Ralph Macchio and Jackie Chan team up in ‘Karate Kid: Legends’ trailer, ‘Dexter: Original Sin’ renewed, and more of today’s top stories
Gold Derby's top news stories for April 1, 2025.
Watch the Karate Kid: Legends trailer
Fresh off its CinemaCon presentation on Monday, Sony Pictures released the trailer for Karate Kid: Legends, the sixth film in the franchise. Set three years after the final season of Cobra Kai, the film stars American Born Chinese's Ben Wang as kung fu prodigy Li Fong, who relocates to New York City with his mother (Ming-Na Wen). Per the logline: "But his newfound peace is short-lived after he attracts unwanted attention from a formidable local karate champion. Driven by a desire to defend himself, Li embarks on a journey to enter the ultimate karate competition. Guided by the wisdom of his kung fu teacher, Mr. Han (Jackie Chan), and the legendary Karate Kid, Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio), Li merges their unique styles to prepare for an epic martial arts showdown." The cast also includes Joshua Jackson and Sadie Stanley. Written by Rob Lieber and directed by Jonathan Entwistle, Karate Kid: Legends hits theaters May 30.
Dexter: Original Sin renewed for second season
Paramount+ with Showtime has renewed Dexter: Original Sin for a second season. Set in 1991, 15 years before the first season of Dexter, The prequel series stars Patrick Gibson as a young Dexter Morgan, with Michael C. Hall voicing his inner monologue. The show premiered in December to 2.1 million viewers globally in its first three days. Its season finale in February attracted 2.68 million. The Season 1 cast included Christian Slater, Molly Brown, Christina Milian, James Martinez, Alex Shimizu, Reno Wilson, and special guest stars Sarah Michelle Gellar and Patrick Dempsey. Dexter: Original sin comes from Clyde Phillips, the original showrunner and executive producer on Dexter, who will return for Season 2. Phillips is currently in production on the sequel series Dexter: Resurrection.
The Handmaid's Tale sequel series The Testaments greenlit
The Testaments has been picked up to series at Hulu. Based on the 2019 Margaret Atwood novel of the same name, the Handmaid's Tale sequel will go into production on April 7, the day before the sixth and final season of The Handmaid's Tale premieres. The Handmaid's Tale star, director and executive producer Elisabeth Moss will serve as executive producer alongside Handmaid's EPs Bruce Miller and Warren Littlefield. The Testaments has also rounded out its cast with Mabel Li, Amy Seimetz, Brad Alexander, Zarrin Darnell-Martin, Eva Foote, Isolde Ardies, Shechinah Mpumlwana, Birva Pandya, and Kira Guloien. They join the previously announced Chase Infiniti, Lucy Halliday, Rowan Blanchard as Shunammite, and Mattea Conforti. Ann Dowd will also reprise her Handmaid’s Tale role of Aunt Lydia.
Liza Minnelli to appear in RuPaul's Drag Race finale
Liza Minnelli will appear in the RuPaul's Drag Race Season 17 finale to receive the Giving Us Lifetime Achievement Award, which will be presented to the EGOT winner by RuPaul. The episode will air Friday, April 18 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on MTV.
J.J. Abrams' Duster, The Walking Dead: Dead City, and more heading to Canneseries
J.J. Abrams' new Max series Duster, The Walking Dead: Dead City, and The Agency will screen out of competition at Canneseries in France. Duster, which will premiere on Max on May 15, stars Rachel Hilson as the first Black female FBI agent in 1972 who teams up with a getaway driver (Josh Holloway) to stop a crime syndicate. The Walking Dead: Dead City will screen its Season 2 premiere, which will debut on AMC on May 4. The Agency, a remake of the French series The Bureau, will have its long-awaited French premiere. The thriller premiered stateside on Paramount+ with Showtime in November. The Walking Dead star Norman Reedus will also lead the Canneseries jury. See the full lineup here. Canneseries will run April 24-29.
Mark Hamill to receive CinemaCon's Icon Award
Mark Hamill will receive the Icon Award at CinemaCon Tuesday night at the Big Screen Achievement Awards ceremony at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. "Mark Hamill’s career is proof that great characters don’t just live on the screen — they live within us, galvanizing generations of audiences worldwide," Mitch Neuhauser, managing director, CinemaCon, said in a statement. "This Cinema Icon Award honors not just an actor, but a legacy of incredible work that extends beyond the screen and continues to inspire us all." The Star Wars alum will appear in three films in 2025: Francis Lawrence's adaptation of The Long Walk, the first-written novel by master storyteller Stephen King, TIFF Audience winner The Life of Chuck, and Paramount’s The SpongeBob Movie: Search for Squarepants as the Flying Dutchman.
Webby Awards nominees announced
Sabrina Carpenter, Jason and Travis Kelce, Cynthia Erivo, Kerry Washington, Selena Gomez, Matthew McConaughey, Lady Gaga, and Kendrick Lamar are among the nominees for the 29th Annual Webby Awards. Other nominees include Trixie Mattel, Keke Palmer, Gracie Abrams, Michael Cera, A$AP Rocky, Bowen Yang, Kyle MacLachlan, and Charli XCX. Google and Apple lead with 38 nominations each, followed by NBCUniversal (30), MTV Entertainment Studios (18), TBWA\Media Arts Lab - LA (17), DEPT® (16), Serviceplan Germany (16), CNN (16), and National Geographic (16). The Webbys have also introduced a new group of Creator categories to "celebrate the booming creator economy and growing influence of creators who are shaping culture, entertainment and the Internet." Winners will be announced on April 22, with a ceremony, hosted by Ilana Glazer, scheduled for May 12, during which winners will give the traditional five-word speeches. All nominees are eligible to win two awards: the Webby Award, selected by the Academy, and the Webby People’s Voice Award, voted on by the online community. See the full list of nominees here.