Keke Palmer, Patton Oswalt & Aldis Hodge Tease Upcoming Projects On Amazon Upfronts Red Carpet

Summary Amazon MGM Studios upfronts unveil new sports coverage, game shows, TV shows, and movies for 2024-2025.

An all-star team is assembled for Amazon sports coverage, with ex-NFL players and NASCAR drivers as analysts and hosts.

Celebrities like Aldis Hodge, Patton Oswalt, and Keke Palmer discuss their new Amazon projects in interviews, sharing insights into their work.

The Amazon MGM Studios upfronts took place earlier this month, highlighting an exciting year of upcoming shows and movies from the production company. This includes ventures into everything from Thursday Night Football and special NASCAR events to a new game show called The 1% Club and a series based on James Patterson's Alex Cross novels. Celebrities and sports stars alike attended the event in New York City to celebrate the wide array of new programming slated for 2024 and 2025.

Amazon has assembled an all-star team when it comes to sports coverage, including former NFL players Ryan Fitzpatrick and Tony Gonzalez as Thursday Night Football game analysts and Dale Earnhardt Jr. for exclusive NASCAR Cup Series coverage. In a different form of competition, long-time comedic actor Patton Oswalt will helm the new game show The 1% Club, where players will be tasked with solving difficult logic questions. Many exciting fictional shows and films are also in the works, like the Cross series starring Black Adam's Aldis Hodge and heist movie The Pickup with Eddie Murphy and Keke Palmer.

Related The 30 Best Movies On Amazon Prime Right Now (May 2024) In a vast landscape of streaming, Prime Video may very well have the best selection of movies around, and there are some great movies on the service.

Screen Rant interviewed stars like Keke Palmer, Patton Oswalt, Aldis Hodge, and more to discuss their upcoming Amazon projects as well as other exciting recent entertainment developments.

Aldis Hodge Worked With James Patterson To Perfect His Cross Character

Your browser does not support the video tag.

Screen Rant: You are helming the role of the iconic Alex Cross. There are so many books in the Cross series, and in turn, so much backstory to learn. What has it been like trying to learn all about this character with so much going on in their backstory?

Aldis Hodge: For me, the learning process has actually been quite easy. I remember, early on, first of all, the first stop was having a conversation with our showrunner and creator, Ben Watkins, and understanding where his mind was. And we had a lot of synergy. We were both in the same place about building Cross as a man first. Who is this person? We know Cross from the books, but who is he as a man? Who do we get to live with in our homes, week after week after week? And then had a conversation with James Patterson about what the inspiration for Cross was, why he created Cross, what importance did it have for him? And once I had those two formative conversations, that helped me set the foundation and the building blocks for how I wanted to really piece together this character.

And you also did an amazing job in last year's Marmalade. What was it like working with Joe Keery?

Aldis Hodge: Oh, Joe is awesome. Yeah, Joe is cool, really talented cat. I like Joe. I like Joe. And we had a really fun time with that project, honestly. Well, thank you for watching it. I had a great time. It was fun. Keir O'Donnell, who was our director and writer, I think he just did a phenomenal job with it. And he allowed us to really dig into a nuanced, niche type of film, that just was really funny. And it hit a few different notes emotionally. But it's like a relief and a breath of fresh air for me because I don't get to do that often.

This year's Parallel marked your first foray into writing, and I believe your second producing gig. What has it been like doing more behind-the-scenes stuff recently?

Aldis Hodge: Well, it's something I've been wanting to do for a while. It was my first professionally paid gig. I'd been, as writers know, we were sitting here writing spec scripts for years. And this was my first foray into it with my brother, Edwin Hodge. Not going to lie, the most proud accomplishment I have is the fact that I got my WGA card off of it. So I'm like, "Yay." But it just helps me understand exactly what I want to do and how I want to do it in this industry. I love building this art from every aspect. My brother and I have been doing this for over 35 years each. And we have so much ambition from everything. But in order to do something well, you have to understand how it's made. You have to understand every element of how it's made and how every element works properly. So from the writing, producing, directing, to the performance, to the acting, to the crew work, how that needs to get down. For us, we want to dip into everything, understand what it is, and understand what our vision of that is, so we know what we're trying to contribute. So, for me, it was just a wonderful, healthy education.

Source: Screen Rant Plus

Keke Palmer Reveals How She Kept Her Cool With Eddie Murphy On The Pickup Set

Your browser does not support the video tag.

Screen Rant: You are here to talk about The Pickup. What has it been like to work with Eddie Murphy and Pete Davidson?

Keke Palmer: So I worked with Pete before, we did an Audible type of a series before. We hung out kind of, but it was during COVID, so we were like waving to each other through the glass. So it's cool to do something live action with him. And then Eddie, obviously I've never worked with him before. But I've been a huge fan all my life. So, I was really trying my best to pick his brain, but not totally annoy him because he's a genius.

I personally have loved your Sims 4 streaming content. They actually just announced the new expansion pack coming this summer. What would you most like to see next in that game?

Keke Palmer: Oh my gosh! I know! I need to get back to that! I love that. What would I like to see next? You know, I think a big thing for me with Sims - I used to love Urbz and Bustin' Out for the Nintendo DS. I always wanted it on the computer, and I know they have some of it available now, but it's not the same thing, in terms of the story, or narrative, mission-based opportunities. I think in the newer version you can do some of it, but it's not in the same way as it was on those Nintendo games. So, I wish that I could actually do more of a story and like a challenge, and that kind of thing.

Source: Screen Rant Plus

Patton Oswalt Credits Celebrity Jeopardy For His Hosting Success In The 1% Club

Your browser does not support the video tag.

Screen Rant: It's so awesome to see you hosting your own game show when I feel like I was just watching you crushing it on Celebrity Jeopardy! fairly recently.

Patton Oswalt: Well, I crushed it up until I ran into Barinholtz! But yeah, it was really nice to get to be on the - oh my god, am I about to say the phrase, "the other side of the podium"? Yes! On the other side of the podium.

Do you feel like that helped prepare you in any way for hosting a game show?

Patton Oswalt: Yeah, because the thing about Mayim Bialik was, she knew how to phrase and ask questions, that you had this feeling of tension to it. I don't know if you noticed, whenever we'd do, Double Jeopardy, she would pause before saying that's right or wrong, and it was nerve racking. I think we should have called her out on that, like, "Bialik, you are giving us all ulcers right now." She really made it more dynamic and fun. The host isn't there just to read questions and then go, "Okay, right or wrong." They've got to be invested in the game. And this game especially, it's more about how people's brains work and what their background is. I think it's way more engaging that way.

You just recently announced you're going to be part of Among Us.

Patton Oswalt: Yeah, I'm playing - oh God, well, okay, I'm playing White. I'm just saying from the nature of what the show is, there is very little I can say. Like, I have to be actually kind of quiet. It's like talking to someone who just got cast in one of the Knives Out movies and they're like, "Um, I'm in it, and that's all I'm saying."

And this year marks your 30-year acting anniversary. What does it feel like to have such a milestone year filled with such milestone projects, like Ghostbusters and your own game show?

Patton Oswalt: That's right! Wait a minute! Oh my God! 1994! This is the 30th anniversary of me getting my SAG-AFTRA card. It feels amazing. If you had told that little day player on Seinfeld that he could end up here, I don't think my brain would have been able to process that.

Source: Screen Rant Plus

Screen Rant: You’re quite the expert in impressive sports achievements, holding so many different amazing records. I’m curious, since you’ve switched to the hosting side, if there are any moments in recent sports history that have really impressed you?

Ryan Fitzpatrick: Being an analyst, and now being on the other side of it, it's interesting to watch. It's interesting to be on the outside trying to gain access to talk to the athletes which were my teammates not too long ago. I think that when you step away from the game, you see how fast and physical it is when you're not playing. So sitting there and watching all these impressive athletes, taking a step back they're even more impressive.

Since you started hosting, have you found the way you view games has changed at all, or are you still coming at things mostly from the perspective of a player?

Ryan Fitzpatrick: You know, I do try to keep the player's perspective. But that being said, I also am trying to look at from the viewer's side. So, there are things when I was talking about the game, as long as I keep the perspective if I'm talking to my grandma, or to my wife, or to the parents of a fan about the game, I try and present the perspective of the athletes. And that's been something that's been really important to me is to talk not just to the experts, or to the former players, but to everybody.

Outside of sports, what shows are you most excited to see this season?

Ryan Fitzpatrick: Oh, new shows. You know? Almost every night I'm just watching Seinfeld, so I'm kind of stuck on those old shows. But if you have any suggestions I'll see 'em.

Tony Gonzalez Credits Taylor Swift On Popularizing His Former Position

Screen Rant: What are you most looking forward to about this year’s football season? Are there any players or teams in particular you’re keeping an eye on?

Tony Gonzalez: Oh, s*** yeah. Caleb Williams was a big story with the draft and the Chicago Bears. I want to see what the Lions are gonna do, the Chiefs, if they're gonna go for another Superbowl. But it's different every year, and you never know what's going to happen at the end of a season.

The tight-end position has gotten a lot of notoriety this year via the popularity of Travis Kelce. Has it been fun seeing your former position on your career team getting so much recognition outside of hardcore football fans?

Tony Gonzalez: [Laughs] The Taylor Swift effect. It's been pretty incredible, it's great for the team, honestly. I mean, Travis Kelce has had a great performance, Superbowl Champion. And then you got Taylor on top of that, where it brings more people into the sport and that position. And I mean, you've got Kelce, Greg Olson, Shannon Sharpe, me... It's big personalities in the tight end position.