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Briefed by Night Shift

Wednesday, September 30, 2026 Evening Edition Entertainment · News · Sports

Above the fold

Executive summary

  • Weekend BO: Endgame Encore ~$26.1M led a ~$124.9M frame; Primetime ~$19.2M (A24’s 3rd-best open); Heart of the Beast ~$20M.
  • Couch: Florence Pugh’s East of Eden hits Netflix tomorrow (Oct 1); theaters still have Endgame encore / Primetime / Resident Evil.
  • Worth knowing: Flydubai Dubai→Tel Aviv: cockpit stabbing, passengers/crew stopped it, safe divert to Tabuk; U.S. combat footprint leaves Iraq after two decades; cool/showery Denver today (~63°F).
  • Sports: Avalanche opener vs Kings UNDERWAY at Ball Arena (live 0–0, 1st period as of ~8:20 p.m. MT on TNT); no final yet; Broncos 30–26 over Rams Sunday; Buffs host No. 12 Texas Tech Sat 5:30 p.m. MT on FOX.

Entertainment

Culture · Box Office

Endgame encore tops a $124M weekend; Primetime and Heart of the Beast open strong

Domestic weekend estimates for September 25–27 put the frame near $124.9 million, per Box Office Mojo as of September 30. Avengers: Endgame Encore led with about $26.1 million from 3,060 theaters. Resident Evil held No. 2 at roughly $23.0 million (−62%), pushing its domestic cume near $103 million. Newcomers filled the next tier: Paramount’s Heart of the Beast opened near $20.0 million, A24’s Primetime near $19.2 million, and DreamWorks’ Forgotten Island near $13.0 million. Holdovers included Practical Magic 2 (~$5.6M), Spider-Man: Brand New Day (~$4.1M, ~$951M cume), and The Odyssey (~$3.8M, ~$617M).

Primetime is the curiosity worth the ticket: Robert Pattinson plays Chris Hansen in Lance Oppenheim’s To Catch a Predator–inspired drama, made for about $15 million. It sits at 87% on Rotten Tomatoes with a CinemaScore B, and Variety (Sep 28) calls it A24’s third-best opening after Backrooms and Civil War. Midweek screens still have the encore, Primetime, Heart of the Beast, and Resident Evil if you want a theater night before the streaming slate turns over.

Sources: Box Office Mojo (W39), Variety (Primetime), Boxoffice Pro

Streaming

Florence Pugh’s East of Eden lands on Netflix tomorrow

Netflix Tudum confirms the seven-episode Zoe Kazan adaptation of John Steinbeck’s East of Eden streams globally tomorrow, October 1, around 12:00 a.m. PT / 1:00 a.m. MT. Florence Pugh stars as Cathy Ames, opposite Christopher Abbott and Mike Faist, with Ciarán Hinds, Martha Plimpton, Tracy Letts, and Hoon Lee in the ensemble.

If the Avalanche game runs long, or you want something quieter after, this is the easy post-hockey couch pick: a prestige limited series with a clear drop time and a stacked cast. Save the ticket stub for Endgame encore or Primetime this week; tomorrow night belongs to Steinbeck on the living-room screen.

Sources: Netflix Tudum

News

World

Passengers and crew stop midair attack on Flydubai flight to Israel

BBC reporting on September 30: Flydubai flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv was diverted to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, after one pilot stabbed the other and, according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, apparently tried to crash the plane. Passengers and crew overpowered the attacker. More than 170 people were aboard. The stabbed captain, Indian national Smit Machchhar, was reported stable. Passengers were later repatriated to Tel Aviv. Motive remains unclear; Saudi authorities are investigating.

President Trump said he spoke with Netanyahu and called the attacker “perhaps a terrorist.” Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz described it as attempted jihadist terror; that characterization has not been independently confirmed. Careful wording still fits: a cockpit stabbing, a passenger-and-crew intervention, a safe divert, and an investigation underway, without locking a motive the reporting has not settled.

Sources: BBC

Civic · World

After two decades, U.S. troops leave Iraq

Reuters on September 30: the final U.S. troops have left Iraq, mainly from the Erbil area, ending the Operation Inherent Resolve combat footprint that stretched from the 2003 invasion through the later fight against ISIS. Parades marked the moment in Baghdad and Najaf, with mixed joy and worry about Iran-backed militias and an ISIS vacuum. The pullout was agreed in 2024 under President Biden and completed under President Trump. The Pentagon said training and intelligence cooperation will continue; Iraqi Prime Minister Zaidi said Iraq assumes full security responsibility.

More than 4,500 U.S. troops died in Iraq across the long war. Tonight’s takeaway is structural, not celebratory: a combat mission ends, advisory ties remain, and regional actors will test what “full responsibility” means in practice.

Sources: Reuters

Sports

NHL

Avalanche opener underway: Kings at Ball Arena, still 0–0 in the first

The Avalanche season opener is live right now: Los Angeles Kings at Colorado, Wednesday, September 30, 8 p.m. MT at Ball Arena on TNT, truTV, and HBO Max, with Altitude Sports Radio 92.5 as the local audio home. As of about 8:20 p.m. MT, ESPN had the game underway and tied 0–0 early in the first period. No final yet. National feed: TNT, truTV, and HBO Max.

It is a rematch of the 2026 Stanley Cup Round One series the Avalanche swept 4–0. Projected starters: Mackenzie Blackwood for Colorado and Darcy Kuemper for Los Angeles. Nathan MacKinnon centers a top line with Martin Necas and Artturi Lehkonen. Drew Doughty plays his first game as Kings captain; Peter Laviolette’s first as Kings coach. Colorado lists O’Connor and L’Heureux out (lower body); Los Angeles is without Fiala (leg surgery), and Perry was scratched (personal). No final yet. Check ESPN or the broadcast for the live score.

Sources: Avalanche (game preview), NHL.com (lineups / preview), ESPN (live)

NFL · College

Broncos erase 16–0 hole for 30–26; Buffs host Texas Tech Saturday

AP/ESPN: the Broncos trailed the Rams 16–0 at halftime Sunday night, then Bo Nix threw touchdown passes and two two-point conversions to climb back. Talanoa Hufanga’s 66-yard pick-six made it 23–19; Matthew Stafford hit Konata Mumpfield for 48 yards and a 26–23 lead; Nix sneaked one yard with 0:47 left for 30–26; Hufanga’s end-zone interception sealed it. Denver sits 2–1; Los Angeles 1–2. Next: Broncos at San Francisco on Sunday, October 4, 2:25 p.m. MT on CBS.

College next: Colorado hosts No. 12 AP / No. 10 coaches Texas Tech on Saturday, October 3, at Folsom Field, 5:30 p.m. MT on FOX. The Buffs are 2–2 (0–1 Big 12); Tech is 4–0 (1–0). Colorado leads the series 6–5 and won 41–27 in Lubbock in 2024. Optional add: the Nuggets open preseason in Boulder against the Jazz on Sunday, October 4, at 5 p.m. at CU Events Center, a local basketball option if the NFL window is already booked.

Sources: ESPN (Broncos–Rams), Texas Tech (preview), Buffs Wire (TV / time), CUBuffs.com (Nuggets preseason)