The movie, TV, and gaming news headlines in 2018 were something else. While we covered dozens of stories every day, a number of persistent storylines, industry drama, oddities, and fun facts stand out above all the rest. From James Gunn to fandom wars to viral marketing campaigns and extreme method acting, some news just stands out, making 2018 a year to remember.

Of course, most of these stories played out in headlines throughout the year (some are still ongoing), and we've certainly provided our thoughts in our coverage, but looking back over the year, some things stick out as the biggest news we'll remember when we think back on 2018 in the years to come. Here's what some of our editors have to say about the stories that resonated with them the most this year.

Related: Screen Rant's Favorite Articles of 2018

Chris Agar

It was an interesting year for Star Wars. The Last Jedi proved to be extremely polarizing and Solo: A Star Wars Story was the first Star Wars movie to lose money at the box office. A very vocal corner of the fan base was calling for Kennedy's head, believing she had lost touch with viewers and was ruining the brand. Seeing her extend her contract and remain as Lucasfilm president made me smile. I'll be the first to admit her tenure hasn't been 100% smooth (I'll never understand the Lord and Miller firing), but she's done an excellent job bringing Star Wars back and setting the table for an exciting future. One flop isn't enough to overhaul everything, and I'm happy she's staying in charge of my favorite franchise.

Disney's other big cash cow just amused me with their apparent denial that the characters dusted in Avengers: Infinity War wouldn't be coming back, even as Spider-Man: Far From Home entered production and Chris Pratt teased Guardians of the Galaxy 3. It was just funny because when I was watching Infinity War, I knew there was no way any of the dead characters were going to stay dead.

I jumped off the MoviePass train at just the right time (thanks, AMC A-List!) because - shockingly - their business model proved to be unsustainable. All of the changes they tried to implement in order to "improve" the surface were hysterical, and I was able to enjoy it because I was no longer a member.

The Vice story about Adam McKay's heart attack is just a crazy anecdote about a film I've been highly anticipating, and I'm always going to support a love fest for an adorable movie dog.

Stephen Colbert

Zack Snyder Justice League Directors Cut

Saying 2018 was crazy would be an understatement all around, but there were a number of fascinating developments in movie news that were alternatingly fun and infuriating to read and write about. The year started in a weird place because 2017 ended with both Star Wars and the DCEU having seen a divisive film with Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Justice League respectively. While the movie news geek in me loves diagnosing the issues, the volatile fandoms on both sides also made those areas frustrating as well.

One of the most shocking developments this year was a drawn-out affair with James Gunn. After getting fired from Disney/Marvel for his old inappropriate tweets, there was an immediate campaign started on social media to get him rehired. Although the cherry on top of that story is probably the twist ending of him signing to write, and possibly direct, Suicide Squad 2 for WB/DC, leaving fans of all stripes confused about how to feel. Speaking of confusion, the fallout of Venom's vicious reviews and its high box office take was a lot of fun for the perspective of someone with no investment in the franchise.

Then, of course, there's the Snyder Cut. Aside from the fun of picking through the rubble of Justice League and discovering the movie it was originally intended to be and learning about how much of that film was actually completed, it's been a fascinating study in communication; despite over a year of arguing between people who claim it does/doesn't exist, there's still no mutual agreement on what "exist" even means. We're dealing with a Zack Snyder movie here, so it's doubtful 2019 will see any sort of mutual understanding, but it'll certainly be interesting to see how this story continues to develop in the coming year.

Page 2: Molly Freeman and Mansoor Mithaiwala

To All The Boys Ive Loved Before horror trailer

Molly Freeman

To be honest, there were a number of news stories this year that were emotionally draining to follow for various reasons: Me Too, Last Jedi backlash, Avengers: Endgame title and trailer reveal - and those are just the entertainment-related stories! So my favorite news stories to cover from 2018 are ones that brought some joy to my life. Set it Up, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before and Crazy Rich Asians officially brought back one of my favorite genres of film, the romantic comedy, and it was awesome to see movies - and movie fans - relish in the pure enjoyment of rom-coms throughout the year. In a similar vein, Venom fans being inspired by the relationship between Eddie Brock and the symbiote was fun to see - especially all the fantastic fan art that came of it.

My other three favorite stories are simply things that made me laugh or made me happy throughout the year. Marvel Studios constantly trying to keep their actors from spoiling their movies - or fans discovering after the fact that actors spoiled something - is so incredibly funny in the face of how hard the studio tries to keep its secrets. Brooklyn Nine-Nine is one of my favorite shows and it was so nice to see it saved. Last, Ezra Miller’s Toadette cosplay was one of the highlights of an otherwise incredibly busy SDCC weekend. And, I know we didn’t cover Gritty (the monstrously orange Philadelphia Flyers’ mascot) at Screen Rant since it’s sports-related, but he’s another story of 2018 that was so fun to follow.

Mansoor Mithaiwala

Godzilla Monarch MonsterVerse
  • Star Wars
  • Netflix Movies
  • James Gunn's firing
  • Snyder Cut
  • Godzilla: King of the Monsters

It wasn't too long ago that Star Wars was considered untouchable (box office-wise, at least), but in one year, we've seen incredible divisiveness amongst the fan base for one movie and then another movie fall by the wayside, so much so that Solo: A Star Wars Story has been all but forgotten. And, for some reason, Netflix's movies are treated by most outlets like they're nothing, when in reality the number of people watching these films can be compared to a modern blockbuster. So, it's always fun to tackle stories on Netflix's thrillers, rom-coms, dramas, etc..

Of course, working in the entertainment industry means there are stories that will come out of left field when you absolutely least expect it, just like James Gunn's firing. It happened over Comic-Con weekend, and it became one of the biggest talking points of the summer. While that story has somewhat waned over the past few months, there's one story that continues to crop up - the Snyder Cut. Thanks to one of our editors, Stephen Colbert, we've seen the narrative around the Snyder Cut develop from something that seemed like a pipe dream to something with actual evidence of its existence. But our Godzilla: King of the Monsters coverage has been my favorite to not only see grow but help shepherd along the way. With just two trailers and a viral website, there's no end to potential features on Godzilla 2 - and we don't plan on stopping anytime soon.

MORE: Screen Rant's Top 10 Favorite Movies of 2018