MVPs of the Summer

I didn’t have Astronomer Carl Sagan, who died almost 30 years ago, on my list of potential movie stars of summer 2025, but here we are. His voice plays an important role in two of my favorite films of the summer, “The Life of Chuck” and “Elio.”

Pedro Pascal is also on the list, with appearances in three major films, as the wealthy suitor for Dakota Johnson in “Materialists,” mayor of a small town in the dark political satire “Eddington,” and Reed Richards, the stretchable Mr. Fantastic in “Fantastic 4.”

Sarah Niles, who played Dr. Sharon in “Ted Lasso,” is also in there of the summer’s biggest films. in “F1” she plays the mother of the race car drive played by Damson Idris, in “Heads of State” she plays an aide to the President played by John Cena, and in “Fantastic 4” she plays a similar role for the title superheroes. It was a pleasure to see her and to hear her impressive facility with accents.