Christian nationalists want to turn America into a theocracy, a government under biblical rule.

If they gain more power, it could mean fewer rights for you.

I'm Heath Drusen and on the new season of Extremely American

I'll take you inside the movement. Listen to Extremely American from Boise State Public

Radio, part of the NPR Network.

The new movie Maxine, that's Maxine with three X's stars Mia Goth as an adult film actress who gets her big break in

Hollywood only to be revisited by horrors from her past.

It's the final film in a beloved horror trilogy that began with X just two years ago.

I'm Stephen Thompson and today we are talking about Maxine on Pop Culture Happy Hour from NPR.

Joining me today is NPR producer Mark Rivers.

Hey Mark, good to see you.

Also with us, Jordan Cruciola, she is a writer and producer and the host of the wonderful podcast feeling seen on the wonderful maximum fun.

Hey Jordan!

Hello, thank you so much for having me back.

It is such a pleasure to reconvene the panel we had to talk about X two years ago.

Coming full circle.

All right, well, this franchise has been jumping around chronologically.

The first movie X was set in the late 70s as it depicted a group of young hot people as they try to make a porno movie

only to get slaughtered one by one by an elderly couple in a remote farmhouse. A prequel called Pearl came out just a few months later and gave us that elderly couple's bloody origin story. Now Maxine is set in 1985, six years after the grisly events of X.

The actress Maxine Minks, again played by Mia Goth,

is now in LA, where she works in adult entertainment

and tries to break into mainstream acting.

...