Bad news: a kind of intellectual property Terminator has arrived, threatening the idea that the person who actually created something still matters. Better news: cinemas are fighting back with films that reflect our anxiety about AI. These include Gore Verbinski’s Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die (13 February), where a man from the future (Sam Rockwell) tries to warn humanity about an AI apocalypse, followed by The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist (the title says it all) from the makers of Everything Everywhere All at Once in March. Later this year, Luca Guadagnino will release Artificial, a biopic of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. — Catherine Bray
Britpop
“If it was all up to me then you know we’d be touring till the day we die … but UNFORTUNATELY it’s not,” Liam Gallagher recently posted on X, hinting that his brother Noel might be the obstacle to an Oasis reunion. Still, rumours persist of huge summer shows in 2026, likely at Knebworth—the site of their Britpop peak in 1996. A 30th-anniversary tour would make financial sense. Another fan of the Hertfordshire estate is Liam’s old rival Robbie Williams, who played three shows there in 2003. Williams is tapping into revived Britpop fever with a guitar-heavy album, aptly titled Britpop, due in February. The cover features a photo of a bleary-eyed Williams from 1995, when he gatecrashed Oasis’s camp at Glastonbury, complete with red Adidas tracksuit, bleached hair, and a missing tooth. He says this is the album he always wanted to make after leaving Take That. “It was the peak of Britpop,” he said recently, “and a golden age for British music.” While the original Britpop era was defined by chart rivalries, Williams delayed Britpop (the album) from October 2025 to avoid competing with Taylor Swift. — Michael Cragg
Confessions
More than 20 years after Madonna’s last truly great album, 2005’s Confessions on a Dance Floor, she is set to release its sequel this year. After reuniting with that album’s producer, Stuart Price, for her 2023 Celebration tour, the pair have been in the studio ever since. (There was also a tease of Madonna working with pop maestro Max Martin.) Here’s hoping for a game-changing lead single—equal parts brilliant and undeniable—along with glittery, disco-infused electropop and the triumphant return of Madonna the Icon. Elsewhere, the confessional pop style Madonna helped pioneer is thriving, with revealing new releases on the way from Lana Del Rey, Sky Ferreira, and former Little Mix member Leigh-Anne, following in the footsteps of Lily Allen and Rosalía’s starkly personal breakup albums. — MC
Dracula
Proving its immortality, Bram Stoker’s classic is being adapted yet again for stage and screen. French director Luc Besson presents Dracula (in cinemas now) as a gothic romance, starring body-horror specialist Caleb Landry Jones as the immortal lover searching for 400 years for his wife’s reincarnation (Zoë Bleu). Christoph Waltz plays the priest pursuing him across the globe. On stage, Oscar nominee Cynthia Erivo will perform all 23 roles in Kip Williams’s Dracula (Noël Coward theatre, London, 4 February to 30 May). Williams’s screen-heavy productions have been hugely successful, including a recent adaptation of The Picture of Dorian Gray with Sarah Snook playing every part. Now it’s Erivo’s turn to leave her mark on Stoker’s bloody tale. — Kate Wyver
Eat the Rich
In her celebrated Edinburgh show, Jade Franks turned the brutal culture shock and countless humiliations she faced as a working-class scouser at Cambridge into a merciless satire of privilege in the UK: Eat the Rich (But Maybe…Not Me Mates transfers to London this month (Soho Theatre, London, 12–31 January). If you enjoy seeing wealthy elites taken down a peg, then Glen Powell’s inheritance caper How to Make a Killing and Lee Sung Jin’s returning TV dramedy anthology Beef—this time focusing on a Korean billionaire—should both be satisfying. Speaking of TV, money continues to breed misery in the fourth series of the superb finance drama Industry, airing on the BBC later this month. — Rachel Aroesti
First Ladies
Heading to a show about Mary Todd Lincoln? Double-check your ticket. Cole Escola’s riotous Broadway hit Oh, Mary! (Trafalgar Theatre, London, to 25 April) has arrived in the West End, with Mason Alexander Park starring in this wildly embellished story about Abraham Lincoln’s wife. A five-minute walk away at the Charing Cross Theatre, Bronagh Lagan directs John Ransom Phillips’s Mrs President (23 January–8 March), a more straightforward look at Mary’s life and her encounter with the first celebrity photographer. If you’d rather spend an evening seething at the state of the world, try the $40m Mrs Trump documentary Melania (in cinemas 30 January, then on Prime Video), made by disgraced director Brett Ratner, who denies multiple allegations of sexual misconduct. Melania is on board as a producer, so it’s sure to be a clear-eyed, honest take. — KW
Glastonbury-shaped hole
For the first time since its post-Covid return in 2022, Worthy Farm is taking a fallow year. With no Glastonbury in sight, there are plenty of festival options still on sale to fill the music-shaped gap in your summer. For fans of Glasto’s eclectic programming, Dorset’s We Out Here (20–23 August) is a strong substitute, with headline sets from Stereolab, Ethio-jazz great Mulatu Astatke, and Brazilian composer Arthur Verocai. For late-night partying, Lincolnshire’s Lost Village (27–30 August) always delivers a genre-spanning lineup of DJs in its labyrinthine wooded site. Further afield, Barcelona’s Primavera Sound (3–6 June) boasts huge headliners to rival the Pyramid Stage, including the Cure, Massive Attack, and the xx. — Ammar Kalia
Heathcliff
Fresh from playing a disconcertingly hunky humanoid in Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein, Jacob Elordi will spend 2026 cementing his status as one of Hollywood’s few bona fide Gen Z leading men. In the spring, he’ll star in Ridley Scott’s post-apocalyptic thriller The Dog Stars (in cinemas 27 March), but first he reunites with Saltburn writer-director Emerald Fennell for her gleefully irreverent, erotic take on Wuthering Heights (13 February). Starring opposite fellow Aussie Margot Robbie, all eyes will be on Elordi’s Heathcliff, whose transformation from rural waif to gentleman brute will be soundtracked by Charli XCX and released just in time for Valentine’s Day. — RA
Imax
Tell me, O Muse, of the hero who wandered far and wide in search of the best film format before deciding Imax was the one. Yes, Christopher Nolan has filmed Homer’s Odyssey (17 July) in Imax, with Matt Damon as Odysseus. Cinephiles will want to watch it as the gods intended: on an Imax screen in an Imax cinema. Giant screens will also host Marvel’s Avengers: Doomsday (18 December)—though the more interesting battle for box-office nerds will be the current sand-vs-spandex clash between the comic-book behemoth and Dune: Part 3, slated for the same release date. — CB
Jack Thorne
The prolific screenwriter has been at the forefront of British television for over a decade (his CV includes Skins, This Is England, and The Virtues), but 2025 was truly Thorne’s year thanks to a trio of major social-justice dramas: The Hack, Toxic Town, and, of course, the juggernaut The Last of Us.Adolescence made a star of 16-year-old Owen Cooper, and the unknown child cast of Thorne’s upcoming BBC adaptation of Lord of the Flies can expect a similar career boost. Thorne has also found time to write a romantic drama for two of our finest actors: Channel 4’s Falling features Keeley Hawes as a nun infatuated with Paapa Essiedu’s priest.
K-pop
Last year, the animated film KPop Demon Hunters dominated Netflix, and its wildly popular soundtrack earned five Grammy nominations. In 2026, there’s even more K-pop on the way. Genre-defining stalwarts BTS are set to return this spring with a new album and what is reportedly their biggest world tour yet, following a hiatus that began in 2022 when members enlisted for mandatory military service. Meanwhile, girl group Blackpink will release a new single in January after completing their Deadline world tour. Rising group NewJeans was caught in a legal battle with their record label in 2025, but pending a resolution, their comeback is slated for later in the year.
Legacy Sequels
There was a time when a sequel simply meant part two of a self-contained film that did so well at the box office that another story with the same characters was suddenly in order—like Jaws 2. Sequels are so normalised now that we’re in Hollywood’s legacy sequel era, where films pick up the story years or even decades later. This year’s examples include 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (16 January), The Devil Wears Prada 2 (1 May), Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man (in cinemas 6 March, on Netflix 20 March), Scream 7 (27 February), Toy Story 5 (19 June), and The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping (20 November)—though that last one is technically a legacy prequel.
Arthur Miller
Arthur Miller is hot property right now. Ivo Van Hove’s West End production of All My Sons (at Wyndham’s Theatre, London, until 7 March) has already earned rave five-star reviews. At London’s Young Vic, Jordan Fein (known for Fiddler on the Roof) directs Miller’s lesser-known Broken Glass (21 February to 18 April). This devastating portrait of antisemitism in 1930s America tells a story of dislocation and defiance, focusing on a woman whose body stops functioning after reading about Kristallnacht. The Crucible, which premiered at London’s Royal Court 70 years ago, continues to inspire new interpretations. In the same venue, Danya Taymor directs Kimberly Belflower’s seven-time Tony-nominated play John Proctor Is the Villain (20 March to 25 April), which reimagines Miller’s classic as a class discusses The Crucible in the context of their own complicated lives. Perhaps Miller’s most famous play, Death of a Salesman, will receive a new staging at Liverpool’s Everyman Theatre this autumn (19 September to 10 October). Looking further ahead, Millermania is set to reach fever pitch in 2027, when Paul Mescal will star as Biff Loman in a production of the same play at London’s National Theatre.
Nu-metal
It makes sense that late-’90s nu-metal—with its rock choruses, rap verses, and nostalgic frat-party energy—is continuing its comeback in 2026. Who doesn’t have some rage to exorcise? Besides, the baggy, oversized clothes and backwards snapbacks are a forgiving look for original fans hoping to cover expanding waistlines and receding hairlines. Nu-metal’s influence was evident in recent album campaigns by artists like Fontaines DC and 5 Seconds of Summer, and this year the genre’s heavyweights are returning to arenas, stadiums, and festivals across the country. This summer, “Rollin’” hitmakers Limp Bizkit will headline the UK’s premier rock festival, Download (10–14 June), despite their last album, 2021’s Still Sucks, having missed the mark.The UK Top 75. A month later, System of a Down brings its slightly more progressive take on nu-metal to London for two shows at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on July 13 and 15. Meanwhile, Deftones will tour the UK this spring from February 12 to 20, before headlining London’s All Points East festival on August 23 in support of last year’s album, Private Music. See you in the moshpit! — MC
Oscar Season
The year kicks off at the height of Oscar season. New contenders entering the fray include Hugh Jackman pouring his heart out in Song Sung Blue (out now), Chloé Zhao’s Shakespearean tearjerker Hamnet (January 9), the emotional documentary The Voice of Hind Rajab (January 16), and Kristen Stewart’s directorial debut The Chronology of Water (February 6). It’s also possible that the big winners have already made their rounds in theaters: Ryan Coogler’s Sinners was a critical favorite, Wicked: For Good earned the kind of box office numbers the Oscars can’t easily ignore, and the raw power of One Battle After Another seems poised for Academy approval. — CB
Art Attack
Kill Jackie starring Catherine Zeta-Jones. Photograph: Unai Mateo
Prestige Trash
How do you like your TV thrillers? Aspirational and slickly produced, or unbelievable and narratively bonkers? With television’s golden age now a distant memory, streamers have turned to pumping out total nonsense that looks absolutely fantastic. Last year saw countless stars endure luxury-fueled chaos (think The Girlfriend, Malice, The White Lotus), and this year will follow suit with Prime Video’s Kill Jackie (Catherine Zeta-Jones as an art dealer targeted by hitmen), Netflix’s The Undertow (Jamie Dornan as a man who assumes his rich twin’s identity), MGM+’s Vanished (a romantic Paris getaway turns into a missing-person case), and surely many more. — RA
Queueing
The return of Oasis highlighted not only overpriced tickets (thanks, dynamic pricing!) but also the frustration of virtual queues, leaving millions of disgruntled fans in bucket hats staring at screens for hours as their souls slowly drained away. While ticket pricing is finally being overhauled, expect a slew of major cultural moments in 2026 to bring long queues. Semi-retired superstar Rihanna was rumored to be returning to UK stadiums last year before her pregnancy, so if that anticipated comeback is pushed to 2027, tickets this year will be like gold dust. Meanwhile, after a hiatus this year, Glastonbury will return in 2027, with tickets typically going on sale in November—get your queueing supplies ready! Away from gigs, November also brings the arrival of the car-crime fantasia Grand Theft Auto VI (November 19), arguably the most anticipated video game in recent memory. Originally announced in 2022 and repeatedly delayed, expect real-life queues outside your local Game store. — MC
Got a Bard Feeling
Sadie Sink and Noah Jupe in Romeo and Juliet. Photograph: Helen Murray
Romeo and Juliet
Rarely do the actors playing Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers genuinely look like teenagers. But here we come pretty close, with fresh-faced 23-year-old Sadie Sink and 20-year-old Noah Jupe (also appearing soon in Hamnet), who will no doubt draw younger audiences to this doomed love story. Long before playing Max in Stranger Things, Sink performed on Broadway and recently impressed in John Proctor Is the Villain. Juliet will mark her West End debut. Jupe plays her Romeo in this anticipated production by Robert Icke, running at the Harold Pinter Theatre from March 16 to June 6. — KWS
SNL UK
There are many reasons why the British version of Saturday Night Live might flounder: we won’t get the endless stream of ultra-famous hosts; we lack the same improv tradition; and as a nation, we simply won’t tolerate the bloated, brash, and sweatily unfunny skits that make up much of the US original. Yet there is cause for cautious optimism. First, we have actually successfully recreated the iconic sketch show on British soil before.First, the head writer role has gone to Daran Johnson, a member of the brilliantly funny and hugely underrated sketch group Sheeps.
The Traitors
By now, two episodes in, you’re likely already hooked on the latest season of The Traitors—or what we might now call the civilian version, after last year’s successful celebrity edition. Can the regular contestants match Alan Carr’s cunning? A second celebrity season is also set for 2026. Meanwhile, in the US, the fourth season of their celebrity-led Traitors returns on January 8, with a UK broadcast to follow soon after. Contestants include Donna Kelce (mother of Taylor Swift’s fiancé Travis), Love Island UK’s Maura Higgins, actor Michael Rapaport, and Real Housewives regular Lisa Rinna.
Undead
In showbiz, death is no barrier to new content, big profits, or even polishing a reputation. While an Abba-style hologram Queen show featuring Freddie Mercury is still in early talks—Brian May said last November, “I’m very taken with the idea that we can be the original Queen again”—the band’s former collaborator Michael Jackson will have part of his life portrayed in the long-awaited biopic Michael, out April 24. Anthony Bourdain, the celebrated chef and author who died in 2018, will also get the biopic treatment in 2026 with A24’s Tony. Dominic Sessa, breakout star of The Holdovers, will play Bourdain, with Antonio Banderas and Emilia Jones co-starring in a film set during the transformative summer of 1976.
Video Pods
When television was young, it was seen as cinema’s cheaper cousin—often just people chatting in a room, with simple sets and low production values. These days, viewers expect more polish. But what if you could make talk TV without all the fuss? Just some people in a room, having a conversation. Enter the video podcast, which has allowed hosts like Joe Rogan to build huge audiences on a budget, without the fact-checking demands of traditional broadcasters. Now even TV networks are embracing the format. Netflix, recognizing that viewers often watch on their phones, is cutting back on flashy production. In 2026, as part of a deal with Spotify, Netflix will feature popular video podcasts like The Rewatchables, The Big Picture, Recipe Club, and Serial Killers. Television is evolving, not dying.
World Cup
Let’s be honest, football probably won’t be coming home—but it will dominate our screens this summer. This year’s football-themed TV includes Twenty Twenty Six, where bumbling bureaucrat Ian Fletcher (from Twenty Twelve and W1A) becomes director of integrity at a global tournament, and a Joseph Fiennes-led TV adaptation of Dear England, James Graham’s hit play about Gareth Southgate’s managerial impact (the stage tour continues until March 14). Another inspiring coach returns in the long-awaited fourth season of Ted Lasso, while acclaimed director Molly Manning Walker makes her TV debut with Channel 4’s Major Players, about two teenage girls who start a football team.
Ex-Pop Stars
What do Ariana Grande, Adele, and Charli XCX have in common? None seem particularly eager to be pop stars anymore. Yes, Grande has a tour scheduled for this year—her first since 2019, including 10 dates at London’s O2 Arena (August 15 to September 1)—but she’s already hinted it may be her last, as she focuses more on her acting career.Following the Wicked duology this year, she will take on a starring role in the Meet the Parents sequel, Focker in-Law (November 25). Adele, who announced an “incredibly long break” from music in 2024, appears to be following through and will make her acting debut in Tom Ford’s Cry to Heaven. Having reached the top of the pop world with Brat, it’s Charli XCX who seems most eager to move to Hollywood, however. She has six films in various stages of production this year, while three others—100 Nights of Hero (February 6), Erupcja, and Sacrifice—premiered at festivals in late 2025. She will briefly return to her pop-star persona in The Moment, a mockumentary about a very Charli-esque figure’s headline tour, directed by her longtime collaborator Aidan Zamiri and based on her own original idea.
Three decades after emerging as a rebellious group of artists aiming to shake up the stuffy British art world, the YBAs are back, embracing 90s nostalgia in 2026. London’s Tate Modern will host the largest retrospective of YBA Tracey Emin’s work (February 27 to August 31), featuring iconic pieces like The Bed and Everyone I Have Ever Slept With 1963–1995, alongside her recent moving paintings and never-before-seen early works. Catwalk: The Art of the Fashion Show at V&A Dundee (April 3 to January 7, 2027) will offer an innovative look at modern fashion’s evolution, with landmark pieces from Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, and Maison Margiela. Meanwhile, at London’s Tate Britain, the entire 90s decade will be explored (October 1 to February 14, 2027) in a new mixed-media exhibition. Photographs by Juergen Teller reveal the celebrity fascination with the YBAs and their party scene, while works by Damien Hirst trace their artistic journey.
Zendaya, a bankable star, has already amassed an incredible $3.9 billion in box office returns from her films to date, including the Dune movies, The Greatest Showman, and three Spider-Man appearances. This year should see her surpass $5 billion, with roles in Christopher Nolan’s Odyssey, a third Dune film, and the romance The Drama (April 3) opposite Robert Pattinson. This year may also see the Euphoria star potentially tie the knot with her long-term partner, Tom Holland, though only a fool would claim to know exactly what’s happening there. At the time of publication, rumors are swirling with everything from “they’re already married” to “they’ve already split” to “the reception will be at the Nag’s Head in Walthamstow on March 12.”
Frequently Asked Questions
Of course Here is a list of FAQs about Kpop designed to cover a range of common questions from beginners to more engaged fans
Beginner General Questions
1 What exactly is Kpop
Kpop is short for Korean popular music Its a music genre originating from South Korea that encompasses a wide range of styles like pop hiphop RB EDM and rock Its known for its catchy songs highly synchronized choreography polished music videos and a strong emphasis on idol groups and performers
2 What are the biggest Kpop groups right now
As of 2024 some of the most prominent groups include BTS BLACKPINK Stray Kids NewJeans SEVENTEEN TWICE and IVE The landscape changes quickly so new groups frequently rise to fame
3 What does idol mean in Kpop
An idol is a performer who is trained by an entertainment company often for years before debuting in a group or as a soloist They are marketed not just for their music but also for their visuals personality and connection with fans
4 What is a comeback in Kpop
A comeback simply means when a group or artist releases new music and promotes it on music shows variety programs and through performances It doesnt mean they were gone its the term for any new release cycle
5 Why do Kpop groups have so many members
Large groups allow for diverse vocal tones specialized roles and create impressive complex choreographies It also helps each fan find a bias to connect with
Deeper Dive Fandom Culture
6 What is a bias and a bias wrecker
Your bias is your favorite member in a group A bias wrecker is another member who constantly tempts you to change your bias because theyre so captivating
7 What are light sticks and why do fans have them
Light sticks are official lightup merchandise specific to each group
