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California Inundated with Rain this Week; Top Ten Most Watched CNN Videos of 2025; Ed Burns is Interviewed about "The Brothers McMullen." Aired 9:30-10a ET

Aired December 22, 2025 - 09:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[09:30:00]

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: AAA says the number of people driving up about two percent over this holiday season compared to this time last year, due in part because the average price of a gallon of gas has fallen below $3 a gallon, now $2.85.

We'll talk about airports now. There's -- this is the TSA terminal two security checkpoint precheck line. Clearly, a lot of heavy travelers this morning. Things moving pretty quickly. About five minutes is the average wait time here right now.

The big day is still ahead. We have already seen some huge days. About 2.8 million people screened at TSA checkpoints Friday, Saturday, Sunday. TSA says this coming Sunday will be the biggest of the holiday travel rush.

The good news is that things are relatively good. Weather always the x factor. Weather pretty good today, at least on the East Coast. The big concerns, according to the Federal Aviation Administration, the West Coast is an issue.

And then there may be some wind that throws a wrench into things in the New York area airports, Newark, LaGuardia, Kennedy and also Boston. So, be on the lookout for that.

But things, pretty good. I just checked FlightAware. Only 87 cancellations nationwide so far today. We're starting out the day in a good place, John.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, that's good to hear. Maybe because Christmas is later in the week, maybe people will sort of stagger -- seriously, like stagger their travel. No one day will cripple us. So, you know, fingers crossed here, Pete.

Pete Muntean, making sure your travel is safe at Reagan National Airport this morning.

MUNTEAN: That's right.

BERMAN: Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: So, related. It could be a dangerous and stormy week ahead for much of California, especially. A powerful system has already triggered flash flooding and road closures in the northern parts of the state. At least one person is already confirmed to have been killed in the flooding. And there is more weather on the way.

Let's get over to CNN's Derek Van Dam, who helps us track all of the travel and all of the -- all the other things just in a different way than Pete Muntean.

Derek, what are you seeing?

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, well, Kate, what Pete said, that California is the x factor in this entire Christmas travel holiday period. And it really is because right now we're getting bombarded by yet another atmospheric river. Remember, it was the Pacific Northwest last week. Now we're seeing it move into the northern parts of the state. This is Humboldt County. They had flooding earlier this weekend.

And this atmospheric river really means business because it's going to kind of get picked up by some upper level winds, help intensify the storm. And as we head into the middle of the week, perfect timing, just in time for Santa Claus to arrive, Christmas Eve into Christmas Day, the potential for serious flooding impacts and high snowfall totals in the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range exist.

Now, we've already packed over a half a foot of rainfall. That's liquid precipitation across the northern half of the state. Small but mighty, narrow window of heavy rainfall funneled right into the San Francisco By region right now. And that moves all the way into the Sierra Nevada crest.

But this flood map, this alert from the National Weather Service, really paints a picture here because you can see southern and central California included in flood watches. So, what's going on here? Well, a powerful atmospheric river that's going to tap into moisture from the eastern pacific will line up, and because of its particular trajectory, could cause serious flooding concerns.

Look at it for today. You can see across northern California, moving into the Central Valley for tomorrow. But by Wednesday, Christmas Eve, this area, the coastal range, including Los Angeles and some of the recent burn scars from last year's wildfires, could cause mudslides, rockslides, urban flooding and rapid rises in rivers.

So, this is the high res forecast radar imagery. So, what you're looking at is kind of the computer models doing its best to depict the heavy rain that is incoming. It only has the ability to take us through Wednesday, but we have the long range models that will take it from there into Thursday and Friday. Look at how this precipitation continues to batter the state.

So, snowfall here across the Sierra Nevada will be measured in feet, potentially eight to ten feet. No joke. But in terms of rainfall, impactful rainfall where you and I live, across the greater Los Angeles area, for instance, four to eight inches. And this could be a half a year's worth of rain in Los Angeles if some of these totals actually come into fruition.

So, the potential here for a very difficult travel period leading up to and during Christmas is very real for southern California.

Kate.

BOLDUAN: Absolutely. Derek, thank you so much for keeping an eye on all of it for us. Really appreciate it.

VAN DAM: You got it.

BOLDUAN: Coming up still for us, self-driving cars come to a halt. All to blame on a power outage. Why it's leading to the company behind the cars to make some quick changes.

And, the Grinch in handcuffs. What went down in Florida?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:39:06]

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: All right, police body camera footage capturing the moment a young man being questioned in a Walmart for shoplifting pulled out a gun. You see there. The man and the woman seen in the video were being processed for attempted shoplifting. That is when the 21-year-old pulled out a gun and pointed it directly at the officer. The officer, along with a store employee, you see there, tackled the man to the ground, disarming him. The man is charged now with attempted murder along with other charges.

And a big win for the Pittsburgh Steelers over the Detroit Lions. But that wasn't the only headline from that game. The other one came from the sidelines. Steelers wide receiver DK Metcalf's altercation with a Lions fan now under league review. In the second quarter, Metcalf went over to the Lions fan, who was front row, behind the bench there, you see what happens. He appears to grab the fan's shirt, pull him closer, and then swings on him. "The Detroit Free Press" spoke to the Lions fan.

[09:40:01]

He told them he called Metcalf by his full name. And that's why Metcalf confronted him. Metcalf did not speak with reporters afterwards. A league source tells CNN they will be reviewing the incident.

And this morning, the lights are back on in San Francisco, but widespread power outages apparently confused some driverless vehicles over the weekend. You can see this Waymo vehicle. It stops in the middle of a dark intersection. The power outages causing traffic lights to go dark, affecting the vehicles behavior. Waymo said it worked with city officials throughout the blackout. This is not what I had on my bingo card, that this would be a problem because of a blackout, but they temporarily suspended service.

And the Grinch getting himself into trouble again. It happened during the Orange County Sheriff's Office annual holiday celebration at a children's hospital. The sheriffs rappel down the side of the building for the kids to see. And when the Grinch tried to crash the fun, well, he got taken out of there in cuffs. But the kids seem to enjoy themselves.

Kate.

BOLDUAN: I'm loving this entire situation. Entire situation.

SIDNER: He might steal something. Got busted. BOLDUAN: I mean, this is what happens.

All right, so from the first American pope to a man being swallowed up by a whale. CNN's Boris Sanchez takes a look back at the top ten most watched CNN videos of 2025.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR (voice over): Number ten, Trump targets Iran. Hours after the United States began its precision airstrikes on three nuclear facilities, in an unprecedented aerial bombardment of Iran, the president spoke to the nation.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Tonight I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular military success.

SANCHEZ (voice over): In the aftermath, some members of Congress openly questioned the constitutionality of the strikes, while others, especially MAGA lawmakers, supported the administration.

Number nine, L.A. devastated. Satellite images showing the breadth and depth of the runaway Eaton Wildfire. The fast-moving flames this past January forcing thousands to flee their homes in search of higher and safer ground. Devastation like this will take years to rebuild.

Number eight, a shocking midair collision caught on tape. On January 29th of this year, an American Airlines flight, operated by American Eagle, and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter collided over the freezing Potomac River at night. The tragedy caught on tape. The jet was on final approach to Reagan National, while the helicopter had been performing a required flying evaluation. All 67 people aboard both aircrafts died.

Number seven, an American is pope. In May, shortly after the death of Pope Francis, the College of Cardinals elected their next leader. And to the surprise of many, the choice was this man, Chicago's very own cardinal, Robert Francis Prevost, the first Augustinian pope.

POPE LEO: I invite you to recognize the marvels that the Lord has done.

SANCHEZ (voice over): Even more surprising, he briefly spoke in English during his first mass.

Number six, hot mic. Justin Trudeau, who at the time was Canada's prime minister, overheard making a jaw-dropping admission to business leaders back in February, essentially telling them that President Trump's talk of making Canada a 51st U.S. state was no joke. So far, Canada remains Canada.

Number five. Cramer speaks out. Famed CNBC broadcaster Jim Cramer appearing on Erin Burnett's show earlier this year, admitting he was misled by the Trump administration's tariffs policy.

Listen.

JIM CARMER, FORMER CNBC BROADCASTER: Over and over again the president said, listen, it's going to be reciprocal. So, you do it. We do it. And that was going to be so great. And I really believed in it. And I feel like a sucker tonight.

SANCHEZ (voice over): Number four, swallowed whole. A father on a kayak captures the moment his son, Adrian, was briefly swallowed by a humpback whale off the coast of Chile. Adrian told CNN he didn't realize at first it was a whale and thought he just got caught up in a big wave.

ADRIAN: If the whale had hit me, it would be more dangerous.

SANCHEZ (voice over): What a story to tell his grandkids.

Number three, beauty influencer gunned down. Valeria Marquez was shot and killed by a man who entered her salon, all while on a TikTok livestream in Zapopan, Mexico. Her death sending shockwaves through a country grappling with frequent suspected cases of femicide.

Number two, Jimmy Kimmel. Speaking out after a brief suspension following controversial comments he made about conservative activist Charlie Kirk, Jimmy Kimmel returned to ABC late night to say he never intended to make light of Kirk's murder.

[09:45:08]

Also delivering powerful remarks about freedom of speech.

JIMMY KIMMEL, HOST, "JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE": This show is not important. What is important is that we get to live in a country that allows us to have a show like this.

SANCHEZ (voice over): And the number one viral video on CNN's countdown, the feud seen round the world.

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: Get out so --

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Wait a minute. No, no, you've done a lot of talking.

SANCHEZ (voice over): On the left, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, hoping to win more lethal aid from the president. On the right, President Trump, moments before he would launch into a verbal rampage against Zelenskyy.

Boris Sanchez, CNN, Washington. (END VIDEOTAPE)

SIDNER: All right, after the break, Ed Burns is here to talk about the long awaited follow-up to his 1995 Sundance hit, "The Brothers McMullen." Can you believe it's been 30 years?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:50:20]

BOLDUAN: You can consider this a long-awaited return. It was 30 years ago that we fell in love with the 1995 Indie hit "The Brothers McMullen," telling the story of Irish American brothers from New York and so much more.

Now, 30 years on, they are back with "The Family McMullen," taking on a whole new host of romantic hurdles and new family members.

Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What are our thoughts on Patty's boyfriend? I didn't know he was coming.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, neither did I. And for the record, I am not at all happy about it. Here's what I don't get. What is my daughter doing with this freaking guy?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why would you say something like that? He seems like a very nice young man.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because there's something about him I don't trust. And I can see it in his eyes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In his eyes?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's too preppy. You know, he's too put together. I don't like that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Put together is a problem?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, and, you know what, he's not particularly handsome, is he? You know, it just occurred to me, who does he remind you of? This guy right here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ha, ha, very funny.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: Ed Burns, writer, director and star of "The Family McMullen" is here with us.

It's great to have you.

ED BURNS, ACTOR WRITER AND FILMMAKER: Hey, guys. Thanks for having me.

BOLDUAN: Thanks for being here.

So, 30 years. Why did it take 30 years? Was there always a plan for a sequel?

BURNS: There was not. No. I would say about ten years ago I saw the second sequel to "Before Sunrise," "Before Midnight," the Linklater movie, and that was an Indie film that was also at Sundance in '95 when I was there. So, I thought, oh, maybe I should, you know, try and come up with an idea for McMullen. And quite honestly, couldn't crack it. And then five years ago I read an article about 20 something kids moving back in with their parents because the lack of affordable housing. And I thought, oh, maybe that's my way in. And five years later, here we are.

SIDNER: It's amazing. There's this really great scene that I think a lot of us remember from "Brothers McMullen," where you're like, I'm dating this girl but she's not Irish. And your mother says, well, then that's it. You got to stop.

BURNS: Yes.

SIDNER: And you're like, but I don't think I can. You tackle these sort of complex issues in a -- in a funny way, but they're complex issues. Are you doing that in this film as well?

BURNS: Yes. I mean what I -- what I've tried to do, I guess, with most of my films is, you know, I try and tell these sort of real grounded stories about real people, but infuse them with sort of humor in the way that most of our families and relationships are, right, you know? So, that's kind of been the goal.

SIDNER: Yes.

BERMAN: I was mentioning to you during the commercial that when I graduated college, which was '95, all my creative friends, we all wanted to be you. You were the archetype of what we all thought we should do.

BOLDUAN: And now?

BERMAN: I stupidly went into new.

BOLDUAN: And now?

BERMAN: Stupidly.

SIDNER: Foolish.

BERMAN: But, you know, you were such a renegade and an insurgent in the way you did it.

BURNS: Yes.

BERMAN: How different is it to be doing it 30 years later, you know, when you're kind of a big deal?

BURNS: Yes.

BERMAN: It's very different.

BURNS: It's a lot easier. You know, I made that first film for $25,000. Shot in the house I grew up in. And we shot 12 days over the course of eight months. So, I'd raise a couple of thousand dollars.

BOLDUAN: Oh, my God.

BURNS: You know, a two man crew and two actors. And we'd go into Central Park and shoot for a day, and then I'd have to figure out, how am I going to raise some more money to shoot next month.

So, this, obviously, very different experience. Yes.

BOLDUAN: That's so amazing. It's also -- so the movie is an exploration of family.

BURNS: Correct.

BOLDUAN: Both of the films. Your novel, which is now out in paperback, is an exploration in family in a different way, based on -- based on your family history. What is it about the dynamics of family that draw to you

BURNS: It's interesting. I -- you know, I think the -- the movies that inspired me when I was a kid in film school, I was always sort of drawn to sort of smaller character driven films, like this movie, Peter Bogdanovich's "Last Picture Show," which is about, you know, family and friends in a small town. That's a movie that kind of made me want to make movies.

So, I don't -- I don't really know, you know? It's like sometimes whatever -- when inspiration strikes that's what you write. And certainly the novel was another case of, wrote it during Covid. And, you know, my kids were at a certain age, which just kind of forced me to sort of look back on my childhood as I was sort of becoming an adolescent. So.

SIDNER: I'm excited to see Tracee Ellis Ross, who's in this, who had said, like, I grew up on "Brothers McMullen."

BURNS: Yes.

SIDNER: What is it about these films that really speak to people and that they remember. There are so many things. Is it that we just have so much in common with the realness of what you bring?

BURNS: Yes. You know, there's a writer named John O'Hara, who had a line. He said, like, what he tries to do is just kind of hold a mirror up to the world he sees and reflect it back honestly, right? So, like, I think that's been sort of my north star as a writer and filmmaker. And I think to that point, that's why people kind of connect to those characters, because they feel kind of real. They look like people you recognize.

[09:55:00]

SIDNER: They go, that's me or that's --

BURNS: Yes.

SIDNER: Oh, yes, I've had that conversation.

BERMAN: "Brothers McMullen," it was uncomfortable -- there were uncomfortable parts.

BURNS: Totally.

BERMAN: I mean the relationships were uncomfortable.

BURNS: Yes.

BERMAN: This feels a little more like a holiday. Like a feel good. I mean --

BURNS: Yes.

BERMAN: Intentionally so?

BURNS: I think, like, given the state of the world --

SIDNER: What do you mean?

BURNS: Yes, right. Exactly.

BOLDUAN: (INAUDIBLE) watch the last three hours of --

SIDNER: Stress you out a little. Yes.

BURNS: So I just -- really with this one, you know, the original is a comedy drama. This one, you know, has drama within it. But I really wanted to make kind of a life affirming, put a smile on your face for two hours movie. So, even in the writing of the screenplay, working with the actors, we kept looking like, where can we find the humor in an uncomfortable situation?

BOLDUAN: Love it. It's great to see you.

SIDNER: We need it.

BURNS: Good to see you too.

BOLDUAN: Thanks for coming and spending some time with us.

SIDNER: Thanks so much. It's great.

BOLDUAN: Happy holidays.

BURNS: Appreciate it. Thank you.

BOLDUAN: Ed Burns, the one and only, "The Family McMullen" is streaming right now on HBO Max.

BERMAN: And thank you all so much for joining us. Like one more window on the Advent calendar.

BOLDUAN: Fine -- fine -- and we're finally -- we're back together for maybe 24 seconds.

BERMAN: OK. I know.

SIDNER: Yes, 24. Yes.

BERMAN: We'll do a couple more shows before the holiday.

This has been CNN NEWS CENTRAL. "SITUATION ROOM" up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)