Ace detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig, left) helps young priest Father Jud (Josh O’Connor) when he's accused of murder in "Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery."
Walker Scobell gears up for a chariot race in Season 2 of "Percy Jackson & the Olympians."
After Mrs. Peacock (Eileen Brennan, bottom right) takes a drink, Mr. Green (Michael McKean), Colonel Mustard (Martin Mull), Miss Scarlet (Lesley Ann Warren), Professor Plum (Christopher Lloyd) and Mrs. White (Madeline Kahn) wonder if she's been poisoned in "Clue."
Josh O’Connor plays a young priest accused of murder in Netflix's "Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery."

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The game is again afoot.

Rian Johnson's Netflix "Knives Out" franchise has returned with another case for Daniel Craig's Southern detective Benoit Blanc, and this time "Challengers" standout Josh O'Connor is a co-lead in "Wake Up Dead Man" as a young priest desperately needing Blanc's sleuthing skills. That's one of many new streaming movies, and if you're already in that mood, put on Disney+'s kid-friendly adventure series "Percy Jackson & the Olympians" for some cool fantasy action with Greek gods and teen heroes. But for those feeling the need for nostalgia, this weekend marks the 40th anniversary of "Clue," which was doing clever murder mystery way before "Knives Out" made it cool.

Now on to the good stuff:

See Josh O'Connor team with Daniel Craig for 'Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery'

It's always a special treat when a "Knives Out" movie comes out, and the third installment, "Wake Up Dead Man," is a expertly crafted, religion-tinged delight where crime solver Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) assists Father Jud (Josh O'Connor) when the young holy man is accused of murdering the fire-breathing monsignor (Josh Brolin) of his church. (Peep my ★★★½ review.) Its best asset is O'Connor, who brilliantly plays a man navigating crises of faith and guilt. I talked with O'Connor about his busy slate of movies, his "SNL" hosting gig this Saturday, and what he's noticed about his role choices. "Characters land with you at a time when you need them to land with you," he says.

So, yeah, "Dead Man" is a great flick – one of the best of the year. But is it the best of the best? 'Tis the awards season and all, and I put together my top 10 of 2025, which also includes standouts "Sinners," "Hamnet" and "The Life of Chuck."

Stream 'Percy Jackson' Season 2 with a maturing Walker Scobell

I was an early adopter of Disney+'s "Percy Jackson & the Olympians" – not because I was a big fan of Rick Riordan's young-adult book series but more because I'm a sucker for plucky good guys, baddie gods and cool guest stars. (I mean, the first season boasting Lin-Manuel Miranda AND a pro wrestler? Come on now, that's gonna be my jam.) TV critic Kelly Lawler didn't dig it at first – calling it "confusing" and "ho-hum" in her Season 1 review – but she's come around to its many charms for the second season. "Amid our current doom-and-gloom world and a glut of tasteless media aimed at kids on TikTok and YouTube, 'Percy' is a shining light," she writes.

My colleague Bryan Alexander talked with 16-year-old Walker Scobell, who plays the title demigod (and son of Poseidon) and grew up a lot between the two seasons. Scobell's fandom has also gotten more sizable because of the popularity of the show. He told Bryan about time he got approached by a customer at McDonald's who wanted Scobell to sign his Funko Pop toy: "I didn't know if it was awesome or if I should be scared."

Celebrate 40 years of 'Clue' with our exclusive cast reunion

I've always had a special place in my heart for the 1985 mystery comedy "Clue." As a 9-year-old, I convinced my parents to take me to the theater multiple times to see all three different endings, and the VCR "Clue" game became a mini-obsession. So I was particularly excited by this opportunity: For the 40th anniversary, we convened an exclusive "Clue" Zoom cast reunion with Tim Curry, Lesley Ann Warren, Michael McKean and Colleen Camp.

It was quite a hoot, too, as we talked about Tim Curry's athletic performance, the physical comedy gags, Madeline Kahn's improvised "flames" monologue, the colorful costumes, the nixed fourth ending and why "Clue" still endures four decades later. “The dialogue is so intelligent and there's so much double entendre,” Camp says. “What's interesting is that the audiences today, from any age, get it. It is a multigenerational film.”

Even more goodness to check out!

  • Emma Mackey discusses her title role in James L. Brooks' feel-good political dramedy "Ella McCay" and doing primal screams with Jamie Lee Curtis.
  • Sigourney Weaver's latest movie "Dust Bunny" is a throwback to the Reagan-era days of "Gremlins" and "Ghostbusters."
  • Prepare to see these two a lot this Oscar season: Jessie Buckley and director Chloé Zhao chat about their Shakespearean historical drama "Hamnet" and the benefits of "dance takes."
  • The best Golden Globes news? "Weapons" villain Amy Madigan snagging an extremely deserving nomination.
  • Get thee to "Fackham Hall" if "Downtown Abbey" meeting "Airplane!" sounds like a good time.
  • Here's a fun fact: Kevin Costner is a big Christmas ornament guy.

Got thoughts, questions, ideas, concerns, compliments or maybe even some recs for me? Email btruitt@usatoday.com and follow me on the socials: I'm @briantruitt on Bluesky, Instagram and Threads.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Josh O'Connor is a real mystery man in new 'Knives Out'

Reporting by Brian Truitt, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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