It List: 'Moana 2' sets sail, Angelina Jolie is 'Maria,' JonBenét Ramsey’s killing is reexamined in new doc

Plus, a new romantic comedy is set during Thanksgiving break.

Illustration: Yahoo News
Illustration: Yahoo News

Hello, friends! I’m Kelsey, your guide to all things pop culture for Yahoo Entertainment, and this is the It List, our weekly rundown of what’s new and notable. In it, I recommended a slew of upcoming releases to watch, stream, listen to, read and binge. I’ll walk you through my favorites.

Moana, standing in the ocean, holds the baby Simea as she reaches up toward a huge breaker.
Moana and Simea in "Moana 2." (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection)

🎥 Moana 2 answers the call

  • When: Moana 2 is now in theaters.

  • What to know: Three years after the events of the first film (which was released in 2016), Moana responds to a call from her ancestors and reunites with the demigod Maui to set out on another adventure. Auliʻi Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson lend their voices to our heroes once again, but there’s a whole new cast of characters to love. [Deadline/Entertainment Weekly]

  • Why I’ll be watching: It’s going to be a huge week at the box office, and I want to be a part of it. Plus, I hear the soundtrack is incredibly catchy, and Johnson himself says people should be allowed to sing at the theater. [The Wrap/People]


🎥 Angelina Jolie hits a high note in Maria

  • When: Maria is now playing in select theaters.

  • What to know: Angelina Jolie plays the Greek opera legend Maria Callas as she looks back on her life in her final days, as her iconic voice faded and she dealt with drug-induced hallucinations. Jolie’s performance is generating plenty of awards buzz. [People/Los Angeles Times]

  • Why I’ll be watching: I love Jackie and Spencer, director Pablo Larraín’s other two movies about influential women of the 20th century, and I must complete the trilogy. [IndieWire]


🎥 Lindsay Lohan makes it merry and bright

  • When: Our Little Secret is now available on Netflix.

  • What to know: Lindsay Lohan and Ian Harding star as two exes who are unexpectedly forced to spend the holidays under the same roof when they realize their new partners are related. [The Hollywood Reporter]

  • Why I’ll be watching: I think it’s beautiful that two former Mean Girls stars have both taken refuge in Netflix’s Christmas romantic comedy department, but I’m most excited to see Kristin Chenoweth play a villain. [Entertainment Weekly/People]


🎥 Sweethearts flips the rom-com script

  • When: Sweethearts is now streaming on Max.

  • What to know: Two best pals, played by Nico Hiraga and Kiernan Shipka, make a pact to break up with their respective high school sweethearts. The movie also features a lot of beloved internet personalities, including Caleb Hearon and Stavros Halkias. [Glamour]

  • Why I’ll be watching: Movies set over Thanksgiving like this are hard to come by, but the fact that Sweethearts takes on tropes about young romance and male-female friendship makes me feel like it could stand the test of time. [Los Angeles Times]

John Ramsey listens as his wife, Patsy, holds up a flyer advertising a $100,000 reward for information leading to arrest of their daughter's killer.
John and Patsy Ramsey, the parents of JonBenét Ramsey, meet with a small selected group of the local Colorado media in 1997. (Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post via Getty Images)

▶️ JonBenét Ramsey docuseries sheds new light on a decades-old crime

  • When: All three episodes of Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey? are now streaming on Netflix.

  • What to know: Almost 30 years after the 6-year-old pageant queen JonBenét Ramsey was killed, this docuseries reexamines the still-unsolved case — and features a new interview with her father, John Ramsey. The director of the documentary said his view of the crime have changed over time. [People/The Independent]

  • Why I recommend it: Cold Case is different from the many other documentaries about the 1996 murder because it reexamines unusual evidence and prejudices against the Ramsey family that have been rumbling for decades. [People/USA Today]

We’ll be back next week with our latest picks. Are there other things you’re excited about? Let us know in the comments below.

Looking for more recommendations? Check out our guides to the best in fall entertainment.