The final season of the Netflix series “Outer Banks” and a new classical album by Oscar winner Anthony Hopkins are among the notable entertainment releases for the week.
“Outer Banks” kicks off its fifth and final season Thursday on Netflix. The show follows a group of friends from working-class families in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, who call themselves “Pogues.” The season begins with the Pogues grieving the death of one of their own as they embark on a treasure hunt and a quest for revenge.
Oscar winner Anthony Hopkins will release his debut album, “Life Is a Dream,” on Friday via Decca Records. The 12-track collection of classical compositions was crafted over six decades and conducted by Gustavo Dudamel, performed by the Philharmonia Orchestra. Hopkins, 88, told The Associated Press that music was his "first love, or vocation really." He began playing piano at age 4 and wrote his first piece in 1960. The album reflects his life and childhood in Wales, incorporating what he describes as "melancholy and sadness," alongside beauty.
Also among this week's releases is the experimental film “Mother Mary,” which features Anne Hathaway as a pop star and Michaela Coel as her estranged designer. The film, directed by David Lowery, debuted on HBO Max on Friday. AP Film Writer Jake Coyle described it as "a fitfully spellbinding chamber drama that grows more operatic with every stitch," and added that "Hathaway makes not just a believable pop star but an indelible portrait of an artist’s ego in extremes." However, Coyle noted, "the movie belongs to Coel… ‘Mother Mary’ is the story of an exorcism, and she’s the exorcist."
Coel also stars in Steven Soderbergh’s film “The Christophers,” available on Hulu starting Saturday. Written by Ed Solomon, the film is described as a heist movie in disguise, where two aspiring heirs hire a restoration specialist and forger to secretly finish a series of paintings by their famous father. The film features sharp performances from Coel, James Corden, Jessica Gunning, and Ian McKellen.
Additionally, “She Dances,” starring Steve Zahn and his daughter Audrey as father and daughter reconnecting after tragedy, is set to debut on Peacock on Friday. The film, directed by Rick Gomez, received positive reviews at the Tribeca Film Festival.
In music, the band Weezer will release their 20th album, a self-titled record that fans may refer to as “the Gold Album,” on Friday. It follows their tradition of color-identified records. The single "We Might as Well Be Strangers" features Karly Hartzman, lead singer of the indie rock group Wednesday.
English singer-songwriter Sam Smith will release their fifth album, “Hazel Eyes,” on Friday. This album follows 2023’s “Gloria” and features love songs, marking a change from their previous material.
On the gaming front, the survival horror game “The Sinking City 2” launches Tuesday on PlayStation 5, Xbox X/S, and PC. Developed by Ukraine’s Frogwares studio, the game is based on H.P. Lovecraft's fiction and features players battling monsters in a flooded 1920s Massachusetts town.
Television releases include the first two episodes of Season 2 of “Average Joe,” premiering Wednesday on Paramount+. The action-comedy stars Deon Cole as a Pittsburgh plumber whose life becomes complicated by his late father's debt to the Russian mob.