Looking for the perfect biblical character for a prestige TV show? Look no further than King David. The backstory of the guy is loaded with action, drama and political intrigue. He dealt with literally insane, murderous bosses and ungrateful kids. He made his share of mistakes, too, but David was still considered a man after God’s own heart.

Well, Amazon’s Prime Video is now offering its viewers—Christian and secular alike—an opportunity to dive into David’s story (with a bit of extra-biblical material added to the broth) with House of David.

Kennedy Unthank recently had a chance to interview series creator Jon Erwin and some of the show’s stars. We’ll listen to a few of those conversations and talk about the show itself.

Granted, some of you might be a little behind in your television watching. Why? Because you’re in the middle of Plugged In’s 2025 Screen Fast, of course! As a matter of fact, there’s just a couple of days left to go. I went on my own screen fast a few weeks ago and, if you’re like me, you’re ready to pick up your phones again. But you might not want to return to your same old habits. How do you engage with your screens in a more healthy, less obsessive way? We’ll talk about that very subject with Emily Tsiao and Jonathan McKee.

So take a listen, won’t you? And then, chime in with your own thoughts. Are you watching House of David? Are you watching anything at all? How did your own screen fast go? Let us know on Facebook and Instagram, or write us a missive at team@thepluggedinshow.com. You can leave a message at The Plugged In Show homepage, too.

And join us next week when Adam Holz returns to the host’s chair to talk about how to have a family movie night.

The post Episode 277: ‘House of David.’ Plus, the Screen Fast Is Almost Over! Now What? appeared first on Plugged In.

But for our latest Rewind, we dipped a little deeper into the cinematic archives and pulled out O Brother, Where Art Thou?, an oddly jaunty gem from the Coen Brothers (Joel and Ethan, perhaps best known for bleak Oscar Best Picture winners Fargo and No Country for Old Men).

Bret Eckelberry and I sit down to talk about this deep South homage to Homer’s Odyssey, its super rich spiritual themes and why it’s just a little bit like The Wizard of Oz. Really. Take a look:

The post O Brother, Where Art Thou? – Plugged In Rewind appeared first on Plugged In.

That’s why you’ll find the bleak Mickey 17 standing bruised but triumphant as box office winner this week. In its first weekend, the film duplicated up $19 million. It’s not a particularly impressive number for a box office winner, but at just over one million per Mickey clone, it’s not a terrible paycheck, either.

Captain America: Brave New World, meanwhile, may want to get those wings checked. It continued its nearly 50% plummet in box office earnings—a trend it’s followed every week since its premiere. Still, it managed a safe second place with $8.5 million, which brings its total domestic earnings to $176.5 million.

Third place went to Last Breath, which likewise fell one spot thanks to Mickey 17, earning just $4.2 million this weekend. Perhaps most notable was that the film, despite a drop in earnings as compared to last week, grew in the number of theaters showing it.

The Monkey’s supernatural snare-drumming simian earned the film a fourth place finish with $3.9 million in its third weekend. The far-friendlier animal, Paddington the bear, rounded out the top five with Paddington in Peru, taking home $3.85 million on his fourth weekend at the theaters.

And if you’re wondering if the Oscars still have any relevance to audiences, Anora would answer: Yes. The Best Picture winner jumped from 22^nd last week to seventh this week, even though it released all the way back in October 2024. And despite its heavy sexual content, it took home $1.86 million—a nearly 600% increase from its earnings last week.

Looking down the list, Angel Studios’ Rule Breakers, about an all-girl robotics team from Afghanistan, constructed a ninth place finish with $1.59 million. And Night of the Zoopocalypse, which we described as “baby’s first zombie survival horror film,” barely affected (or infected) audiences. It earned tenth place with $1.06 million. Still, it managed to do better than In the Lost Lands. The adaptation of a George R. R. Martin short story debuted in 11^th place with $1.04 million—a tragic number for a movie that reportedly cost $55 million to make.

The post Movie Monday: ‘Mickey 17’ Duplicates Millions of Dollars appeared first on Plugged In.

What? The “blackout challenge” (also known as the “choking game/challenge,” the “fainting game” and “Space Monkeys”) involves participants intentionally asphyxiating themselves until they pass out, with the intent of inducing a sense of euphoria.

So What? The online challenge first went viral on TikTok in 2021 (even though it’s allegedly been blocked since 2020). And unfortunately, it’s gaining popularity once again. Parents from the United States and Great Britain are suing TikTok after their children (six victims between the ages of 8 and 14) died as a result of the challenge, which they saw on the social media platform.

Now What? It’s not easy to talk about the dangers of online challenges with our kids. Older teens might get a scoff or give you an eyeroll in response. And with younger tweens, you may wonder if they’re even old enough to have this discussion yet. Unfortunately, kids are gaining access to social media younger than ever. And, lacking discernment skills that their older siblings might possess, they’re more liable to try dangerous social media stunts in the hope of gaining internet fame. So talk to your kids about what is happening to their peers.

The CDC Says Teen Girls Aren’t Getting Enough Nutrients, Exercise or Sleep

What? According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s most recent “Youth Risk Behavior Survey,” teenagers are not getting enough nutrients, exercise or sleep, with teen girls getting even less than their male classmates.

So What? The survey states that just 1 in 4 teens are eating breakfast daily, being physically active for at least 60 minutes daily and getting at least eight hours of sleep each night.

Now What? If physical and mental health are priorities for your teenager (which recent studies highlight as priorities for teens) then you should remind him or her how important it is to engage in healthy behaviors regarding food, exercise and sleep. The CDC survey recommends that teens exercise, sleep, and eat fruit and vegetables daily—and not to skip breakfast.

One in 17 Teens Have Been the Target of Explicit Deepfakes

What? A new study conducted by Thorn, a research center that builds products and resources to help stop the spread of child sexual abuse material, found that 1 in 8 teens personally know someone who has been the victim of explicit deepfake imagery, with 1 in 17 being a victim themselves.

So What? Despite pushes to make deepfakes illegal and safeguards on AI image generators to prevent this abuse, 2% of young people reported they have created explicit deepfake images of someone else, with 70% of those creators using apps downloaded through their device’s app store.

Now What? Although these images aren’t real, we need to emphasize to our sons and daughters how damaging they can still be. Explicit deepfakes can exact an emotional and psychological toll on the person depicted and even damage the victim’s reputation. Additionally, we need to empower our teens to take action if they become victims themselves. Although the majority of surveyed teens said they would tell a trusted family member or even report the abuse to police or the platform the content was shared on, the study found that among actual victims, less than half told their parents, and only 1 in 3 reported it to police or the platforms. And although 9 in 10 teens said they would not ignore such content, 1 in 5 real victims did just that.

The post On the Radar: The ‘Blackout Challenge,’ Terrible Teen Habits and Teenage Deepfake Victims appeared first on Plugged In.

Then join us for Plugged In’s Screen Fast 2025, which officially kicks off today! It’s a great opportunity for you and your family to start building healthier tech and entertainment habits.

If you haven’t signed up, it’s not too late! When you register, you’ll gain access to free, exclusive content designed to help replace that screentime with fun activities that will also bring you closer to God and your loved ones.

If you’re interested in getting a little preview of what fasting from screens is like, you can check out the video below, where Paul and I discuss our own screen fasts, including the challenges and some tips on making your screen fast a rousing success!

Sign up now!

The post Screen Fast 2025 Starts Today! appeared first on Plugged In.

So if you’ve been poking around this blog the past few weeks, you already know that we’re just about to dive into Plugged In’s first-ever Screen Fast. It begins tomorrow and runs through March 14. And although some of us have already done our screen fasts at Plugged In (because, y’know, movies still need to get reviewed), it looks like plenty of you are taking the plunge with us.

Today, we’ll delve into not just the screen part of the screen fast, but the fast part. What is a fast? What does fasting achieve? And why in the world would we fast at all? Adam Holz and Bret Eckelberry will help us walk through those concepts and much, much more on today’s episode of The Plugged In Show.

And once we get you all fired up to set aside your screens for a week (well, as much as work and school will allow, anyway), sign up for Screen Fast 2025. If you do, you’ll get access to Plugged In’s very own Screen Fast survival guide, with activity suggestions for every day of the week!

And then we’ll turn our attention to Wicked. Not the record-setting Broadway show. Not the Oscar-winning, blockbuster movie. Rather (at the suggestion of a Plugged In reader) we’ll take a look at the book upon which both were based: Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West.

While the movie might be rated PG, Gregory Maguire’s novel is … less so, according to Bob Hoose, who reviewed the book. And that just might be a problem for teen fans of the movie who want to get a little more Elphaba into their lives. Turns out, this book brings a whole lot more wicked behavior to the tale.

And, as always,  tell us what you think. Are you going to participate in the fast? Have you stepped away from screens for a time before, and if so, what was it like? Let us know on Facebook and Instagram. Send us an email at team@thepluggedinshow.com. Leave us a voice message at The Plugged In Show homepage. Or just comment down below.

Don’t forget to sign up for our Screen Fast, too. And be sure to partake in our non-screen Plugged In Show next week, when we dive into Prime Video’s new biblically based series, House of David.

The post Episode 276: Screen Fast 2025. Plus, Wicked (the Book) appeared first on Plugged In.

But Tomlin’s musical footprint is as big as anyone’s. The singer/songwriter/worship leader has sold millions of albums and been streamed billions of times. Many of us have belted out a Tomlin song or two or 20 at church. By any musical metric you want to use, Tomlin is a megawatt superstar—even if he doesn’t act like it. Rooted in the world of worship music, Tomlin says that he prays for one thing when he goes on stage: That people might have an encounter with God.

But Tomlin has also said that “worship is more about seeing than singing,” and his latest venture is a visual one. He’s serving as an executive producer for The Last Supper, a movie scheduled for release March 14.

When I talked with Tomlin about his involvement with the film, he said it began as you’d expect: with music. “No Greater Love,” a new song by Tomlin, is a part of the movie. He says that the song and the movie dovetail together quite well—even though the song itself was written before he’d seen a frame of the film.

“When those end credits go, and my song starts coming, you would think that I just watched the movie, grabbed my pen and wrote the song from there,” he says. “I didn’t even know the movie when I wrote the song, and that was just another point where God was like, ‘I’m putting this together. I’m connecting you guys.’ And so I was like, ‘How can I get involved [in this film] in a greater way?’” 

So, what does that “greater way” look like? And just how did that song—the song that landed in The Last Supper—come about in the first place? That’s a pretty fascinating story.

But don’t take my word for it. Watch the video and hear for yourself.

The post Chris Tomlin Talks About Music and ‘The Last Supper’ appeared first on Plugged In.

But a few of us on the Plugged In team thought it might be a good idea to do our own screen fasts before March 7, just to see whether we could walk the walk.

And could we? Well, read on to find out.

The Pain …

Now, we’re not asking anyone to quit school or work to participate in our screen fast. You can still text your boss. You can still write that overdue term paper. And at Plugged In, where our jobs are literally all about screens, chucking them completely just wasn’t in the cards. I still watched and reviewed a movie or two. I still used my computer to type up my reviews.

But even so, the fast was harder than you might imagine.

I’ve spent a lot of my career talking about how sneaky screentime can be—and how it always feels like someone else’s problem. But when I set aside my own phone, turned out it was sneakier than I realized: It’s my problem, too.

Typically, as soon as my alarm goes off (on my phone, of course), I check headlines. Maybe do a couple of small duties for a “casual” game I play. Maybe, if I have time, do a quick French lesson via a language app I use.

During the screen fast, my alarm would go off and I … wouldn’t quite know what to do.

More time to get ready for work, right? I could use that time to comb my hair.

But the evenings proved to be the much more difficult challenge. After dinner, how could I wile away the evening without picking up a game controller? Or flipping on a little television? Or even scrolling through some Reels? Suddenly, I had a couple extra hours to kill, and it made me a little, um, cranky.

So what was I to do?

Turns out, quite a bit.

The Gain

So, if you’ve seen me on YouTube (or if you scroll to the bottom of this blog to see my staff photo), you know my hair doesn’t need a lot of attention. But what did? My spiritual life. I put those extra morning minutes straight into more time with the Bible and prayer.

I read more in the evening, too, rekindling the joy of simply sitting down with a good book and a good light. My wife and I dug out some little-used board games and started playing them. (I think I finally understand Wingspan.) I helped my wife cook dinner, too—and to my great surprise, had a blast doing it.

That’s when the beauty of the screen fast became so obvious to me. Who knew that cutting up vegetables would come with so many tangible benefits? Not only did it give my wife and I more time to talk about our respective days; not only did I get to fling around a knife for a while; but I also think the food tasted better. It had nothing to do with my chopping veggies (because no matter how you slice it, literally, broccoli is still broccoli) and everything to do with the experience of helping prepare the food.

And that, right there, is a nice analogy of what fasting from screens might do for your lives: When you fast from screens, everything tastes better. You remember how fun it is to read a good book. You discover a new game that’s way better than spending 45 minutes mindlessly scrolling through TikTok. When you talk with your spouse, or your kids, or your friends, you concentrate on the conversation. Why? Because your phone isn’t begging you to look at it, instead.

The Aftermath

By definition, a fast is about giving up something. You forego that thing—food, chocolate, caffeine, technology—for a certain amount of time. But when we think of fasting in spiritual terms, it’s always been about getting something, too: We draw closer to God.

That was the impetus of the screen fast from the get-go. Yes, we give up something, and it’s not something that’s easy to give up. There’s a reason why we spend so much time on our screens, after all; they feed us content that’s fun, interesting, relaxing and sometimes, addicting. We do more than consume it: We crave it.

Stepping away from screens is a way to make ourselves aware of those cravings, yes. But it’s also an opportunity to remind us of the beauties and joys that perhaps we’ve forgotten about.

I’m through with my screen fast now. But I’ve not returned to the same level of screen usage as I had before. My mornings are still more Bible than phone. I’m reading more books, cutting more vegetables, taking more walks.

What would you do if you cut down—or cut out—screens for a week? Want to find out? Join us, won’t you? All you need to do is go to Screen Fast 2025 to find out more.

The post I Gave Up Screens for a Week. And It Was (Mostly) Great. appeared first on Plugged In.

“I can do this all day.”

Watching Captain America: Brave New World keep the box-office title for the third straight week, despite plummeting weekend-over-weekend earnings, is sort of like that. Brave New World is down nearly 47% from last week (a week which had already dropped 68% from its premiere). It raked in $15 million, bringing its domestic earnings to $164 million total—a number that makes up nearly half of its worldwide $342 million. But like a good superhero story, it seems the film hasn’t quite taken its last breath.

And speaking of Last Breath, that’s the new film that hit Cap the hardest. The Woody Harrelson flick dove deep into the fray and earned a respectable second place finish with $7.8 million.

Horror comedy The Monkey sunk a little deeper than Last Breath, falling from last weekend’s second-place finish to secure third with $6.3 million.

If it’s any solace to the simian, it managed to beat out man’s best friend, since Dog Man remained at a static fourth place with $4.2 million. And with all these animals, it’s only fitting that Mufasa: The Lion King revived its kingdom by rounding out the top five—a jump from last weekend’s eighth-place finish. It brought in $1.9 million for its fifth weekend—adding to the $702 million in its worldwide treasury.

Farther down, newcomer Mobile Suit Gundam: GQuuuuuuX: Beginning earned a tough 10^th place with a mere $916,000—coincidentally, the number of digits in that profit match the number of ‘u’s in the film’s title. Riff Raff, landing in 12^th place with $901,000, couldn’t even make enough of a racket to surpass A Complete Unknown, the Bob Dylan biopic from December 2024, which took 11^th place with $904,000.

Finally, My Dead Friend Zoe, a military-focused film dealing with difficult topics like PTSD and suicide, took 14^th place with $755,000.

The post Movie Monday: ‘Captain America’ Can Do This All Day appeared first on Plugged In.

What? According to several news sources, social media influencers are kicking, knocking and banging on the doors of random residences (sometimes in the middle of the night), then running away while filming the reactions in the “Door Knock Challenge.” Essentially, it’s a more aggressive version of the old “Ding-dong ditch” game, only now with combined with a social media component.

So What? In some cases, homeowners are reporting damaged property as a result of kicking. But authorities are also urging participants to end this prank, since startled residents—especially in states with strong self-defense laws—could respond with force, endangering the homeowner and prankster alike.

Now What? At best, the “Door Knock Challenge” is irritating. At worst, it could be life-threatening. But even the middle ground—scaring the wits out of someone—could still be extremely distressing. So talk to your teens about this prank, informing them of the potential dangers, both to themselves and to the people they’re pranking. But you should also instruct them on what to do if they hear someone kicking a door. It might be a friend pranking them, but it could also be an intruder, and your teen should be equipped to handle either situation.

NarcTok Could Be Giving Teens False Perceptions of Narcissistic Parents

What? According to Parents, “NarcTok is a hybrid term that blends ‘narcissistic’ and ‘TikTok.” And the topic is trending due to teens and young adults “sharing personal experiences and opinions about narcissistic behavior, sometimes in a sensationalized or misinformed manner.”

So What? Narcissistic personality disorder (NPD), which is the focal point of these discussions, only affects about 5% of the general population. But thanks to the popularity of NarcTok, many teens have developed misconceptions about narcissism and are accusing their parents of these behaviors through online platforms.

Now What? If you discover your teen has posted a NarcTok video, experts urge that “discovery is not disaster.” Take a pause, they say, and address your own reactive feelings before talking to your child. Then, lead with empathy: “There is a reason that teens choose to vent on this platform, and it’s important to go into a dialogue without showing anger or judgement.” After that, listen to what your teen has to say, validating their emotions without offering immediate corrections. And when you do respond, be sure “to share accurate information about NPD and the importance of understanding mental health.” Any person’s occasional self-focused behavior does not equate to having NPD, and teens should be mindful of how their words affect both those they accuse (since it can be hurtful) and those who listen, since it spreads more misconceptions about the disorder.

New Apple Parental Controls Will Allow Parents to Set Kids’ Ages

What? According to Digital Trends, Apple has released a new white paper, detailing changes the company plans to make to the parental control system on its devices. These new features will make it easier for parents to set up child accounts and enable automatic age-restrictions for apps and ads. They also include more robust screentime controls.

So What? The age information will be kept private, but “once they are in place, apps will automatically default to showing age-appropriate content.” Additionally, Apple will be expanding its available age ranges so parents can select a range more suitable for their children.

Now What? These features haven’t been implemented just yet. But once they are introduced, it could be an opportunity to revisit and reset the parental controls on your kids’ Apple devices. Taking the time to set up these parental controls could help protect your child from harmful content or the negative consequences of excessive screentime use. And talk to your kids about the new boundaries that will be in place, explaining how these features are meant to protect them, not limit them.

The post On the Radar: ‘Door Knock Challenge,’ NarcTok and New Apple Parental Control Features appeared first on Plugged In.