Former child stars aren't known to exude cool, but Amanda Fuller has a flair for straddling two worlds. Take her two current TV roles. On Fox’s hit family-com Last Man Standing, she plays Tim Allen’s loving eldest daughter Kristin Baxter. On Netflix’s Orange is the New Black, she’s angry inmate Madison “Badison” Murphy.

Let it be known that Chris Geere, famous to anti-romcom fans as complicated cad Jimmy Shive-Overly on FXX’s acid-spritzed comedy You’re the Worst, is so not a jerk. He starts a phone chat from his native England with a greeting that’s so cheery—"How are you my friend?"—clouds everywhere should feel threatened. And while his Worst alter ego has been disappointing his maybe-soulmate—equally complicated writer Gretchen (Aya Cash)—for five seasons (fans will find out the couple’s fate when the series caps its run April 3), Geere is quite the doting husband and father.

Dani Fernandez is the first to admit she spent much of her youth being into all things nerdy. But there was a cool aspect to all of that nerd love, she found role models who were busting gender norms--women who were total badasses. As a teen, Dani began writing nerdy fan fiction, and eventually turned that hobby into a successful career. She started writing for shows on Comedy Central and Fullscreen, and eventually began hosting at San Diego Comic Con for Funimation. Her hosting duties now include several popular podcasts, including Nerdificent, and an all female-led show called Fangirling. She recently had a cameo as herself in Disney’s Ralph Breaks the Internet and is a featured writer in The Good Immigrant: 26 Writers Reflect on America which drops in February 2019. We asked Dani for her picks on Movies and TV that feature women who kick ass.

Historical Dramas and biopics are some of the most popular films for a reason. When they are great, they give us a new perspective on a well known person or event, and are told in a way that is decidedly more interesting than the version you probably heard in history class. Actor James Urbaniak is big fan of these movies and we were thrilled when he agreed to talk to us about his favorites.

Fans of CBS’s long-running top-10 sitcom Mom—about recovering alcoholic Bonnie (Allison Janney) and her also booze-avoidant grown-up daughter Christy (Anna Faris)—likely know the show has ratcheted-up the laughs the past few seasons. Credit some of the bigger laughs to Beth Hall. Since graduating to main cast member in 2015, the comedienne has proven an ace foil for Bonnie, Christy and their Alcoholics Anonymous friends as Wendy Harris, the gang’s resident irritant. A registered nurse with a sadistic streak, Wendy is such a downer, she’ll cry if you just look at her sideways (Bonnie calls her “Weeping Wendy”). Caavo thought it would be a kick to know what flicks and shows make this funny woman cry.

“Cut it out, man—call me Yaphet!” For a movie icon and Hollywood recluse, Yaphet Kotto—no need to address him as “Mr. Kotto”—sure is a sweetie. And his levity’s definitely a contrast to his grave screen persona. As drug lord Mr. Big—a.k.a. dastardly Caribbean dictator Dr. Kananga—Kotto made for one of the liveliest Bond villains of all time in 1973’s Live and Let Die. He’s proud that, with almost 100 screen credits under his belt, he was one of the very few black actors to achieve stardom in showbiz’s supposedly “enlightened” post-Sidney Poitier landscape. With Caavo, Yaphet is fun, chatty and engaged. His chosen genre for his favorite movies and TV shows? Stuff that just wows . . .

When it comes to learning to love being alone, Lane Moore literally wrote the book on it. In 2018, she released her best-selling book How To Be Alone, and it was pretty much the book she was destined to write considering the subject matter has been the focus of her career for quite some time. Lane created a comedy show called “Tinder Live” that quickly became a cultural phenomenon. So who better to ask for movie and tv picks that can make everyone feel less alone and even hopeful about their search for true love?

One of the most fascinating characters to join The Walking Dead in recent seasons is probably Jadis, the ruthless leader of the Scavengers. "She’s always using new tools—even vulnerability—to save herself,” says Pollyanna McIntosh, the sullen-eyed Scot. She’s got a bent for playing beyond-powerful women: a witch in 2007’s 9 Lives of Mara, “The Woman” in 2009’s cult hit Offspring and its 2011 sequel. McIntosh plays the feral lady again in the imminent Darlin’, but this one she directed and wrote too. As for her list of favorite movies and shows where women rule—well, it rules.

Mark Jackson, who inhabits Isaac, the hilariously humorless robot on Fox’s spoofy Star Trek riff The Orville, is only too happy to slip into his shiny silver work outfit. The actor’s had his own far-flung journeys. Born in Rotterdam, England, he dove into TV and “fell in love” with Star Trek: The Next Generation—enough to dream of starring in it one day. He dazzled in London stage productions (Noises Off, War Horse) before he wowed MacFarlane via a video audition. Here, for Caavo-ites, the droll actor shares his favorite shows and movies that are really out there.

Maris Kreizman’s love affair with literature has been a part of her life for as long as she can remember. She eventually turned that love into a successful career. Named “One of the 35 Writers Who Run the Literary Internet” by Flavorwire, her work has appeared in the New York Times, Vanity Fair, BuzzFeed just to name a few. She also created the cult fave Slaughterhouse 90210, a blog and book that celebrates the intersection of literature and pop culture. Maris shares this list of shows that do justice to their revered source material.

Lance Reddick continues to be one of Hollywood’s busiest walking fanboy posters, er, actors. On TV, he’s famous for playing Lost’s mysterious Matthew Abedon and Fringe’s no-nonsense Phillip Broyles. Next year, Reddick will be seen alongside Alexander Skarsgård and Millie Bobby Brown sci-fi sequel Godzilla vs. Kong. Right now, he’s in Hawaii—his old Lost stomping grounds—enjoying the balmy breezes, filming that Godzilla sequel and fretting about how to narrow his favorite movies and TV shows with amazing characters down to just 8. "I had a hard time coming up with this list!" The results, just like his credits, are a mix of funny and ultra-serious.

When it comes to picking a list of ‘must see’ movie musicals, they don’t come more qualified than Eliza Skinner, who’s been a lover of the art form since she was child. Eliza was the head writer for the recent holiday special A Legendary Christmas (NBC), as well as Drop The Mic (TBS). Before that she was a staff writer on The Late Late Show with James Corden (CBS), where she wrote many of the show’s popular "Inappropriate Musicals" segments. Eliza also hosts her own music-themed podcast - Cool Playlist, and is currently finishing up her first stand up comedy/music album which drops in 2019. We have Eliza’s list of ‘must see’ movie musicals.

The Big Easy is the sultry nickname for New Orleans, and one of that city’s shining stars, Big Freedia, is synonymous with the vibrant hip-hop subgenre known as bounce music. Blessed with bold ambitions, Freedia, born Freddie Ross, almost solely put bounce on the mainstream map. From there: big concerts, a long-running Fuse reality show (Big Freedia Bounces Back) and a call from Beyonce. Queen Bey famously enlisted Freedia to perform on her hit “Formation.” Caavo asked Freedia what big and little screen titles have left her feeling inspired.

When it comes to making the most of the internet to jumpstart your career, you won’t find anyone more skilled than Gaby Dunn. After building her mini-empire, she now produces a podcast called Bad with Money with Gaby Dunn. What better person to pick some ‘must see’ movies about the online world?

Successful video games have not always translated into great films and TV. If we’re keeping it real, most adaptations are just plain terrible. Comedy writer, Mike Drucker is not only a stand-up comedian and writer for Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, but a video game lover who thinks there are several entertaining adaptations that are worth checking out.