Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi has appeared at Final Fantasy XIV FanFest playing the game with a custom Xbox controller.
Posted to Twitter by Genki_JPN, the controller appears to be an Xbox Elite Controller with a chatpad attached, although Sakaguchi says he removed most of the buttons so he doesn’t hit one by mistake.
Final Fantasy 14 FanFest is currently taking place from London’s Excel Center.
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According to Xbox, the Series X version of the game will support 4K graphics, while both the Series X and Series S versions will benefit from fast loading times.
The Expanded Free Trial, which is available on PC and PlayStation consoles, will also be applicable on Xbox too.
This means players will be able to play through the entirety of the base game A Realm Reborn, as well as its first two expansions Heavensward and Stormblood, up to level 70 with no restrictions on playtime.
Once players reach level 70, they’ll then have to pay a monthly fee to continue playing the game.
While the game is mainly an online multiplayer adventure, Square Enix has been implementing a system called Duty Support, which lets players take on content with a party of NPC allies instead of real players.
According to Xbox, by the time the game’s open beta launches the Duty Support system will cover all the main story dungeons from A Realm Reborn and the four current expansions, meaning players will be able to play through the main story content solo.
The news marks the end of a lengthy effort by Xbox boss Phil Spencer to bring Final Fantasy 14 to Xbox consoles.
Dusty Frances Street, one of the first female disc jockeys on the West Coast, died Saturday in Eugene, Ore. She was 77.
She was most recently the host of SiriusXM Deep Tracks, but is best known for her time working at KROQ-FM, known as K-Rock. The station became a force in punk and new wave music in the late ’70s into the 1980s.
“We have lost one of our own. Dusty Street has passed away after 77 joyous trips around the sun. And yes, Dusty Street was her real name,” SiriusXM Deep Tracks, Street’s most recent employer, shared Sunday in a Facebook post.
“Dusty was one of the first female rock jocks on the West Coast, working at KMPX and KSAN in San Francisco from 1967 through 1978 before heading to Los Angeles, where she held court in the evenings from 1979 through 1996 on KROQ. … We are heartbroken, Fly Low Dear Friend and Avoid the Radar.”
After some time at smaller stations, Street joined KROQ in 1978. She briefly left KROQ in 1980 and spent time at local rock stations KLOS and KWST, before returning to anchor KROQ’s evening programming from 1981 to 1989.
Street departed KROQ in 1989, claiming that she was a “renegade” to the increasingly tightened programming demanded. She also was a vehement opponent of the Parents Music Resoure Center, which was then attempting to impose a ratings system on music recordings.
She landed on her feet in Cleveland at the Rock Hall of Fame, joining upstart SIriusXM on its fifth floor studios.
Veteran KLOS DJ Geno Michellini posted on Facebook regarding Street’s death.
“I have been in Eugene the last two days at Dusty Street’s bedside. The numerous afflictions that she has been so indomitably fighting these last years finally caught up to her. I am writing with a broken heart to say that Dusty left us tonight,” Michellini wrote. “She died peacefully, quietly and surrounded by love in a beautifully serene location overlooking the most beautiful lake you could ever want. As befitting the queen that she was.
“Tonight I lost one of the best friends I ever had and the world lost a radio and music legend … She was all that and so much more. There will never be another Dusty Street. The queen is gone, but she’ll never be forgotten.”
This weekend, Reese Witherspoon gathered up all of her friends for her Hello Sunshine media company’s first-ever Shine Away event, which was basically just… an opportunity for Witherspoon to gather up all of her friends—including Jennifer Garner, Mindy Kaling, and Tracee Ellis Ross (plus women who aren’t on the front-facing side of the entertainment industry)—and have them talk about their lives and their work and their philosophies about life and work.
Tony Danza made John Stamos’ sexual nightmares come true
Naturally, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter, Witherspoon also talked about those things and what it’s like to be a woman in Hollywood, but at one point she made an interesting observation about her career and what kinds of things people expect from her. “I’m not meant to be doing dark, heavy, intense, horror, gore, darkness movies,” she suggested, adding, “People like to see me do light movies.”
There are a few interesting things about this, starting with the fact that she specifically says “movies,” which means Big Little Lies, Little Fires Everywhere, and The Morning Show(which is arguably dark, right?) apparently don’t count. Does she hold movies in a different regard than television? That’s interesting, if so! But at the same time, she doesn’t say this is how she has always approached her acting, just that it’s something she has realized about her career, which means she’s not necessarily disavowing a movie like Devil’s Knot, for example, but perhaps she recognized that she gets better feedback when she’s playing a singing pig or Elle Woods.
In the end, though, Witherspoon has made peace with all of this, saying that choosing only to make “light movies” won’t “put you in the cool kids club,” but she doesn’t care. “I don’t want to be in the cool kids club, I want to make optimistic stuff that makes girls excited to be women in this world,” she said. And, really, isn’t not caring if you’re cool the coolest thing of all?
Killers Of The Flower Moon (Apple), Taylor Swift (Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images)Graphic: The A.V. Club
Surprising probably no one, The Eras Tourmovie has won the weekend at the domestic box office again, adding another $31 million to a total that’s now over $100 million after two weeks, but it’s actually down 66.6 percent from last week (which is not a great drop, though third place’s The Exorcist: Believeris probably wishing it were the one associated with such an evil number). Between those two movies is Killers Of The Flower Moon, which opened to $23 million and was directed by legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese—a man who will, unfortunately, soon be completely forgotten by history. (Apropos of nothing, there are no comic book movies in the top 10 this week.)
The A.V. Clubs weekly film round up
In fourth place is PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie, which seems like it should have made more money by now (it made $4.4 this weekend and has $56 million after four weeks). And then, what’s this? What’s this? There’s something in the air, and it’s a re-release of The Nightmare Before Christmas, which finished up the top five with $4.1 million.
The bottom five of the top 10 is all movies that have been on the charts for a while, none of which are doing anything particularly interesting: Saw X, The Creator, A Haunting In Venice, The Blind, and The Nun II. There are two fun things happening further down the charts, though, with Dicks: The Musical opening a little wider and jumping from 24th to 13th place (it made almost 300 percent more money than last week!) and with Barbie and Oppenheimer being reunited down in 15th and 16th (respectively) 14 weeks after they debuted together.
Netflix’s adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s seminal comic, The Sandman, was hugely successful when it premiered in summer 2022. Chronicling the trials and tribulations of Dream (Tom Sturridge) across his vast existence, ruling over the domain we all enter when we sleep, the show will officially return for more episodes based on multiple comic volumes.
With a reported eight episodes, season 2 started filming in June 2023. But, of course, the production has been put on pause due to the ongoing WGA writer’s strike and the SAG-AFTRA strike throughout Hollywood.
Featured Videos – Article Continues Below…
Before filming was stopped, we got our first glimpse of new and returning cast members, giving us insight into the stories the new season is covering.
New and Rumored Cast Members in The Sandman Season 2
Indya Moore as Wanda
Before filming was halted due to the strikes, fans could see some sneaky footage. One behind-the-scenes photo shows Pose star Indya Moore on set alongside Tom Sturridge and Kirby Howell-Baptiste.
Fans have been wondering which character Moore is portraying. So far, the most popular theory is Wanda. Moore is transgender and non-binary, much like the character of Wanda.
This casting is to be officially confirmed by Netflix.
We’ve also spotted Orpheus on set too, although the name of the actor has yet to be revealed. Some fans have pointed out that the actor appears to be Ruairi O’Connor — we’ll have to wait for Netflix to confirm this. Either way, he looks perfectly cast.
Amber Rose Revah (Character unknown)
Amber Rose Revah
Most recently, Redanian Intelligence revealed that Marvel’s The Punisher star Amber Rose Revah has joined the cast for season 2. The news is backed up by looking at her Spotlight CV, where Sandman features in her works. Her role is currently under wraps. Some of the most popular theories suggest that she could portray Titania or Eurydice. Let’s wait and see!
This casting has not been confirmed by Netflix yet.
Charlotte Bate (Character unknown)
Per her profile on The Artist’s Partnership, Charlotte Bates has joined the cast of season 2. Her role is unknown, although her profile lists her character as Tally; a name unfamiliar with fans of the comics. Chances are this character could be completely original to the show, or the name listed is a placeholder name. Fans can already visualise her as Persephone.
Bates’ TV roles include the recurring part of Michelle in Casualty and Bea in Beaumont. She also featured in I Think We’re Alone Now (2021).
This casting has not been confirmed by Netflix yet.
Daphne Alexander (Character unknown)
Incidentally, Daphne Alexander has previously worked on Casualty like her new co-star Charlotte Bate. According to Redanian Intelligence, her character’s name is Bromie, although this could well be a codename as the name doesn’t appear in the Sandman comics. She has had credits in a number of films over the years, most notably Sergeant (2023) and Milnore (2023).
This casting has not been confirmed by Netflix yet.
Esme Creed-Miles (Character unknown)
Esme Creed-Miles is the daughter of Samantha Morton, who voiced Urania Blackwell in Audible’s The Sandman comic book. The 23-year-old actress has credits in HANNA and Dark Life (2017). No roles have been revealed yet, but she appears to be a perfect option for Delirium. Only time will tell.
We have reached out to Independent Talent Group who did not respond for a request to comment.
This casting has not been confirmed by Netflix yet.
Let’s start with the obvious. Yes, Tom Sturridge will return as the titular Morpheus, the Dream Lord, in new episodes of The Sandman. Sturridge has been spotted on set filming new episodes before the show’s production was shut down due to the WGA writer’s strike and the more recent actor’s strike.
The images, shared by Mail Online, show Sturridge filming what appears to be the story “The Song of Orpheus” from the comics.
Moreover, a more recent capture shows him filming a funeral scene alongside Kirby Howell-Baptiste (Death).
Kirby Howell-Baptiste (Death)
Kirby Howell-Baptiste only made one appearance in The Sandman season one. However, in just half an episode, she made a pretty big impression.
In “The Sound of Her Wings,” Death met with her brother Dream and made him join her as she went about her duties, accompanying people to the afterlife. It was heartfelt and immensely touching, proving to be one of the highlights of the series. And later in the episode, she granted Hob Gadling (Ferdinand Kingsley) eternal life, so that Dream could see how he fares over the centuries.
Looking at the comics, it’s fair to say that her role will be more significant. In fact, Kirby Howell-Baptiste is one of the few actors that we’ve seen on set filming the new season, looking as cool as ever:
Despite not being spotted on set yet, Gwendoline Christie’s Lucifer will play a major part in the new season. Without getting into spoilers, the entire volume “Season of Mists” takes place due to Lucifer’s actions.
In the final scene of season one, Lucifer vowed to take revenge on Morpheus their battle in which the Dream Lord reclaimed his helm. Lucifer promised to “bring him to his knees” after seemingly hatching a plan with Azazel.
Mason Alexander Park (Desire) and Donna Preston (Despair)
While their roles aren’t exactly crucial in the stories covered in season 2, Mason Alexander Park’s Desire and Donna Preston’s Despair will certainly make a few appearances.
Perhaps the most exciting upcoming Desire scene of all comes in the beginning of the “Season of Mists” story arc. In the prologue, Destiny calls an Endless family meeting, and Desire causes a whole lot of chaos at the dinner table.
Speaking to Winter Is Coming about their hopes for the new season; Mason cited the Endless family meeting as one of their most anticipated scenes. “I’m really looking forward to many moments in the comics, but seeing the family together for the first time in “Season of Mists” is super exciting to me,” they said. “There’s something very Succession about the whole thing, and who doesn’t want to be the person making all the fuss at a dinner party!”
In addition, we can expect Despair’s appearance to change slightly in the new season. Neil Gaiman previously hinted that the team may have missed the mark with her appearance, which included a tatty brown shirt and crocs. “Mostly, what I hope is that the next time you see Despair on the screen you won’t think of her as frumpy, depressed and unloved,” he wrote on Tumblr. “She isn’t in the comics, and I think we missed what we were aiming for in Sandman season 1.”
Neither Mason Alexander Park nor Donna Preston have not been spotted on set yet, but we’ll let you know as seen as we get a glimpse. Watch this space!
Vivienne Acheampong (Lucienne)
Pictures: Netflix
Lucienne, a twist on the male character Lucien in the comics, proved to be a clear fan favorite in season 1. A librarian and Dream’s most trusted advisor, Lucienne is loyal and trustworthy, and is not afraid to confront her boss at times.
Similar to season one, Lucienne is expected to make several appearances throughout the new episodes as a series regular.
Funnily enough, Acheampong wants in on the iconic “Endless meeting” scene, despite her character not appearing in it in the comics. “If the Endless had a family get-together, I’d love Lucienne to just be there, being like, ‘Guys, I’ve come to be a mediator, mentor, whatever you need me to be,’ But I would just love to see all those siblings together, I think it would be incredible,” she told EW.
Mervyn Pumpkinhead (Mark Hamill)
Mark Hamill as Mervyn Pumpkinhead was one of the most surprising castings in the show. As the resident janitor of the Dreaming, it’s Merv’s job to keep the kingdom in good shape. He’s not afraid to speak his mind either. Despite being a sentient pumpkin, he is presented as a voice of reason and sanity amongst all the craziness.
Again, like Lucienne, we can expect Mervyn to pop up every now and again. A large portion of the Season of Mists storyline takes place in Dream’s palace, where he gets lots of visitors, so we’ll probably see Lucienne and Merv getting very stressed out!
Patton Oswalt (Matthew the Raven)
Speaking of voice work, Patton Oswalt will no doubt return to the recording booth to voice Matthew the Raven, Dream’s loyal messenger raven.
Based on the biblical characters, Cain and Abel are very much comic relief characters in Sandman. Look no further than the numerous times Cain murders Abel, in increasingly gruesome ways. In season one, they made two appearances. Firstly, we saw the death of Gregory and the hatching of Goldie the gargoyle in episode 2. And then later on, they reappeared while Lucienne was performing a census of the Dream Realm.
Looking ahead to when we’ll next see them, they notably put on a magic show for visitors to Dream’s palace. Moreover, there’s no doubt they’ll show up in other scenes, too.
Ferdinand Kingsley (Hob Gadling)
Ferdinand Kingsley will presumably return as Hob Gadling in the new season. In the comics, he makes sporadic appearances throughout the series, so don’t expect anything more than that. Without going into spoiler territory, in Season of Mists, we see Dream meet with Hob once more.
Deborah Oyelade (Nada) and Ernest Kingsley Junior (Kai’ckul)
Nada was an ancient African queen who falls in love with Dream. She makes one brief appearance in season one, in the episode “A Hope in Hell,” in which Morpheus travels to Hell to reclaim his stolen Helm. While travelling to Lucifer’s palace, Dream reunites with Nada (Deborah Oyelade) who is shown to be imprisoned in Hell. She begs him to release her, but he does not. In this scene, Dream is shown as Kai’ckul, played by Ernest Kingsley Junior. Of course, the appearance of the Endless shifts depending on those who see them.
It is currently unclear whether The Sandman season 2 will cover Dream and Nada’s backstory. The story, “Tales in the Sand,” could’ve been covered in season one, given that the comic falls in the beginning of The Doll’s House story arc. Taking into account that the show has already cast Nada and Kai’ckul, the writers seem intent on covering their story in full.
Nada makes further appearances in the Season of Mists story arc, which will be covered in season 2.
Melissanthi Mahut (Calliope)
We already know that season 2 is covering the The Song of Orpheus storyline from the behind-the-scenes photos from filming. This means that Melissanthi Mahut will no doubt reprise her role as Calliope. The character, who is the mother of Orpheus by Dream, is present at his wedding to Eurydice.
Calliope was introduced into The Sandman in episode 11, where she was abused by Erasmus Fry and later Richard Madoc, who used her powers as a Muse to create great stories.
Characters that The Sandman is casting for season 2!
We’ll keep you updated on the latest casting news. While we don’t have a lot so far, The Sandman is officially casting the characters listed below:
Delirium — Formerly Delight, Delirium is the youngest sister of the Endless. Neil Gaiman has previously confirmed that the character has already been cast.
Destiny — The eldest of the Endless, Destiny knows everything that has happened and will happen.
Destruction — Strong and powerful, Destruction is member of the Endless who abandoned his duties and now lives in peace and seclusion.
Thor — The Norse Storm God, Thor is quick to anger and immensely powerful. You don’t want to pick a fight with him.
Loki — Loki is the trickster brother of Thor. Don’t underestimate him, you’ll never know what he’s planning.
Odin — The father of Thor and Loki.
Auberon — The King of the Fairies.
Titania — The Queen of the Fairies.
Be sure to keep checking back for casting announcements. We will keep you updated right here!
The heartfelt comedy is again written and directed by Sunny Chan, who enjoyed breakout success with “Table for Six,” a comedy-drama that starts with an awkward family reunion dinner where past and present romantic relationships are tangled and almost anything that could go wrong did.
For the sequel. Chan has reunited the original cast – Stephy Tang, Louis Cheung, Ivana Wong, Lin Min Chen, Peter Chan Charm Man – for three weddings and their aftermath. “Marriage isn’t just about two individuals; it involves a whole family of aunts, uncles, and cousins,” says Edko,
Now in production, the film is being produced by Bill Kong, Ivy Ho and Tang Wai But. Rights will also be pitched at the American Film Market.
The firm is also selling rights to “The Lyricist Wannabe,” a drama about a school student with frustrated ambitions to be a song-writer. The film is directed by Norris Wong (“My Prince Edward”) and produced by Wong Hui (“Let It Ghost”). It stars Chung Suet-ying, Eric Kot, Anson Chan, Tang Lai-yin and Sabrina Ng. Completed but unreleased, it has picked up two Golden Horse Awards nominations for Norris’s adapted screenplay and for Chung as leading actress.
Edko principal, Bill Kong has a long-standing relationship with mainland Chinese director Zhang Yimou and the firm is also representing rights to Zhang’s “Full River Red,” the highest grossing film of the year in China. Zhang is also to be honored with a lifetime achievement award during the Tokyo Festival.
The TIFFCOM-AFM sales slate also contains “A Guilty Conscience,” the legal drama that, like “Table for Six” was last year part of a remarkable rebound for Hong Kong movies after several fallow years and the growing industry problems that were further exacerbated by the territory’s harsh COVID lockdowns.
Caroline Polachek’s “Dang” is an eccentric, dizzyingly self-referential spectacle that winks at her penchant for theatrics, like screaming at geese in Hyde Park. Over a metallic, lockstep beat that recalls early SOPHIE, she once again strings together nonsensical imagery, namechecking Mary Poppins and lamenting spilt milk. Violins cascade. A muffled sample worms into your ears. Polachek’s deadpan yet insistent “dang” dots the track throughout. And then she hits you with that scream. Just when you thought she was done with the surprises, the unmistakable baby giggle from “Bunny Is a Rider”—that of Nico Harle, co-producer Danny L Harle’s young daughter—makes a reprise in the closing seconds. “Dang” is notably starker than most of Polachek’s other work and more beguiling, a pile-up of clues that gesture toward a new mystery.
As an individual who believes in the vast possibilities that could occur in the universe, I love films that expand the boundaries of my thoughts and perspectives. No other genre stretches my imagination like science fiction. Unconstrained by the realities of past and present, sci-fi films at Raindance explore what could be and asks one of my favourite questions — “Why not?”
From serving as a warning to humanity of what could happen if we continue down certain paths, to inspiring us to push the limits of human innovation, sci-fi films allow viewers to experience infinite possibilities. I look forward to being fascinated by the creativity of these sci-fi films being screened at the Raindance Film Festival this year:
November 3,v6:00 pm Vue Piccadilly
Director: Robert Hloz | Poland / Serbia / Czech Republic / Slovakia 2023 | 111 mins | UK Premiere
with Q&A with the director
It’s 2041 and a breakthrough in science has given humanity the ability to bring victims of a violent crime back to life by backing up their brain every two days. This allows an ambitious, young detective the opportunity to solve a case of a murdered couple when one of them returns.
Director: Hanna Västinsalo | Finland 2022| 109 minutes | UK Premiere
Content Warnings – Suggested/Simulated Sex
Sci-Fi at Raindance
Want to Walk a Red Carpet?
Fresh off of Venice, Jack Huston’s directorial debut tells the story of a once-renowned boxer who takes a redemptive journey through his past and present on the day of his first fight since he left prison.
The film stars Michael Pitt alongside a cast including Ron Perlman, Joe Pesci and a cameo from Steve Buscemi which leads us right into our star-studded Opening Night Party.
Red carpets, literal icons, a 1920s swing band and an open bar – what’s to miss?
Limited tickets are available for our Opening Gala, now on sale at an early bird price. Snag them while you can!
Fiona Wan, based in Toronto, Canada, is an emerging film producer, an accountant with a legal background, and the Raindance Toronto hub manager. She combines her passion for film and her expertise in helping businesses to aid filmmakers with their creative endeavours.
Black Friday deals at Best Buy are some of the most popular offers come November thanks to record-low prices on TVs, laptops, Apple devices, appliances, and more. While the retailer just announced the official dates for its Black Friday sale, you can shop early deals right now, and I’m rounding up the 21 best offers below.
While you’ll find cheap laptops, iPads, air fryers, and robot vacuums in Best Buy’s early Black Friday deals, the best offers are on TVs, with lowest-ever prices on some of this year’s best-selling displays. Some Examples include LG’s all-new 65-inch C2 OLED TV on sale for $1,599.99, this Samsung 50-inch 4K smart TV down to just $299.99, and this 48-inch LG A2 OLED TV on sale for $599.99 – a new record-low price.
Below, I’ve listed the most popular sale categories from Best Buy if you’d like to jump straight to the site, followed by more of today’s best early Black Friday deals. Keep in mind that many of today’s offers include record-low prices, so if you want to avoid the madness of Best Buy’s official Black Friday deals event, you should take advantage of today’s bargains now before it’s too late.
UPDATED, 7:45 AM: “Two objects cannot occupy the same point in space at the same moment in time.” So begins the official trailer for Michael Mann’s Ferrari, which finds automotive mogul Enzo Ferrari at a personal and professional crisis point in his life. “The corner races at you, you have perhaps a crisis of identity,” says Adam Driver’s Ferrari. “Am I a sportsman, or a competitor?” he asks.
Facing bankruptcy and a marriage unraveling, Ferrari’s best hope of saving his legacy and his failing business is to win the treacherous Mille Miglia 1,000-mile race across Italy.
Neon releases the film on December 25. Watch the official trailer above and original teaser below.
PREVIOUSLY, August 30: “If you get into one of my cars, you get in to win.”
Adam Driver speaks those words in the first teaser for Michael Mann’s Ferrari — and those are the only words spoken in it. The rest is revving engines, shifting gears and more revving engines. Watch it above.
It is the summer of 1957. Behind the spectacle of Formula 1, ex-racer Enzo Ferrari (Driver) is in crisis. Bankruptcy threatens the factory he and his wife, Laura (Penélope Cruz), built from nothing 10 years earlier. Their volatile marriage has been battered by the loss of their son a year earlier, and Ferrari struggles to acknowledge his son with Lina Lardi (Shailene Woodley). Meanwhile, his drivers’ passion to win pushes them to the edge as they launch into the treacherous 1,000-mile race across Italy, the Mille Miglia.
Patrick Dempsey, Sarah Gordon, Gabriel Leone and Jack O’Connell also star in Mann’s vehicle, which was scripted by Troy Kennedy Martin. The pic has its world premiere Thursday at the Venice Film Festival, followed by a Christmas Day stateside release via Neon.
Ferrari got a SAG-AFTRA interim agreement this month, allowing its stars to promote it on the festival circuit, which also includes a closing-night slot at the New York Film Festival in mid-October. STX Entertainment and its partners are distributing internationally.
Ryan Reynolds and Rob McLuhan run Wrexham, arguably the most popular Welsh side. The duo’s takeover has helped the Red Dragons amass a significant fan base throughout the past two seasons. While the Hollywood A-listers have done wonders for the team, the most impressive has been bringing Paul Mullin. The English striker has been a key contributor to all that the Welsh side has achieved over the past two seasons. And the Red Dragons are well aware of it.
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Mullin is slowly getting back on track with Wrexham after recovering from a severe injury. As the player slowly settles into the football division, the latest fixture surely put him to the test.
Wrexham Vs. Bradford takes Paul Mullin for a ride
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To everyone’s surprise, Wrexham’s run in the second division has been more dramatic than expected. Every fixture of the Red Dragons has given the fans a run for their money. Their recent fixture against Bradford was no exception, as Adam Wilson scored an unexpectedly late equalizer for the Bantams. However, it was not the goal but the undenied penalty to Paul Mullin that hugely upset the fans and players alike. Following the game, Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson gave a furious interview as he asked “for better protection in open play for Mulls.“
As per reports by Goal, Parkinson revealed how the foul was a hundred percent penalty. The opposition defenders dragged and pulled down the star striker in the box near the first half. Parkinson further admitted that the Wrexham talisman suffered in the second half as well. The Wrexham boss spoke, “I thought he got pushed into the hoardings in the second half, but it is a physical game.” Meanwhile, Reynolds, who loves Mullin and calls him his favorite striker, has yet to give a statement.
Mullin has always been a target among the opposition teams in both leagues because of his incredible goal-scoring abilities. While the star striker has never been very outspoken, the latest fixture indeed upset him.
Ryan Reynolds’ favorite striker speaks after controversial Bradford City fixture
Paul Mullin was incredibly unhappy about the unfair treatment during their latest fixture. At the same time, the star striker had a commendable start, with Mullin giving the Red Dragons an early lead. However, for the rest of the game, the talisman had to struggle. Following the game, Mullin took to Twitter as he expressed disappointment for securing only a single point in the dramatic fixture.
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The star striker revealed “feeling gutted” for not being able to bag the three points. However, he praised the away supporters for their continuous support of the Red Dragons. The latest results have surely made the challenge for promotion more difficult for Wrexham. They currently stand at the fourth position with 24 points so far.
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Do you think Mullin deserved a penalty? Comment down below.
In its second weekend, “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” — released through a direct distribution deal with AMC Theatres — proved that Swift’s star power was just too much for Paramount Pictures and Apple’s debuting epic drama “Killers of the Flower Moon.”
Swift’s record-breaking concert film scored $31 million for a North American total of $129.8 million, while Martin Scorsese’s Leonardo DiCaprio-led “Killers of the Flower Moon” pumped out $23 million, according to estimates from measurement firm Comscore.
“Killers of the Flower Moon” matched early box-office projections that estimated that the film would bring in $20 million to $30 million in the United States and Canada.
Internationally, the three-and-a-half-hour-long movie brought in $44 million, according to studio estimates.
The crime drama marks the sixth collaboration between Scorsese and DiCaprio and landed the third-best opening weekend in the duo’s working history. The film was bested by “Shutter Island,” which scored $41 million in 2010, and the Oscar-winning mob movie “The Departed,” which garnered $27 million in 2006. “Killers of the Flower Moon” outperformed 2013’s “The Wolf of Wall Street” ($18 million), 2002’s “Gangs of New York” ($9.1 million) and 2004’s “The Aviator” ($858,000).
Rounding out the top four at the domestic box office this weekend were Universal Pictures’ ”The Exorcist: Believer,” which conjured up $5.6 million in its third weekend for a North American total of $54.2 million and Paramount Pictures’ ”PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie,” which grossed $4.45 million in its fourth outing for a North American cumulative of $56 million.
Directed by Scorsese, “Killers of the Flower Moon” is based on David Grann’s 2017 nonfiction book of the same name, which documented the murders of members of the Osage Nation in the 1920s after oil was discovered on the Indigenous group’s land. In addition to DiCaprio, the film’s cast includes breakout star Lily Gladstone, longtime Scorsese collaborator Robert De Niro, Jesse Plemons, Oscar winner Brendan Fraser, Tantoo Cardinal and John Lithgow.
The R-rated picture scored an impressive 92% fresh score on the review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes and nabbed an A-minus grade from audiences polled by CinemaScore.
“Whatever its triumphs and missteps, revelations and blind spots, ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ comes by them all honestly,” writes Times film critic Justin Chang.
“And if ‘Killers’ miscalibrates its balance of perspectives, it also discovers, in the luminous recesses of Gladstone’s performance, a quality of contemplation that beautifully suffuses and modulates Scorsese’s faster, more frenetic rhythms,” Chang continues. “This is the work of a filmmaker who, with 80 years and a permanent place in the pantheon under his belt, has nothing left to prove and entire worlds still to discover.”
Taking fifth place at the domestic box office was the re-release of Disney’s 1993 film “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” which took in $4.1 million. The re-release coincides with both the movie’s 30th anniversary and the peak days of spooky season as Halloween nears. Henry Selick’s stop-motion musical opened to $191,232 in its opening weekend in two theaters and hauled in $8.2 million in its first wide release outing. The film grossed $50 million domestically in its initial release and now earned more than $80 millon, including numerous re-releases.
Opening in wide release next week are Universal Pictures’ “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” Relativity Media’s “Freelance,” Briarcliff Entertainment’s “Sight,” and Viva Pictures’ “Inspector Sun.”
While Insomniac’sSpider-Man franchise is largely a love letter to the iconic web-head, the world the studio has crafted is crawling with tiny Easter eggs referencing other super-powered heroes from across the Marvel canon.
These nuggets of Marvel-tinged gold have left fans searching far and wide for every reference and potential cameo they can find.
Warning – The rest of this article contains spoilers for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Insomniac
After the Sanctum Santorum made an appearance in the first Insomniac Spider-Man game, fans are itching to know if Doctor Strange is in the recently released Spider-Man 2 PS5 game.
While not expressly present in the happenings of the PlayStation sequel, there are a few pretty overt references to the super-powered sorcerer.
During an early mission titled “Make Your Own Choices” Miles Morales is forced to track Felicia Hardy (a.k.a. the cat burglar known as Black Cat), as she reemerges in New York City.
Insomniac
Miles traces clues left behind by Black Cat to the Sanctum Santorum where she has stolen the Wand of Watoomb, a mystical artifact that can open portals just like Benedict Cumberbatch’s Master of the Mystic Arts does in the MCU.
A chase then ensues, as Miles races after Felicia who is popping in and out of portals across the Big Apple and beyond.
This mission ends with Felicia revealing she is trying to get out of town to be safe with her girlfriend who has settled down in Paris and Miles letting her go.
As she closes the portal to Paris behind her, she gifts Miles the Wand of Watoomb which quickly disappears, and in its place is a note from Sorceror Supreme Wong thanking Miles, saying, “Sorry, just got back from Nepal. The Doctor and I owe you. – Wong.”
Why Did Wong and Doctor Strange Not Show Up in Spider-Man 2?
Insomniac
While this whole Doctor Strange-adjacent mission is a much more flashy and less subtle reference to the greater Marvel universe than anything that has come before it in Incomniac’s Spider-Man games, it does come as a shock that Wong and Doctor Strange do not (physically) show up in the PS5 title.
Given the Marvel Easter eggs in past Spider-Man PlayStation games had only ever been abstruse, easy-to-miss elements of set dressing, it certainly felt like this whole portal sequence was leading to a physical Stange appearance.
However, Insomniac instead chose to keep the curtain closed on Marvel characters outside of the Spider-Man canon showing up in the franchise.
The Spider-Man 2 developer has seemingly confirmed its upcoming Wolverinewill take place in the same “new, original universe” as its Spider-Man games (via The PlayStation Blog), meaning that perhaps somewhere down the line the web-slinger may crossover with some of the other heroes from the Marvel Comics roster.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is now available for PlayStation 5.
The Sandman Universe: Dead Boy Detectives -Collected Edition is finally here, and Charles and Edwin are back! Who? You may ask. Worry not, dear reader, I’ll have you caught up before you can say, Thessaly.
Charles Rowland and Edwin Paine first appeared in the now-classic The Sandman #25 (April 1991). They were created by Neil Gaiman, Matt Wagner, and Malcolm Jones III during the brilliant “Season of Mists” story arc (Volume 4 of the Sandman graphic novels series, which is reprinted in Book Two of the lovely new set of collected editions).
This vintage tale saw Lucifer give up his throne and relinquish the key to the gates of hell. The underworld was then emptied and the dead once again roamed the Earth. Death of the Endless had a tough time rounding up the denizens of hell and both Charles and Edwin, rather than move on, decided to stay on Earth and solve supernatural crimes.
A lot more has happened in one-shots, crossovers, a mini-series, as well as in an ongoing Dead Boy Detectives series, over the years, but that’s all everyone needs to know, in a nutshell. Oh, and the characters have appeared in the HBO Max TV series Doom Patrol too.
Positives
If you’ve read TheSandman Universe: Nightmare Country, you’ll know that it ended in a cliffhanger. This issue follows on directly, making the two stories almost feel like one. Another Sandman character, the witch Thessaly, made an appearance at the end of Nightmare Country, and she plays a part in this book, too.
Eisner Award-winning writer, Pornsak Pichetshote (The Good Asian, Infidel), has woven a tale of horror and dark magic that gripped me from page one. His use of Thai folklore and legend is fascinating and engaging. His resumé speaks for itself, as he’s written Swamp Thing stories for DC, TV’s Cloak & Dagger for Marvel, and many other horror comics and books. As a writer of Thai-American heritage, his insight into Asian supernatural lore is refreshing and intriguing.
In the story we meet three Thai ghosts; Melvin, a Snake Ghost, Jai, a Hollow-Backed Ghost, and Tanya, a Mother Ghost. Having died between the 1970s and the present the three were taken care of by the Thai “Ghost Doctor”, Dom. The main antagonist in the book is a fourth ghost, the deadly Krasue. This monster is a normal human woman by day, but at night her head and spine detach and fly around the city, hunting down helpless victims. I know… right?!?
Our heroes are also attacked by a horde of mutilated ghost babies (known as the Kumanthong), who are both stomach-churning and heartbreaking. Pornsak Pichetshote’s scripts are textured and his imagination is wonderful. Dead baby ghosts are terrifying, but the fact that they may also have feelings makes them all the more tragic.
Edwin and Charles have an unorthodox relationship, and we’ve seen that. The fact that these are ghosts with feelings and emotions elevates the intensity of events and makes the characters so much more relatable.
I’m totally into this mythology. Thai culture and spiritual beliefs are brand new to me and I find them fascinating. The way the new ghosts only appear at night makes Charles and Edwin’s work harder, and the book that much more fun to read. This adds a whole extra layer of tension and drama to the proceedings.
Pichetshote’s tale is part whodunnit, part thriller, and 100% horror. The best bit is, that while every cast member is dead, they’ve all got more spark, humanity, and personality than some folks that are still alive. The script is great fun to read and every character has their own strengths and characteristics, making them fascinating to follow.
The art by Jeff Stokely and Miquel Muerto (what a great name for a color artist working on a horror book) is lovely. The characters and colors are quite bright and punchy, and even though the visuals are quite simple-looking (in a good way), this makes the grotesquery of the gore and horror that much more powerful. This story’s brand new, yet it looks and feels like it would fit in my 1990s Sandman library effortlessly. Muertos’s lovely colors make the art shine and don’t overshadow or smother the subtle line work.
From chapter two onward, the creative team is joined by inker Craig Taillefer, who does what any great inker should do; finish the penciller’s art in a way that highlights both artists’ skills, but doesn’t wash away the penciller’s style. Yes, the visuals in this book are fairly cartoony in style, but the skill is in the storytelling, the characters’ faces, and the deep, rich backgrounds.
Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou had already impressed me with his excellent work on Sword Of Azrael, so I knew the lettering on this book would be great too. Yay, me… I was right! His ghost text, sound effects, and chapter headings are simply gorgeous. From little notepads showing us what the characters are thinking (nope I really don’t miss thought bubbles at all), to ghostly dream speak, and big loud, almost manga-style arguments between the characters. All of his work is stellar.
We have a guest artist drawing all but the final page of chapter four, the brilliant Javier Rodríguez. I’ve been following this artist’s work since the late 90s when he worked for the publisher Ediciones La Cúpula. He was one of many artists working on the wild and whacky title El Víbora, published in my native country of Spain between 1979 and 2005. American comics fans may primarily know him as a color artist, from titles such as Batgirl: Year One for DC, but this guy can draw! His work on this chapter is lovely, and I would dearly love to see even more of his art across DC in months and years to come.
This book raises so many fascinating questions. If ghosts are already dead, how can they be “killed”? Pornsak Pichetshote’s written one hell of a tale, not just because of the haunted goings on, but also because of all the wonderful semi-autobiographical touches he adds, due to being a Thai-American. Honestly, this book is great.
The Sandman Universe: Dead Boy Detectives isn’t just a horror story either, as we also get some amazing social commentary. Shootings in schools, bullying, racism; all these topics are handled in this book. The best thing is that Pichetshote’s not smacking us around the head with politics, he’s doing what all the best writers do and uses fiction to hold a cautionary mirror over fact. Why is it only children who seem to be capable of learning and wanting change? Have all adults truly just given up?
The fascinating glimpse into ghosts from across the globe, the re-introduction of three favorite characters from Neil Gaiman’s legendary Sandman series, and the horror and humor they all bring have been an absolute delight. I know that’s a weird thing to say about a horror comic, but it’s true.
Negatives
None. Whether you only know Charles and Edwin from this book, or if you’ve followed their adventures for decades, writer Pornsak Pichetshote has you covered. With every chapter, we learn more about our heroes.
Verdict
I’ve learned about new mythologies, felt scared, laughed, and had my heart broken. As a lifelong comics fan, this is the kind of series that proves the validity and power of the medium. It still upsets me when people put comics down, particularly when there are great stories like Dead Boy Detectives on the shelves.
The entire Sandman Universe has always been built on diversity and representation; both in its cast of characters and in the depth of stories it’s always told. The creative team behind Dead Boy Detectives is honoring that legacy and building on it beautifully.
Sandman Universe: Dead Boy Detectives delivers everything I love about comics. Great characters, next-level threats, humor, scares, and thrills. The fact that it also educates while it entertains is a huge bonus. While this is a brilliant horror story, it also sheds light on life, love, and the problems faced by the children of immigrants.
This terrific book collects all six issues. It also presents the main and standard variant covers before each chapter, and has a nine-page gallery with all the other variant covers at the back of the book. For anyone wanting to know or read more about The Sandman Universe, there’s also a four-page reading guide.
Paperback $19.99 Released on Nov 07, 2023 ISBN 9781779523297
Review Copy Courtesy of Penguin Random House. Images Courtesy of DC Entertainment.
Layers of Fear developer Bloober Team has announced that a new free expansion, The Final Prologue, is coming to its first-person psychological horror game on October 24, a date that also commemorates the 15th anniversary of the studio.
The update will begin rolling out from 1 AM PT / 4 AM ET and will immerse players in the psyche of a famous movie director as he seeks to complete his ultimate masterpiece, even as the set around him descends into chaos.
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This new story expands on the tale that was originally told in 2019’s Layers of Fear 2, as that game revolved around an actor exploring a seemingly abandoned ship while following the directions of an unseen director. This time, the roles are reversed and players will direct the film’s action as they work to complete a cinematic and horrifying film influenced by the actions of both inner demons and vile external forces.
Lights, camera, and gruesome action.
Gallery
In case you missed it, Layers of Fear is a complete rebuild of the first two games, as Bloober Team remade them in Unreal Engine 5 and included all of their respective DLC as well. The Final Note and The Writer’s Story were new additions to this rebuilt anthology series and helped tie the two games together.
Bloober Team had previously teased this new expansion with an “official” Layers of Fear song. Performed by singer Natalia Szroeder, the track is a new and darker take on “You Are My Sunshine,” and it even got the music-video treatment.
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“A Batalha da Rua Maria Antonia,” directed by Vera Egito, nabbed the main Redentor prize for fiction film at the 2023 Rio de Janeiro International Film Fest which wrapped this year’s edition last weekend, consolidating its position as South America’s largest fest and world’s main showcase of Brazilian productions.
The fest held the world premieres of 40 Brazilian features and four TV series. Its competition, reflecting the country’s production strength, included 54 local features, selected from 318 submissions.
With a series of 21 long takes shot in 16 mm black and white film, “A Batalha da Rua Maria Antonia” (“The Battle”) depicts the true-life 1968 police massacre of Sao Paulo State University Philosophy School’s students who rose up in opposition to the military dictatorship then in place in Brazil.
Carolina Markowicz’s “Toll” scooped both best actress, for Maeve Jinkings, shared with Grace Passo of “O Dia que te conheci,” and actor (Kaua Alvarenga). Andre Novais Oliveira’s “O Dia que te conheci” also received the special jury prize.
Lillah Halla won best director for “Levante”, while Evgenia Alexandrova received the cinematography kudo for “Sem Coracao” and Guto Parente the screenplay award for “A Strange Path,” a Tribeca 2023 international narrative feature winner.
“Othelo, o Grande,” from Lucas Rossi dos Santos, about Grande Othelo, considered the country’s most important African-Brazilian comedian, nabbed the doc kudo.
One of the fest’s highlights was the significant number of features about the Amazon Rainforest and Brazilian Indigenous people.
Doc feature “We Are Guardians,” co-helmed by Edivan Guajajara, from the Arariboia native people, and Chelsea Greene and Rob Grobman, both from the U.S., made its Brazilian premiere at Rio Fest. The doc, which has Leonardo DiCaprio as executive producer, is enjoying a strong fest career and is due to open on a streaming service early next year.
“We Are Guardians” focuses on the destruction of the Amazon Rainforest and the effort of local people to save it, including a guardian group formed by Arariboia natives, curbing the activities of loggers in their reservation.
Edivan Guajajara’s initially role in the production was as a translator and fixer. Greene and Grobman were so impressed with his work and, with the pandemic, he was promoted to co-director.
“My job was not an easy one. We followed the guardian group as they chased illegal loggers in the middle of the forest,” Edivan Guajajara told Variety.
Jean-Pierre Dutilleux’s doc “Raoni – Uma Amizade Improvável” tells the story of the 50-year-old friendship of the Belgian director and the chief of the Kaiapo Native people. Dutilleux has since the 1970s made docs about Raoni and toured around the world with him. His work helped Raoni in his successful campaign to expand the area of a reservation in the southern part of the Amazon Rainforest.
Vet helmer Neville D’Almeida’s doc “Bye Bye Amazônia” also had its world premiere at Rio Fest. The doc warns of the rapid destruction of the forest and calls for action.
“Our film adopts the Indigenous people’s point of view. It is a manifest against the deforestation of the Amazon. As a film maker, it is my duty to alert the world about what is going on here,” D’Almeida told Variety. The 82-year-old director helmed “Lady on the Bus,” released in 1978, which is among the Brazilian features with the highest B.O.
Estevao Ciavatta premiered in the fest doc “Linguas da Nossa Lingua” about the languages spoken in Brazil. The doc sheds light to the diversity of the indigenous people languages that survived the Portuguese colonization.
“Brazil has a unique situation. In spite of the fact that about 98% of its population speak Portuguese, Brazil has a huge linguistic diversity. There are more than 170 languages spoken here, most of them of indigenous people,” Ciavatta told Variety.
Edoardo Morabito’s doc “Posto Avancado,” a Brazil-Italy co-production, depicts the journey of Christopher Clark, a Scottish environmentalist who struggled for the creation a natural reservation in the states of Acre and Rondonia, in the Amazon Rainforest.
“I decided to make this documentary, because the destruction of the Amazon Rainforest is a concern for all citizens of the world,” Morabito told Variety.
The fest’s program also included Joel Pizzini’s “Rio da Duvida,” about the U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt’s expedition to the Amazon, and “The Buriti Flower,” helmed by Joao Salaviza and Renee Nader Messora, about the Krahô native people, which made a splash at Cannes.
The Buriti Flower
Courtesy of Cannes Film Festival
IPTA’s Inter Collegiate Drama Competition scores 50, marches on
Was it the first or was it the second? Was it 1972 or 1973? My introduction to the annual competition is nevertheless at least 49 years old. I had just finished college, and could not participate. How I wished I could! But I could watch the event, and, soon afterwards, write about it, extensively, in several publications, as a theatre critic. If memory serves me right, back then, it was called IPTA’s Inter Collegiate Hindustani Short Play Competition. Quite a mouthful, that. Nowadays, the acronym is ICDC, Inter Collegiate Drama Competition. And for those unfamiliar with the theatre institution that has created and nurtured giants, IPTA stands for Indian Peoples’ Theatre Association. On 16 October 2023, the ICDC, held at P.L. Deshpande Maharashtra Kala Academy, Prabhadevi, Mumbai, was special.
Subhash B. Dangayach and Ramesh Talwar
ICDC has completed 50 years, allowing for the one year when it could not be held. IPTA decided to do its 50th in style. A long list of those who had won prizes and served as judges in previous years was prepared, and each one of them was called on stage and given a trophy. Also present were the who’s who of the theatre world. Where would you find the following in the same hall? Ashutosh Gowarikar, Makarand Deshpande, Arundhati Rao, Padmavati Rao, Latesh Shah, Sujata Mehta, Imtiaz Hussain, Manoj Joshi, Dolly Thakore, Vipul Mehta, Feroz Abbas Khan, Dr. Chandraprakash Dwivedi, Preeta Mathur Thakur, Om Katare, Ila Arun, Rohini Hattangadi, Kunal Kapoor, not to mention the luminaries that are part of IPTA.
A moment from Gehna, one of the finalist plays
Conceived as a tribute to Prithviraj Kapoor, by poet Kaifi Azmi, who headed IPTA for some time, the ICDC was designed by Ramesh Talwar, a former chief assistant to Yash Chopra and a film director in his own right. 51 years later, Ramesh is the Convenor of the ICDC, jointly, with Subhash B. Dangayach. Subhash participated in the Competition in its earliest years, won prizes, and joined IPTA. Ramesh is identified with ICDC, in spite of advancing years. For many years, the announcements used to be made by Farooque Shaikh. This year, a much younger man was assigned the task. The memento/trophies giving ceremony was conducted by Subhash, in three stages, between plays.
The drama of Baram
Usually, six plays are selected after an elimination round. That lasts several days. Judging so many entries is an onerous task for the Judges of the Elimination Round. These six are then performed in front of the Finals Jury, and the awards distributed to the best of the best. It was at ICDC here that I first met most of the personalities listed above. The Competition has moved to several places, though, for the first few years, Tejpal Hall, at Gowalia Tank, was its base. Each finalist play is given 45 minutes to one hour to finish its performance. A real marathon, ICDC begins at 2 pm and ends any time between 11 pm and 12. Obviously, students/supporters of particular colleges come in numbers and cheer their college-mates. On a couple of occasions, many moons ago, the students of two colleges became unruly, and IPTA had to take drastic steps. But for the rest of the five decades, it has been smooth sailing.
The Who’s Who at ICDC 50
That IPTA has unearthed scores of talent in theatre, both on stage and behind it. A golden jubilee it might be, but it is no time for IPTA to rest on its laurels. I cannot imagine ICDC without Ramesh Talwar, and at its 75th anniversary, he is going to be missed the most, along with Subhash B. Dangayach. In the meanwhile, till health permits, I can see Ramesh Talwar marshalling his troops, and marching on.
I have a lot more to say, but let these pictures do the talking.
Tonight, the American League Championship Series heads back to Houston following the rollercoaster that was Game 5. After three straight wins in Arlington, the Houston Astros enter tonight’s pivotal Game 6 with a 3-2 lead in the series.
The last time the Texas Rangers were in Houston, they swept the Astros at home. Now they need to win two more at Minute Maid Park while the Astros sit one game away from going to their third straight World Series.
It’s a must-watch Lone Star showdown tonight. Here’s everything you need to know about how to watch the Houston Astros vs. Texas Rangers ALCS Game 6 live.
When is the Astros vs. Rangers ALCS Game 6?
First pitch is set for Sunday, October 22 at 8:03 p.m ET (5:03 p.m. PT).
How to watch Astros vs. Rangers ALCS Game 6 online
The ALCS Game 6 will air on Fox. If you don’t have cable, the most cost-effective way to watch the Houston Astros vs. Texas competition is through a live TV streaming subscription to Sling TV.
Right now, there is a Sling TV deal offering 50% off your first month — bringing the Blue package with Fox and FS1 down to just $22.50 and the comprehensive Orange + Blue package down to $30. Sling TV comes with 50 hours of free cloud-based DVR recording space, perfect for recording all the season’s top NFL matchups.
2023 ALCS Schedule
Here is the ALCS schedule for the Astros vs. Rangers in the 2023 MLB Playoffs. Game 6 is being played back in Houston at Minute Maid Park.
All times Central Standard Time.
Game 1: Rangers vs. Astros, Sunday, October 15, 7:15 p.m. CST
Game 2: Rangers vs. Astros, Monday, October 16, 3:37 p.m. CST
Game 3: Astros vs. Rangers, Wednesday, October 18, 7:03 p.m. CST
Game 4: Astros vs. Rangers, Thursday, October 19, 7:03 p.m. CST
Game 5: Astros vs. Rangers, Friday, October 20, 4:07 p.m. CST
Game 6: Rangers vs. Astros, Sunday, October 22, 7:03 p.m. CST
Game 7: Rangers vs. Astros, Monday, October 23, 7:03 p.m. CST
Once again, CBS is airing new episodes of the 48 Hours series on Saturday nights. The ratings are good (considering its timeslot) and it’s likely one of the most cost-effective shows on the network. How long will this series run? Will 48 Hours be cancelled or is it sure to be renewed for season 37? Stay tuned.
A documentary and newsmagazine series, the 48 Hours TV show premiered in 1988. The program features correspondents telling engaging, compelling stories that often reveal new information, feature first-time interviews, and tap into the nation’s fascination with murder mysteries. The series’ segments have shed new light on cases long overlooked by law enforcement and the public and have resulted in cold cases being reopened and solved. The team’s focus on questionable and wrongful convictions has led to eight people being released from prison. Correspondents include Erin Moriarty, Peter Van Sant, Natalie Morales, Tracy Smith, Jim Axelrod, Michelle Miller, Jericka Duncan, David Begnaud, and Jonathan Vigliotti.
The ratings are typically the best indication of a show’s chances of staying on the air. The higher the ratings, the better the chances of survival. This chart will be updated as new ratings data becomes available.
Note: If you’re not seeing the updated chart, please try reloading the page or view it here.
For comparisons:Season 35 of 48 Hours on CBS averaged a 0.22 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 2.55 million viewers.
Note: These are the final national ratings, including all live+same day viewing and DVR playback (through 3:00 AM). Early fast affiliate ratings (estimates) are indicated with an “*”. While these numbers don’t include further delayed or streaming viewing, they are a very good indicator of how a show is performing, especially when compared to others on the same channel. There can be other economic factors involved in a show’s fate, but typically the higher-rated series are renewed and the lower-rated ones are cancelled.
What do you think? Do you like the 48 Hours TV series on CBS? Should it be cancelled or renewed for a 37th season?
Check out our status sheets to track new TV series pickups, renewals, and cancellations. You can find lists of cancelled shows here.
With $31 million, “Eras” repeated at #1 although it dropped 67 percent from its impressive debut; it’s grossed just under $130 million so far. Martin Scorsese’s $200 million-budgeted, Apple-backed Osage Western opened in second place to $23 million, overcoming the challenge of its 206-minute running time.
With its lower average ticket price (likely above the national average, given premium theaters and major-city response), “Flower Moon” sold nearly 2 million tickets in the U.S./Canada. “Eras,” with a $19.89 base price, sold around 1.5 million.
The grosses are vital for theaters both in the near term and as templates for for future films produced outside studios when future major-studio production might decrease. They also reinforce the notion that releases seen as events can get elevated attention.
Starting with “Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé” in December (like “Eras,” distribution by AMC with Variance handling theater outreach), the model will receive further testing. It remains to be seen if Taylor Swift’s performance can be replicated.
“Napoleon” screenshot/Apple TV+
However, there may be more opportunity around films similar to “Flower Moon.” Streamers will continue to make high-end original features that target the awards season. Apple has already made a similar theatrical commitment for Ridley Scott’s “Napoleon” and Amazon emphasized theaters ahead of streaming for “Air” last spring.
An approaching test case might be Bradley Cooper’s “Maestro.” Netflix’s leading awards contender opens in theaters November 22, four weeks ahead of its streaming debut.
Other than the brief wide run for “Glass Onion” last Thanksgiving, Netflix typically starts with a platform run for their top contenders. Might “Maestro” be a case where a wider initial run might make sense? Unlike when it released Scorsese’s “The Irishman” in 2019 with no support from top exhibitors, the streamer now has access on a case-by-case basis.
Apple was greatly aided by Paramount’s handling of the film. The studio could gain premium screens even under the gun of late entry “Eras.” Also, the mutual decision with Apple to move from an October 6 platform date to a wider debut is the sort of counsel that can come from working with established distributors.
The “Flower Moon” audience skewed male (62 percent), with significant younger appeal (40 percent under 30). Per Paramount reporting, 53 percent cited Scorsese as a prime draw with 36 percent coming for Leonardo DiCaprio.
Its $23 million start is $7 million above “Air” and nearly triple the estimate of what “The Irishman” grossed. Yes, “The Wolf of Wall Street” did $18 million its first weekend — but it opened on a Wednesday with $16 million in already. The film’s hold remains to be seen, with a total domestic gross likely around $60 million- $80 million. That would place it in the middle range of his releases over more than 50 years.
The theatrical play and success will help Apple’s awards profile; it will certainly increase streaming interest; and it will aid its competitive chances versus Netflix and Amazon for future projects.
In the rest of the top 10, nothing reached as much as $6 million and only two films dropped less than 40 percent. “PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie” (Paramount) at #4 held best, down 35 percent. “Saw X” (Lionsgate) dropped 37 percent; that’s especially impressive not only because it’s a much better-than-average hold for a horror sequel, but also because it is also available on PVOD.
Two unusual titles also placed, with yet another reissue of Tim Burton’s “The Nightmare Before Christmas” (Disney). On its 30th anniversary, this is the seventh wide rerelease for the film. It placed #5, adding $4.1 million to its total.
From India, the Tamil-language “Leo: Bloody Sweet” (Prathyangira) ranked #8 with $2.1 million in 720 theaters. It is based on the same graphic comic that inspired David Cronenberg’s “A History of Violence.”
The specialized audience had “Flower Moon” as a prime draw, but Neon added runs for the second week of its acclaimed French drama “Anatomy of a Fall.” It did a respectable $11,000 per-theater-average in 14 total theaters.
“The Persian Version” (Sony Pictures Classics) was the prime new limited release. The Sundance-premiered comedy about an Iranian-American family grossed $87,000 in nine theaters. However, the four core New York/Los Angeles theaters averaged over $20,000 for the weekend.
The weekend’s total gross was $29 million below last year, when “Black Adam” opened to $67 million. Year to date remains a steady 26 percent ahead of 2022.
2. Killers of the Flower Moon (Paramount) NEW – Cinemascore: A-; Metacritic: 90; Est. budget: $200 million
$23,000,000 in 3,628 theaters; PTA: $6,340; Cumulative: $23,000,000
3. The Exorcist: Believer (Universal) Week 3 – Last week #2
$5,600,000 (-49%) in 3,323 (-361) theaters; PTA: $1,685; Cumulative: $54,402,000
4. PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie (Par) Week 4; Last weekend #3
$4,450,000 (-35%) in 3,364 (-343) theaters; PTA: $1,323; Cumulative: $56,064,000
5. The Nightmare Before Christmas (Disney) (reissue)
$4,100,000 in 1,650 theaters; PTA: $2,485; Cumulative: $(est.) 164,000.000 (adjusted)
6. Saw X (Lionsgate) Week 4; Last weekend #4; also on PVOD
$3.585,000 (-37%) in 2,756 (-302) theaters; PTA: $1,301; Cumulative: $47,234,000
7. The Creator (Disney) Week 4; Last weekend #5
$2,600,000 (-40%) in 2,490 (-470) theaters; PTA: $1,044; Cumulative: $36,759,000
8. Leo: Bloody Sweet (Prathyangira) NEW – Est. budget: $40 million
$2,139,000 in 720 theaters; PTA: $2,971; Cumulative: $2,139,000
9. A Haunting in Venice (Disney) Week 6; Last weekend #6
$1,100,000 (-44%) in 1,600 (-690) theaters; PTA: $688; Cumulative: $40,908,000
10. The Blind (Fathom) Week 4; Last weekend #7
$1,011,000 (-49%) in 950 (-215) theaters; PTA: $954; Cumulative: $15,696,000
Other specialized titles
Films (limited, expansions of limited, as well as awards-oriented releases) are listed by week in release, starting with those opened this week; after the first three weeks, only films with grosses over $5,000 are listed.Metacritic scores and film festivals lists as listed.
The Persian Version (Sony Pictures Classics) NEW – Metacritic: 64; Festivals include: Sundance 2023
$87,372 in 9 theaters; PTA: $9,708
Another Body (Utopia) NEW – Festivals include: South by Southwest, Hot Docs 2023
$5,573 in 1 theater; PTA: $5,513
Full Circle (Abramorama) NEW – Metacritic: 70
$1,654 in 1 theater; PTA: $1,654
Anatomy of a Fall (Neon) Week 2
$154,399 in 14 (+9) theaters; PTA: $11,029; Cumulative: $333,891
Divinity (Utopia) Week 2
$9,944 in 3 (+2) theaters; PTA: $3,315; Cumilative: $16,170
Dicks: The Musical (A24) Week 3
$377,653 in 345 (+330) theaters; Cumulative: $826,387
The Royal Hotel (Neon) Week 3
$17,000 in 90 (-183) theaters; Cumulative: $754,451
A Strange Way of Life (Sony Pictures Classics) Week 3
$23,224 in 46 (-112) theaters; Cumulative: $444,915
Common Ground (Area 23) Week 4
$18,799 in 19 (+13) theaters; Cumulative: $138,532
Stop Making Sense (A24) (reissue) Week 5
$61,915 in 89 (-169) theaters; Cumulative: $4,721,000 (reissue only)
Dumb Money (Sony) Week 6
$275,000 in 1,167 (-1,109) theaters; Cumulative: $13,541,000
My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 (Focus) Week 6; also on PVOD
$105,000 in 303 (-307) theaters; Cumulative: $28,420,000
Talk to Me (A24) Week 12; also on PVOD
$30,829 in 25 (-35) theaters; Cumulative: $48,249,000
Madonna performed last night (October 21) in Belgium as part of her ongoing Celebration Tour, which was postponed earlier this year when she was hospitalized for a serious bacterial infection. During the show, she became visibly emotional and opened up about her hospitalization, calling it a “fucking miracle that I’m here right now,” NME reports. She also said she wasn’t feeling well during the performance. There’s video of the moment on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
“Less than four months ago, I was in the hospital and I was unconscious and people were thinking, predicting that I might not make it,” she told the audience. “It’s a fucking miracle that I’m here right now. My mother, god bless her, she must be watching over me, she said, ‘Girl, it’s not your time to go.”
Madonna’s mother died of breast cancer when she was 5 years old. “I had this strange thought. I suddenly had sympathy for my mother, not about the dying part but how lonely she must have felt being in hospital, knowing that she wasn’t going to live,” she said. “And I was given another chance, so I’m very grateful for that. I must tell you that I don’t feel very well right now, but I can’t complain, because I’m alive. Thank god for my children and all of your love and support.”
TORONTO AFTER DARK 2023 REVIEW! Xtemplar is unfinished. Though it lives in a thoughtfully conceived world and has solid attention to detail, Paul Furminger and the team at Fish Flight Entertainment have bitten off more than they can chew with their first animated short.
The film follows a single soldier in his struggle against the Soul Eaters, a race of psychic creatures that have waged war against Earth. After 60 years, humanity has learned to harness the power of religious relics as weapons against the Soul Eaters. Finally, the tide of the war is beginning to turn.
“…a race of psychic creatures that have waged war against Earth.”
It is a clever and rather interesting setting that could be used to proffer a host of equally interesting stories. The team at Fish Flight has brought their sci-fi-medieval world to life with a striking art style that looks like an acrylic painting. Even more, they’ve enhanced their world with a host of meaningful elements, such as the soldier’s armour, which features a red cross like a Gregorian knight.
But for all the love the team has shown to the film’s greater context, the film’s story itself is nonexistent. Xtemplar plays like the introduction to a full feature, but in that introduction, very little happens that is intelligible as a short unto itself. It’s disappointingly basic.
As such, Xtemplar stands as more of a proof of concept than an actual short film. It shows that Fish Flight has potential but has not yet found a way to form their ideas into tangible expressions.
A Winnipeg woman is recovering in hospital after being stabbed during a break-and-enter early Sunday.
Winnipeg police say they attended a residence in the 1300 block of Raleigh Street just after 1 a.m. for reports that a woman had been stabbed while attempting to break into a home.
Officers found the suspect with an upper-body injury and provided emergency treatment before sending her to hospital, police said in a press release.
Investigation revealed the suspect, who was intoxicated, got into an argument with the homeowner and then forced her way into the home by kicking in the front door. The resident, a woman, stabbed the suspect to prevent her from entering any further.
Two children in the home at the time of the incident were not hurt. The victim and suspect are known to each other, police said.
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A 29-year-old woman is facing a break-and-enter charge and was released on an undertaking.
Man faces attempted murder charge after violent Erickson home invasion
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Travis Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs are back in action for Sunday football today as KC takes on the San Diego Chargers in a Week 7 matchup. The Chiefs vs. Chargers game airs live on CBS at 4:25 p.m. ET / 1:25 p.m. PT. You can watch the game with a free trial to Paramount+, the official streaming partner of the “NFL on CBS.”
Paramount+ lets you watch the Chiefs vs. Chargers online free without cable, from your phone, tablet, laptop or TV.
Another way to live stream the Chiefs vs. Chargers game online free? Grab this free trial offer to DIRECTV Stream. The TV provider’s current packages include CBS, to watch the Chiefs vs. Chargers online, plus ESPN and FS1 for post-game coverage.
The Chiefs were off last weekend after playing a Thursday Night Football game against the Broncos, while the Chargers are looking to bounce back after a loss to the Cowboys. The 5-1 Chiefs are the odds-on favorite to win today over Los Angeles, who are 2-3 on the season.
All eyes will once again be on Kelce, meantime, as the Chiefs tight end’s romance with Taylor Swift continues to heat up in public — and on TV (the duo made surprise appearances on last weekend’s “Saturday Night Live“). Swift’s private jet was reportedly seen touching down in Kansas City Sunday, increasing speculation that the singer will attend her fourth Kelce game this year.
The Kelce-Swift relationship has not only been a ratings bonanza for the NFL, it’s also helped the league — and its partners — sell merch. Sites like Fanatics have reported increased sales for Travis Kelce jerseys and items like these Chiefs stacked bracelets, perhaps inspired by Swift’s Eras tour friendship bracelets? These Chiefs bracelets are on sale right now for $35 on Fanatics.com with promo code FIELD.
Fanatics
Sportscaster Erin Andrews also recently launched an official NFL accessories collection, and reportedly sent over some of the Chiefs-inspired pieces to Swift as well.
As for today’s big football game: head over to Paramount+ for a free live feed of the Chiefs vs. Chargers game, or sign-up for DIRECTV Stream to live stream the “NFL on CBS” on your phone, computer, tablet or smart TV for free.
You can choose to continue on with a monthly Paramount+ or DIRECTV Stream subscription once your free trials are up, or cancel before your trial is over to avoid being charged.
Last night Edo Nwodim performed as Jada Pinkett Smith on SNL’s “Weekend Update” segment. True to inspiration, Nwodim’s take on Smith just could not stop talking about her “brutiful” marriage to Will Smith and, of course, her alleged soulmate Tupac. After host Michael Che asked why the Smiths don’t just divorce, Nwodim joked, “Divorce is not an option. No, no no. I have principles, Michael. If we got divorced, he could mess around and end up happy!”
The real life Jada Pinkett Smith writes in her memoir “Worthy” that she and her husband have been separated since 2016. This was news to plenty of fans, and Nwodim says on SNL that, “But the day we got married, I knew there was gonna be trouble. At our wedding, someone stood up and objected.”
After Che asked who objected, Nwodim added, “It was me. Yeah.”
The two also joked about Smith’s new revelations about Tupac. According to the actress and author, the rapper proposed to her while he was in prison in 1995 (he married his then-girlfriend, Keisha Morris, in April of the same year).
Nwodim told Che, “A lot of people don’t know this, but before he died, he was in the process of legally changing his name to Tupinkett. Yeah, mmhmm. He was my soulmate.”
For those looking to Nwodim/Smith for marriage advice, she says, “Never go to bed happy.”
Perhaps you follow @Betches on Instagram, but did you know that the female-focused media and entertainment company might also set you up on a blind date?
Betches, known for its humorous and unfiltered approach to topics like dating and relationships, has recently been acquired by Ladbible. In addition to posting content across social media, Betches has other ventures including podcasts and live events.
Candice Maniga, senior content manager of relationships at Betches, said: “We’ve had a variety of different segments that we’ve tried with the live shows — like we’ve set people up before, blind dates, various games. So there’s a lot of that element that I’m really excited to see us be able to explore what we can grow from it, and turn it into the next level.”
Maniga spoke alongside her colleagues Jordana Abraham, co-founder and chief innovation officer, and Arisara Srisethnil, vice president of marketing, as a part of Variety Studio presented by Canva at Advertising Week.
Maniga and Abraham discussed “Golden Bachelor” Gerry Turner’s recent feature on their podcast “U Up?,” in which he played the game “Red Flag, Green Flag, Gold Flag” — with gold flags being qualities you’d look for in a lifelong partner, Maniga clarified.
“We were fortunate enough to have the Golden Bachelor on for that and play along with him, where not everything is a red flag or deal breaker at times with relationships,” she said, discussing how everyone’s dating preferences vary.
The trio also discussed the Ladbible acquisition. Abraham said, “We’re just so excited to like be working with them, and being able to take everything that we’re doing in Betches and really just amplify it and make our content even stronger.”
The team broke down how they appeal to members of Generation Z.
Srisethnil emphasized how vocal the younger generation is and how important user-generated content is when it comes to reaching them: “It’s involving our fans and followers in the conversations that we’re having on social media. We’re not just speaking to them, but we’re speaking with them.”
Abraham spoke to what is at the heart of the brand she co-founded: “What we really do best with all of our content, all of our verticals, is really take a topic that a lot of people think is a little bit heavy, a little intimidating. And we take the topic and we break it down, and we make it just feel like we take the edge off that topic.”
Srisethnil also spoke to this element of the company: “What we really try to do is create content and create a space for consumers and our audiences to relate to people, to see the light in life and be able to laugh with one another, and with us.”
Abraham also discussed what it means to be a leader at the company while also sharing details of her personal life at work. She shared, “There is something about female leadership that leans maybe a little bit more vulnerable. And so that’s always kind of been encouraged, it’s always been at the ethos of what we do at Betches, is having real vulnerable conversations that we can also laugh at.”
Kelly Rowlandis spending some quality time with family this weekend — specifically with her young son Noah, two.
The former Destiny’s Child star and her baby boy spent part of their Saturday at the annual Harvest Festival on Pier 6 at Brooklyn Bridge Park.
For the outing, the Atlanta, Georgia native was the picture of funky cool style when she was spotted making her way to the event.
She rocked a double denim outfit that consisted of super baggy blue jeans that flared at the bottom and an equally loose-fitting jean shirt worn over a white T-shirt.
Rounding out her overall look, the singer and actress wore white sneakers and had a very cool tan flat-rim hat over her long flowing locks.
Double denim: Kelly Rowland looked effortlessly cool on Saturday while out in New York City
Eventually, Team Rowland made it to the Harvest Festival, where they got to enjoy a day full of fun featuring music, dance events for all, arts and crafts, face painting, storytimes, lawn games, and the event’s signature pumpkin patch, according to Brooklyn Heights Blog.
All the fun in the sun, near the foot of Atlantic Avenue, went from 11 am until 4 pm ET.
Admission to the event, which was also in support of #HallowClean, was free of charge.
At one point of the afternoon, Rowland decided to have a dance with the younger of her two boys and she captured it all on camera and posted it on her Instagram Stories.
She proceeded to pick up her son and swing him in the air until they both could have fallen over from dizziness.
‘Dancin with my baby,’ she wrote across the video of their dance.
In another clip the A New Way To Walk star snuggled up next to Noah and they both looked straight towards the camera.
‘Can you say hello?’ she asked her boy, who quickly got bashful and turned to give his mom a hug. ‘Say hello.’
She spent time with her adorable son Noah
For the outing, the Atlanta, Georgia native was the picture of funky cool style when she was spotted making her way to the event
Adorable; Rowland tried to get Noah, dressed in his silver astronaut suit, to talk while the camera were rolling, but he got shy and turned to hug his mom
Cute: The attentive mom wiped her son’s face when he was eating a sweet treat at the event
Unconditional love: The singer and actress pulled Noah in for a hug after cleaning his face and declared: ‘best day ever, in the caption
Rowland did her best to explain the event in another video that ended up testing her patience with Mother Nature. The Voice Australia coach had to keep one hand on the top of her hat in order for it to to blow away.
Her little boy appeared to get a jump on Halloween and wore a silver astronaut suit that came complete with a jet-propelled backpack.
The doting mom was captured in an Instagram Story photo wiping her son’s face as he enjoys a sweet treat.
The follow up photo showed the proud mama grab Noah tight and give him a heartwarming hug, all while she flashed a glowing smile as she soaked in the moment.
Along with Noah, Rowland also shares her son Titan, eight, with her husband Tim Weatherspoon, whom she married more than nine years ago.
The couple met back during her days with Destiny’s Child. However, she and the talent manager didn’t ‘get serious’ until almost a decade later.
Strong winds: Rowland also posted a video where she tried to explain the Harvest Festival, but ended up spending the clip desperately trying to hold on to her hat due to the fierce winds
Mother Nature took Rowland to task with her string gusts of wind
Fierce: The mother of two never lost that beaming smile while holding on tight to her hat
Bustin’ the moves: At one point, Rowland decided to have a dance with the younger of her two boys, Noah, two, and she captured it all on camera for her Instagram Stories
Dancing queen: Rowland proceeded to pick up her son and swing him in the air as they danced
After getting engaged in 2013, the couple went on to tie-the-knot the following year in an intimate ceremony in scenic Costa Rica, in Central America.
Weatherspoon, 49, confessed he fell in love with Rowland by their first date, but that wasn’t exactly the case for her.
‘He said he knew [he was in love] by the first date,’ Rowland told ABC News in January 2017, which was also reported byPeople. ‘I knew the third date. I was like, “Oh my God!” I got nervous — to be completely honest — because I was like, “this feels like my husband.”‘
Titan made his arriving into the growing family in November 2014. There would be almost a seven year gap by the time their second boy, Noah, was born.
Kartik Aaryan, Tara Sutaria spark dating rumours; Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone at KWK 8
From Kartik Aaryan to Koffee With Karan 8 new promo Check out all the important events happening in the entertainment industry.
Kartik Aaryan and Tara Sutaria sparked dating rumours after they were spotted together on a dinner date. On Saturday night, the paparazzi captured Tara and Kartik leaving the same hotel but separately. Tara was seen wearing a black tube top along with an animal printed skirt. On the other hand, Kartik was seen wearing a crisp white shirt and a pair of black pants. In a video gone viral, Tara was seen making for a run from a luxury hotel to her car, avoiding the cameras as she left her dinner date.
Karan Johar is bringing Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh on his famous Koffee Couch in Koffee With Karan 8, if reports are to be believed. The couple, who tied the knot in 2018, will reportedly open the latest season of Karan Johar’s show. This will be their first ever joint appearance on the show and fans are excited to see the their banter together. Amid this exciting news, the promo of Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone’s episode is out and it will set your heart aflutter.
National Award-winning actress Alia Bhatt was recently seen in the film Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani opposite Ranveer Singh. Their chemistry both on-screen and off-screen was greatly appreciated by the audience in Karan Johar’s romantic film. Several reports have claimed that the duo will soon be seen on screen again in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Baiju Bawra. They were recently papped after completing a shoot together in Mumbai.
Parineeti Chopra has turned a year older today and she has been getting a lot of wishes from all corners. But it was her hubby Raghav Chadha’s wish that caught our attention. The AAP leader shared a series of unseen photos from their dating period and also wrote an adorable note for his wifey. Well, in no time it went viral and even Parineeti also reacted to it. In the photos, don’t miss the engagement ring which the actress is flaunting.
Bollywood actor Dalip Tahil, famous for his role in films like Baazigar, Raja, Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, Ghulam, Soldier, Gupt, and Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai was sentenced to two months in prison on Sunday, October 22. The sentence is in regard to his 2018 drunk driving case. In 2018, a charge was put on the actor for drunk driving and ramming his car into an autorickshaw. Now, medical experts have testified in the case.
For more info: Baazigar Star Dalip Tahil Sent to 2 Months Prison In Five-Year-Old Drunk Driving Case
Bad Bunny pulled double duty as a host and musical guest on “Saturday Night Live” with the help of a few A-listers — most surprisingly Lady Gaga, who introduced the reggaeton superstar’s performance in her best Spanish accent, along with Mick Jagger and Pedro Pascal.
Bunny delivered the first live performance of “Monaco” from his newly-released “Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va a Pasar Mañana” album, and Gaga called upon “Puerto Rico y todo el corillo” to usher in a performance of “Un Preview.”
Surrounded by moody red lighting, and joined by the mechanical toy horse from the single’s music video, Bunny zoomed through “Un Preview,” and later recreated the Al Pacino-starring video for “Monaco,” with Pascal introducing the latter.
Bunny is the second Latin artist to both host and perform the show, following Desi Arnaz in 1976. Though this is the first time Bunny has hosted SNL, he made his debut on the platform in April 2020 with a cameo during one of the pandemic’s “Saturday Night Live at Home” episodes. He later performed as a musical guest in 2021 when “Bridgerton’s” Regé-Jean Page was given the title of host.
Aside from his performances, Bunny was joined by surprise guest Jagger for a couple of skits — marking the Rolling Stones frontman’s first time on “SNL” since 1986. The appearance comes two days after the Rolling Stones’ New York show, which featured a surprise duet with Gaga.
Jagger crashed a sketch between Bunny and “SNL” cast member Marcello Hernández in which the two were caught in a heated argument on the set of a Spanish-language soap opera. Jagger aptly took the role of the mediating father though it ended with him dramatically slapping both actors. Jagger again joined Bunny for a sketch about some not-so-holy nuns as a parody of “Sister Act 3.”
When the end credits rolled, Bunny could be seen paying thank yous to Jagger and Gaga, both of whom he warmly embraced. “Saturday Night Live” returned for its 49th season this past weekend, with Pete Davidson hosting and Ice Spice being the musical guest. The episode delivered a series of internet-breaking moments including a surprise cameo from Taylor Swift and her rumored beau, Travis Kelce.
Bunny’s appearance follows the announcement of his “Most Wanted Tour,” which will launch on Feb. 21 in Utah’s Delta Center and make numerous stops in major cities across North America including Las Vegas, Phoenix, San Fransisco, and Los Angeles, with an end date of May 26 in Miami.
The Puerto Rican superstar also made an appearance on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” on Oct. 19, where he spoke about his hosting gig on SNL and shared that the week-long process of putting together the show was equally as exciting as it was exhausting. “I need to sleep,” he joked to Fallon, “I’ve been enjoying the process, all the cast and the producers. The vibe is very cool. I’m grateful.”
While a second season of WandaVision may not be in the cards, the story that began in Westview will continue in Agatha: Darhold Diaries.
The new series will follow the adventures of Kathern Hahn’s Agatha Harkness as she “breaks out ” of her WandaVision spell and must embark on a quest to get her powers back.
In addition to former Westview residents Sharon Davis (Debra Jo Rupp), Sarah Proctor (Emma Caufield Jones), and Harold Proctor (David Lengel) the series will introduce a new cast of characters including Aubrey Plaza as a witch named Rio Vidal.
A Series of Name Changes
Interestingly, when an Agatha-centric WandaVision spinoff was initially announced, the show was to be titled Agatha: House of Harkness. A month later, Marvel changed the name again, this time to Agatha: Coven of Chaos.
Photo: Marvel
In September 2023, the series was once again renamed, this time to Agatha: Darkhold Diaries.
While the WandaVision spin-off was initially supposed to land on Disney+ in “late 2023”, the series was eventually pushed back to 2024.
Photo: Nerdist
According to the latest reports, Agatha: Darkhold Diaries will premiere in the Fall of 2024 as a lead-up to Halloween.
‘Darkhold Diaries’ Logo Revealed
While we are still roughly away from Agatha’s triumphant return, it’s not too early to get excited about the WandaVision spin-off.
Photo: Marvel
While much of the series’ plot remains unknown, Marvel has released a new logo for the show that reflects the Agatha spinoff’s new name.
Photo: Marvel
As you can see the logo is very similar to the Agatha: Coven of Chaos and Agatha: House of Harkness designs.
Are The ‘Agatha’ Name Changes a Marketing Ploy?
Although changes to Marvel content names are not uncommon ( I”m looking at you Captain America: Brave New World) the sheer number of Agatha name changes has led many to speculate that they are actually part of a marketing scheme.
Photo: @plazadeaubrey on Instagram
Is it possible that the name changes reflect Agatha’s episode titles? Or is there something else at play?
Only time will tell, if Agatha undergoes another name change, however, I think it will be safe to say something is afoot.
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Warning! This article contains Doom Patrol Season 4 episode 9 spoilers.
Doom Patrol fans know that the heart of the series lies in the team’s quest to regain their humanity. Niles Caulder’s manipulative experiments not only turned them into weaponized versions of themselves but shook the very core of their trust. Learning that the very man who they believed was their guardian angel had actually betrayed them was the ultimate blow to their collective psyche.
In the eagerly anticipated fourth season, our band of misfits is pitted against a malevolent Immortus who seeks to tamper with reality. But amidst the unified front to confront this enemy, whispers of treachery within their ranks are growing louder. The possible defector? Cliff Steele, affectionately known to fans as Robotman.
In the intriguing episode “Immortimus Patrol,” Immortus, using Isabel Feathers as a conduit, crafts an illusory world eerily reminiscent of the reality Wanda Maximoff created in WandaVision. Immortus’ goal? To keep our heroes ensnared in a seductive alternate reality where their deepest desires come true. Almost all members manage to shake off this dreamlike state with the help of Madame Rouge. Cliff stands out as the exception.
For Cliff, this alternate universe is nothing short of euphoria. Here, he’s not the steel-clad Robotman, but his former human self. A bonus for those fans eager for more Brendan Fraser screen-time, in this world, Cliff can engage in human experiences, talk to his family, and most importantly, feel. Those familiar with Cliff’s backstory understand the allure of this fantasy. The tragic accident that transformed the race car driver into a mechanized being has left him with a profound sense of loss. Even the grand gestures like a parade in Cloverton, Ohio, did little to mend his shattered self-worth.
Thus, when the time comes to confront Immortus over her deceitful dinner, Cliff’s allegiance seems to waver. To his teammates, the world created by Immortus is an unbearable prison. But for Cliff, it’s a haven.
Inside the Mind of Robotman: Cliff’s Struggles with Trust, Loyalty, and a Yearning for Normalcy
Warner Bros.
Understanding Cliff’s predicament is essential. His life, marred by guilt over abandoning his family and the internal struggles with self-worth, has often been a solitary one. While most of the team have found moments of solace or glimpses of normalcy, Cliff’s pain has been a constant companion.
Cliff’s hesitancy isn’t without precedent. He once willingly sacrificed his longevity to Immortus’ cult, showcasing the lengths he would go to in order to regain a sense of humanity. Considering his past, it seems plausible that he might turn against his team again.
However, dubbing Cliff as a mere traitor might be oversimplifying things. His longing for the illusory world constructed by Immortus showcases the detrimental effects of isolation. Despite efforts by teammates like Dorothy and Jane to uplift him, Cliff’s self-worth remains critically low. While heroes like Victor Stone’s Cyborg found acceptance in society, Cliff has always felt like an outsider.
In the imagined paradise of Immortus, Cliff finds joy in the simplest of activities: wearing sweaters, indulging in festivities of “Immortimus Day”, or even dancing. While these might seem trivial to some, for Cliff, they represent the life that was snatched from him.
As Doom Patrol unravels its latest season, Cliff’s internal battles promise to keep audiences on their toes. Though a potential betrayal looms large, it’s essential to remember the path that led him here. As viewers eagerly await new episodes every Thursday on Max, Cliff’s internal tumult reminds them of the fragility of trust, the complexities of loyalty, and the haunting repercussions of isolation.
The Haunting brings us new rewards and unlockables that we can earn by spending the souls we capture. The first two tiers are available immediately, with tier three unlocking on October 24.
Rewards for Stealing Souls and How Many Souls They Cost
Gone Batty (Weapon Sticker) – 15 Souls
Join Me (Loading Screen) – 15 Souls
Skullfied (Calling Card) – 30 Souls
Double Weapon XP Token (1 Hour) – 30 Souls
Double Weapon XP Token (30 Minutes) – 30 Souls
Bad Luck? (Weapon Charm) – 30 Souls
Bit Corny (Weapon Charm) – 60 Souls
Carved Up (Weapon Sticker) – 60 Souls
Creature Copter (Vehicle Skin) – 90 Souls
Tier Skip – 90 Souls
Alien Death Ray (Handgun Blueprint) – 150 Souls
Violent End (SMG Blueprint) – 150 Souls
Coming October 24, the next tier of event rewards will unlock, allowing us to get even more new items from soul-catching.
But Wait! There’s More!
Once we unlock 10 of these items, we reach mastery level one and get a new operator skin for Roze. After tier three opens up, we can rip through those and reach mastery level 2 by unlocking 15 items, which gives us another operator skin, this time for König. To unlock all of these rewards, we are likely going to need to farm quite a bit of souls. The best way to get these souls is explained more in-depth here.
Editor’s Note: This article contians spoilers for Killers of the Flower Moon.
As the credits came on screen and the applause started in my theater last night, I sat for a minute and blinked for what felt like the first time in over three and a half hours. For me, going to the movies feels like a religious ritual, and with the best movies, a religious experience.
If cinema itself is God, then Martin Scorsese is tantamount to St. Peter. The message he was delivering through Killers of the Flower Moon was not one of salvation but about the demons we live with every day and the evil that lures us in.
But let’s back up. Today, we’re going to explain the ending of Killers of the Flower Moon and dissect what that final scene means.
There will be SPOILERS for the movie to follow. So read at your own risk.
Let’s get started.
Killers of the Flower Moon — Official Teaser Traileryoutu.be
What Is the Plot of ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’?
This movie, adapted from the non-fiction true crime book written by David Grann, delves into a series of crimes known as the Osage Indian murder investigation.
But Scorsese’s story starts with the Osage people, as they’re driven to a reservation in Oklahoma, and find oil on their land. This makes them the richest people per capita in the world.
Of course, with the oil flowing and money rolling in, there’s a fair share of people who come in to try to exploit them.
One such person is cattle rancher William ‘King’ Hale (Robert De Niro), who becomes rich in his own right by pretending to be a friend to the Tribal Nation while pulling strings behind their backs to try to control their oil claims.
His nephew, Ernest Burkhart (Leonardo DiCaprio), comes to work for him. Hale sets him up to be a cab driver and eventually drives him toward a romance with an Osage woman named Mollie (Lily Gladstone), whom he falls in love with and marries.
But Mollie’s family controls many of the oil claims, and Hale wants them out of the way. So he and Ernest, along with Ernest’s older brother Byron (Scott Shepherd), begin to systematically kill Mollie’s relatives one by one.
During this, Ernest falls deeper in love with Mollie, but when she starts making noise and wanting a real investigation into these murders, William convinces Ernest to slowly poison Mollie through her insulin shots to keep her quiet.
Ernest regrets doing this, but never crosses his uncle and continues to make his wife very sick. Their love is still there and palpable, but inside she knows something is not right with her medicine and suspects Ernest of poisoning her. But before Mollie falls too ill, she heads to Washington DC, where she asks the President of the United States to send someone to solve the murders in Osage country.
An FBI investigator named Tom White (Jesse Plemons) comes into town, and he quickly and easily figures out that the Burkharts and Hale are behind dozens of murders in and around town. They’re all arrested, and Tom gets Earnest to flip on his uncle.
William tries to pressure Ernest into not testifying, but after Ernest’s daughter dies and he sees how upset Mollie is, he agrees to flip if he’s let out of prison to be with his wife and children.
Meanwhile, Mollie, now not being poisoned, grows stronger and is able to get out of bed and see what her life is like without the poison. This confirms in her mind something has been happening to her.
Ernest testifies and tells the truth, along with many of his cohorts, and William and Byron are sent to prison. But when Ernest is confronted by Mollie about whether or not he’s told her the whole truth about what has been happening, both on the stand and in their marriage. Ernest lies and says he has. Mollie knows he’s lying and leaves him.
The Ending of ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’
‘Killers of the Flower Moon’
Credit: Apple Original Films
The film then cuts to an old-time radio show, where they tell the story like it’s an entertaining romp in front of an all-white audience.
We find out William Hale eventually left prison and lived to be 87 years old. Ernest and Byron also were let go early and wound up living back in Osage country together. Mollie was eventually killed by her diabetes.
Martin Scorsese himself comes to a microphone and delivers Mollie’s eulogy where we learn she was buried next to her family and that the Osage murders were never mentioned in the newspaper upon her death.
After that, we do a slow zoom-out as the Osage people dance on the plains where so much blood was once shed. Then, we fade to black.
What Does The Ending of ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ Mean?
#osagenation language consultant christopher cote shares his complicated feelings about #martinscorsese’s #killersofthesunflowermoon #killersoftheflowermoonmovie
On the red carpet for the premiere of Killers of the Flower Moon, The Hollywood Reporter spoke with Christopher Cote, the language consultant on the movie who taught the Osage language to the cast.
Cote gave possibly the most eloquent answer I’ve ever heard when it comes to his feelings on the movie.
Cote said that his feelings were mixed. He said, “As an Osage, I really wanted this to be from the perspective of Mollie and what her family experienced, but I think it would take an Osage to do that … I think that’s because this film was not made for an Osage audience, it was made for everybody, not Osage.”
So, why am I starting an explanation of the ending of the movie with that quote?
Well, I think it holds in its heart the story of this film. The final two scenes are our focus today.
We’ll start with a 1932 episode of “The Lucky Strike Hour,” the radio program where we hear the summation of the crimes and punishments in the movie. Of course, the fact that Hale and his nephews got away with most of this is appalling.
But the way Scorsese delivers this information is through entertainment. He knows that for white people of any generation, the way we’re approaching these stories is through one of thrills and chills. We’d want to know the salacious details of the crime and be entertained from the comfort of our own homes like this radio hour does.
Even in what should be a sympathetic radio broadcast, the voices of indigenous people are mocked through Pidgin English. These victims are tokenized and otherized to be consumed by an audience who may forget them as soon as the broadcast ends.
As Scorsese comes out to deliver Mollie’s eulogy, his tenor and breaking of his voice is a reminder that we are the wolves. We have preyed on these stories as forms of entertainment, without remembering the murder or justice needed.
He’s standing before us as an artist saying, “Look at what we leave out,” and is begging us to not forget this story, to not forget the history that’s been ripped from our textbooks and glossed over by so many others.
The movie then transitions to an Osage ceremony. Martin Scorsese may have the last lines of the movie, but the last voices we hear are Osage.
Their story has not ended. In fact, if we start listening now, it can continue on, even after all the devastation. It’s on us to listen to them and give them the space needed to tell their stories with their voices.
Lily Gladstone and Martin Scorsese on the set of his new film ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’
Credit: Melinda Sue Gordon/AppleTV+
This is all just my take, and I’m sure you have opinions and ideas as well. I want to hear them. This is a movie that begs to be talked about, and I hope to spend the rest of my time with it reading and listening to the thoughts and opinions of others about it.
Martin Scorsese is our greatest living filmmaker. Like I said at the top, this for me was not salvation but a reckoning on what I could do better as a person and as a storyteller, and how we have to do better as a society.
14 Horror Movie Scenes That Scared Actors In Real Life
1.
Psycho‘s Janet Leigh was so disturbed by the famous shower scene where her on-screen partner is stabbed that she stopped showering altogether for a while. (She took baths instead.)
2.
JoBeth Williams was scared while filming the notorious pool scene in Poltergeist – but not because the skeletons on set were real.
4.
The cast of Alien genuinely had no idea about the special-effects monster that burst out of John Hurt’s chest.
5.
Three-year-old Carey Guffey was genuinely scared when meeting the aliens in Close Encounters of the Third Kind.
6.
Jack Reynor said that filming Midsommar‘s near-final scene in his bear suit was (understandably) terrifying.
7.
Will Poulter, who also starred in Midsommar, was similarly disturbed by watching the film.
8.
Shelley Duvall’s baseball scene in The Shining was reshot 127 times, and was part of what she calls a “cruel” on-set culture.
9.
The lawnmower in Maximum Overdrive was real – and so was the terror of the child actor who had to run from it. Oh, and a cinematographer got blinded, too.
10.
Alex Wolff said that filming, well, all of Herditary gave him PTSD.
11.
Noomi Rapace hated shooting a scene where she had to give herself abdominal surgery in Prometheus.
12.
The actors in Scream were genuinely freaked out by Roger Jackson’s calls.
13.
The tent shaking in The Blair Witch Project seemed real to the actors. In fact, most of that movie freaked the cast out, TBH.
14.
Ashley Banks was really terrified when she first met Dracula in The Monster Squad.
Do you think we missed any other great examples? Let us know in the comments below!
The American Film Institute led TheWrap’s 2023 annual ranking of the top 50 film schools in the United States.
The invaluable resource provides a definitive list of the most exceptional film schools of all types across the United States, offering helpful insights into the schools that shape the future of the film industry for prospective film students, parents, and industry professionals.
TheWrap’s rankings are based on a variety of factors, including class size, student body diversity, scholarships, networking opportunities, new facilities, faculty, original programs and alumni success. To compile a list that includes everything from small graduate conservatories to huge public universities, TheWrap also surveyed former and current film school deans and other experts for their candid input on which schools they thought were performing above or below expectations.
“We’re proud to once again release our ranking of the top 50 film schools in the United States,” said Sharon Waxman, CEO and editor-in-chief of TheWrap. “This ranking recognizes that every student is looking for different factors in a film and media studies education, and is intended to be a resource for students and their families as they make important decisions about which school is right for their needs.”
The top five schools on TheWrap’s 2023 ranking are:
American Film Institute
University of Southern California
New York University
Chapman University
Loyola Marymount University
Other notable schools on the list include Emerson College, CalArts, Columbia, UCLA, the University of Texas at Austin, UNCSA, Wesleyan and SCAD, among many others. For the first time, the list recognizes one of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Morehouse, for its growing Cinema, Television and Emerging Media Studies Department.
TheWrap’s top 50 film schools issue can be found here.
About TheWrap
TheWrap is the leading, authoritative digital news organization covering the business of entertainment and media. Founded in 2009, TheWrap is the only independently owned Hollywood trade, serving as a reliable and trusted source of breaking news, investigative reporting, expert analysis, exhaustive awards season coverage and in-depth features for over a decade.
Checking in with good friend Dave Neal on today’s podcast, and boy is there a lot to talk about. Needless to say, the Clayton drama continues – and with good reason. The woman in question is doubling, tripling, and quadrupling down on her stance and it makes no sense to anyone. So many holes in this story, so many things we can openly question, and that’s exactly what we’re doing. Trying our best to present to you the things going on behind the scenes, things you should know from past (and current) ongoing cases) to give you the full spectrum here of what’s happening. My opinion is I have never believed any of this since the story broke. If I’m wrong, I’ll gladly admit I’m wrong. But nothing shown to me thus far has proven anything on her side. Yet, it’s impossible to have a conversation with the other side in all this because, well, nothing I would say matters to her. It’s the most bizarre situation I’ve ever been a part of and I’ve never seen anything like this in Bachelor Nation history before. It keeps getting weirder and weirder. Enjoy today’s podcast with Dave. SO MUCH to go over.
You can listen to today’s podcast on a number of platforms, but you can also tune in by clicking the player below:
(SPOILERS) I begin by previewing what’s coming in the Dave interview, why the Clayton story is still a major deal, and what’s been going on behind the scenes. Then Dave joins me (9:08) and we discuss his recent trip to the Maldives, why some complained about it, how absolutely insane the Clayton story is becoming, what we’ve dealt with, his ban from Reddit, and much, much more.
(SPOILERS) Today’s Daily Roundup covers a preview on today’s weekly podcast with Dave Neal, his ban from Reddit, more Clayton talk, Bachelor Joey’s filming, Survivor’s fun blindside last night, Big Brother, & House of Villains premiering tonight.
You can listen to that podcast on a number of platforms, but you can also tune in here:
As Halloween approaches, U.S. audiences consistently demonstrate an increased appetite for horror content. Historically, TV show demand within the horror genre surges each October, and 2023 is anticipated to be no exception. The chart below shows demand peaks for horror TV series during the months of October in the last years.
The fluid nature of the entertainment sector ensures that the horror genre remains ever-evolving. Within this genre, audience preferences shift, as new shows introduce trends and captivate viewers, while interest in others wanes. A case in point is the burgeoning popularity of horror-comedy shows.
In the first quarter of 2021, this sub-genre accounted for 10.8%
Brandon Lake and Tasha Cobbs Leonard were among those in the winners circle on Friday evening (Oct. 20), as the 54th annual Dove Awards aired on TBN.
The Gospel Music Association began in 1964, and the first Dove Awards were held in 1969; initially, the ceremony primarily honored Southern gospel music. But the awards ceremony has expanded over the decades to honor an array of sounds and musical styles, including pop, hip-hop, Gospel, country, Latin and more.
During the 2023 ceremony, which was taped earlier this week on Oct. 17 at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Lake took home the lion’s share of wins, earning four trophies, including the overall artist of the year trophy.
“There are so many people in this room that I look up to and who gave me permission to write as a young boy. They say imitate before you innovate,” Lake said in accepting his artist of the year honor. “I have imitated so many of you year after year after year and songs not making it and no one hearing it and then God breathes on a little something. I’m so grateful to be a part of this community.”
Cobbs Leonard took home two awards — gospel worship album of the year for Hymns (Live) and traditional gospel recorded song of the year — and closed out the evening by performing “Burdens Down.”
“This album means a lot to me because I’m a church girl; I’m a PK [preacher’s kid],” Cobbs Leonard told the audience after winning the evening’s first honor, gospel worship album of the year. She added, “One of the ways I learned scripture was through song. I think we have an amazing opportunity to impact future generations through our lyrics.”
Toby Mac, Blessing Offor and Jeff Pardo each won two awards. Other winners included Katy Nichole (new artist of the year), Elevation Worship (worship album of the year for Live From the Loft), Jason Crabb and Dylan Scott (bluegrass/country/roots recorded song of the year for “Good Morning Mercy”) and Lecrae (rap/hip-hop album of the year, for Church Clothes 4). Song of the Year went to “Goodness Of God,” honoring songwriters Ben Fielding, Ed Cash, Jason Ingram, Jenn Johnson, and Brian Johnson. Miel San Marcos, Daniel Calveti, Marcos Witt and Ingrid Rosario won Spanish language recorded song of the year for “Coritis (En Vivo).”
Here, we look at 8 impactful moments from the ceremony. A full list of winners can be found here.
For King & Country and Jordin Sparks Sing ‘Love Me Like I Am’
Flanked by blue laser lighting across the arena’s main stage, Jordin Sparks joined for King & Country’s Luke and Joel Smallbone for a pitch-perfect rendering of the collaboration “Love Me Like I Am,” from for King & Country’s 2022 album What Are We Waiting For?.
This carefully constructed, pop-smooth track offered a superb vessel for their vocals, with Sparks’ rafter-ringing, crystalline voice topping off this CCM hit.
Blanca and Jekalyn Carr Bring ‘New’ Energy to Dove Awards Stage
Flanked by dancers and clad in silver attire, Blanca and Carr brought high intensity and wondrous vocal blending to their first GMA Dove Awards performance of the collaboration “New Day,” with its propulsive hip-hop beats, soul-soaked groove and an energetic performance with a dash of 2000s pop flair.
Dr. Bobby Jones Honored With Jackie Patillo Leadership Award
Dr. Bobby Jones was honored with the Jackie Patillo Leadership Award, an honor named after the Gospel Music Association’s president/executive director Patillo.
Dr. Jones started his television career in 1976 and launched the variety program Bobby Jones Gospel on BET in 1980. Bobby Jones Gospel, which ran on BET for 35 years, provided prime media exposure for artists including Yolanda Adams, Kirk Franklin, Shirley Caesar, Donnie McClurkin, Byron Cage and more. Dr. Bobby Jones was named as a member of the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2008.
Lauren Daigle Comforts With ‘Be Okay’
As several artists did throughout the evening, Lauren Daigle recognized the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. Daigle offered the comforting, soulful piano ballad “Be Okay,” which she wrote with fellow CCM songwriter Ellie Holcomb.
“In light of what has happened in Israel this week, our eyes need to be opened to what He might be calling us to. We have the hope of eternity and the good news of the Gospel. We aren’t bringing in messages that tear and divide, we’re bringing in messages that remind people of their worth, that remind children they are valuable and belong in society,” Daigle told the audience.
Christian Hip-Hop’s Impact Celebrated
As the hip-hop music genre celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, the GMA Dove Awards ceremony also offered performances highlighting the impact of Christian hip-hop through the decades, featuring Hulvey, Social Club Misfit, GRITS and TobyMac. Hulvey, wearing a jersey emblazoned with Lecrae’s name, offered “Altar,” while GRITS and TobyMac performed their 2002 collaboration “Ooh Aah (My Life Be Like).”
The Lasting Impact of Vocal Groups Celebrated
The lasting impact of vocal groups was feted with performances from two legendary vocal groups: eight-time Grammy-winning gospel group Take 6 and four-time Grammy-nominated Southern gospel group Ernie Haase & Signature Sound. Together, they offered a glorious display of superb vocal talents.
Take 6 began with one of their signature songs, “Something Within Me,” with the two groups trading off performances from there. Ernie Haase & Signature Sound sang “You’ll Find Him There,” Take 6 performed the classic spiritual “O Mary Don’t You Weep,” and Ernie Haase & Signature Sound sang “O What a Savior,” before the two groups converged their harmonies on “Get Away, Jordan.”
Tauren Wells, Katy Nichole Acknowledge Israel-Hamas War
“Famous For (I Believe)” hitmaker Tauren Wells pulled double-duty as both host and performer during this year’s GMA Dove Awards. He also took a moment early in the evening to acknowledge the ongoing conflict affecting Israel and Palestine, saying, “We stand with the people of God and as scripture instructs us, we pray for peace in Jerusalem. Now here’s the thing – we can’t just pray for peace and not understand and identify the Prince of Peace…The world could be at war but the church is gonna be in worship. Because we don’t praise God depending upon our circumstances. We praise God depending upon His reputation.”
From there, he introduced Katy Nichole, who performed a powerful rendition of her nine-week Billboard Christian Airplay No. 1 “In Jesus Name (God of Possible),” a song asking for healing and comfort during difficult times. Later in the evening, Nichole was named new artist of the year.
TobyMac Wins Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year For Project Honoring Late Son
TobyMac recorded his album Life After Death in honor of his late son, 21-year-old Truett, who died of an accidental overdose in 2019. The album was honored during the GMA Dove Awards ceremony with the pop/contemporary album of the year accolade. TobyMac took the stage to offer a touching acceptance speech, thanking many members of the industry for their support.
“Thank you to all of you guys, everybody here, from Gospel to CCM to worship, thank you for your prayers for me and my family,” he said, adding, “to the musicians who helped craft the album, I’m grateful to you guys that helped me navigate this in the studio, all the emotions, the pain, to try to put chords and words to that…I made this record in honor of my son, Truett, my firstborn who we lost. His life was like a shot of lightning, burning fast and hot, but you couldn’t help but take notice. I couldn’t be more thankful for the fact that our God loves the wild ones. He loves the wild ones. Lastly, I just want to say I made these songs in the hardest, coldest of valleys, and we still don’t know why God would ask this of us…He didn’t promise us that we wouldn’t face hard things. He didn’t promise us that we wouldn’t face loss. He promised us that he would never leave us or forsake us.”
Conocí a Richard Anthony “Cheech” Marin cuando formaba parte del eterno dúo humorístico de fumetas Cheech y Chong. Pero una vez que vi un poco debajo de esa superficie, llegué a conocer a Cheech Marin, el coleccionista de arte, comunicador cultural y leyenda chicana.
En vísperas del estreno de A Song for Cesar, dediqué un rato a hablar con Marin sobre el movimiento chicano y el papel que desempeñó en este el líder sindical César Chávez.
Foto por Carlos Puma. Cortesía de Riverside Art Museum, 2022.
CHEECH MARIN: Oí hablar de César cuando estaba en la universidad, cuando empezó su movimiento a mediados o finales de los sesenta. Todo el mundo se alegró mucho de ver que representaba a partes ignoradas de la sociedad, y además con una firme determinación.
MARIN: Ya sabes, me sorprendí mucho. Lo vi un par de veces, pero la primera vez que lo vi creo que todavía estaba en la universidad o algo así. Estaban haciendo un mitin y Tommy [Chong] y yo fuimos y lo que realmente me sorprendió fue su sentido del humor. Tenía un gran sentido del humor, siempre estaba sonriendo. Se tenía la imagen de un líder sindical o de un líder del movimiento muy severo, y siempre fue todo lo contrario. Siempre fue muy amable con todos los que le rodeaban y tenía un gran sentido del humor. Supongo que se necesita eso para superar las cosas por las que él estaba pasando, y para representar o luchar por las cosas que él intentaba lograr. Así que él es realmente un hombre del pueblo. No se trata de un líder intenso. Era un líder intenso, pero una especie de asesino suave. Dijo todo lo que tenía que decir. Fue increíble. Me quedé prendado de él. La primera vez que lo vi, sabía quiénes éramos. Conocía nuestra comedia. Nos trató como a un miembro más de la familia, y eso me asombró.
SKINNER: ¿Cómo puede influir la comedia en una causa como el Movimiento Chicano y el movimiento de los trabajadores agrícolas?
MARIN: Los chicanos tienen un gran sentido del humor porque es orientado a la familia, más que nada. El Movimiento Chicano siempre estuvo orientado a la familia. Así que la asistencia era numerosa porque iban todos los miembros de la familia: los niños, la madre, el padre y los abuelos. Entonces siempre hubo una sensación de “no te tomes la pinche obra tan en serio”.
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La frase que utiliza Marin, “No te tomes la pinche obra tan en serio”, procede de la aclamada obra teatral de Luis Valdez “Zoot Suit”, de 1979, y de su adaptación cinematográfica de 1981.
Se trata de la primera obra chicana en Broadway, que mezcla de forma notable metarrelatos en torno al entretenimiento con una narración dramática de los disturbios del Zoot Suit de 1943 en Los Ángeles, California. El simbolismo del traje zoot llegaría a inspirar a los chicanos durante el Movimiento Chicano, incluidos líderes como César Chávez.
Es el arte y el entretenimiento como “Zoot Suit” a lo que Marin se refiere como una gran forma de “crónica” de la cultura en los barrios chicanos, y de tomar nota de “cómo algunas cosas han cambiado y cómo algunas cosas no han cambiado”.
Marin tiene un ingenio agudo y una presencia ligera y alegre en las llamadas de Zoom, pero sin duda se toma el arte en serio. Sus intereses le han llevado a fundar The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art, Culture & Industry, al que también se puede llamar simplemente The Cheech. Alberga cientos de obras de arte chicanas de la colección personal de Marin.
SKINNER: ¿Qué cree que hace del arte una fuerza tan poderosa en los movimientos sociales y en la cultura?
MARIN: Creo que es porque es fácil de entender. Se cumple el dicho de que una imagen vale más que mil palabras. Los muralistas chicanos tomaron ejemplo de los muralistas mexicanos que hacían lo mismo en la Revolución Mexicana. Pero actuando para un público —proporcionando arte a un público— que era en gran parte analfabeto. Entonces las imágenes dijeron más que mil palabras. Vieron lo que ocurría en una imagen en murales de David Alfaro Siqueiros, José Clemente Orozco, Diego Rivera.
MARIN: Ahora bien, los chicanos tomaron eso y lo mejoraron, era un poco más sofisticado porque su audiencia no era analfabeta. Eran muy cultos. Poner esas imágenes delante de ellos, fueron motivadores, donde podían ver muy claramente de lo que estamos hablando con lo que era el movimiento. Te identificas con ella más fácilmente que con la retórica. A medida que cada nueva generación, cada nuevo artista entra en el campo, yo lo llamaría “noticias del frente”. Este es el aspecto de mi barrio. Estos son los problemas del mío. Este es el aspecto de la gente. Eran los niños, los mayores. Así era mi parque de juegos y así es nuestro barrio. Y te comunicas con ese método. Y cambia a medida que cambian sus barrios. “Oh no, mi barrio se está aburguesando”. ¿Qué aspecto tiene? Así que siempre hay movimiento, siempre hay movimiento. A medida que la población de chicanos recibe más y más educación, con un título universitario o incluso de secundaria, la capacidad de entender e identificarse con ese movimiento se hace más fácil y más pronunciada. Soy de la tercera generación [angelino]. Mis hijos son de cuarta generación, y ya ve que ellos —como yo— creen que todas las promesas que se hicieron a los ciudadanos de Estados Unidos se aplicaron a mí. Creo que, cada vez más, las nuevas generaciones piensan que todas las promesas garantizadas y hechas al público estadounidense, también nos pertenecen a nosotros.
SKINNER: ¿Hay algún artista en particular con el que esté trabajando ahora que le entusiasme, que crea que está llevando esta antorcha?
MARIN: Muchos de ellos lo hacen. Vincent Valdez es un joven de Texas que, cuando hice la gira “Chicano Visions”, era el artista más joven de la exposición y acababa de graduarse de la Escuela de Diseño de Rhode Island. Su tesis de graduación fue el cuadro “Kill the Pachuco Bastard!” (“¡Maten al pachuco cabrón!”), una crónica de los disturbios del zoot suit que fueron algo muy destacado en los años cuarenta.
RELATED POST
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En una época en que el tribunal de la opinión pública juzga rápidamente los gestos culturales y las declaraciones artísticas, Cheech Marin lleva mucho tiempo abogando por la libre expresión artística. Mantiene esa virtud sacrosanta.
MARIN: Es inútil decirles a los artistas lo que tienen que hacer. Va en contra del proceso. Harán lo que quieran hacer. Todos los artistas chicanos que conozco llegan a un punto en el que sólo quieren dedicarse a sus propias inquietudes artísticas, ya sean las relaciones con sus padres, sus hijos, su barrio o su gobierno. Así que pueden abarcarlo todo, porque [Chicano] no es un estilo de pintura, es una descripción de la cultura. Y cada cual tiene su propia descripción de la cultura.
SKINNER: ¿Hubo algún momento en su infancia en el que se dio cuenta de lo importante que llegaría a ser para usted la identidad chicana?
MARÍN: Sí, al principio era un término despectivo de mexicanos hacia otros mexicanos. Los mexicanos que se habían trasladado desde México y ahora vivían en casuchas de hojalata a lo largo de las fronteras ya no eran verdaderamente mexicanos porque habían abandonado su país. Eran algo menos. Eran “Chicos”. Eran pequeños “Chicanos”, pequeños mexicanos satélite, que vivían al otro lado de la frontera. Crecí la mitad del tiempo en un barrio exclusivamente de negros y la otra mitad en un barrio exclusivamente de blancos. Yo siempre era “mexicano”, “¡Oye, mexicano!”. No soy mexicano. Nunca he estado en México. No hablo español. ¿Cómo puedo ser mexicano? Así que siempre estaba luchando. Pero sabía que era en parte [mexicano]. Todos en mi familia eran mexicanos. Hablaban español. Mis abuelos, mi madre y mi padre y mis tíos y tías… Pero siempre estaba buscando lo que me describía en este proceso. Cuento esta historia de vez en cuando: una vez llegué a casa a cenar y había una reunión familiar. Y mi tío Rudy, a quien conocí toda mi vida, era policía, al igual que mi padre. Era de la policía de Los Ángeles. Y estaba contando la historia de cómo fue a arreglar su coche a un mecánico y dijo: “¡Quiere $200 por arreglarlo! Dame un trozo de papel de aluminio y unos alicates y podré arreglarlo. Soy un mecánico chicano”. Y yo digo: “¡Eso es lo que soy!”. Soy un tipo capaz de sobrevivir en cualquier circunstancia y que no deja que nada le detenga. “Vale, cuesta demasiado. Haré otra cosa. No cuesta mucho, pero cumple su función”. Sabes, es esa gran actitud rasquache lo que realmente resonó conmigo. Podía hablar español o no. Podría hablar spanglish o no. Puedo comer comida mexicana o hamburguesas de Bob’s Big Boy. No importa. Soy parte de ese Movimiento Chicano, y de verdad describió mucho.
Esta entrevista ha sido editada por motivos de longitud y claridad.
Translated to Spanish from the original English article.
From the beginning, with the grief still raw and anguished questions unanswered, the South Korean government distanced itself from the disaster that unfolded last year on a Halloween weekend in Seoul.
Nearly 160 revelers were crushed to death in a narrow alleyway in the Itaewon neighborhood, after huge throngs had amassed with no police officers to control them, despite official warnings that the gathering would be unusually large after the end of pandemic restrictions.
Over the days that followed, in a response that drew scorn and ridicule among many South Koreans, the government insisted that it did not have responsibility for public safety on the streets that night because the Halloween festivities had not been formally organized. Instead, the government blamed local police and other officials for failing to deal with the emergency.
Now, with another Halloween approaching, the families say far too little has been done to make sure such a catastrophe does not happen again.
While bar and nightclub owners in Itaewon have decided not to promote Halloween-themed events this year, they are hopeful that a sizable crowd will turn out and bolster confidence in the neighborhood, whose entertainment area became a ghost town in the months after the disaster. Officials have banned Halloween festivities in Hongdae, another popular drink-and-party neighborhood in Seoul, to help prevent congestion-related accidents. Hongdae was expected to attract more crowds this year if people shunned Itaewon for Halloween.
City officials say they are taking extra security precautions. Seoul has begun adding hundreds of high-resolution surveillance cameras and plans to use artificial-intelligence technology to watch crowds in Itaewon and other entertainment zones. Officials say they plan to send up to 300 officials and police officers to Itaewon and keep a battalion of police officers on standby to intervene if streets become congested. They will open an ad hoc control center there to monitor the crowd. And they have changed street tiles to make Itaewon’s sloping alleyways less slippery.
But the families of the disaster victims say an underlying cause of the calamity remains unaddressed: a bureaucracy that fails to prioritize public safety and refuses to come clean on its shortcomings, shielding politically appointed bosses in a deeply hierarchical culture.
“The whole government was united in trying to push this case under the surface,” said Lee Jeong-min, who lost a daughter in Itaewon and leads a campaign by victims’ families for justice. “One thing we learned in the past year is that no safety system matters unless you have a government with a sense of responsibility.”
In the aftermath of the deaths, the government of President Yoon Suk Yeol ordered officials to stop calling the crowd crush a “disaster” and its casualties “victims,” referring to them as an “accident” and “the dead.” And Mr. Yoon ignored demands from victims’ families to set an example by firing top safety officials, and dismissed requests for a meeting and an apology.
A bill that would categorically stipulate that it is the government’s duty to prepare safety measures when large groups of people are expected to gather without organizers has yet to clear the National Assembly.
Opposition lawmakers and relatives of the victims are also pushing for a special law to open an independent investigation into the disaster, after Mr. Yoon’s government allowed the National Police Agency to investigate itself in the Itaewon case.
The families’ worst fears were confirmed when the police agency cleared its own top bosses and those at the Ministry of the Interior and Safety of any wrongdoing, while prosecutors indicted 12 local police and other officials on charges such as negligence of official duty. No verdicts have come as the trials have dragged on. Investigators asked prosecutors to indict the Seoul police chief on similar charges, but the prosecutors have yet to act.
The families say that high-level officials should be punished to make clear that they bear responsibility in large-scale disasters like the Itaewon crush, and that structural changes to prevent such calamities will be possible only if the full truth of what happened is exposed.
On the night of Oct. 29, person after panicked person called police and fire department hotlines for hours, reporting a dangerous crowd surge developing in the cramped alleyway in Itaewon. Eventually, hundreds of people began to fall on top of each other as waves of revelers pushed up and down the sloping strip of pavement, jostling to go in opposite directions.
As the partygoers were suffocating and dying, hundreds of police officers deployed for other duties were less than a mile away. The fire department’s nearest first-response center was 660 feet away. The nearest police station was even closer: 330 feet away. But the desperate calls from worried passers-by went unheeded for hours.
After the disaster, Mr. Yoon said he felt “an indescribable sadness” at the deaths of the 159 people, including 26 foreigners, most in their 20s and 30s. His government vowed to make the country safer.
But its unpreparedness in handling emergencies was exposed again this year when floodwaters filled an underpass in July, killing 14 drivers and passengers, and when the World Scout Jamboree descended into chaos in August. In both cases, officials failed to heed warnings of danger.
In the Itaewon catastrophe, the families asked whether the police had been too preoccupied with guarding the vicinity of Mr. Yoon’s office, which he had moved nearby. On the day of the crowd crush, thousands of officers were deployed to monitor peaceful anti-Yoon demonstrators, a regular occurrence in Seoul. Dozens of plainclothes police officers were in Itaewon — to carry out Mr. Yoon’s war on drugs, not to control the crowd.
The authorities’ claim that they lacked a mandate to regulate the crowds because the festivities had no organizers was “an excuse,” said Ha Kag-Cheon, an expert in disaster prevention at U1 University, a private school in central South Korea. “It’s a basic duty of the authorities to make preparations and ensure safety when a large crowd is expected.”
After the disaster, bars and nightclubs closed as people shunned Itaewon, a neighborhood in the central Yongsan district where foreigners and locals have long gathered for the party atmosphere. Some owners moved their businesses elsewhere in Seoul. Those who remained organized flea markets and indie-band nights to help bring customers back. The government provided cheap loans and 20 percent discount coupons to visitors.
Today, Itaewon clubs have regained 60 to 70 percent of their business, said Yoo Tae-Hyuk, who runs a club near the disaster alleyway and leads an association of Itaewon store owners.
During a recent weekend evening, young nightclub workers in black T-shirts were out enticing passers-by. People sipped beer around veranda tables, enjoying a cool October evening. From a bar floated Pharrell Williams’s song “Happy.”
“We have to change people’s perception of Itaewon as a scary place, a place they are afraid to visit,” said Hwang Soon-Jae, who runs jazz and rock ’n’ roll bars.
The alleyway still stands as a monument to the tragedy. On a rust-colored metal wall at its entrance, hundreds of handwritten messages from residents and visitors from around the world mourn the dead. “I hope we can take steps to prevent this kind of tragedy from ever happening again,” one message said.
That wall, which investigators said a neighborhood hotel added to its side years ago without permission, made the alleyway even more cramped. The hotel’s managers are on trial on charges of violating building codes.
South Korea has been plagued by a series of human-caused disasters, including a department store collapse, a ferry sinking and catastrophic fires. The country has laws and guidelines on disaster prevention but not enough official commitment, experts said. Career bureaucrats, they added, are more preoccupied with catering to the “mood” — or political needs — of their bosses than with ensuring public safety.
“Halloween in Itaewon had drawn large crowds in the previous years, too,” said Yoon Yong-Kyun, an expert in disaster prevention at Semyung University. “If only one of the top bosses — the chiefs of Yongsan, the police and Seoul City or the president — had asked officials whether they had safety plans in place, the disaster would not have happened.”
Bill Maher was angry that certain messages get attention and certain others do not on his Friday Real Time show on HBO.
He led off with a prime example of that in an interview with Alexandra Pelosi (daughter of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi), the director and producer of the HBO Original documentary The Insurrectionist Next Door, which debuted October 15.
The film talks to several people who stormed the Capitol building on Jan. 6 about what brought them to Washington, D.C. on that fateful day, and whether their views have shifted since.
Maher noted that the people in the film are “remarkably relatable and likable.”
“It’s the forgotten man,” Pelosi said. “They fell behind this great American dream, they’re feeling left behind.”
Maher tried to get Pelosi – who blamed social media feeds for the divide in political views – to say what the Democrats are doing so wrong to engender these feelings of being left out when they are the ones that are trying to help the working class.
Pelosi dodged, but Maher wouldn’t let her off the hook, noting, “You made a whole movie about it.”
Finally, Pelosi allowed that the bubble of social media brainwashed people to be “programmed to hate on both sides.”
Maher ultimately showed which side he’s on by bidding her farewell with a quick, “Say hello to your mother for me.”
In the panel discussion, Maher talked with Paul Begala, Democratic strategist and CNN political contributor, and New York Times columnist Bret Stephens.
They attacked those whose opinions did not match theirs on the current situation in the Middle East.
Begala summed it up: “There are not two sides here.”
The most thorny issue tackled was which side fired the missile that hit the Gazan Al-Alhi hospital. Maher brought up a New York Times headline that accused Israel, ending in the equivocation, “Palestinians Say.”
Stephens, a former editor of the Jerusalem Post, noted how journalists should not take what the Palestinians say at face value, since it’s an authoritarian society. “Everything that comes out of it has to be double-checked and triple-checked,” he said. “It’s Hamas. It goes to the basic difference. In an open democratic society (like Israel), journalists do not live in fear that they’ll be hurt. It has to be treated with skepticism, and Israel has to be believed.”
Begala also brought up social media, noting, “Too many people are prisoners of the algorithm of their social media.” Stephens agreed, noting that school indoctrinates children into one value – tolerance. That leads to a problem in situations that have two sides. “The tolerance brigade couldn’t bring themselves (to acknowledge things) without equivocation.”
Stephens called for Hamas to be wiped out to its fifth level, while Maher noted that such extreme actions are “a trap to get us to overreact.” Maher noted that level of retaliation would escalate the conflict, perhaps opening other fronts that could overwhelm Israel.
Maher’s “New Rules” editorial advised students, “don’t go to college,” particularly to the Ivy Leagues. “As recent events have shown, it just makes you stupid,” and noted how higher education has become “a stew of bad ideas.” Both comments referred to the pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses.
Although the students have no knowledge of history, Maher opined, “It doesn’t deter them from having an opinion.”
College, Maher claimed, “is a day care center with a meal plan.” He noted that if “ignorance is a disease, Harvard is the Wuhan wet market.”
Noting some famous Harvard grads, Maher said they all have punchable faces in common, “and some, I assume, are good people.”
He closed by telling the older folks in his audience that “college today is not the college you remember,” and told students, “You don’t need four years to hate America when you can watch five minutes of Selling Sunset.“
The Supreme Court on Friday temporarily allowed the Biden administration to continue its efforts to get social media companies to remove posts from their platforms that the government says are misleading.
The importance of the issue was underscored by the court’s decision Friday to accept the case for oral argument this term, which would mean a ruling before end of June.
As is customary in emergency orders, the majority did not explain its reasoning for granting the administration’s request. But conservative Justices Samuel A. Alito Jr., Clarence Thomas and Neil M. Gorsuch dissented from the decision not to leave the lower court order in place, calling the development “highly disturbing.”
The lawsuit against the federal government, initiated by Republican attorneys general in Louisiana and Missouri, raises significant andnovel questions about how free speech protections apply online, with implications for how government officials interact with social media companies and communicate with the public on the popular platforms.
Jameel Jaffer, executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, called the case a significant opportunity for the Supreme Court to resolve an increasingly urgent and relevantissue.
The justices have said “little about how lower courts should distinguish permissible persuasion from unconstitutional coercion,” Jaffer said. “These are momentous, thorny issues, and how the court resolves them will have broad implications for the digital public sphere.”
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey (R) called the administration’s social media lobbying “the worst First Amendment violation in our nation’s history.”
“We look forward to dismantling Joe Biden’s vast censorship enterprise at the nation’s highest court,” he said in a statement.
In asking theSupreme Court to intervene in the matter, Solicitor General Elizabeth B. Prelogar wrote in a court filing that the order issued by an appeals court last month would impose “unprecedented limits” on the administration’s ability to “use the bully pulpit to address matters of public concern” and call attention to potentially harmful online content.
The lawsuit claims government officials censored protected political speech by urging tech companies to modify posts involving elections and the coronavirus vaccine. Conservatives have long argued that liberal employees inside tech companies are working with Democratic officials to silence conservative views when making content-moderation decisions —a claim that tech companies and government officials dispute.
“Federal interference fundamentally transforms online discourse, rendering entire viewpoints virtually unspeakable on social media,” the attorneys general told the high court in a filing thaturged the justices to let the appeals court order take effect.
In July, a District Court judge in Louisiana sided with the states and issued a sweeping injunction that bars thousands of federal employees across a range of government departments and agencies from improperly pressuring or coercing tech companies to remove specific content.
The conservative U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit last month limited that order to the White House, the surgeon general’s office, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the FBI.
The three-judgeappeals courtpanel said the White House likely “coerced the platforms to make their moderation decisions by way of intimidating messages and threats of adverse consequences.” The panelalso found the White House “significantly encouraged the platforms’ decisions by commandeering their decision-making processes, both in violation of the First Amendment.”
The opinion details White House efforts to pressure social media companies to remove misinformation about the coronavirus pandemic. Officials “were not shy in their requests,” calling for posts to be removed “ASAP” and appearing “persistent and angry,” according to the ruling. It describes a contentious period in July 2021, which reached a boiling point when President Biden accused Facebook of “killing people.”
“We find, like the district court, that the officials’ communications — reading them in ‘context, not in isolation’ — were on-the-whole intimidating,” the judges wrote.
The panel subsequently broadened its order this month to extend to government officials with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, saying those officials probably acted improperly in trying to coordinate with Silicon Valley to protect elections from online hoaxes.
The First Amendment protects against government infringement on speech. Officials are permitted to tell a company when content on its website is problematic or misleading, and to advocate for administrationpolicies. But officials cannot coerce private companies to take action on the government’s behalf or threaten to punish people for expressing different views. The question for courts to unravel is how to distinguish between permitted government speech and prohibited coercion or threats.
Government officials routinely engage with companies like Facebook and YouTube. The FBI, for instance, shares information with platforms about accounts that appear to be used by covert foreign actors to influence the American public. Tech companies and the government expanded efforts to fight against disinformation online after Russian interference on the platforms during the 2016 election. But such content moderation efforts have become embroiled in the nation’s culture wars, and manycompanies are now cutting back on the number of employees who do such work.
In its request to the Supreme Court to temporarily block the 5th Circuit’s order while it is appealed, the Biden administration warned of “drastic consequences” if the limits on government officials are allowed to take effect. “There is a fundamental distinction between persuasion and coercion. And courts must take care to maintain that distinction because of the drastic consequences resulting from a finding of coercion,” Prelogar wrote.
Alito said in his five-page dissent on Friday that his colleagues should have allowed the lower court’s ruling to stand while the high court resolves the matter. Alito said he doubted the type of “bully pulpit” speech Prelogar worried about would be prohibited if the 5th Circuit injunction were in effect. He noted that Biden would not be subject to the appeals court order, which applies only when the government crosses the line to coerce or control the free speech rights of others.
“Government censorship of private speech is antithetical to our democratic form of government, and therefore today’s decision is highly disturbing,” wrote Alito, who was joined by Thomas and Gorsuch. “At this time in the history of our country, what the Court has done, I fear, will be seen by some as giving the Government a green light to use heavy-handed tactics to skew the presentation of views on the medium that increasingly dominates the dissemination of news.”
The Supreme Court has also agreed to review a separate pair of cases about removing controversial material on social media platforms. The Biden administration has asked the court to reverse a decision upholding a Texas law barring companies from taking down posts based on political ideology. That ruling is at odds with a decision from a different appeals court, which blocked a similar Florida law from taking effect.
“Like and subscribe” is a familiar mantra to anyone who regularly watches videos on YouTube. But with some new changes YouTube is rolling out to the video streaming platform, the words will do more than just annoy you. As part of the updates, when a creator says the words “like” or “subscribe,” YouTube will add a visual cue over the corresponding buttons as a way to prompt you to actually click or tap them.
Here’s a GIF from Google showing what that might look like — watch the “subscribe” button in the lower-right corner of the GIF.
A subscribe animation!GIF: Google
When I read about this feature, I immediately worried how YouTube creators might take advantage of it; I wouldn’t put it past somebody to make a video that’s just 10 minutes of them saying “like and subscribe” to get the buttons to animate as many times as possible. But according to YouTube spokesperson Allison Toh, there are some restrictions on the feature to prevent people from doing that: either animation will only trigger three times per video, and they won’t appear more than once in a three-minute window.
These all sound like welcome upgrades, especially for the 2x sickos like me. But I’m worried the “like” and “subscribe” flairs are going to get pretty annoying pretty quickly. At least we’ll only see them three times per video.
Couples that get together do not have to dress together, so says the latest photo of alleged celebrity duo Gigi Hadid and Bradley Cooper.
In new snaps of the pair walking umbrella-less through the rainy streets of New York, 28-year-old Hadid looks every bit an off-duty model in an oversized luxe wool coat, grey beanie, and skinny black sunglasses. Meanwhile, 48-year-old Cooper wore literal Ellen Degeneres brand boxers underneath baggy sweatpants. I’m not sure where the supposed couple was off to, but it’s giving me flashbacks to Justin and Hailey Bieber’s controversial venture to her Rhode Beauty event in August.
Obviously, Hadid and Cooper’s mismatched aesthetic was considerably less jarring given the casual nature of the outing and the pair’s mutual affinity for sneakers. I’m just saying that her mini black purse definitely does not match his hulking backpack (insert “ludicrously capacious bag” meme here).
Whatever you think of their ensembles (which can be viewed here), Gigi Hadid and Bradley Cooper appeared to walk very closely together, adding more fuel to recent dating rumors. The unexpected pair were first linked romantically in early October when they were photographed getting in the same vehicle following dinner at NYC restaurant Via Carota. Just a few days later, the pair were spotted together again, with sources telling People that their relationship is “super casual” but “there is an attraction.”
Like movie theaters across the country that are facing the fallout of an actors’ strike and the shift to streaming, the Oriental Theater in Milwaukee was quite pleased to have Taylor Swift’s concert film coming to its screens.
But “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour,” which has been a box office rainmaker, comes with an unconventional stipulation: Theaters may only show it Thursdays through Sundays, said Cara Ogburn, the artistic director of Milwaukee Film, which runs the Oriental Theater.
So what to do, she wondered, on the other three days of the week?
“What if we show all Jake Gyllenhaal movies,” Ogburn suggested offhandedly, initially as a joke. “True counterprogramming.”
The idea quickly expanded. The team’s resident Swiftie assured leadership that the theater would not be canceled for a lineup based on the pop star’s famous exes. Then staff members selected qualifying films that also had Halloween-adjacent themes.
Starting next week, the three-screen art-house theater will show the original “Twilight” (Taylor Lautner, a.k.a. the werewolf Jacob Black), “Dunkirk” (Harry Styles, a.k.a. One Direction heartthrob turned nondescript World War II soldier), “Crimson Peak” (Tom Hiddleston, a.k.a. a pre-Loki baronet) and, yes, a lot of Gyllenhaal.
There’s “Zodiac” on Tuesday.
“Enemy” plays on Oct. 29, followed the next night by “Nocturnal Animals.”
Then, on Halloween, comes “Donnie Darko.”
It may be true that Swift’s songbook is only “minimally about romantic love,” as Taffy Brodesser-Akner recently observed in The New York Times Magazine. But Swift is well aware of the way she has been caricatured for having, as she puts it in “Blank Space,” a long list of ex-lovers who will say she is insane.
“We were surprised to discover how many boyfriends she has had who have been in movies,” Ogburn said of Swift, who was connected to Lautner in 2009, Gyllenhaal in 2010, Styles in 2012 and Hiddleston in 2016. (Recently, she has been seen with the N.F.L. player Travis Kelce.)
“Then we whittled it down to — what is a good movie?” Ogburn said. Finally, she said, the team had to consider what films it could actually get the rights to show.
Independent movie theaters that show more than blockbusters often target specific fan bases. In the same month that the Oriental Theater has organized and branded “The Exes Tour,” it is hosting the Milwaukee Muslim Film Festival and showing older horror favorites and current Oscar contenders like Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon.”
But the most vocal crowds are expected for Swift’s concert film, which in many places has become a glitter-filled, Eras-inspiredmega event. She has encouraged viewers to treat the outings like the many concerts that captivated fans this year, urging the exchange of friendship bracelets and dancing to the songs that Swifties know by heart.
The desire for packed theaters and a concertlike atmosphere might help explain the unique scheduling requirements for “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour,” which collected nearly $93 million domestically in its first weekend. It also has standardized symbolic ticket prices: $19.89 for general admission and $13.13 for everyone else.
Ogburn, whose team created a special drink menu for the movie’s run (red wine, for instance, became simply “Red”), said she had not fielded complaints about movie theater etiquette. “We’re kind of into enthusiastic moviegoing,” she said. “A little applauding like you’re at a concert is nothing we can’t handle.”
She did wonder whether there would be a less kind reaction to “Donnie Darko,” a 2001 cult classic in which Gyllenhaal’s disturbed character encounters a life-size rabbit.
Warning – The rest of this article contains spoilers for Season 2, Episode 3 of Loki.
Loki Season 2, Episode 3 included a conversation between Jonathan Majors‘ Victor Timely and Tara Strong’s Miss Minutes, during which she revealed He Who Remains’ aversion to granting her an actual body.
Marvel Studios
Miss Minutes explained how He Who Remains created her “long before the TVA or a Multiversal war” as a simple companion to “play chess with” before he realized her potential to become something more.
Marvel Studios
It was then that the Kang Variant granted her “autonomy to write [her] own programming” through which she could “have wants and follow whims” to essentially become her own individual.
Marvel Studios
She then explained how they spent “eons (billions of years) after” the Multiversal war together and became “more than friends,” but he would still never allow her to have a real body:
“More than friends. The war, the TVA, the eons after. I alone, was by your side. But there was one whim you never allowed me. Why didn’t you allow me a real body?”
Marvel Studios
After Miss Minutes noted how they could “truly lead together” if she had a body, the old-fashioned Victor Timely dismissed the idea as something he, unfortunately, “[doesn’t] know how to do.”
However, the TVA interface noted how He Who Remains always “kept [her] as [his] thing” and “never even tried” to give her a body, despite his ability to. It was here she reaffirmed her romantic feelings toward the Kang Variants, adding how she could have been “[his] girl” before Timely turned her off:
“You never even tried. With all your powers and all your abilities, you just kept me as your thing. Your computer, your toy. Instead of what I could have been: your girl… Victor, what are you doing? Put that down. Don’t do this! We’re a team. You need me! I love you!”
The design likely still would have seen Miss Minutes appear in her familiar hologram form but perhaps with a look far similar to the body she always craved.
Marvel Studios
Why He Who Remains Wouldn’t Give Miss Minutes a Body
All of the MCU’s Kang Variants so far have had a running desire to lead alone and remain independent, which may explain He Who Remains’ refusal to grant Miss Minutes a body and keep her only a virtual interface.
It appears He Who Remains was never looking for someone to rule alongside but rather only a tool to do his bidding, both at the TVA and the End of Time.
If Ravonna and the Kang Variant shared a romance as they have done in Marvel Comics, perhaps He Who Remains was looking to limit Miss Minutes to prevent her from hurting his partner in an act of lust and jealousy.
As Miss Minutes was a creation from He Who Remains’ own mind who was granted full autonomy, he may have even seen the potential for her to become a threat to him or others down the line if she was given a physical body.
He may see the lack of a body as an advantage for Miss Minutes, as her digital hologram presence was what allowed her to disappear and reappear across time and space, which might be tougher with a physical form to transport.
But based on some of the crazy acts the TVA interface has committed so far across both seasons of Loki, it may be for the best she is limited by a lack of body.
The first three episodes of Loki Season 2 are streaming now on Disney+.
However, concerns are growing that Gunn’s work with the DC Universe will include more humor than many fans are comfortable with when considering the director’s comedy-infused superhero filmography like the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise and his indie black comedy Super (as well as the fact that he’ll be setting the tone with the DC reboot’s first film, Superman: Legacy).
James Gunn Calms Fan Concerns About DCU Humor
DC
DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn responded to a fan question on Instagram regarding the level of humor that could be seen in the new DCU.
“Does ‘Peacemaker’ Season 1 and your ‘[The] Suicide Squad’ match the style and tone you are going for in the new DCU? Will it shift much from project to project? I’m just stoked waiting to see this Superman and want to know everything you can tell us without spoilers.”
Gunn made it clear that the tone “will shift from project to project” within the DCU, featuring a style and influence from each filmmaker involved:
“It will shift from project to project and will reflect the unique sensibilities of the filmmakers involved.”
“I learned so much from making these movies. But it’s not like ‘Superman’ is going to have exactly the same vibe as a ‘Guardians’ movie. It’s actually quite different.”
How Funny Will James Gunn’s DCU Be?
Considering how much humor James Gunn delivered in his Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy and his work in the DCU thus far, it would make sense for him to bring at least some of those laughs to his upcoming slate of projects.
While he’s noted that he wants to avoid repeating storylines and themes from past Superman movies for his own entry, he makes it clear that each new DCU movie’s tone will evolve and adapt with each character.
Lily Gladstone and Martin Scorsese on the set of his new film ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’
