Fresh rumors have predicted that we're going to get as many as seven new Apple Mac models this year, but it isn't the number of releases that's surprised me – it's that the Mac Pro has been included in that list.
Rumors about upcoming Apple product releases are hardly unexpected, given the success and popularity of its ecosystem. But with Bloomberg's Mark Gurman anticipating that the mighty Mac Pro desktop will be upgraded with Apple silicon alongside, well, the entire Mac family, a whole new can of worms has just been opened.
Most of this current batch of speculation started when several supply chain leaks gave us some insight into a likely 13-inch MacBook Pro refresh . Gurman, a recognized Apple analyst, has since suggested that we can expect up to seven new Mac models in 2022 that will all feature some version of the M1 SoC (system-on-a-chip), one of which being the powerful Mac Pro desktop workstation.
Specifically, Gurman predicts that "a half-sized Mac Pro, the first with Apple Silicon, with the equivalent of either two or four M1 Max chips" could be announced this year alongside "super-powered versions of the M1 Max". These chips will come in two varieties: one that doubles the M1 Max’s capabilities to 20 CPU cores and 64 graphics cores, and one that quadruples it to a whopping 40 CPU cores and 128 graphics cores.
Before we jump the gun, we really want to drill home that this information is purely speculative for now, even if it comes from a trusted source. The capabilities of the M1 SoC are well documented, having impressed us so much that we stuck the M1-powered MacBook Air at the top of our list of the best laptops you can buy right now, but there's still an issue that makes its inclusion within a Mac Pro desktop a little perplexing.
There's a reason that these desktops are still rocking an Intel system, and it has nothing to do with the processor, and everything to do with its support for discrete graphics cards and creative applications. You can configure the Mac Pro with workstation-class GPUs like the AMD Radeon Pro W6800X (in fact, you get it configured with two ), alongside a whopping 8TB of SSD storage and, uh, 1.5TB of DDR4 RAM.
Simply put, this is designed to be a complete beast, equipped to tackle anything that can't be served by a MacBook Pro laptop . The top-end configuration costs almost $50k, so it's safe to say that this isn't a product that everyone will be queueing up for. Which is why I'm not convinced that Apple will be able to match the power of a workstation graphics card using a SoC (system-on-a-chip).
What's cooking in Apple's kitchen?
That said, I'm more than happy to eat my words. The M1 absolutely knocked the socks off of Apple critics back in November 2020, proving that ARM-based systems have a bright future ahead of them and subsequently dragging rival offerings like Windows-on-ARM through the proverbial dirt, so I'm expecting big things.
This also isn't the first time that rumors have appeared about Apple creating a 128-core GPU, though most previous speculation has painted this as an actual video card that would slot into a PCIe slot.
Support would have also been an issue this time last year, as ARM-based systems lacked native support for a lot of the applications that creatives would be running. But app developers have really pulled things out of the bag, with support either already implemented, or at least in the works, for many software packages that need some hefty graphics prowess to run, such as Unreal Engine and Zbrush.
For apps like Maya where no support has been announced, emulation like Rosetta 2 works well as a suitable workaround. This doesn't mean that support for ARM wouldn't be an issue, just that it's far less of one than I would have anticipated 12 months ago.
There are some other considerations that need to be made: If the target market for such a powerful GPU (integrated into a processor or not) is so niche, why waste so much money on developing one when it could simply maintain its current relationship with AMD? What does Apple think it could offer users that hasn't been covered by either AMD or Nvidia?
This leaves a few outcomes: either Apple will retain its current relationship with AMD for desktop graphics, or Apple is developing its own discrete graphics cards. Or, alternatively, the upcoming M1 Max additions are going to blow our minds.
Regardless, it's likely that the current version of the Mac Pro will be around for some time, as this anticipated silicon-powered version is described as a 'half-sized' Mac Pro, though we would hope that the configurations get an update to keep them in line with the latest generation of hardware like DDR5 RAM.
Between this and the rumored 27-inch iMac Pro said to be in development, it seems Apple really does want to cover the entire spectrum of computing, regardless of how small the target demographic will be. I'm keen to see what can be made possible with a SoC in workstations, providing it won't cost more than a car to buy one.
The Batman: Here's what the critics are saying
The Batman hits theaters on Friday (March 4), but the embargo for critics to hold their reviews has lifted and the reactions are in.
The film sees Robert Pattinson make his debut in the cowl of Batman, with Zoë Kravitz playing Selina Kyle, better known as Catwoman, Colin Farrell portraying The Penguin, and Paul Dano playing The Riddler.
As well as this, Andy Serkis has the role of Alfred Pennyworth, Jeffrey Wright is Commissioner Gordon, John Turturro plays crime boss Carmine Falcone, and Peter Sarsgaard is Gil Colson, Gotham's district attorney.
Matt Reeves, best known for his work on Planet Of The Apes trilogy, is in the director's chair, working from a script he co-wrote with Bad Boys For Life writer Peter Craig.
In Reeves' new take, we meet Pattinson's Bruce Wayne in his second year of fighting crime as Batman and uncovering systemic corruption in Gotham City, all the while on the hunt for the Riddler, a serial killer who's targeting Gotham's elite.
Batman has suffered mixed fortunes with critics in recent years. While Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy found itself topping many of end-of-year lists, the more recent efforts, especially 2016's Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice, got an absolute pasting.
So how does Pattinson's effort measure up? Well, it's certainly an improvement on Dawn Of Justice...
What are critics saying about The Batman?
Mostly, they're pretty happy, but not exclusively. We're certainly not in Nolan territory here.
The Hollywood Reporter' s David Rooney enjoyed it, though he had some reservations about the film's length and unrelenting darkness. Still, he praised the star, in particular, writing that "Pattinson is riveting throughout."
Empire's John Nugent liked it too, dishing out four stars, though he again was a little down on the running time, writing: "the knottiness of the plotting will leave you feeling that near-three-hour runtime, but it is never boring, the narrative propelled by a series of grisly conundrums through Gotham’s seedy underbelly."
The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw was more sanguine, awarding the film three stars. He also praised Pattinson, but called the film's ending "tiresome and shark-jumping in the extreme,"
IndieWire liked it , with David Ehrling praising the film's daring and writing that it had succeeded in ransforming the Bat-Signal into a beacon of hope rather than something to fear."
Collider's Ross Bonaime was even happier, awarding the movie a B+ and writing that "Reeves has made the best Batman film since The Dark Knight".
The New York Post was less happy, their critic Johnny Oleksinski called the film "perfunctory", and dismissed it as he first caped crusader adventure in a while to come off as completely purposeless."
The Times also didn't like it, with Kevin Maher awarding just two stars and criticizing its overtly serious tone.
TechRadar's own Tom Power was a fan. He gave the film four-and-a-half stars and you can read his review here.
You'll all be able to judge for yourselves when the film is released into theaters on Friday (March 4).
Moon Knight on Disney Plus: release date, trailer, cast, plot and more
Finally, Moon Knight is set to officially launch on Disney Plus. It's been a long three-month wait – well, but Marvel standards anyway – since the last Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) project was released. Now, though, it's time to re-enter the fictional world of superheroes and meet the MCU's newest hero.
Moon Knight will premiere on Disney Plus on Wednesday, March 30 . If you want to know the exact time that it'll arrive in your world region, you'll want to read our release time guide . And, for a rundown of its first four (!) episodes, you'll want to check out our spoiler-free review .
That's not all you'll be able to catch up on in this Moon Knight hub. Below, we've compiled a lengthy list of everything you need to know about the upcoming Marvel Phase 4 project, including its all-star cast, trailers, plot details, the character's MCU future (could he appear in a Marvel movie ?), and more. We've also got a few exclusives with the show's executive producer, too, so be sure to read those articles (further down this page) to get the lowdown on two significant parts of its development.
Potential spoilers follow for Moon Knight and future Marvel Studios projects. Turn back now if you don't want anything ruined before its first episodes arrives.
Moon Knight release date: March 30, 2022
Moon Knight launches on Disney Plus on Wednesday, March 30 , meaning it follows Loki , What If...? and Hawkeye in being released midweek. Episodes will release weekly, too, with the series finale landing on May 4 – just two days before Doctor Strange 2 releases in theaters worldwide.
Each episode is expected to last between 40 to 50 minutes, the now-standard runtime for MCU TV shows. Meanwhile, Moon Knight has received a TV-14 rating (thanks to Reddit for the tip off) in the US, while the series has landed a 16+ rating in the UK. Given that the series contains a greater degree of violence, strong language, and horror-infused moments compared to previous MCU TV offerings, that's unsurprising.
Mohamed Diab (Cairo 678) has directed four episodes, while directing partners Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead (The Twilight Zone, Synchronic) have handled the other two. Speaking of Benson and Moorhead, the duo have reportedly been tapped to helm Loki's second season (per Deadline ). So we'll how their two entries give us a flavor for what may come in the trickster god's next Disney Plus outing.
One well-known actor-turned-director who isn't involved in Moon Knight is George Clooney. Reports had suggested that Clooney had helmed an episode of the TV series but, speaking exclusively to TechRadar , executive producer Grant Curtis played down those rumors.
"I don't know where that rumour started," Curtis said. "But I can tell you this: the directors of our show are Mohammed Diab, and Aaron Moorhead and Justin Benson."
Moon Knight trailer: here's the official teaser
Moon Knight's first trailer was released in January and, to be frank, it's a wild and surreal ride. You can read more about the footage on display in our trailer breakdown .
A new TV spot debuted during the 2022 Super Bowl halftime show, too, which revealed some new snippets of footage from the show. Intriguing new elements include a look at Arthur Harrow's abilities, Moon Knight taking on a bunch of gun-toting soldiers, and one of Steven Grant's many alter-egos.
Check that out below:
And, finally, a new 90-second long featurette was released by Marvel on March 10. The video provides a brief behind-the-scenes look at the series, but there's a bunch of new footage to check out, too.
We see Grant supernaturally suiting up as Moon Knight, learn that he'll travel to Egypt with May Calawamy's character (more on her shortly), get our first live-action shots at Mr. Knight – another of Grant's aliases – and see Grant and Harrow conducting rituals separate of each other. Suffice to say, it looks superbly and suitably surreal.
Moon Knight cast: who is playing who?
Here's the confirmed cast, plus those actors who have confirmed their involvement (without Marvel's official say-so) in the series:
As if we needed proof that the MCU’s Disney Plus shows are as big a deal as the movies, Marvel has lined up a genuine silver screen star as Moon Knight's lead: Oscar Isaac, star of the latest Star Wars trilogy and Denis Villeneuve's Dune . Isaac will play Moon Knight, as well as Steven Grant, Marc Spector, and Mr. Knight.
Meanwhile, Ethan Hawke is playing a character called Arthur Harrow. In the comics, Harrow is a bit-part villain who only appears in one issue – April 1985's Moon Knight #2 – as a scientist who conducts experiments on human subjects to learn how to permanently eliminate people's pain.
Here, though, Harrow has been reworked as something of a cult leader, with Hawke telling The Seth Meyers show (via The Hollywood Reporter ): “I’ve based my character on David Koresh”, i the leader of the Branch Davidian cult responsible for the Waco siege in 1993. It seems that Harrow wants to help people unlock their true potential, though we suspect there are nefarious means behinds his motives.
Reddit users had proposed the theory that Hawke will portray an amalgamation of Harrow and a pyrokinetic supervillain called the Sun King, who has bipolar disorder. However, we can confirm this isn't the case, based on the four episodes we've seen. And, according to prominent leaker KC Walsh , the idea to use Sun King as the series' villain was scrapped early on in production.
Meanwhile, award-winning actor F. Murray Abraham (Homeland, Amadeus) will voice Khonshu, the Egyptian moon god who grants Isaac's Spector superpowers. Speaking to USA Today , head writer Jeremy Slater describes Khonshu as “imperious and sort of snotty and vengeful”, who's an “incredibly powerful and immortal God (with) his own insecurities and throws temper tantrums sometimes.”
The character portrayed by Calamaway (Ramy) has finally been revealed, too. She's playing Layla El-Faouly, a mysterious individual from Marc's past (per SyFy Wire ). There's no Marvel comics character equivalent to Layla, so she's a wholly original person for the show. It's that, or Marvel has taken elements of a pre-existing character and used them to create Layla. Meanwhile, Lucy Thackeray (Hatton Garden) will portray Donna, Steven's museum gift shop co-worker.
ScreenRant previously reported that Gaspard Ulliel (Hannibal Rising) had joined the Moon Knight cast as villain Anton Mogart, aka Midnight Man, but this is currently unconfirmed. Ulliel's projects page, on talent agency website Hamilton Hodell, had teased his involvement, but his portfolio has been altered since ScreenRant's initial report. If Ulliel is part of the cast, it'll be his final acting role, too, after the 37-year-old died in a skiing accident in January 2022.
Speaking to Variety , actress Antonia Salib confirmed that she'll be playing the Egyptian goddess Tawaret. This is the first time that fans will have heard that more Egyptian gods will appear in the show. We know whether there are (or aren't) more on the way, too, but we won't spoil any more of those reveals here.
Additionally, Rey Lucas (Manifest, The Black List) also told Variety that he'll be playing Marc's dad, aka Elias Spector. Meanwhile, Fernanda Andrade (NCIS: Los Angeles, Narcos: Mexico) has confirmed she'll play Marc's mom, aka Wendy Spector, on her Instagram page . Again, TechRadar has an idea about why the duo show up, but you'll have to wait for the show to launch before you can see where they appear.
Finally, The Cosmic Circus has reported that iconic Moon Knight villain Raoul Bushman may appear in the TV adaptation. The news outlet suggests that Clay Cureton will portray another antagonist, but we can't verify if he'll actually appear. If he does, we'd be surprised if it's anything more than in a flashback scene.
Moon Knight story: what's it about?
Here's the official synopsis from Marvelom : "The series follows Steven Grant (Isaac), a mild-mannered gift-shop employee, who becomes plagued with blackouts and memories of another life. Steven discovers he has dissociative identity disorder (DID) and shares a body with mercenary Marc Spector. As Steven/Marc’s enemies converge upon them, they must navigate their complex identities while thrust into a deadly mystery among the powerful gods of Egypt."
Neither of those provide much in the way of proper story context. Interestingly, however, a report from Disney Latino has provided some additional information about its plot. That article has been unpublished but, luckily, The Cosmic Circus grabbed some details before it was taken offline.
"Grant suffers from dissociative identity disorder, a psychological pathology he discovers after having flashes from another life," The Cosmic Circus reports. "From there, the mercenary Marc Spector, a parallel identity in him, begins to manifest... Khonshu negotiates with Marc to become the bearer of his powers on Earth. Spector, who in those circumstances was already a former military officer, former CIA agent, and still worked as a mercenary, is abandoned by his companions during a mission and the Egyptian deity appears there to save his life."
Steven's mental health struggles is something that head writer Jeremy Slater really wanted to get right as part of the show's character study, telling USA Today : "Whatever we're putting out there in the universe has to be ultimately good, and uplifting, and have a positive message about mental health."
Speaking exclusively to TechRadar, Curtis also revealed that Moon Knight's chief creative team consulted with psychiatrists to ensure that they portrayed the character's mental health issues as authentically as possible.
"Their door was open to our writers from day one," Curtis told us. "And vice versa. They were reading our scripts and consulted on whether we were genuine with our portrayal. We knew we were creating a fictional presentation of a supernatural globetrotting adventure, but it's one led by a person with DID, so we always had that lens to train the story and character exploration through. Our consultants' expertise was needed and valued throughout production."
Isaac added his thoughts on portraying the light and dark sides of mental health in a chat with Empire , saying: "What I love most about this thing is that it’s an exploration of a mind that doesn’t know itself. A human being that doesn’t know his own brain. I found that really moving; what the mind is capable of as far as survival."
In a separate Empire interview , Oscar Isaac also elaborated on the surreal British accent that he adopts for Steven. “It’s cool [the accent] got people excited, and some were like, ‘That sucks!’ and others were like, ‘That’s great!’ But there are reasons… That voice is about where Steven’s from, where he’s living now, and some of his believed heritage. It’s not an idea of what Brits actually sound like.”
Chatting to Jared Leto for an actor-on-actor Variety piece , Isaac also explained how the TV show format provided greater freedom to explore Grant's multiple personalities and motives. "There was a lot of room to try stuff because there wasn’t the pressure that we got to make sure we make however many hundreds of millions of dollars on the opening weekend," he said. "So we could make it very point-of-view. We could make very weird decisions. At the moment, at least — and I don’t imagine it’s going to go backwards — it feels like that’s where more of the risk is being taken because it can financially."
And, according to Marvel head honcho Kevin Feige, Moon Knight will be the most "brutal" MCU offering so far. “It’s been fun to work with Disney Plus and see the boundaries shifting on what we’re able to do," he told Empire Magazine . "There are moments [in the series] when Moon Knight is wailing on another character, and it is loud and brutal, and the knee-jerk reaction is, ‘We’re gonna pull back on this, right?’ No. We’re not pulling back. There’s a tonal shift. This is a different thing. This is Moon Knight.” Having seen the first four episodes, we can certainly attest to Mr. Feige's claim, too.
What else could we see as part of Moon Knight's plot? The trailer provided a fun little Easter egg that may hint at Sobek, god of the Nile River and patron god of the military, featuring in some capacity. We also see statues of Ra, Osiris and Anubis at one point, so any one of those could appear – especially the latter, what with the possibility that the creature Moon Knight fights in the trailer is a jackal.
Horror elements traditionally associated with Moon Knight could also bring his story into the supernatural orbit. Moon Knight's directing duo Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead revealed some of the horror movie and TV show inspirations behind Moon Knight's aesthetic. “It’s stuff that’s kind of like what we already do," Moorhead explained to The Playlist . "[Netflix supernatural horror] Archive 81 definitely shares DNA with [our previous films] The Endless and Resolution. You’ll see with same with Moon Knight."
Moon Knight on Disney Plus: who is the MCU's newest superhero?
As great as Moon Knight sounds and looks, some Disney Plus subscribers and general MCU fans may not know who the character actually is . So, to help you out, we've dug into Marvel's comic archives to provide further context. We're nice like that, dear reader.
Created by writer Doug Moench and artist Don Perlin, Moon Knight made his comic book debut in Werewolf by Night #32 in August 1975. He originally appeared as an antagonist to the story’s lycanthropic hero – hence all that werewolf-related moon and silver iconography – but eventually came to terms with the idea that the titular Jack Russell (yes, that’s the werewolf's real name) was a victim rather than a villain.
Marvel didn’t take long to realize they had a star on their hands and – after several further guest appearances in the late ’70s that that emphasized Moon Knight’s heroic side – gave him his own series. The first issue landed in November 1980 and has been ongoing ever since.
In the comics, Spector is a former US marine who becomes a conduit for Egyptian moon god Khonshu, giving him super-strength, speed and endurance that are influenced by the phases of the moon. He’s also a Batman-like vigilante, with a fortune, arsenal of specialist gadgets to match, and army training that make him a formidable long-range and hand-to-hand combatant.
What makes Moon Knight a particularly intriguing addition to the MCU, though, is the fact he has DID. The condition means that Marc Spector has many alter-egos – most notably taxicab driver Jake Lockley and billionaire businessman Steven Grant – that help him to move through a variety of social environments. For Moon Knight's TV show, however, Grant has been reinvented as a lowly museum shop employee, while Lockley hasn't been confirmed to appear just yet.
Moon Knight's MCU future: will he star in a Marvel movie?
We certainly believe so. With a major A-list star in Isaac on board, it's only a matter of time (in our view) before Moon Knight makes the leap from his own Disney Plus show to an MCU movie. And, if you believe Slater (per Total Film ), "That's the goal" for Spector/Grant/Mr.Knight/Moon Knight. In a separate Total Film interview , director Mohamed Diab has expressed his wish to see Moon Knight in the MCU "for the next 10 years", while Ethan Hawke thinks Moon Knight c ould spawn a mini MCU franchise all on his own.
Speaking exclusively to TechRadar , Curtis also stated his belief that Moon Knight could pop up all over the MCU. "We put Moon Knight – and Mark Spector and Steven Grant – in so many different aspects of the show," he said. "Whether it is the horror, the tension, the character study, or the comedy, I think he blends naturally with so many corners of the MCU."
So what could be the perfect film to introduce Moon Knight in a Marvel flick? An appearance in the upcoming Mahershala Ali-starring Blade reboot would be the best bet, in our view. Don't forget, we heard the Daywalker’s voice talking to Dane Whitman in Eternals’ end credits tease , so this could be the start of a recruitment drive for the Midnight Sons.
This Avengers-like group deals with supernatural threats, and has boasted characters like Wong, Iron Fist, Punisher, Ghost Rider and Doctor Strange on its roster in the comics. Could they join forces in the MCU? We'd like to see it happen, and it's also something Oscar Isaac would like to see. In an interview uploaded to the Moon Knight Twitter Updates fan account , he expressed interest in teaming up with Blade, Ghost Rider, and Daredevil in a Midnight Sons production.
Moon Knight has also been a part of the Avengers and Heroes for Hire line-ups in the comics, too. Given that the world needs a new Avengers team, and Shang-Chi and She-Hulk 's MCU appearances possibly teasing a Heroes for Hire team-up, Moon Knight could be part of either in an ensemble superhero flick . Make it happen, Marvel.