Widow’s Bay

Little House on the Prairie

You may be familiar with the world of Little House on the Prairie, either through Laura Ingalls Wilder’s beloved books, or the 1970s TV adaptation. Now, Netflix is once again bringing the Ingalls family to life with a new series. It focuses on earlier in Laura's life in Kansas, where the promise of available land for the family comes at the expense of a local Osage population that's being pushed out. During this time, the Ingalls family must make friends in their local community and deal with the harsh realities of pioneer life. Here are some recommendations both kids and adults will enjoy: ‘Zootopia 2’ brings back your favorite fun animals — and some pointed commentary  [https://www.npr.org/2025/11/26/nx-s1-5620813/zootopia-2-brings-back-your-favorite-fun-animals-and-some-pointed-commentary] In 'Toy Story 5,' playtime's over and screentime's in [https://www.npr.org/2026/06/19/nx-s1-5862016/in-toy-story-5-playtimes-over-and-screentimes-in] Connect with Pop Culture Happy Hour: Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/nprpopculture/] / Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/pchh] Our weekly newsletter [https://www.npr.org/newsletter/pop-culture] Support Pop Culture Happy Hour+ [https://plus.npr.org/happy] See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]

The Invite

What happens when a simple dinner party goes off the rails? That’s the premise of The Invite, a very good new comedy directed by Olivia Wilde. Wilde also stars alongside Seth Rogen as a couple who invite their neighbors over for a meal, played by Penelope Cruz and Edward Norton. And it’s a heck of a dinner party, full of frank talk about sex and its complications. If you like slightly absurd relationship comedies, check out these episodes: 'Mr. & Mrs. Smith' is a stylish take on spy marriage [https://www.npr.org/2024/02/07/1197961672/mr-and-mrs-smith-is-a-stylish-take-on-spy-marriage] In Tina Fey’s ‘The Four Seasons,’ marriage is far from a vacation [https://www.npr.org/2026/05/28/nx-s1-5836363/in-tina-feys-the-four-seasons-marriage-is-far-from-a-vacation] Connect with Pop Culture Happy Hour: Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/nprpopculture/] / Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/pchh] Our weekly newsletter [https://www.npr.org/newsletter/pop-culture] Support Pop Culture Happy Hour+ [https://plus.npr.org/happy] See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]

Moana and What’s Making Us Happy

Moana is back in Disney’s new sort-of-live-action remake, but how far does it go from the original? Dwayne Johnson returns as Maui, appearing in the flesh this time around. Catherine Laga'aia plays Moana, who sets out to save her island, along with her chicken. The film features a new song from Lin-Manuel Miranda, who also wrote songs for the original animated film.  Craving more live action Disney remakes? Check out these episodes: 'Lilo & Stitch' brings its fuzzy agent of chaos to the real world [https://www.npr.org/2025/05/27/1253209957/lilo-and-stitch-brings-its-fuzzy-agent-of-chaos-to-the-real-world] 'The Little Mermaid' takes the uncanny valley under the sea [https://www.npr.org/2023/05/08/1174750539/the-little-mermaid-takes-the-uncanny-valley-under-the-sea] Connect with Pop Culture Happy Hour: Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/nprpopculture/] / Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/pchh] Our weekly newsletter [https://www.npr.org/newsletter/pop-culture] Support Pop Culture Happy Hour+ [https://plus.npr.org/happy] See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]

2026 Emmy Nominations

The 2026 Emmy nominations are here. We’re unpacking the record-breaking nominations for Hacks, plus a big day for Widow’s Bay, The Pitt, and The Bear. We’ll also talk about the snubs and make some early predictions of who will win.  Connect with Pop Culture Happy Hour: Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/nprpopculture/] / Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/pchh] Our weekly newsletter [https://www.npr.org/newsletter/pop-culture] Support Pop Culture Happy Hour+ [https://plus.npr.org/happy] See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]

Gen Z and the movies

Two big horror films, Obsession and Backrooms, just smashed all box office expectations. So much of their success has been driven by Gen Z, which is now the biggest moviegoing demographic. But what makes a movie a Gen Z movie? Today we’re bringing you an episode of NPR’s It’s Been a Minute. Host Brittany Luse talks about this trend with Sam Adams and Reanna Cruz.  If you want to hear more about these movies, check out these episodes:  In ‘Obsession,’ love hurts. It really, really, really hurts. [https://www.npr.org/2026/05/15/nx-s1-5822305/in-obsession-love-hurts-it-really-really-really-hurts] 'Backrooms' brings YouTube horror to the big screen [https://www.npr.org/2026/06/01/nx-s1-5838026/backrooms-brings-youtube-horror-to-the-big-screen] Zendaya brings 'The Drama,' we bring the spoilers [https://www.npr.org/2026/04/06/nx-s1-5771506/zendaya-brings-the-drama-we-bring-the-spoilers] Connect with Pop Culture Happy Hour: Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/nprpopculture/] / Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/pchh] Our weekly newsletter [https://www.npr.org/newsletter/pop-culture] Support Pop Culture Happy Hour+ [https://plus.npr.org/happy] See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy [https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy]