Is It Hot in Here?

Or is that just Welcome to Chippendales, an upcoming Hulu series starring Kumail Nanjiani as Somen Banerjee, the founder of the titular male exotic-dance troupe? But as David Canfield’s first look reveals, the show won’t be as frothy as its name and ostensible subject matter might suggest. “Delve into the history of Chippendales and you’ll encounter a bizarre saga of sex, drugs, and a surprising amount of murder,” he writes—which made the role a particular challenge for Nanjiani. “This is by far the most challenging job I’ve ever done, in terms of the length of the shoot, the content of the scenes, and emotional difficulty of those scenes,” the onetime Silicon Valley star says. “It’s one of those things where I just jumped in, and trusted that it’d reveal itself as it goes—and it did.” 

Elsewhere in HWD, scene-stealer Mare Winningham opens up about her multiple Emmy nominations (and wins); Richard Lawson advises against boarding Bullet Train; Natalie Jarveytries to make sense of what, exactly, is happening at HBO Max; and Emily Kirkpatrick shares an appropriately campy evening with John Waters.

Stripped Down

Kumail Nanjiani pushed himself like never before in Hulu’s wild new limited series. An exclusive look at how he and his starry cast pulled it off.

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Mare for the Win

The longtime scene-stealer earned her first Emmy nomination in 1980. Forty-two years later, she’s back in the same category—and it likely won’t be the last time.

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Off the Rails

Brad Pitt stars in Bullet Train, an action comedy with very few laughs.

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The Curious Case of HBO Max

CEO David Zaslav is looking for cost savings after the $43 billion merger that created Warner Bros. Discovery.

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Sultan of Sleaze

Storied filmmaker John Waters invited 10 guests to join him for an elegant meal filled with grotesque delights, all in the name of raising money for the Provincetown Film Society.

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