By Josh Williams 

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is one of a kind. Many studios have attempted to replicate the MCU's formula and failed drastically. The DCEU, The Dark Universe, that Guy Ritchie "King Arthur" movie wants its own cinematic universe. The possibilities seem to not end. Marvel has raked in countless amounts of cash so it makes complete sense that other studios would try their best to chase that. Marvel clearly has this section of the market cornered and the way that they have managed to connect all of their films is pretty impressive. For the most part, the connection between their movies is pretty solid, although it is pretty easy to get lost in the shuffle sometimes. So here is our quick breakdown of where all of the major characters are and what they are doing as we head into "Avengers: Infinity War."

Readers beware...Spoilers for all films pre-dating "Avengers: Infinity War" ahead.

By Michael Schwartz 

Tony Nominations are officially being announced next week....which means myself, Nicole Ackman & Dan Bayer are back with the podcast special "Next Best Theatre" to give you our predictions for next week nominations and talk all things Tony Awards until the big ceremony on June 10th. This is the first episode we will release this year. Another will be released post nominations with our predictions for the winners and then a final episode recapping the winners and the ceremony. 

Special thank you to Nicole Ackman and Daniel Bayer for their contributions on this and the other episodes to come. We appreciate your feedback and please feel free to subscribe on either ​SoundCloud, Tunein, GooglePlay, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, CastBox or you can have a listen down below.

By Daniel Howat 

It’s been a staggering ten years since “Iron Man” debuted in theaters in 2008, launching one of the most successful franchises in film history. In the years since the Marvel Cinematic Universe launched, so much has changed in the film industry. Numerous studios have tried to recreate the concept of having an interconnected universe of films. Superhero films have continued to pervade our culture, as evidenced by the massive anticipation of the upcoming “Avengers: Infinity War.”

The franchise has raked in the money over the years, but the MCU hasn’t had a great deal of success at the Academy Awards. From ten total Oscar nominations, the franchise has netted zero wins. Will that change in the near future? Let’s look back at the awards history, category by category, of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

By Matt Neglia 

For Episode 87, myself, Will Mavity and Jessica Peña discuss our favorite Marvel films (Which is also the question for this week's poll) in anticipation for "Avengers: Infinity War," Netflix's ongoing battle to change the industry and the trailers for "Hotel Artemis" and "Blindspotting."

Thank you and please feel free to subscribe on either ​SoundCloud, Tunein, GooglePlay, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, CastBox or you can have a listen down below.

By Matt Neglia 

As we started last month with "Fantastic Mr. Fox," the team over here at Next Best Picture is continuing to provide Throwback Reviews voted on by you, the dear fans of the site. These podcast reviews are exclusive to our Patreon subscribers but we have included a preview of the latest episode after the jump. To get us ready for "Avengers: Infinity War" you voted on 2012's "The Avengers." We currently have a new poll going on until the end of the month for our May review tied to "Deadpool 2." For the small price of $1 a month, you can get the full episode, so be sure to subscribe here.

Myself, Jacey Aldredge, Daniel Howat, Mike Vermette and Josh Williams reviewed Joss Whedon's 2012 Marvel film "TThe Avengers" in anticipation for Marvel's next big gigantic sized group film "Avengers: Infinity War."

Thank you and please feel free to subscribe to the Next Best Picture Podcast on either ​SoundCloud, Tunein, GooglePlay, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM & CastBox.

​By Mike Vermette

Ever since I was a kid, I’ve loved superheroes. Some of my best memories are watching the Spider-Man cartoon from the 90’s with my uncle. So it goes without saying these characters are near and dear to my heart. With "Avengers: Infinity War" arriving in theaters next week, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is finally coming full circle which has led to me reflecting on their films since 2008 and what is ultimately my top 10 favorite films from the MCU. Before we begin, keep in mind this list is solely my opinion, so feel free to comment and tell me how wrong I am. Without further ado, here’s my list of the top ten movies in the MCU.

By Matt Neglia

For Episode 86, myself & Will Mavity are joined by returning guest Josh Parham. Together, we answer your fan questions, discuss the trailers for "Hot Summer Nights," "The Wife" "Mary Shelly," talk about our favorite films of 2018, what is going on at Cannes 2018 and much more!

Thank you and please feel free to subscribe on either ​SoundCloud, Tunein, GooglePlay, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, CastBox or you can have a listen down below.

By Matt Neglia 

​For this week's main review, myself and Jacey Aldredge discuss the new stop motion animated film from writer/director Wes Anderson titled "Isle Of Dogs" which is expanding in wide release this weekend.

Thank you and please feel free to subscribe on either ​SoundCloud, Tunein, GooglePlay, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, CastBox or you can have a listen down below.

By Josh Williams 

Can yaaaaaa smelllllllllll, what The Rock, is cookin'? Well, Hollywood certainly can. Dwanye "The Rock" Johnson is an actor who has catapulted himself into the mainstream spotlight. With his pearly white teeth, gigantic biceps and indelible charming charisma, he is easily one of the number one A-list actors. Johnson is constantly making movies that it seems like he may drop dead if he isn't in one every two to four months. It's almost guaranteed that if you put The Rock in your movie, it'll make hundreds of millions of dollars. Now while the movies' he's in are sometimes not the best, seeing him on screen is usually a pretty good time. Whether he makes the best decisions with what films he's in or not, he is still having the time of his life up on that screen, which in turn translates to us as an audience member. And due to his latest release "Rampage," releasing this weekend, we thought we would take a look at the ten best films that star Dwanye "The Rock" Johnson.​

By Matt Neglia 

​With two shared Oscar Nominations for "Transformers: Dark Of The Moon" and "Argo" between them and two wins for one of them on "The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers" and "King Kong," Ethan Van Der Ryn and Erik Aadahl have been working together since 2007's "Transformers" and are two of the very best in the business when it comes to Sound Editing. Their latest film "A Quiet Place" is a sound editors dream and together, they graciously took some time out of their day to chat with me about their work on John Krasinski's horror movie hit.

Be sure to listen to our chat down below. Thank you and please feel free to subscribe on either ​SoundCloud, Tunein, GooglePlay, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, CastBox.

By Matt Neglia

For Episode 85, myself & Will Mavity officially welcome Liam Heffernan to the team over at Next Best Picture. Together, we talk about this week's weekly poll revolving around the star power of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, trailers for "Cargo," "Upgrade" and "How To Talk To Girls At Parties" plus we reveal the books we will be reviewing for Next Best Adaptation and so much more!

Thank you and please feel free to subscribe on either ​SoundCloud, Tunein, GooglePlay, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, CastBox or you can have a listen down below.

By Matt Neglia 

​For this week's main review, myself and Josh Williams discuss the new horror film from writer, director and star John Krasinski called "A Quiet Place" co-starring his real life wife, Emily Blunt.

Thank you and please feel free to subscribe on either ​SoundCloud, Tunein, GooglePlay, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, CastBox or you can have a listen down below.

By Josh Williams 

Silence. Sheer and utter silence. I'm not talking about the hum of the air conditioner silent or the quiet roar of the street outside your house silent, but pure silence. That moment of nothingness that we all experience every once in a while. Peacefully sitting in a room thinking about nothing and suddenly realizing that everything is quiet. There are no sounds to disturb you or invade your own conscious. It is just you and your thoughts. This is one of the most relaxing places to be, you can focus on future plans, maybe reminisce about the old days, whatever it is that you chose to focus on. Meditating within that void of empty is almost blissful. Though, this void can also be terrifying. Spine chillingly cold to the point where if you adjust your body in the slightest of way, you could die. Michael Myers slowly making his way up the stairs while you sit helplessly in the closet. Walking down your hallway investigating that strange noise that came from another room even though no one else is home. Those moments of sheer terror where the hair on the back of your neck stands up and your skin is nothing but goosebumps. John Krasinski's "A Quiet Place" is a film that chooses to settle strictly within that terror. That horrifying silence where all you want to do is scream, but you can't. 

By Matt Neglia 

We recently announced a new addition to the Next Best Picture Podcast which would be exclusive for our Patreon subscribers called "Next Best Adaptation" in the off season as we prepare for the upcoming awards season. And now, as heard on the latest episode of the podcast, we are adding an additional component for all of your film awards cravings. In addition to the fan-voted on "Throwback Reviews" which are specifically tied to a new theatrical release, we are going to continue to fill up our back catalogue of podcast reviews with films that were either nominated or won Best Picture starting with the first Academy Awards ceremony and going all the way up to "Darkest Hour" this year (Which is the only Best Picture nominee we never did a review for on the podcast) called "Last Best Picture."

This will give our team and hopefully you as well, the chance to go back and revisit some classics and some hidden gems. We hope you enjoy it. Click below to see the first batch of randomly selected choices and vote on the polls page for the film you want us to review for our first episode of "Last Best Picture." Voting ends April 28th 2018.

By Matt Neglia 

For Episode 84, myself & DeAnn Chiazzese discuss many new polls which you can vote for on the weekly poll page, the first quarter of 2018, best uses of sound in horror films, faith-based films and the trailer for "First Reformed."
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Thank you and please feel free to subscribe on either ​SoundCloud, Tunein, GooglePlay, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, CastBox or you can have a listen down below.