| 100% | BEYOND | 6 | "We must reach far ___ our own lifespans," dialogue from "Interstellar" that hints at the concept of time dilation |
| 39% | BEAM | 4 | "___ me up, Scotty," dialogue from "Star Trek" that hints at the concept of teleportation |
| 29% | CLOCK | 5 | Instrument that hints at the missing parts of certain answers in this puzzle |
| 28% | CPI | 3 | Economic statistic that hints at the cost of living: Abbr. |
| 28% | MONSTERSINC | 11 | 2001 Pixar movie that hints at the first parts of 20-, 33- and 40-Across |
| 27% | PEARSONS | 8 | Family that's at the heart of "This Is Us" |
| 26% | EDGE | 4 | Part of something that's the farthest from the middle |
| 25% | RICEKRISPIES | 12 | Breakfast brand since 1928 that hints at the starts of 20-, 33- and 43-Across |
| 25% | WHATATOOL | 9 | Common put-down that hints at the ends of 17-, 21-, 53- and 58-Across |
| 25% | CENTRAL | 7 | Time zone that runs through the middle of the US |
| 25% | LIBERTY | 7 | The Statue of ___, symbol of alliance that was a gift from France to the US |
| 25% | CAP | 3 | Red bit of attire that at times has the letters MAGA on it |
| 25% | SPEWALKING | 10 | Form of racing that requires one foot on the ground at all times |
| 24% | BRUNO | 5 | "We Don't Talk About ___," song from Disney's "Encanto" that spent more time at No. 1 on the charts than any other Disney song |
| 24% | UPON | 4 | At the time of |
| 24% | DURING | 6 | At the time of |
| 23% | KINGOFTHE | 9 | US animated television series featuring the voice talent of Mike Judge and Kathy Najimy that ran from 1997-2010 |
| 23% | NEMO | 4 | Point ___, spot that is the oceanic pole of inaccessibility and the most difficult to reach from land |
| 23% | PARTY | 5 | "___ in the U.S.A," hit song by Miley Cyrus from her album "The Time of Our Lives" |
| 23% | HOUSEOFCARDS | 12 | Hit Netflix show that hints at the theme hidden in the puzzle's borders |
| 23% | NAE | 3 | US org. that advised in 1971 that the Port Authority of NY and NJ not construct additional runways at JFK airport |
| 23% | FLASHFORWARD | 12 | Narrative device that peeks at the future ... and a hint to the start of 20-, 31-, and 48-Across |
| 23% | TELESCOPE | 9 | Notable invention from the 17th century, that is an assembly of lenses and allows us to look into space |
| 23% | LIFESPAN | 8 | The length of time from birth to death |
| 23% | FRANGLAIS | 9 | Hybrid linguistic term that hints at the answers to 17-, 25-, 36- and 51-Across |
| 23% | KENNEDY | 7 | Statesman Edward (also known as Ted) who, at the time of his death in 2009, was the fourth-longest-serving senator in US history |
| 23% | EVERSINCE | 9 | From the time that |
| 23% | SINCE | 5 | From the time of |
| 22% | LIS | 3 | Portal established by the US Dept. of Agric. that aims to get a better crop yield from your bean fields |