This July weekend, we review two of the biggest summer movies of 2025: Jurassic World: Rebirth and The Materialists.

Mike breaks down why Jurassic World is stuck in a loop of reboots and clichés, even with big stars like Scarlett Johansson and Mahershala Ali. And what would it take to save this franchise?

Then Jack reviews The Materialists, a romantic drama exploring love, class, and status in modern dating culture starrign Pedro Pascal, Dakota Johnson and Chris Evans.

We also officially launched the Brown & Black Social Club on Substack, a space for Black and Latino creatives, packed with curated industry insights that goes way beyond the podcast.

Episode Summary
– Launching the Brown and Black Substack
– Mikes review: Jurassic World: Rebirth
– Latino family subplot analysis
– How to save the Jurassic Franchise
– Jack's review: The Materialists
– Love and class in a transactional culture
– Height, value, and self-worth in dating
– Shoutout to Keith David’s Walk of Fame honor

👉 Listen now on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1kXU3nCQQK6Udf7DzzD7x8
👉 Join the Brown & Black Social Club: https://brownblackpodcast.com
📱 Follow us: @brownblackpodcast on Instagram & YouTube

In this episode, we welcome Nyasha Hatendi, the creator, writer, director, and producer of Audible's new audio horror drama, Sacrilege: Curse of the Mbirwi. He opens up about his motivations for creating Sacrilege, the influences behind its horror, his collaboration with actor Caleb McLaughlin from Stranger Things, and how truth and story have the power to bring people together.

Episode Summary
– Truth-telling in an age of lies
– BBC to QCode: audio evolution
– America, Zimbabwe, UK roots
– Writing horror by accident, not intent
– Dysfunctional family truth becomes horror
– Creating the myth of the Mbirwi
– Cultural duality and Black identity
– Lessons learned from Sacrilege
– Casting Caleb McLaughlin
– How storytelling brings us together

Subscribe and listen to "Brown and Black": 🎧
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1kXU3nCQQK6Udf7DzzD7x8
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/brown-black/id1524696879

Follow us: 📱
https://instagram.com/brownblackpodcast
https://twitter.com/mikesargent
https://twitter.com/jackricotv

#BrownBlackPodcast #NyashaHatendi #SacrilegeAudioDrama #BlackHorrorStorytelling #CulturalDuality

In this special sponsored episode, we're partnering with Audible for our first-ever audio drama analysis, breaking down the groundbreaking supernatural thriller "Sacrilege: Curse of the Mbirwi" starring Caleb McLaughlin from Stranger Things.

Created by Zimbabwean-American filmmaker Nyasha Hatendi, this six-episode supernatural horror audio drama follows an African-American family from Detroit whose luxury heritage tourism trip to Zimbabwe unleashes an ancient shapeshifting spirit - part man, part beast, part spirit - that feeds on weakness and pain.

We explore in-depth:

- What does it mean to be Black globally?
- African horror vs. Black-American horror
- Caleb McLaughlin's star-making vocal performance
- Heritage tourism and American privilege
- Colonial trauma in modern storytelling
- The rise of Black audio drama

Listen to "Sacrilege: Curse of the Mbirwi" in Dolby Atmos exclusively on Audible at audible.com/sacrilege.

Thank you to Audible for sponsoring this episode.