Monthly Archives: April 2022

Apple TV’s Oscar Win Got It a 25 Percent Increase in New Viewers

Apple TV+ has experienced a surge in viewership and a slew of new customers on its platform following CODA's Best Picture win at the Oscars 2022.

Late front-runner CODA won Best Picture at the 94th Academy Awards, marking the first time a film released by a streaming service has won in that highly coveted category. The historic win captured the attention of audiences who flocked to Apple TV+ to stream the Oscar-winning film, as the platform noted a significant increase in viewers and viewership.

According to Variety, CODA helped to boost the number of new viewers to the Apple TV Plus streaming service by 25% and also pushed viewing of the film up by more than 300% compared to the prior week. However, it's unclear what these percentages actually equate to in numbers as Apple hasn't previously disclosed data on subscribers and streaming time.

While Apple TV+ boasts a solid slate of movies and multiple award-winning series, it's unknown whether the streaming service's latest batch of customers will retain their subscription for a longer period of time or whether they will cancel shortly after watching CODA, as the outlet notes that Apple TV+ free trials are available before paying $4.99/month.

CODA stars Emilia Jones as Ruby, the titular child of deaf adults (CODA) and the only hearing member of a deaf family, who are struggling with their fishing business. Ruby discovers that she has a gift for singing and soon finds herself drawn to her duet partner, however, she is torn between pursuing her love of music and her fear of abandoning her parents.

CODA won all of the awards for which it was nominated at the Oscars as Troy Kotsur picked up the statuette for Best Supporting Actor and Sian Heder won for Best Adapted Screenplay alongside its Best Picture win. The film also won the SAG Award for Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture and picked up two awards at the BAFTAs, amongst many other accolades.

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

Minecraft Briefly Got Raytracing on Xbox Consoles – But It Was a Mistake

Microsoft seemingly began testing raytracing in Minecraft earlier this week, but it was actually a mistake. The feature has now been pulled.

The feature appeared in a preview update on Xbox consoles, but it was quickly removed after news spread about its inclusion. The update included a raytracing preview for both Xbox Series X and Series S consoles but, according to Microsoft, it should never have appeared in the first place.

“The previous Minecraft Preview build available to Xbox Insiders inadvertently included prototype code for raytracing support on Xbox consoles,” the company confirmed. “This early prototype code has been removed from Preview and doesn't signal near future plans to bring raytracing support to consoles.”

That’s right – just because they’re testing it, doesn’t mean Minecraft will be getting raytracing on Xbox consoles anytime soon – even though Microsoft teased raytracing support two years ago.

Although Microsoft has now nixed the update and explained that it won’t be coming to your Xbox consoles anytime soon, it does mean that Microsoft is clearly working on the feature. Essentially, it could make its way to Xbox consoles… eventually.

Raytracing is currently only available in Minecraft when playing on Windows and is boosted by Nvidia’s DLSS upscaling process to improve frame rates. A comparison of Minecraft with raytracing switched on and off shows just how impressive this feature could be:

Elsewhere, a long-lost Minecraft update was recently found by Minecraft historians. The Secret Saturday update (Alpha 1.1.1) appeared for only 3 hours back in 2010.

Considering the now-elusive nature of the recent raytracing update, it begs the question of whether Xbox users will one day preserve this now-defunct Minecraft version. Or has auto-update relegated it to the mists of time?

Want to read more about Minecraft? Check out our beginner’s guide for all the basics as well as our hints and tips for survival.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

Minecraft Briefly Got Raytracing on Xbox Consoles – But It Was a Mistake

Microsoft seemingly began testing raytracing in Minecraft earlier this week, but it was actually a mistake. The feature has now been pulled.

The feature appeared in a preview update on Xbox consoles, but it was quickly removed after news spread about its inclusion. The update included a raytracing preview for both Xbox Series X and Series S consoles but, according to Microsoft, it should never have appeared in the first place.

“The previous Minecraft Preview build available to Xbox Insiders inadvertently included prototype code for raytracing support on Xbox consoles,” the company confirmed. “This early prototype code has been removed from Preview and doesn't signal near future plans to bring raytracing support to consoles.”

That’s right – just because they’re testing it, doesn’t mean Minecraft will be getting raytracing on Xbox consoles anytime soon – even though Microsoft teased raytracing support two years ago.

Although Microsoft has now nixed the update and explained that it won’t be coming to your Xbox consoles anytime soon, it does mean that Microsoft is clearly working on the feature. Essentially, it could make its way to Xbox consoles… eventually.

Raytracing is currently only available in Minecraft when playing on Windows and is boosted by Nvidia’s DLSS upscaling process to improve frame rates. A comparison of Minecraft with raytracing switched on and off shows just how impressive this feature could be:

Elsewhere, a long-lost Minecraft update was recently found by Minecraft historians. The Secret Saturday update (Alpha 1.1.1) appeared for only 3 hours back in 2010.

Considering the now-elusive nature of the recent raytracing update, it begs the question of whether Xbox users will one day preserve this now-defunct Minecraft version. Or has auto-update relegated it to the mists of time?

Want to read more about Minecraft? Check out our beginner’s guide for all the basics as well as our hints and tips for survival.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

This Year’s $140,000 Oscar Gift Bag Includes Liposuction And a Piece Of Scotland

Some of Hollywood's biggest celebrities walked away from the Academy Awards 2022 with an Oscar gift bag worth nearly $140,000.

A select number of nominees received an "Everyone Wins" gift bag at the 2022 Academy Awards, regardless of whether or not they picked up an Oscar statuette on the night. And according to CNBC Make It, the contents of the luxurious goodie bags are not to be sniffed at, with this year's decadent bundle from Distinctive Assets valued to be worth almost $140,000.

The most expensive item in this year's bag is a $50,000 three-night stay at Turin Castle in Scotland, complete with butler service and a bagpiper welcome. Though schedules might get busy as the bag is filled with 52 other items and experiences, including a cosmetic procedure, land ownership, and just about everything short of a partridge in a pear tree.

Here's a closer look at some of the contents, per CNBC and E! News:

  • A $15,000 four-night stay at the Golden Door luxury resort and spa in California.
  • A $12,000 "Celebrity Arms" liposuction procedure from cosmetic surgeon Dr. Thomas Su.
  • A small plot of land in Scotland, along with the title of "Lord" or "Lady of Glencoe."
  • $10,000 of "treatments and rejuvenation procedures" from Dr. Konstantin Vasyukevich.
  • A life coaching session with wellness expert Kayote Joseph, worth $1,200.
  • $25,000 worth of home renovations from Maison Construction.
  • A pair of TurboFlex glasses featuring a 360-degree rotating hinge.
  • An assortment of "Flavor wrapped" popcorn packages from Opopop.
  • A bottle of Ariti extra virgin olive oil infused with edible gold flakes.

Distinctive Assets, the LA-based marketing company behind the "Everyone Wins" gift bag, selected 28 people to receive their assortment of highly buzzed-about swag this year, including all nominees in the Best Director, Best Actor/Actress, and Best Supporting Actor/Actress categories, as well as show hosts Wanda Sykes, Amy Schumer, and Regina Hall.

Jane Campion, Will Smith, Jessica Chastain, Troy Kotsur, and Ariana DeBose were the Oscar winners in those categories this year, meaning that they took home a heap of other goodies in addition to their statuette. Check out IGN's Full List of Winners From the Oscars 2022 to find out who else scored big at last month's star-studded affair.

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

This Year’s $140,000 Oscar Gift Bag Includes Liposuction And a Piece Of Scotland

Some of Hollywood's biggest celebrities walked away from the Academy Awards 2022 with an Oscar gift bag worth nearly $140,000.

A select number of nominees received an "Everyone Wins" gift bag at the 2022 Academy Awards, regardless of whether or not they picked up an Oscar statuette on the night. And according to CNBC Make It, the contents of the luxurious goodie bags are not to be sniffed at, with this year's decadent bundle from Distinctive Assets valued to be worth almost $140,000.

The most expensive item in this year's bag is a $50,000 three-night stay at Turin Castle in Scotland, complete with butler service and a bagpiper welcome. Though schedules might get busy as the bag is filled with 52 other items and experiences, including a cosmetic procedure, land ownership, and just about everything short of a partridge in a pear tree.

Here's a closer look at some of the contents, per CNBC and E! News:

  • A $15,000 four-night stay at the Golden Door luxury resort and spa in California.
  • A $12,000 "Celebrity Arms" liposuction procedure from cosmetic surgeon Dr. Thomas Su.
  • A small plot of land in Scotland, along with the title of "Lord" or "Lady of Glencoe."
  • $10,000 of "treatments and rejuvenation procedures" from Dr. Konstantin Vasyukevich.
  • A life coaching session with wellness expert Kayote Joseph, worth $1,200.
  • $25,000 worth of home renovations from Maison Construction.
  • A pair of TurboFlex glasses featuring a 360-degree rotating hinge.
  • An assortment of "Flavor wrapped" popcorn packages from Opopop.
  • A bottle of Ariti extra virgin olive oil infused with edible gold flakes.

Distinctive Assets, the LA-based marketing company behind the "Everyone Wins" gift bag, selected 28 people to receive their assortment of highly buzzed-about swag this year, including all nominees in the Best Director, Best Actor/Actress, and Best Supporting Actor/Actress categories, as well as show hosts Wanda Sykes, Amy Schumer, and Regina Hall.

Jane Campion, Will Smith, Jessica Chastain, Troy Kotsur, and Ariana DeBose were the Oscar winners in those categories this year, meaning that they took home a heap of other goodies in addition to their statuette. Check out IGN's Full List of Winners From the Oscars 2022 to find out who else scored big at last month's star-studded affair.

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

Benedict Cumberbatch Defends Doctor Strange: “It’s Not All Arrogance”

Warning: This story contains spoilers for Spider-Man: No Way Home.

It’s no secret that Doctor Strange messed up in Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Eager to help Peter Parker get his old life back, he essentially broke the multiverse. However, Benedict Cumberbatch is keen to point out that it wasn’t all his fault…

During an interview with Total Film, the Marvel sorcerer explained why his spell went a bit wrong.

“I know we all love Peter Parker, but can we just rewind to the point that the spell is interrupted something like six times?” he said.

Marvel’s former Sorcerer Supreme has come under fire from fans since his little… mishap.

Ultimately, a lot of fans put it down to Strange’s arrogance – that he felt he was a powerful enough sorcerer that nothing could go wrong with his spell. Although there may be some truth in that, it looks as though Cumberbatch feels it was more about the balance of probability.

“I think it’s just too easily written off as: ‘He’s going to have to pay for his arrogance.’ It’s not all arrogance, actually,” he said. “I think some of it is a very calculated risk. But we’ll see where that takes him [in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness].”

As you'd expect Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness steps even further into the multiverse, and it looks as though it’s about to shake up the entire MCU in the process.

“It is madness, for sure, what happens in our film,” he added. “It’s pretty full-on. And it’s big, man. It’s very, very ambitious. And if we bring it off, I think it could be one of the biggest [Marvel films] we’ve seen so far.” Certainly, as big as No Way Home, according to Cumberbatch.

Of course, with Iron Man and Captain America out of commission, fans are wondering whether Doctor Strange will soon lead the Avengers. Kevin Feige recently called him the “anchor of the MCU” and with new heroes crossing between worlds, it seems the MCU is going to need it.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange, alongside Elizabeth Olsen as Scarlet Witch. They’re joined by Chiwetel Ejiofor, Benedict Wong, Rachel McAdams, and Xochitl Gomez.

Sam Raimi directed the movie from a script by Michael Waldron, based on characters created by comic book legends Steve Ditko and Stan Lee.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

Benedict Cumberbatch Defends Doctor Strange: “It’s Not All Arrogance”

Warning: This story contains spoilers for Spider-Man: No Way Home.

It’s no secret that Doctor Strange messed up in Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Eager to help Peter Parker get his old life back, he essentially broke the multiverse. However, Benedict Cumberbatch is keen to point out that it wasn’t all his fault…

During an interview with Total Film, the Marvel sorcerer explained why his spell went a bit wrong.

“I know we all love Peter Parker, but can we just rewind to the point that the spell is interrupted something like six times?” he said.

Marvel’s former Sorcerer Supreme has come under fire from fans since his little… mishap.

Ultimately, a lot of fans put it down to Strange’s arrogance – that he felt he was a powerful enough sorcerer that nothing could go wrong with his spell. Although there may be some truth in that, it looks as though Cumberbatch feels it was more about the balance of probability.

“I think it’s just too easily written off as: ‘He’s going to have to pay for his arrogance.’ It’s not all arrogance, actually,” he said. “I think some of it is a very calculated risk. But we’ll see where that takes him [in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness].”

As you'd expect Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness steps even further into the multiverse, and it looks as though it’s about to shake up the entire MCU in the process.

“It is madness, for sure, what happens in our film,” he added. “It’s pretty full-on. And it’s big, man. It’s very, very ambitious. And if we bring it off, I think it could be one of the biggest [Marvel films] we’ve seen so far.” Certainly, as big as No Way Home, according to Cumberbatch.

Of course, with Iron Man and Captain America out of commission, fans are wondering whether Doctor Strange will soon lead the Avengers. Kevin Feige recently called him the “anchor of the MCU” and with new heroes crossing between worlds, it seems the MCU is going to need it.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange, alongside Elizabeth Olsen as Scarlet Witch. They’re joined by Chiwetel Ejiofor, Benedict Wong, Rachel McAdams, and Xochitl Gomez.

Sam Raimi directed the movie from a script by Michael Waldron, based on characters created by comic book legends Steve Ditko and Stan Lee.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

Morbius Director ‘Would Be Killed’ If He Said the Movie Was in Andrew Garfield’s Spiderverse

Warning: This story contains full spoilers for Morbius and its post-credit scenes, as well as Spider-Man: No Way Home.

The newly-released Morbius appears to hint at a connection between Sony's Universe of Marvel Characters and some Spider-Man movies we've seen before – but director Daniel Espinosa jokingly says Sony would kill him if he confirmed anything.

Morbius the living vampire is an age-old Spider-Man villain, and the movie could point to a connection to Andrew Garfield's Amazing Spider-Man movies. Given the recent clamour for an Amazing Spider-Man 3, it wouldn't be a huge surprise for Sony to want to connect their villains with an existing version of the hero.

However, during an interview with IGN, Espinosa explained why he couldn’t explicitly join the dots between Morbius and a wider Spider-Man universe – seemingly because Sony itself doesn't want to pin anything down just yet:

“There are people at Sony that will have me shot [for saying anything] because then I will force them to commit to something,” he explained. “I have my thoughts and opinions and they are in the movie, and that's what I'm pushing for.”

So, Espinosa couldn’t tell us which Spider-Man universe Morbius is in – but there are hints within the movie – notably a familiar name in the Daily Bugle.

As we saw in one of the trailers, a front page from the iconic fictional newspaper seemingly mentions Rhino – one of Spider-Man’s most recognizable villains, and one that just happens to have appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man 2.

Then there’s the Oscorp tower which can be seen in the city skyline in Morbius. The building’s Oscorp logo is the same one that appears in The Amazing Spider-Man series.

This could bode well for an Andrew Garfield comeback. Unfortunately, Espinosa couldn’t fully confirm whether Morbius exists in Andrew Garfield’s Amazing Spider-Man universe.

“The Morbius universe is the same universe as Venom," Espinosa explained, before joking, "How the powers that be will commit to a certain hero [i.e. Spider-Man] is in a small briefcase that has a bomb around it. So, again, I will be killed [for committing to anything].”

It's worth pointing out that, confusingly, a trailer for Morbius also included an image of Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man suit, drawn from the PS4 Spider-Man game. It's not clear if that's an Easter Egg, a clue, or just a bit of set dressing we're looking into too much.

An interesting extra wrinkle here is in this movie's connection to the MCU. With Michael Keaton's Vulture (once of Tom Holland's Spider-Man movies) appearing in a Morbius post-credits scene, we now have a fresh confirmation that the Sony universe is part of the wider Marvel multiverse being set up in the MCU movies (which also saw Venom make a cameo in Spider-Man: No Way Home).

We've also seen Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire's Spider-Men appear in the MCU before returning to their own realities – given Vulture's now been pulled into a different reality too, it's possible it's the same one as Garfield.

Although we haven’t seen a Spider-Man in the Venom/Morbius-verse just yet, it seems like a distinct possibility at this point. Espinosa himself explained that Spider-Man is seemingly pivotal to the multiverse.

“If you look at most of how they created the different timelines in Marvel in the comic books, in all universes, you have versions of almost all characters in those universes, but they have slightly different approaches to who they are, if they're good guys or bad guys,” he explained.

“But in some of those universes, a few of them, you don't have a Spider-Man,” he admitted, before adding: “That's very rare. The Spider is almost like a totem character within the Marvel universe that, as we found out a couple of years ago, the powers of the Spider are much more vast and intricate than we thought from the beginning. Therefore, one of the fundamental capacities of the universe is to have a Spider.”

It seems we won't have a definitive answer for some time just yet, but Morbius definitely hints at the future of Spider-Man that Sony has planned out.

Check out our guide to Morbius to find out more about the living vampire, and why not take a look at some of the Morbius easter eggs we’ve seen in the trailers so far.

Morbius stars Jared Leto as Dr. Michael Morbius alongside Matt Smith, Adria Arjona, Jared Harris, Al Madrigal, and Tyrese Gibson. Daniel Espinosa directed the film based on a screenplay by Burk Sharpless and Matt Sazama.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

Morbius Director ‘Would Be Killed’ If He Said the Movie Was in Andrew Garfield’s Spiderverse

Warning: This story contains full spoilers for Morbius and its post-credit scenes, as well as Spider-Man: No Way Home.

The newly-released Morbius appears to hint at a connection between Sony's Universe of Marvel Characters and some Spider-Man movies we've seen before – but director Daniel Espinosa jokingly says Sony would kill him if he confirmed anything.

Morbius the living vampire is an age-old Spider-Man villain, and the movie could point to a connection to Andrew Garfield's Amazing Spider-Man movies. Given the recent clamour for an Amazing Spider-Man 3, it wouldn't be a huge surprise for Sony to want to connect their villains with an existing version of the hero.

However, during an interview with IGN, Espinosa explained why he couldn’t explicitly join the dots between Morbius and a wider Spider-Man universe – seemingly because Sony itself doesn't want to pin anything down just yet:

“There are people at Sony that will have me shot [for saying anything] because then I will force them to commit to something,” he explained. “I have my thoughts and opinions and they are in the movie, and that's what I'm pushing for.”

So, Espinosa couldn’t tell us which Spider-Man universe Morbius is in – but there are hints within the movie – notably a familiar name in the Daily Bugle.

As we saw in one of the trailers, a front page from the iconic fictional newspaper seemingly mentions Rhino – one of Spider-Man’s most recognizable villains, and one that just happens to have appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man 2.

Then there’s the Oscorp tower which can be seen in the city skyline in Morbius. The building’s Oscorp logo is the same one that appears in The Amazing Spider-Man series.

This could bode well for an Andrew Garfield comeback. Unfortunately, Espinosa couldn’t fully confirm whether Morbius exists in Andrew Garfield’s Amazing Spider-Man universe.

“The Morbius universe is the same universe as Venom," Espinosa explained, before joking, "How the powers that be will commit to a certain hero [i.e. Spider-Man] is in a small briefcase that has a bomb around it. So, again, I will be killed [for committing to anything].”

It's worth pointing out that, confusingly, a trailer for Morbius also included an image of Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man suit, drawn from the PS4 Spider-Man game. It's not clear if that's an Easter Egg, a clue, or just a bit of set dressing we're looking into too much.

An interesting extra wrinkle here is in this movie's connection to the MCU. With Michael Keaton's Vulture (once of Tom Holland's Spider-Man movies) appearing in a Morbius post-credits scene, we now have a fresh confirmation that the Sony universe is part of the wider Marvel multiverse being set up in the MCU movies (which also saw Venom make a cameo in Spider-Man: No Way Home).

We've also seen Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire's Spider-Men appear in the MCU before returning to their own realities – given Vulture's now been pulled into a different reality too, it's possible it's the same one as Garfield.

Although we haven’t seen a Spider-Man in the Venom/Morbius-verse just yet, it seems like a distinct possibility at this point. Espinosa himself explained that Spider-Man is seemingly pivotal to the multiverse.

“If you look at most of how they created the different timelines in Marvel in the comic books, in all universes, you have versions of almost all characters in those universes, but they have slightly different approaches to who they are, if they're good guys or bad guys,” he explained.

“But in some of those universes, a few of them, you don't have a Spider-Man,” he admitted, before adding: “That's very rare. The Spider is almost like a totem character within the Marvel universe that, as we found out a couple of years ago, the powers of the Spider are much more vast and intricate than we thought from the beginning. Therefore, one of the fundamental capacities of the universe is to have a Spider.”

It seems we won't have a definitive answer for some time just yet, but Morbius definitely hints at the future of Spider-Man that Sony has planned out.

Check out our guide to Morbius to find out more about the living vampire, and why not take a look at some of the Morbius easter eggs we’ve seen in the trailers so far.

Morbius stars Jared Leto as Dr. Michael Morbius alongside Matt Smith, Adria Arjona, Jared Harris, Al Madrigal, and Tyrese Gibson. Daniel Espinosa directed the film based on a screenplay by Burk Sharpless and Matt Sazama.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.