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It’s no secret (to viewers) that Game of Thrones fans (far and wide) weren’t thrilled with how much of Season 8 faltered (other than Arya, who simply rules, killing the Night King). They certainly weren’t alright with the show pushing Dany into utter insanity and setting Westeros on fire, and people were especially underwhelmed with (after all of that game playing) Bran Stark ending up on the Iron Throne. And although such a juggernaut of a show couldn’t have made everyone happy with a finale, people were still salty after a year and counting.

As the HBO franchise prepares to launch its first prequel, House of the Dragon, George R.R. Martin sounds like he’s had enough. The spinoff team already led up to this by declaring that they know that not all GoT viewers will sign onto a spinoff without question, but Martin does sound extra fed up. Is this understandable? Sure, he’s dealt with a lot of heat (and I suspect part of this grumpiness has to do with the still-unfinished Winds of Winter), but he’s also apparently steamed. Via the continuing feature rollouts from The Hollywood Reporter:

“The f*cking toxic internet and these podcasts out there saying that season eight left such a bad impression that people say, ‘Oh, I’m never going to watch them again,’” Martin says. “I don’t trust them anymore.”

Immediately after this declaration, THR notes that HBO Chief Casey Bloys gives his take, which is that this “was a social media backlash.” Bloys also stressed “that Twitter is not real life,” and he added, “There weren’t a lot of people walking around despondent or upset.” This appears to reflect a belief that the only upset people made up a small subset of viewers, and that the disappointment was only confined to Twitter. And that’s certainly a perspective, to say the least.

One can suggest that Martin and Bloys have their heads in the sand, or we can all forge ahead and watch House of the Dragon and let the bygones roll away. The full THR piece is well worth a read, although it’s worth noting that Martin does warn (of the spinoff), “There’s no Arya — a character everybody’s going to love. They’re all flawed.” Well, let’s watch this keep minds open for this prequel anyway. Dragons!

(Via Hollywood Reporter)

As the premiere of House Of The Dragon approaches, fans are getting a clearer picture of exactly what this show is about. From the latest trailer, it seems to be an episode of Succession, but with dragons! Which seems like a perfect assortment of plot points to get fans interested.

HBO released a brand-new House Of The Dragon trailer at Comic-Con that features a more in-depth look at the Targaryen family–specifically their next heir. As the show takes place a few hundred years before Game Of Thrones, we are expected to get some familial backstory.

Everybody is expecting Daemon Targaryen (played by Matt Smith) to take over the throne, even though Viserys (Paddy Considine) knows his young daughter Princess Rhaenyra (played by Emma D’Arcy) is next in line. Obviously, there is some tension here, as women are not suited for that amount of power in this timeline… yet!

Rhaenyra says she will “create a new order of things” when she is told that women aren’t allowed to sit on the throne. And the drama begins! There are dragons, sword fights, more dragons, fire, family drama, and even more dragons. The cast also includes Olivia Cooke, Emma Rhys Ifans, Steve Toussaint, Eve Best, Fabien Frankel, and Sonoya Mizuno.

House Of The Dragon will premiere August 21st on HBO and HBO Max. Check out the trailer above.

Prior to the start of 2022, it had been nearly three years since FKA Twigs gave the world a project. Her fans were left waiting for more since 2019’s Mgadalene, but at long last, she treated the world to Caprisongs at the top of the year. The album arrived with 17 songs and features from The Weeknd, Rema, Daniel Caesar, Jorja Smith, and more. While it’s just been six months since Caprisongs was released, FKA Twigs seems set on entering a new era one she launched by dropping “Killer.” After sharing the song last month, Twigs has returned with its official video.

The visual captures Twigs beside her supposed “killer” as they passionately dance in the sand on the seashore. Twigs’ dance partner seems to be the dominator throughout the choreography while she is a bit more submissive, something that could be her analogy for the effects of love. Prior to the video’s release, Twigs spoke about the true meaning of “Killer.”

“‘It’s dangerous to be a woman in love’ — when at its worst the effects of heart break can define one’s trajectory much more than the beauty of the love itself, in my song ‘Killer’ I explore this concept,” she said. “The navigation, the hunt and the kill. The death of promises, dreams and the future that was once promised.”

You can watch the video for “Killer” above.

Maker’s Mark Whisky is one of the most beloved bourbons in the country. The wheated bourbon is a stone-cold classic, but it’s not the only wheated bourbon out there. Weller Special Reserve is also massively beloved and massively hyped. So much so that it often sells for significant markups — which *could* be read as an indicator of which bottle is higher quality.

Naturally, we had to put them to a blind test.

Before diving in, it’s important to remember that even though Weller Special Reserve has a $70-$90 price tag, that’s a mark-up by retailers and not the bottle’s MSRP (suggested retail price). Weller Special Reserve should cost $29. You can buy the bottle for that price at Buffalo Trace Distillery in Kentucky. That little factoid means that Weller Special Reserve and Maker’s Mark Whisky are both at the same price point. They’re also the same proof, 90 (or 45 percent ABV). And they’re both made with around 16 percent red winter wheat.

So why pay two or three times more for a Weller (which you probably can’t find) instead of just buying a Maker’s (which you absolutely can find)? Let’s find out if you’re actually missing anything in the ol’ wheated bourbon market by simply buying and drinking a Maker’s instead of paying a premium for a Weller.

Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Bourbon Posts Of The Last Six Months

• We Blind Tasted A Whole Bunch Of $30-60 Bourbons To See If Any Could Beat Weller
• We Blind Tasted Classic Bourbons And Were Shocked By The Winner
• The Best Ten-Year-Old Bourbon Whiskeys, Tasted Blind And Ranked
• We Tasted Bourbon Whiskeys ‘Double-Blind’ And Tried To Guess Each Bottle
• All The Double Gold-Winning Straight Bourbons From This Year’s San Francisco World Spirits Competition

Part 1: The Tasting

Taste 1

Tasting Notes:

This has a super soft nose with mild notes of sour cherry next to light touches of dry grains, supple vanilla, and a hint of caramel. The palate is classic with a salted caramel vibe leading to apple pie filling cut with plenty of dark spices (think cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves) next to smooth dark fruits and a whisper of wet granite. The end lessens the palate toward a thin/light finish with notes of dark cherry, soft spices, and a hint of dry sweetgrass.

Taste 2

Tasting Notes:

Tannic old oak really pops on the nose with sweet cherries, soft vanilla, and a hint of wet leather. The palate is creamy with plenty of stewed apples and winter spices next to a hint of raisin and nut. The finish arrives with a dark cherry sweetness that’s almost candy, as brown sugar counters a hint of sharp winter spice with a twinge of pipe tobacco next to a final note of old leather and dry wicker.

Part 2: The Ranking

2. Maker’s Mark Whisky — Taste 1

ABV: 45%

Average Price: $24

The Whisky:

This is Maker’s signature expression. It’s made from red winter wheat with corn and malted barley and then aged in seasoned Ozark oak for six to seven years. This expression’s juice is then built from only 150 barrels (making this a small batch, if you want to call it that). Those barrels are blended, proofed, bottled, and dipped in red wax.

Bottom Line:

This was technically easy drinking but didn’t quite land the finish. It just sort of faded out. There was plenty to really like up to that point. That said, this felt like a great whisky to build a cocktail with as that foundation of vanilla, caramel, and sour cherry really stands out.

Weller Special Reserve — Taste 2

ABV: 45%

Average Price: $79 ($29 MSRP)

The Whiskey:

Buffalo Trace doesn’t publish any of their mash bills. Educated guesses put the wheat percentage of these mash bills at around 16 to 18 percent, which is average. The age of the barrels on this blend is also unknown. Overall, we know this is a classic wheated bourbon and… that’s about it.

Bottom Line:

This nailed the landing. Though, I’d argue this had a little rougher nose. That said, it’s the finish that lasts the longest on the senses and stays with you. That edges Weller just above Maker’s in this side-by-side taste test.

Part 3: Final Thoughts

It was very clear that Weller Special Reserve had a tad more depth and won out over Maker’s Mark Whisky. Let me make it very clear though, I’m saying just barely though. That Maker’s is perfectly good. Had it had a stronger finish, it would have won out.

But the question remains: Should you spend your time (and extra cash) hunting down a Weller Special Reserve? Or should you just buy a Maker’s Mark and call it a day?

I’d say … buy the Maker’s and call it day. If you go to Kentucky, then snag a bottle of Weller at MSRP. Otherwise, don’t feed the retailer beasts with their markups. Maker’s is a great cocktail bourbon that works well on the rocks — it’s a workhorse. Plus, you can get it at pretty much every single liquor store in America for its actual price. I guess that makes Maker’s Mark (and we, the drinkers!) the real winner today.

Last year, Petey dropped off the album Lean Into Life, which Uproxx reckoned was one of 2021’s best LPs. He later added a song called “Perfect Teeth” to the album and now he’s back with more new music, this time a standalone single called “Big Bad!,” his first new song of the year. It’s a kinetic tune powered by a rapid-fire punk riff that’s also balanced out by some lighter elements.

In a statement, Petey says of the song, “‘Big Bad!’ is about when things seem bad in a big way. Not to be confused with times when things seem just a little bit bad! My friend Neil says it sounds like if Modest Mouse and Blink-182 made a song.”

Also worth noting is that Petey’s promotional videos are the best, so here’s him teasing “Big Bad!” last week:

This is Petey’s first new song of the year, but he’s been consistent with other creative output in 2022. In March, he debuted his Lean Into Life film. Just last month, he teamed up with former roommate Phony to feature on his single “Kaleidoscope.” He also performed at Innings Festival in February and South By Southwest in March, and he’s going on tour with Manchester Orchestra for a few dates this fall. Then, of course, there’s his TikTok videos, which are events in themselves that routinely get millions of views apiece.

Listen to “Big Bad!” above.

Producer turned rapper Pi’erre Bourne is embarking on a world tour this summer, running through autumn. The tour comes after releasing a joint album with Juicy J in June and reuniting with Lil Uzi Vert on his album The Life Of Pi’erre 5 last year. Check out the tour dates below.

09/06 – Houston, TX @ House of Blues Houston
09/07 – Austin, TX @ Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater
09/08 – Dallas, TX @@ House of Blues Dallas
09/10 – New Orleans, LA @@ House of Blues New Orleans
09/12 – St. Louis, MO @ Delmar Hall
09/13 – Indianapolis, IN @ Deluxe @ Old National Centre
09/15 – Minneapolis, MN @ Fillmore Minneapolis
09/16 – Chicago, IL @ House of Blues Chicago
09/17 – Toronto, ON @ The Phoenix Concert Theatre
09/19 – Detroit, MI @ Saint Andrew’s Hall
09/21 – Atlanta, GA @ Tabernacle
09/23 – Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues Cleveland
09/24 – Cincinnati, OH @ Bogart’s
09/26 – Boston, MA @ House of Blues Boston
09/28 – New Haven, CT @ Toad’s Place
09/29 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Fillmore Philadelphia
10/02 – Raleigh, NC @ The Ritz
10/03 – Silver Spring, MD @ The Fillmore Silver Spring
10/05 – New York, NY @ Irving Plaza
10/08 – Denver, CO @ Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom*
10/11 – Phoenix, AZ @ The Van Buren
10/12 – Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues Anaheim
10/14 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern
10/16 – San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore
10/17 – Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater
10/18 – Vancouver, BC @ Hollywood Theatre
10/19 – Seattle, WA @ The Showbox*
11/02 – Dublin, IE @ The Academy*
11/03 – Amsterdam, NL @ Melkweg*
11/04 – Antwerpen, BE @ Trix*
11/06 – Stockholm, SE @ Klubben*
11/07 – Copenhagen, DK @ Pumphuset*
11/08 – Berlin, DE @ Columbia Theater*
11/09 – Frankfurt, DE @ Zoom*
11/11 – Warsaw, PL @ The Box*
11/12 – Prague, CZ @ Lucerna*
11/14 – Vienna, AT @ Flex*
11/15 – Zurich, CH @ Exil*
11/17 – Bristol, UK @ Fiddlers*
11/19 – Birmingham, UK @ 02 Institute 2*
11/20 – Manchester, UK @ Academy 2*
11/21 – London, UK @ Electric Ballroom*
11/23 – Lille, FR @ Black Lab*
11/ 24 – Paris, FR @ Elysée tmartr*
12/13 – Brisbane, AU @ Triffid*
12/14 – Melbourne, AU @ 170 Russell*
12/16 – Sydney, AU @ Metro Theatre*
12/17 – Auckland, NZ @ Powerstation*

New bourbon whiskey is always hitting the shelves these days. I’m lucky enough to get to taste the lion’s share of it and (hopefully!) guide you towards the best stuff (and away from the dregs). Frank August Small Batch Bourbon Whiskey was among the recent drops waiting for me at my new address after a very recent move to Kentucky and, having heard a great buzz, I was excited to taste it.

But before we dive into what’s in the bottle, a little context. By the sleek look of the bottle and its website, it’d be easy to assume “Frank August” is a celeb or some eccentric midcentury design-loving CEO. In reality, the name is derived from being frank, or as the brand tells it: “The state of being open, honest, and sincere.” The idea behind the project was to blend the world of traditional bourbon whiskey with modernity in a single bottle — plus it looks cool as hell, which is a nice perk.

There’s more on the horizon as well, a single barrel expression is coming soon from the brand. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Let’s dig into what’s actually inside this very cool-looking bottle of bourbon.

Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Bourbon Posts Of The Last Six Months

• We Blind Tasted A Whole Bunch Of $30-60 Bourbons To See If Any Could Beat Weller
• We Blind Tasted Classic Bourbons And Were Shocked By The Winner
• The Best Ten-Year-Old Bourbon Whiskeys, Tasted Blind And Ranked
• We Tasted Bourbon Whiskeys ‘Double-Blind’ And Tried To Guess Each Bottle
• All The Double Gold-Winning Straight Bourbons From This Year’s San Francisco World Spirits Competition

Frank August Small Batch Bourbon Whiskey

ABV: 50%

Average Price: $70

The Whiskey:

The whiskey is a sourced bourbon. The juice is made in Kentucky, where it’s also aged. The team at Frank August then takes roughly ten to 15 barrels per batch and builds this bourbon painstakingly to fit their desired flavor profile. The whiskey is then lightly proofed down to 100 proof before bottling.

Tasting Notes:

The nose is pure classic bourbon with hints of salted caramel with a twinge of soft grains next to spicy cherry syrup, a whisper of sour apple, and a touch of aged oak staves soaked in mulled wine. The palate moves on from the soft grains towards rum-soaked raisins with a warm winter spice matrix — cinnamon, ginger, clove, allspice — before a brown sugar/rock candy sweetness takes over on the mid-palate. The finish is long and sweet with a nice dose of sharp cinnamon and soft nutmeg that leads to a supple vanilla cream with a thin line of dry cedar and tobacco spice just touched with dark cherry on the very end.

The Bottle:

The bottle is really eye-catching with an art-deco vibe, good heft, and the subtlest label in the game. This is sleek modern style at its best and that stopper is 100/100.

Bottom Line:

This feels like a good sipper (on the rocks) that also would make a killer Manhattan or Sazerac.

Ranking:

89/100 — This felt like a strong handshake to the brand. It’s a hearty introduction that hits “classic” notes. It doesn’t try to take you anywhere new, but that’s natural — you have to walk before you sprint. Overall, this is a winner and certainly has me excited for what’s next from the team behind Frank August.

A Summer League cut short due to injury is not what any NBA player wants, but there’s something to be said for the way a young player is able to recalibrate and take a setback in stride. Jaden Ivey made an electric debut for the Pistons in Vegas, scoring a team-high 20 points alongside six rebounds and assists to help Detroit take its first win. He’d go on to play an effusive five minutes (and put up 11 points) in the Pistons’ second game before rolling an ankle that held him out for the remainder of the week.

Watching Ivey, the first thing you’re bound to notice is that he’s fast. In college, he looked like a sprinter on the court, using his quickness full-tilt to blow by defenders. In Vegas, he was getting comfortable adding new gears, experimenting with the real-time game manipulation his inherent velocity gave when he abruptly cut it off or went from tearing downhill to cruising cross-court. His soon-to-be teammate, Cade Cunningham, has noticed it too.

“He’s fast. I’m not fast,” Cunningham said recently, noting how much that speed is going to help spread the floor. “I like to kick ahead to push the pace and he can literally sprint it there. It’s going to be fun.”

Cunningham touched on what’s been so palpable since Ivey and fellow rookie Jalen Duren were acquired in June: excitement. The buzz around this season’s Pistons team has been building since the Draft, was flaring like so many neon lights in Vegas, and feels almost heady approaching August. Ivey feels it, too. It’s part of why he plans to head to Detroit in early August to help his grandmother with the family’s annual golf charity event, named in honor of his late grandfather, James Hunter. It informed his Summer League experience, and fit into why Ivey was asked to champion Gatorade’s Athlete of the Year Program after its two-year hiatus.

Dime had some time with Ivey, who wore a square cut, loose leather vest, and smiled often, before the Athlete of the Year award event got underway to talk about his Vegas takeaways, what lessons he wants to take from his mom, Niele Ivey, into his rookie season, his game, and yes, that speed.

You’re about to take the next step in your career, into the pros, but it wasn’t that long ago that you were in the same place as the athletes in the Gatorade Athlete of the Year program. What kind of support, or advice, would you give to this next generation of athletes?

The biggest advice I would give is definitely embrace the journey. You worked hard to get here, to this point, don’t settle for less. Just keep doing what you’re doing, keep working hard.

Your grandmother has a charity golf event in Detroit, in honor of your late grandfather, that helps raise money for student scholarships in the community. A part of the Gatorade Player of the Year Program looks at the community impact of Player of the Year winners. You grew up seeing the importance of community impact firsthand, but in your own words, why is it important for athletes to give back?

It’s very important to give back. The youth looks up to us. They look up to every athlete. Whatever sport it is, there’s kids that look up to you, so I think it’s very important to give back to the youth in whatever [avenue] it is.

Have you been involved in the charity event that your grandmother puts on?

Yeah! So now, since I’ve been drafted with the Pistons, I feel like I can help even more. It’s something me and my grandma have discussed, me just doing more for my grandpa’s charity event. I’m actually going — it’s August 6 — so I’ll be there in attendance and I’m going to do whatever I can to help out and help the community out, and make more strides.

Is she excited to have you?

Yeah, she’s definitely excited. [smiles]

On the note of family, you have a pretty impressive one. I have to gush a bit, I interviewed your mom for a story a few weeks ago and I’m sure you know and hear this all the time, but she’s pretty incredible.

She definitely is.

You’re going to make your own name for yourself this season, but what kind of lessons from your mom will you fold into your game, or your role as a teammate?

I think the biggest thing is her passion for the game. It’s why I’m sitting here today. Her passion is greatly tested, I feel like, every day. She’s so passionate about the game and it’s gotten her to the point where she is right now — a head coach. Her passion got her there. So, I’ll never take it for granted, the passion I have for the game, the love I have for the game. Just each and every day try and get better, but never take it for granted. Growing up, I was around great women that loved the game of basketball, and it’s why I’m sitting here today.

I was able to watch your first games in Vegas in person and I have to say that your quickness kind of needs its own speedometer. You’ve said that in college you tried to use your speed at 100 percent all the time, but at Summer League, you were definitely concentrating more on rhythm. How have you been working to add different gears to your game?

I think the biggest thing is slowing down [laughs]. In college, I feel like I was faster and quicker than everybody. So I could just speed by somebody. And in the NBA, it’s a lot of long and athletic, quicker guys. I feel like that’s one of the best parts about my game, is that I can change speeds and get to that burst. So, the biggest thing is slowing down for me and going into games [at Summer League], I just had that mindset to slow down and then go fast. Just change pace, change speeds.

Does that ever feel a little like going against your natural instinct?

Nah, I feel like it benefits me a lot. I feel like guys they guard me and they think I’m just going to at one speed, but if I slow it down, you’re not going to know what I’m going to do. It’s really helped my game a lot, it’s opened a lot of opportunities for me on the court.

That was my next question. When you add those other offensive speeds, or gears, what other changes have you see in the game around you? I imagine it would help with spacing, or opportunities to get the ball to one of your teammates if they’ve got a good look, but what are you noticing?

It opens up the game a little bit more for me. It opens my eyes a little bit more. I can see the floor better, I can find my teammates in the right spots, and most importantly getting to my spots offensively.

I know you didn’t necessarily get the Summer League you wanted, but I was curious what your biggest takeaways were from the games that you played in.

Definitely the physicality of the games. Everybody was really physical. That’s the biggest thing in the NBA, there’s a lot of guys who bring that physical presence on the floor. So I feel like I experienced that my first two Summer League games, and I feel like I’ve embraced it.

Cade Cunningham is one of the most disruptive players to watch, watching his handle, it’s kind of mesmerizing. Are you looking forward to bringing your athleticism and speed alongside his playmaking?

I’m definitely very excited to play with him. I think the biggest thing is he’s a very unselfish guy, so he’s going to find me and find my teammates. And the same with me. I feel like I’m very unselfish, I like to get my teammates the ball and it’s a part of my game I feel like really improved, is finding the right man that’s open. And that’s really going to take my game to new heights.

Was there a pretty quick camaraderie with that Detroit Summer League team?

Yeah, everybody was just happy, just to be together, to put that Detroit Pistons jersey on. Everybody loved it. We all bonded. Everybody’s great guys, everybody gels together really well. And it’s why I feel like Troy Weaver picked the perfect squad. All the guys are just happy to be a Piston. We’re all ready to get to work, for sure.

On that note, you’ve obviously heard it, there’s a lot of excitement around the potential of a young, super quick, very athletic Detroit team this season. Is it feeling that way from the inside too?

Yeah, we’ve got a great young core. We got some guys that are hungry and want to work, and get Detroit back to winning. That’s the biggest thing, I think, when you have guys that are hungry it’s going to do the organization really well. Because eventually, when you have guy like that, who can take this team to the playoffs and eventually win something. That’s the goal we’re setting to begin the season. We want to win a championship for Detroit. Each and every day we’re going to work toward that goal.

Are you looking forward to being coached by Dwane Casey?

I’m really looking forward to it, to playing for him. He reminds me a lot of my grandfather, just the way he speaks. He’s very well-spoken, he’s going to tell you what you need to hear to be a great basketball player. So I’m ready to learn.

Despite what people may think, smart people do not know everything. Sometimes they don’t know certain answers. Other times, they just don’t know how to spell. Hey, it’s hard! But some Jeopardy! fans are upset with the inconsistency of the spelling rules as of late.

Earlier this week, an episode of the trivia show aired with a Final Jeopardy! conclusion that some found to be a little unfair to other contestants who have made spelling and written errors.

The correct answer to Monday’s clue was “What is ‘Waiting for Godot?’” and Erica Weiner-Amachi, a fourth-grade teacher from Philadelphia, wrote something along those lines, and it was accepted by returning host and painful jokester Ken Jennings as the correct answer. But fans were quick to point out that this has happened before, and the result was not in favor of the contestant.

On the June 22nd episode of the show, Sadie Goldberger was disqualified for her answer, “What Is Harriet Tubman” being “illegible.” Fans compared the answers side by side and concluded that accepting Weiner-Amachi’s answer but not Golderberger’s seems unfair.

As per the official Jeopardy! rules, written responses to the Final Jeopardy! clue do not have to be spelled correctly, but they do have to “be phonetically correct and not add or subtract any extraneous sounds or syllables.” As fans pointed out on social media, both contestants did get the right answer, their handwriting was just hard to make out.

Some fans wondered why the contestants don’t write clearly, while others were confused as to why the show hasn’t introduced keypads for typing in answers yet. It’s 2022! The technology is here! Let’s use it!

(Via TVInsider)

Whenever a studio holds back reviews until just before the release date, the conventional wisdom is to be concerned about the final product. Fortunately, that’s not the case with Jordan Peele‘s latest directorial effort, Nope, which reunites him with Get Out star Daniel Kaluuya for a surprising summer blockbuster. The film is racking up positive reviews from critics, which suggests that the embargo was simply to avoid spoilers that, don’t worry, you won’t find below.

After delivering smaller-sized horror fare like the aforementioned Get Out and Us, Peele appears to have taken his genre love to new heights with Nope, which sees the director tackling his largest spectacle yet via a UFO invasion. For the most part, Nope appears to be hitting hard with critics with only a few reservations about whether the movie’s parts work as a whole.

You can scope out excerpts from the first batch of reviews below:

Mike Ryan, Uproxx:

With Nope [Jordan Peele]’s proven he knows how to make an unbelievably entertaining summer alien movie that can draw the masses … while at the same time warn people about the nature and danger of spectacle.

David Ehrlich, IndieWire:

While Jordan Peele has fast become one of the most relevant and profitable of modern American filmmakers, “Nope” is the first time that he’s been afforded a budget fit for a true blockbuster spectacle, and that’s exactly what he’s created with it. But if this smart, muscular, and massively entertaining flying saucer freak-out is such an old school delight that it starts with a shout-out to early cinema pioneer Eadweard Muybridge (before paying homage to more direct influences like “Close Encounters of the Third Kind”), it’s also a thoroughly modern popcorn movie for and about viewers who’ve been inundated with — and addicted to — 21st century visions of real-life terror.

Alonso Duralde, The Wrap:

There’s no accusing of Peele of playing it safe, but the further he gets from the lean cohesiveness of “Get Out,” the more divisive and perplexing his films become. That may well be the point, and “Nope” will certainly set off new debates about what he’s doing, and why, and whether it was worth it.

Nick Schager, The Daily Beast:

Peele finds himself back on solid footing with Nope, a science-fiction horror show that flourishes on its own monster-movie terms, and then laces its mayhem with pointed and invigorating undercurrents. It’s large-scale filmmaking done right, and proof that when he’s on his game, Peele remains one of contemporary cinema’s most skillful genre artists.

Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter:

This elusive third feature from the director of Get Out and Us peacocks its ambitions (and budget) while indulging in narrative tangents and detours. It is sprawling and vigorous. Depending on your appetite for the heady and sonorous, it will either feel frustratingly perplexing or strike you as a work of unquestionable genius.

Brian Truitt, USA Today:

Yep, it was a good idea for Jordan Peele to have the keys to a flying saucer movie. The subtly ambitious “Nope” trades the writer/director’s penchant for horror – where he’s become one of the most important new voices in recent years – for some old-fashioned sci-fi terror and full-on big-screen spectacle.

Owen Gleiberman, Variety:

Jordan Peele’s “Nope” is a tantalizingly creepy mixed bag of a sci-fi thriller. It’s a movie that taps into our fear and awe of UFOs, and for a while it holds us in a shivery spell. It picks the audience up and carries it along, feeding off spectral hints of the otherworldly.

Alison Willmore, Vulture:

Nope is a work of sly devastation from writer-director Jordan Peele that, like his previous films Get Out and Us, is a horror comedy with a speculative premise — in this case, by way of the saucer-shaped UFO lurking in the clouds about the Haywood Ranch in Agua Dulce. Unlike in Get Out, where Kaluuya’s character Chris discovers he’s been lured into a trap by a cabal of body-snatching white liberals, or Us, where malevolent doppelgangers swarm out of the earth like collectors coming for a long-overdue bill, in Nope, the danger is, to a certain degree, opt-in.

Nope opens in theaters on July 22.