Vinson Cunningham
Vinson Cunningham joined The New Yorker as a staff writer in 2016. Since 2018, he has served as a critic for the magazine, writing about theatre, television, and more. He was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for criticism in 2024 and 2025, and was awarded the George Jean Nathan Award for Dramatic Criticism for 2021-2022. And, in 2020, he was a finalist for a National Magazine Award for his Profile of the comedian Tracy Morgan. He teaches at the Yale School of Art and Columbia University’s School of the Arts, and is a co-host of Critics at Large, The New Yorker’s weekly podcast about culture and the arts. His début novel, “Great Expectations,” came out in 2024.
Sterling K. Brown’s Upstanding Archetype
In Hulu’s soapy “Washington Black,” about an early-nineteenth-century slave who escapes to Halifax, Brown rises above the material.
Late Night’s Last Laugh
The cancellation of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” raised eyebrows, but the genre is not what it was in Johnny Carson’s heyday. What does it still have to offer us?
Malcolm-Jamal Warner and the Lessons of Theo Huxtable
The actor, who died last week, carried the burden of representing the meritocratic Black boy par excellence, and made it look easy.
What the Cancellation of Stephen Colbert’s “Late Show” Means
CBS and its parent company, Paramount, have set an end date for one of the last public pipelines to some version of the truth.
The Trophy Abs and Soul Ties of “Love Island USA”
The Peacock reality show, filmed in Fiji, offers a parallel America in which nearly naked contestants attempt to pair up and the audience votes on the winning couple.
“Eddington” and the American Berserk
Ari Aster’s new film attempts to capture the particular brain-breaking turmoil of May, 2020. Can it—or any work of art—measure up to the craziness of real life?
What Do Commercials About A.I. Really Promise?
If human workers don’t have to read, write, or even think, it’s unclear what’s left for them to do.
“Materialists,” “Too Much,” and the Modern Rom-Com
Romantic comedies tend to reflect their eras’ attitudes toward women and relationships. What do new works in the genre have to tell us about sex and love today?
The Diva Is Dead, Long Live the Diva
We’ve worshipped divinely talented but demanding women for centuries. In an era of careful language and online backlash, is there still room for the diva?
Why We Turn Grief Into Art
In dark times, many novelists, poets, and performers turn to their work to process and express what they’re feeling. What do these texts born of tragedy offer their audience?
Our Romance with Jane Austen
The author’s novels are critiques of Regency England’s high society. Why, two hundred and fifty years after her birth, does her work resonate so strongly with modern audiences?
“Mountainhead” and the Age of the Pathetic Billionaire
Extreme wealth has long been an obsession within American culture—but Jesse Armstrong’s new film reflects a sea change in the way we view the über-rich.
Peace Out, Knicks
Watching the New York Knickerbockers this season felt like being on a rollercoaster whose entire path was a vertiginous drop.
Rashid Johnson’s Own “Poem for Deep Thinkers”
The artist’s sprawling survey at the Guggenheim reveals an intellect unfolding and a life under way.
Lessons from “Sesame Street”
The long-running children’s show is one of the last remaining pieces of American monoculture. But after a half century of change, is “Sesame Street” still the same place we know and love?
The Emotional Seesaw of the Knicks’ Playoff Run
After powering through to the Eastern Conference Finals, New York’s Knickerbockers raised hopes in Game One—then caved to the Indiana Pacers in the final seconds.
The Grand Spectacle of Pope Week
Robert Francis Prevost’s election to the papacy has captivated audiences at the Vatican and online alike. How did the Pope become a pop-cultural symbol?
I Need a Critic: May, 2025, Edition
The hosts of Critics at Large issue recommendations on TV shows to watch while eating, how to ease the guilt of unread books, and texts to take the edge off of current events.
The Most Important Job at the Met Gala
From the daily newsletter: capturing the dandies. Plus: the hazards of being a New York City pigeon; and Elon Musk’s supercomputer is polluting Memphis.
Why I Can’t Quit the New York Post
The city’s least self-conscious, Rupert Murdoch-owned daily newspaper sticks to its story, new information be damned, yet holds real clout in liberal New York.
Sterling K. Brown’s Upstanding Archetype
In Hulu’s soapy “Washington Black,” about an early-nineteenth-century slave who escapes to Halifax, Brown rises above the material.
Late Night’s Last Laugh
The cancellation of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” raised eyebrows, but the genre is not what it was in Johnny Carson’s heyday. What does it still have to offer us?
Malcolm-Jamal Warner and the Lessons of Theo Huxtable
The actor, who died last week, carried the burden of representing the meritocratic Black boy par excellence, and made it look easy.
What the Cancellation of Stephen Colbert’s “Late Show” Means
CBS and its parent company, Paramount, have set an end date for one of the last public pipelines to some version of the truth.
The Trophy Abs and Soul Ties of “Love Island USA”
The Peacock reality show, filmed in Fiji, offers a parallel America in which nearly naked contestants attempt to pair up and the audience votes on the winning couple.
“Eddington” and the American Berserk
Ari Aster’s new film attempts to capture the particular brain-breaking turmoil of May, 2020. Can it—or any work of art—measure up to the craziness of real life?
What Do Commercials About A.I. Really Promise?
If human workers don’t have to read, write, or even think, it’s unclear what’s left for them to do.
“Materialists,” “Too Much,” and the Modern Rom-Com
Romantic comedies tend to reflect their eras’ attitudes toward women and relationships. What do new works in the genre have to tell us about sex and love today?
The Diva Is Dead, Long Live the Diva
We’ve worshipped divinely talented but demanding women for centuries. In an era of careful language and online backlash, is there still room for the diva?
Why We Turn Grief Into Art
In dark times, many novelists, poets, and performers turn to their work to process and express what they’re feeling. What do these texts born of tragedy offer their audience?
Our Romance with Jane Austen
The author’s novels are critiques of Regency England’s high society. Why, two hundred and fifty years after her birth, does her work resonate so strongly with modern audiences?
“Mountainhead” and the Age of the Pathetic Billionaire
Extreme wealth has long been an obsession within American culture—but Jesse Armstrong’s new film reflects a sea change in the way we view the über-rich.
Peace Out, Knicks
Watching the New York Knickerbockers this season felt like being on a rollercoaster whose entire path was a vertiginous drop.
Rashid Johnson’s Own “Poem for Deep Thinkers”
The artist’s sprawling survey at the Guggenheim reveals an intellect unfolding and a life under way.
Lessons from “Sesame Street”
The long-running children’s show is one of the last remaining pieces of American monoculture. But after a half century of change, is “Sesame Street” still the same place we know and love?
The Emotional Seesaw of the Knicks’ Playoff Run
After powering through to the Eastern Conference Finals, New York’s Knickerbockers raised hopes in Game One—then caved to the Indiana Pacers in the final seconds.
The Grand Spectacle of Pope Week
Robert Francis Prevost’s election to the papacy has captivated audiences at the Vatican and online alike. How did the Pope become a pop-cultural symbol?
I Need a Critic: May, 2025, Edition
The hosts of Critics at Large issue recommendations on TV shows to watch while eating, how to ease the guilt of unread books, and texts to take the edge off of current events.
The Most Important Job at the Met Gala
From the daily newsletter: capturing the dandies. Plus: the hazards of being a New York City pigeon; and Elon Musk’s supercomputer is polluting Memphis.
Why I Can’t Quit the New York Post
The city’s least self-conscious, Rupert Murdoch-owned daily newspaper sticks to its story, new information be damned, yet holds real clout in liberal New York.