — some of them offering clues as to what to expect from Sex Education season 3. 

Debuting in 2019, Sex Education quickly became one of the biggest shows for the streaming service based on reports. So, it’s not surprising when it didn’t take long before it returned for its sophomore year in 2020. Chronicling the lives of the students and staff at Moordale Secondary School, the series’ primary focus has always been on its main lead, Otis, and his relationships, particularly with his best friend, Eric (Ncuti Gatwa) and his crush, Maeve. The trio first got together after deciding to run an underground sex therapy business at school. As the storytelling progressed, each of them started exploring their respective and collective arcs. For Otis, that meant navigating his own sexual issues, not to mention his growing attraction to Maeve.

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