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Zombies, wrestlers, and reality show hosts reviving their careers are all like sharks, but how? They’re all in Popverse Playlist for July 4-10, 2026

What could make your July 4 celebrations so much better? Jaws, of course - and the three recommendations we have for your next week of pop culture

Guides by Graeme McMillan, Editor

Published on Tue Sep 22 2026

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We’re going to switch things up a little this week with an additional sneaky recommendation, because there’s absolutely no way I can pass up the opportunity to remind everyone that the July 4 holiday is the ideal time to rewatch Jaws, which is a perfect movie and something that captures the terror inherent in every single summer season, just outright asking the question hidden inside every seasonal getaway: Am I going to have a good time or am I going to be eaten by a terrifying shark? This weekend, friends, skip that get-together and spend 124 minutes in the company of Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss, and Robert Shaw. You’ll be glad you did.

Oh, wait, I should remind you all that this is Popverse Playlist and we’re here to make you think about death and get sad and stuff. No, wait; I mean we’re here to recommend the crème de la crème of pop culture in the next seven days. This week: an unexpected reality show team-up, a horror reinvention, and a genre mash-up that only comics can deliver. All the fun of the fair and much more fun than the Great American State Fair!

If you only watch one show this week, then it really has to be… Project Runway Season 22

Okay, this one comes out of left field, I admit, but as a reality show fan, there’s an Avengers-esque appeal to the new season of Project Runway, which doesn’t just bring franchise favorites Heidi Klum, Christian Siriano, and Nina Garcia back for another go-around, but also has two notable additional judges: Law Roach (of Legendary and RuPaul Drag Race All Stars), and, somewhat amazingly, Tyra Banks of America’s Next Top Model and suing-Netflix-over-its-America’s-Next-Top-Model-documentary fame. Is bringing Tyra onboard as a recurring judge now that she’s newly controversial a smart move or simply a sign of trouble ahead? I’ll be tuning in every week to find out, so whichever the answer, it’s clearly a move that worked on me, at the very least.

Project Runway starts on Freeform July 9, 2026.

If you only check out one movie this week, then it should be… Evil Dead Burn

Look, I’ll be honest; if you’d asked me a few years back what Evil Dead was, I would’ve sworn up and down it was a zombie series that lived and died on the participation of Bruce Campbell’s Ash Williams and how ridiculous Sam Raimi was willing to get. Post 2023’s Evil Dead Rise, though, it seems to have successfully resurrected itself — see? Zombie pun! — as an anthology series letting horror directors play with familiar ideas in fun and creepy ways. Sébastien Vaniček, who directed 2023 French horror Vermines, is behind this latest take, which sees a family reunion into… well, pretty much everyone’s nightmare idea of what a family reunion would be. Can’t wait.

Evil Dead Burn will be in theaters July 10, 2026.

If you can only pick up one comic this week, then make sure it’s… Wrestle Heist

For years, Kyle Starks has been offering up perfect slices of pop culture comics again and again, whether as writer (Where Monsters Lie, DC’s Peacemaker Tries Hard!) or full cartoonist (Sexcastle, Kill Them All, Karate Prom). With his current DC Vertigo series End of Life bringing his work to a whole new audience, the release of the collected edition of Wrestle Heist feels perfectly timed: it’s fast, funny, and has more hidden heart than you might expect, making it an ideal summer read. The plot? A former pro-wrestler gathers a crew to rob the biggest wrestling event of the year. Does he succeed? We’re not telling you that here — but we will tell you that the collection doesn’t just include all five issues of the Image Comics mini, but also an all-new exclusive story as well.

Wrestle Heist will be available in comic book stores July 8, 2026.

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Graeme McMillan: Popverse Editor Graeme McMillan (he/him) has been writing about comics, culture, and comics culture on the internet for more than two decades at this point, which is terrifying to admit. He completely understands if you have problems understanding his accent.