When 7-year-old Mara Wilson attended the Nine Months premiere in 1995, “a red carpet reporter [asked her] opinion about Hugh Grant getting busted for prostitution.”

‘Jersey Shore Family Vacation’: Ronnie Ortiz-Magro Gets

What to Watch

Streaming giants have banded together for lobbying power

Streaming companies have formed the Streaming Innovation Alliance (SIA), reported Axios. The new trade group should give companies like Netflix and Disney a solid foundation from which to deal with current and future regulation by the federal government related specifically to streaming. The SIA formed as regulators look for ways to deal with a changing entertainment landscape that increasingly includes content creators on social platforms, which these companies don’t necessarily want to be lumped in with.

In addition to Netflix and Disney, Axios lists SIA members Paramount Plus, Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max, Peacock, TelevisaUnivision, and some small streamers like For Us By Us Network, Vault, and AfroLandTV. Other streaming services like Pluto and Hulu are already owned by Paramount and Disney, so they’ll be represented here, too.

Axios notes that Apple, Amazon, Roku, and Tubi are not currently part of this group.

The trade group’s formation was reportedly spearheaded in part by Motion Picture Association (MPA) CEO Charles Rivkin. Netflix joined the MPA in 2019 and left the Internet Association, a broader trade group representing Big Tech companies like Google and Amazon that can’t really help streaming video firms with intellectual property fights (and in some cases, could be at odds with them). But then, the MPA, while helpful on the copyright law front, isn’t as nimble on the technology side of things.

Because streaming video companies exist in such a weird limbo between all of these worlds, they could get caught up in legislation that’s intended to target other facets of the internet. Laws like the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), which features overly broad definitions of the platforms it targets and has troubling privacy implications thanks to surveillance requirements, could sweep companies like Netflix or Disney up into its dragnet.

Of course, it’s about more than deflecting regulation aimed at other industries. Streaming companies are usually pro-net neutrality, and that’s been a difficult concept for lawmakers and regulators in DC to fully grasp. They’re also dealing with demands for bespoke taxation, like efforts to tax streaming services like local networks. Increased regulation could affect their profit, which isn’t great as streamers are currently being forced to reckon with their profitability — or lack thereof.

Streaming companies have formed the Streaming Innovation

L to R: Cillian Murphy (as J. Robert Oppenheimer) and writer, director, and producer Christopher Nolan on the set of OPPENHEIMER.

Awards

Christopher Nolan Slams Biopic Genre: Not Useful

When Christopher Nolan‘s “Oppenheimer” crossed the $910 million mark at the worldwide box office, it surpassed “Bohemian Rhapsody” to become the highest-grossing biopic in history (unadjusted for inflation). To date, the “Oppenheimer” box office tally stands at $942 million. But for Nolan, his biographical drama about theoretical physicist and father of the atomic bomb J. Robert Oppenheimer was never designed as a “biopic.” That’s not a genre Nolan’s brain operates in.

Nolan recently joined his producer and wife Emma Thomas and author Kai Bird, whose book “American Prometheus” served as the basis for “Oppenheimer,” for a City University of New York event in which he rejected the concept of the “biopic.” Bird asked Nolan why “Oppenheimer” doesn’t dabble in its title character’s childhood.

“There is a tendency in biography post-Freud to attribute characteristics of the person you’re dealing with to their genetics from their parents. It’s a very reductive view of a human being,” Nolan answered. “If you’re writing a book that’s 500 pages or 1,000 pages, there’s a way to balance that with their individuality and experiences. When you compress and strip down to the necessary simplicity of a screenplay, it’s incredibly reductive.”

“This is where the concept of a biopic fails you completely as a genre,” Nolan continued. “It’s not a useful genre. I love working in useful genres. In this film…it’s the heist film as it applies to the Manhattan Project and the courtroom drama as it applies to the security hearings. It’s very useful to look at the conventions of those genres and how they can pull the audience and how they can give me communication with the audience.”

Nolan added, “Biopic is something that applies to a film that is not quite registering in a dramatic fashion. You don’t talk about ‘Laurence of Arabia’ as a biopic. You don’t talk about ‘Citizen Kane’ as a biopic. It’s an adventure film. It’s a film about somebody’s life. It’s not a useful genre the same way drama is not a useful genre. It doesn’t give you anything to hold onto.”

“Oppenheimer” stars Cillian Murphy in the title role opposite Matt Damon as Manhattan Project director Leslie Groves Jr., Robert Downey Jr. as Lewis Strauss, a founding commissioner of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, and Emily Blunt as Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer. The supporting cast also includes Florence Pugh, Benny Safdie, Michael Angarano, Josh Hartnett, Rami Malek and more.

“Oppenheimer” will be available on digital platforms starting Nov. 21. Watch Nolan’s full appearance at the CUNY event in the video below.

When Christopher Nolan‘s “Oppenheimer” crossed the $910

Docs

Why is music so important to social justice movements? | American Masters

Like the movement to unionize industrial workers in the 1930s and the African American civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s, the farmworkers’ movement was a singing movement.

It consciously followed the examples of earlier movements in which collective singing raised the spirits of movement participants, promoted a strong sense of shared identity among them, and gave them the hope and courage to carry on in the face of adversity. Members of the farmworkers’ cultural ensemble, El Teatro Campesino, created Spanish versions of well-known songs from both established labor unions and the civil rights movement, which they sang in the fields and on picket lines as part of their fledgling union’s efforts to organize laborers in the vineyards surrounding Delano, California.

They had done so at the urging of Cesar Chavez himself, who understood in his bones the vital role music played in the social life of his people.

Joan Baez (left) and Cesar Chavez (middle). Bob Fitch Photography Archive Department of Special Collections Stanford Uni. Library

In this regard, it is important to remember that El Teatro Campesino not only gave expression to the concerns of farmworkers through their skits and plays, but just as importantly through their music, which came to form the soundtrack of the farmworkers’ movement. Insofar as the farmworkers became emblematic of the broader struggle for the rights and dignity of Mexican Americans more broadly, these songs also came to form part of the soundtrack for the entire Chicano Movement in the 1960s and 1970s.

Two of the original members of Teatro Campesino, Agustín Lira and Luis Valdez, each remember how they transformed the old labor and civil rights hymns into new standards for the farmworkers’ movement, including “Nosotros venceremos” [We Shall Overcome] and “No nos moverán” [We Shall Not Be Moved]. Lira remembers first hearing the “freedom songs” of the Black civil rights movement on a record being played at the farmworkers’ headquarters in Delano in the early days of the strike against vineyard owners.

He was impressed by the power of these movement songs, sung in chorus, and immediately saw their potential as an organizing tool for the farmworker cause.¹ Valdez remembers El Teatro making a point of singing “Nosotros venceremos” and “No nos moverán” at a stop at Howard University on their first national tour in 1967 to underscore their solidarity with the Black liberation movement.²

Joan Baez singing for UFW ©Bob Fitch Photography Archive Department of Special Collections Stanford University Library

In addition to developing a repertoire of Spanish adaptations of English-language union and civil rights songs, members of Teatro Campesino wrote their own songs to be sung on picket lines and at rallies. These included “El Picket Line,” “Huelga en general” [General Strike], and “El esquirol” [The Scab]. Other songs, such as Agustín Lira’s “La Peregrinación“ [The Pilgrimage], which commemorated the 1965 farmworker march from Delano to Sacramento, and Daniel Valdez’s plaintive “Brown Eyed Children of the Sun” dealt with farmworker issues and identity, but were intended to be performed by individual singers and listened to by an attentive audience.

Another song that came to serve as the unofficial anthem of the farmworkers’ movement was “De Colores,” a popular Catholic church song known to many Mexicans and Mexican Americans. Although lyrics of this song are hardly political, farmworker activist Kathy Murguía recalls how meaningful it became in the union’s struggles to better the working conditions and quality of life of the people who worked the land around Delano:

I remember singing ‘De Colores’ at the weekly Friday night strike meetings that were held in Delano [in 1965 and 1966] . . . Every meeting ended with us joining hands and singing ‘De Colores,’ which enhanced a sense of community, of being connected in a struggle for justice . . . The rooster, the hen, the chicks that sing, the great loves of many colors—these images brought such joy, such pleasure and . . . such hope. For me, singing ‘De Colores’ felt powerful. Even today, recalling the smiles and brightness on the faces of the workers as they sang provides a sense of hope. We were part of a movement, and in small incremental ways, we believed we were changing the course of history, and ending exploitation.³

If “De Colores” became the anthem of the farmworkers’ movement, “No Nos Moverán” became its fight song. In a phone conversation I had with her in 2014, nearly a half century after the strike in Delano, UFW leader Dolores Huerta vividly remembered the significance of this song, and of music more generally, to the farmworker struggle:

We sang ‘No Nos Moverán’ every day . . . Because we were on those picket lines from early morning ’til late in the evening and we had to keep our spirits up on the picket lines. And one way that we kept our spirits up . . . was to sing these songs . . . You know, when you’re talking about a strike going on for five years—that was a long time to be on strike! Music was extremely important to keep people from getting discouraged. ‘No Nos Moverán’ symbolized the spirit that we had and that we needed to maintain. To keep people strong and let them know that eventually we’re going to win as long as we don’t give up.

“A singing army is a winning army, and a singing labor movement cannot be defeated.”

– John L. Lewis, President, Congress of Industrial Organizations⁴

A Song for Cesar amply documents that it was not only music generated from within the farmworkers’ movement itself that contributed to its initial victories and long-term survival as a force for change. Many well-known professional musicians and singers lent their considerable talents to La Causa. Of these, perhaps none played a more important role than Joan Baez, who had already demonstrated her unflinching commitment to nonviolent social change singing in solidarity with the African American civil rights movement.

Baez donated money from her concerts to support the farmworkers’ strike in Delano, sang at the funerals of fallen comrades in the union’s struggle, and sat with Cesar Chavez when he broke his 1972 fast in Phoenix, where he had been protesting the passage of a state law restricted collective bargaining rights and outlawed boycotts and strikes at harvest time.

“… labor songs … have expressed not only the dreams of an aspiring labor movement, but have also been properly used as a rallying cry to maintain discipline, morale, and high spirits in great moments of struggle.”

– Sidney Hillman, President, Amalgamated Clothing Workers of Americas⁵

Not only that, Baez helped popularize farmworker songs, including “De Colores” and “No Nos Moverán,” among wider audiences by recording them on her first Spanish-language LP in 1974 and frequently performing them in her concerts. Her importance to participants in La Causa was illustrated by the publication of a poem in her honor in the December 29, 1966 issue of El Malcriado, the newspaper of the farmworker union. Written by Leopoldo V. Meza, an inmate in California’s infamous Soledad Correctional Facility, the poem included the following lines:

There is in your singing

Something of the forgotten

Something of the remembered

Something of the return to the origin of life

Of strength against the cry of evil.

These lines, I believe, speak eloquently to role that Baez and many other singers and musicians played in defending the rights of the people who grow our nation’s food.

[1] The record Lira heard playing in Delano was by The Freedom Singers, the musical ambassadors of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. See The UFW: Songs and Stories Sung and Told by UFW Volunteers, compiled by Jan Peterson and Terry Scott and published online in 2005 by the Farm Worker Documentation Project.

[2] Personal communication with author, September 7, 2011.

[3] Quoted on p. 6 of The UFW: Songs and Stories Sung and Told by UFW Volunteers.

[4] Quoted on pages 4-5 in Labor Songs, edited by by Zilphia Horton and published in New York in 1939 by R. R. Lawrence and the Textile Workers’ Union of America.

[5] Quoted on p. 5 of Horton’s Labor Songs.

“Freedom songs are the soul of the movement,” taken from King’s “Why We Can’t Wait,” published by Harper & Row in 1963.

Like the movement to unionize industrial workers

Global

Hamas Releases 2 U.S. Hostages, a Mother and Daughter

A 59-year-old woman and her teenage daughter from Illinois were released by Hamas militants in Gaza on Friday nearly two weeks after they were taken hostage along with 200 others during terrorist raids in southern Israel that ignited a war, plunged the Middle East into crisis and left thousands dead.

Hamas said it was freeing the two American women, Judith Raanan and her daughter Natalie Raanan, 17, for “humanitarian reasons.” Their releases came after negotiations involving officials in Qatar, who served as mediators between the United States and Hamas.

The women, who were dual American-Israeli citizens, had been kidnapped during the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks from Kibbutz Nahal Oz and taken back to the Gaza Strip. They were released to the International Committee of the Red Cross and then handed over to the Israel Defense Forces, who took them to be reunited with family at an Israeli military base, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

“Israel, the I.D.F. and the entire security establishment will continue to operate with the best of their abilities and efforts in order to locate all of the missing and return all of the abductees home,” the statement said.

The U.S. government has said that at least 11 other Americans remained unaccounted for after the Hamas terrorist attack on Oct. 7, but it was not clear how many were being held hostage.

President Biden said on Friday that the United States had worked with Qatar to secure the release of Judith and Natalie Raanan. He asked the public to respect their privacy “as they recover and heal.”

“We will not stop until we get their loved ones home,” Mr. Biden said. “I have no higher priority than the safety of Americans held hostage around the world.”

Ms. Raanan and her daughter went to Israel last month to celebrate the Jewish holidays and the 85th birthday of Judith’s mother at a kibbutz in the south of the country.

Judith Raanan spent her early life in Israel before settling in the Chicago suburb of Evanston, Ill., where she raised a family. Natalie Raanan graduated from a public high school in Deerfield, Ill.

On Friday, Rivka Benyihoun, another friend from Chicago, said she and her husband had been watching Israeli television for news of their friend.

“We are all embracing and crying together,” Ms. Benyihoun said. “I told my husband, ‘She’s a survivor. She’s going to make it.’”

In a statement, Gov. J.B. Pritzker of Illinois said he was “incredibly relieved” that the Raanans were safe.

“I cannot wait to welcome them back home after demonstrating immense strength and bravery in the face of unthinkable terror,” Mr. Pritzker said.

The situation of the more than 200 other hostages remains unclear. Israel has not publicly identified them, but military officials have said they include older people and children.

Most were captured from small Israeli towns near the border with Gaza; others were abducted from military bases or from an all-night music festival. They include civilians, soldiers, peace activists, grandparents and a 9-month-old baby.

On Friday, Daniel Hagari, the Israeli military spokesman, disputed Hamas’s claim that it released the Raanans for humanitarian reasons. “This is actually a murderous terrorist organization that right now holds babies, children, women, and elderly people hostage in the Gaza Strip,” he told reporters.

Hostage-taking is a tactic that Hamas has used in the past against Israel.

In 2006, the group seized an Israel soldier, Gilad Shalit, and held him in Gaza for five years. He was exchanged for more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, many of whom had been convicted of killing Israelis in terrorist attacks.

The group has also been holding two Israeli civilians who entered Gaza in 2014 on foot, as well as the remains of two Israeli soldiers killed during a war that year.

Shortly after the Oct. 7 attack, Hamas released video of a woman and two small children it said it had released at the Gaza border. But the woman, Avital Aladjem, told Israeli news media that she and the children escaped shortly after crossing the border because their captors left them briefly alone. She said the children belonged to her neighbor, who was killed in the attack.

Earlier this week, Hamas released a short video of Mia Schem, 21, who was abducted during the Hamas assault on the music festival. In the video, she is shown with a bandaged arm and says that she has received medical treatment while in captivity. It is so far the only video the group has released of any of the hostages.

“At the moment I am in Gaza,” Ms. Schem says in the video, which was posted to Telegram channels affiliated with Hamas. “I just ask that I am returned as fast as possible to my family, to my parents, and to my siblings. Please get us out of here as quickly as possible.”

Aaron Boxerman and Julie Bosman contributed reporting.

A 59-year-old woman and her teenage daughter

Trending

Jodie Turner-Smith Shares Quote on ‘Unhealed’ People Amid Divorce – Hollywood Life

Coincidence or shade? Jodie Turner-Smith shared a rather cryptic message to social media about the difference between an “unhealed person” and a “healed” one shortly after her estranged husband, Joshua Jackson, was spotted hanging out with actress Lupita Nyong’o at a Janelle Monáe concert.

“An unhealed person can find offense in pretty much anything someone does,” the quote read, which Jodie, 37, share to her Instagram Stories on October 19, according to Us Weekly. “A healed person understands that actions of others has absolutely nothing to do with them. Each day, you get to decide which one you will be.”

Over the past week, the Queen & Slim star has posted a few messages online about self-love. Two days prior, she shared a separate quote that read, “Everything heals and grows when it is loved well. People, too.”

Though the posts were simply inspirational notes, Jodie’s social media activity came shortly after Joshua, 45, and Lupita, 40, were spotted with a group of friends on October 18. Their outing has made headlines because both actors are going through their own breakups — Joshua with Jodie, who filed for divorce from him earlier this month, and Lupita with her now-ex-boyfriend, Selema Masekela.

On the same day that Jodie shared her Instagram Stories post, Lupita broke the news of her and Selema’s split via Instagram. In a heartbreaking caption, the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever star opened up about the “pain” she was feeling due to another person’s “deception.”

“I find myself in a season of heartbreak because of a love suddenly and devastatingly extinguished by deception,” Lupita wrote. “I am tempted to run into the shadows and hide, only to return to the light when I have regained my strength enough for me to say, ‘Whatever, my life is better this way.’ But I am reminded that the magnitude of the pain I am feeling is equal to the measure of my capacity for love. And so, I am choosing to face the pain, cultivating the courage to meet my life exactly as it is, and trusting that this too shall pass.”

The Academy Award winner concluded her post with one final note: “#Breakup Let’s face our pain so we don’t spread it.” Lupita and Selema broke up nearly one year after going public with their past romance.

In spite of Lupita’s and Joshua’s own heartaches, though, TMZ reported that the two were not on a date. A source with “direct knowledge” of the duo’s evening told the outlet that Lupita and Joshua have “known each other for years, and there’s nothing romantic about the night out.”

Coincidence or shade? Jodie Turner-Smith shared a

Tech

Supreme Court Pauses Ruling Blocking Biden Administration’s Contacts With Tech Platforms

The Supreme Court on Friday paused a sweeping ruling from a federal appeals court that had prohibited thousands of Biden administration officials from engaging in many kinds of contact with social media platforms.

The justices also agreed to hear the administration’s appeal in the case, setting the stage for a major test of the role of the First Amendment in the internet era, one that will require the court to consider when government efforts to limit the spread of misinformation amount to censorship of constitutionally protected speech.

Three justices dissented from the court’s decision to allow contacts while the case moves forward. “Government censorship of private speech is antithetical to our democratic form of government, and therefore today’s decision is highly disturbing,” Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote, joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil M. Gorsuch.

In asking the Supreme Court to act, Solicitor General Elizabeth B. Prelogar said the government was entitled to express its views and to try to persuade others to take action.

“A central dimension of presidential power is the use of the office’s bully pulpit to seek to persuade Americans — and American companies — to act in ways that the president believes would advance the public interest,” she wrote.

In response, the attorneys general of Missouri and Louisiana, both Republicans, along with people who said their speech had been censored, wrote that the administration had crossed a constitutional line.

“The bully pulpit,” they wrote, “is not a pulpit to bully.”

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled last month that officials from the White House, the surgeon general’s office, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the F.B.I. had most likely violated the First Amendment in their bid to persuade companies to remove posts about the coronavirus pandemic, claims of election fraud and Hunter Biden’s laptop.

The panel, in an unsigned opinion, said the officials had become excessively entangled with the platforms or used threats to spur them to act. The panel entered an injunction forbidding many officials to coerce or significantly encourage social media companies to remove content protected by the First Amendment.

Ms. Prelogar wrote that the panel had made a fundamental error, as the platforms were private entities that ultimately made independent decisions about what to delete.

“It is undisputed that the content-moderation decisions at issue in this case were made by private social media companies, such as Facebook and YouTube,” she wrote.

The plaintiffs responded that the companies had succumbed to lengthy and unlawful pressure. They did not dispute that the platforms were entitled to make independent decisions about what to feature on their sites. But they said the conduct of government officials in urging them to take down asserted misinformation amounted to censorship that violated the First Amendment.

“The government’s incessant demands to platforms,” they wrote, “were conducted against the backdrop of a steady drumbeat of threats of adverse legal consequences from the White House, senior federal officials, members of Congress and key congressional staffers — made over a period of at least five years.”

The case is one of several presenting questions about the intersection of free speech and technology on the court’s docket. The court recently agreed to hear appeals on whether the Constitution allows Florida and Texas to prevent large social media companies from removing posts based on the views they express. And the court will hear arguments this month on whether elected officials had violated the First Amendment when they blocked people from their social media accounts.

The new case concerned a preliminary injunction initially entered by Judge Terry A. Doughty of the Federal District Court for the Western District of Louisiana. Judge Doughty, who was appointed by President Donald J. Trump, said the lawsuit described what could be “the most massive attack against free speech in United States’ history.”

He issued a sweeping 10-part injunction. The appeals court narrowed it substantially, removing some officials, vacating nine of its provisions and modifying the remaining one.

Judge Doughty had prohibited officials from “threatening, pressuring or coercing social media companies in any manner to remove, delete, suppress or reduce posted content of postings containing protected free speech.”

The appeals court panel wrote that “those terms could also capture otherwise legal speech.” The panel’s revised injunction said officials “shall take no actions, formal or informal, directly or indirectly, to coerce or significantly encourage social media companies to remove, delete, suppress or reduce, including through altering their algorithms, posted social media content containing protected free speech.”

Summarizing its conclusion, the panel wrote: “Ultimately, we find the district court did not err in determining that several officials — namely the White House, the surgeon general, the C.D.C. and the F.B.I. — likely coerced or significantly encouraged social media platforms to moderate content, rendering those decisions state actions. In doing so, the officials likely violated the First Amendment.”

In a later decision, the panel added the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and six of its officials and employees.

Two members of the panel, Judges Edith B. Clement and Jennifer W. Elrod, were appointed by President George W. Bush. The third, Judge Don R. Willett, was appointed by Mr. Trump.

In their Supreme Court briefs, the two sides agreed that the case was momentous, if for different reasons.

“The implications of the Fifth Circuit’s holdings are startling,” Ms. Prelogar wrote. “The court imposed unprecedented limits on the ability of the president’s closest aides to use the bully pulpit to address matters of public concern, on the F.B.I.’s ability to address threats to the nation’s security, and on the C.D.C.’s ability to relay public-health information at platforms’ request.”

The plaintiffs responded that the administration’s actions had caused grave harm. “When the government suppresses or chills the speech of a single American — let alone when it does this to millions — it impoverishes the national conversation,” they wrote.

The Supreme Court on Friday paused a

Video

Taylor Swift, VMAs: Paramount Executives on Branding

The creative side of the marketing process often must factor in what’s timely or relevant at the moment. Amy Campbell, chief marketing officer, Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios & Paramount Media Networks, and Molly Shea, the group’s director of campaign management, sat down during Variety Studio presented by Canva at Advertising Week in New York City to discuss the company’s approaches to branding.

Campbell spoke about promoting the global accessibility of the brand voice and the importance of connecting to fans.

“We’re really creating platform-intentional content that’ll reach [our fans] and we know what works best on each of those platforms,” said Campbell, citing social media such as TikTok and Instagram as places where fans consume content.

Shea and Campbell brought up the 2023 MTV VMAs (Video Music Awards) as an example of knowing what works best. To them, the awards show demonstrates how aspects like aesthetics can change or affect brand visibility.

“[For the VMAs,] we leaned into a brand that we used very recently, very vibrant colors. We found that was effective in previous years, specifically last year, and we wanted to own that as an identity for VMAs,” Shea said. “It’s proven something that is very pop-y, and it appeals to our current audience.”

“It’s yellow and pink,” added Campbell. “Very current. Very on target for the ‘Barbie’ summer that we had.”

Both also discussed branding for the VMAs as being fanbase-oriented. One aspect of that is the presence of celebrities who support the brand and create traction for it, such as Taylor Swift.

Shea said, “[Taylor Swift] really drove a lot of popularity for [the VMAs] this year, of course, and we’re always excited when she attends.”

“There’s nobody bigger right now than Taylor [Swift], so having her be there was amazing,” Campbell expressed. “She’s a genuine fan herself of the [VMAs] show and that really came across as she was sitting there dancing and having what seemed like an amazing time.”

The creative side of the marketing process

Entertaintment

The Documentary’ Release Set – Deadline

EXCLUSIVE: Caylee Cowan (Divinity) has signed on to star opposite Alexander Calvert in Double Exposure, a new indie from writer-director Howard Goldberg, who also produces alongside Laura Nickowitz and Julia Verdin.

Set to begin shooting later this year, the film follows a struggling artist (Calvert) grappling with profound guilt stemming from a past love. Cowan portrays Sara, a charismatic and hopeful young woman who’s just starting out in a modeling career. As time goes on, she gets pressured into a toxic lifestyle and exploited by those around her, seeing her journey get ever darker as she struggles with addiction, low self-esteem, dark thoughts and resentment over abuse she’s been subjected to.

Most recently starring in the sci-fi thriller Divinity, which world premiered at Sundance, Cowan will also soon be seen in the family film Holiday Twist with Neal McDonough and Sean Astin, among other projects. The actress is repped by Buchwald and Luber Roklin.

***

Christina Stahl in Wildflower: The Documentary

Buffalo 8

EXCLUSIVE: Buffalo 8 has landed worldwide rights to Wildflower, the award-winning doc directed by Matt Smukler that served as the basis for his acclaimed Kiernan Shipka dramedy of the same name, which world premiered last year in Toronto and recently found an audience on Hulu. Specifics as to the release plan are still being worked out, though the film is expected to debut on TVOD and/or SVOD platforms next year.

Produced by Brian Weidling of Arm and Leg Productions, Wildflower: The Documentary follows the true story of promising high-school track and field star Christina Stahl, who, from the age of 9, had to raise herself… and her parents. As Christina’s senior year of high school nears, she is faced with navigating her endearing but complicated family dynamics as she makes the difficult choice of whether to stay at home and continue to be a caregiver to her neurodivergent parents or move out to go to college.

“At some point in your life you will either be the person receiving care or the person facilitating care, yet stories around caregiving lack diversity,” noted Smukler and Weidling in a joint statement. “There are a reported 53 million people in the U.S. providing unpaid care to an adult loved one. It’s not surprising that Christina’s story struck a chord with so many. We are grateful to partner with Buffalo 8, who shares our passion for elevating an accurate narrative around neuro-diversity and caregiving.”

***

Director Leslie Small — Leslie Small

Stephen Shugerman/Getty Images

EXCLUSIVE: Leslie Small has boarded Winter State Entertainment‘s doc For The Love of Inkster as a producer. He comes to the project after being set by the company to direct the forthcoming films The Raid and Happy V-Day. Additional producers on the doc project include alongside Bishop Ira Combs, Marcia McKenna, Robert Turley, Hamid and Camille Torabpour, and Winter State Entertainment.

Scripted by two-time Emmy winner Marcia McKenna, the film currently in production takes a nostalgic look back and an optimistic look forward at a city that most people haven’t heard of but whose history will resonate deeply. While just six square miles in size, Inkster, Michigan has played a big part in exemplifying what happens when the American dream becomes a nightmare. What began as a small village and a stop on the Underground Railroad seemingly became a boon town for African Americans working at Henry Ford’s River Rouge auto plant. But like many other Black labor cities dependent on a single industry, Inkster spiraled into decay when deindustrialization swept through. The film celebrates the resilience of its residents and examines strategies for reestablishing Inkster’s employment, education, and housing systems for future generations.

Best known for his work with Kevin Hart on projects like Hart 2 Heart, along with numerous comedy specials, Small is repped by IAG. Winter State’s Hamid and Camille Torabpour are repped by Karen Gottlieb at Grubman Shire Meiselas & Sacks.

EXCLUSIVE: Caylee Cowan (Divinity) has signed on

Movies

14 Celebrity Interview Moments From The '90s That Did NOT Age Well Because They Were Simply Never Okay

When 7-year-old Mara Wilson attended the Nine Months premiere in 1995, “a red carpet reporter [asked her] opinion about Hugh Grant getting busted for prostitution.”

View Entire Post ›

When 7-year-old Mara Wilson attended the Nine

Valladolid Director José Luis Cienfuegos Explains His First Edition

One of Spain’s biggest and oldest movie events, the Valladolid Intl. Film Festival, known as the Seminci in Spain, is broadening its range of Spanish films and aims to strengthen its position as an international platform for art films.

Running Oct. 21-28 in Valladolid, the capital city of Spanish region Castilla-Leon, the Seminci’s 68th edition marks the first under new director José Luis Cienfuegos, named last April.

With an illustrious near 30-year career as a festival director, at the helm of the Seville European Film Festival (2012-2023) and prior to that at the Gijon Intl. Film Festival (1995-2011), Cienfuegos has arrived to Valladolid at a time when a new generation of Spanish film auteurs, often women, is booming, making waves at the international festivals circuit.

“Valladolid is a city absolutely dedicated to the festival that demands and needs to open the doors to a new generation of filmmakers,” Cienfuegos argues.

Alongside lending a larger visibility to cutting-edge auteurist and radical voices from Spain, this year’s Seminci will expand the range of its local films promoting commercial plays – with world premieres of Joaquín Mazón’s Spanish-Mexican comedy “The Night My Dad Saved Christmas,” and Prime Video-Zebra’s Valladolid-set thriller series “Memento Mori,” both special screenings, a formula Cienfuegos already successfully practiced in Seville.

The festival’s new direction team also aims to leverage its experience to boost Valladolid’s international reach, consolidating its stars as a benchmark even for auteurist titles.

The Seminci holds a long tradition of commitment to Spanish cinema. This year, Spain’s weighty presence encompasses 15 features playing in competitive sections.

Among the films by Spanish auteurs vying in main competition for the Golden Spike, Valladolid top prize, figure the world premiere of “Andrea’s Love,” by three times Toronto-player and Fipresci Grand Prize winner Manuel Martín Cuenca; and “The Permanent Picture,” the debut of Laura Ferrés, whose short “The Disinherited” won the 2017 Cannes Critics’ Week Leica Cine Discovery Prize.

Competing for the Golden Spike is also “Something Is About to Happen” directed by Antonio Méndez Esparza and co-written by Clara Roquet, directress of “Libertad,” which opened the 66th Seminci.

Méndez Esparza won the 2012 Cannes Critics Week with “Aquí y Allá,” and both the San Sebastian Fipresci prize and the John Cassavetes award at the Film Independent Spirit with “Life and Nothing More.”

Victor Iriarte “Foremost by Night,” which premiered at Venice’s Giornate Degli Autore, and Galician auteur Lois Patiño’s “Samsara,” winner of an Encounters award at this year’s Berlinale, and one of the most audacious voices of new Spanish cinema, are also in competition.

Part of the Official Section, screening out of competition, are the world premieres of “Teresa,” directed by “The Bride’s” Paula Ortiz and Goya best fiction short winner Patricia Font’s “The Teacher Who Promised the Sea,” the European premiere of Sundance player “Mamacruz,” directed by Patricia Ortega, and Carlota Nelson’s documentary “Eyes of the Soul.”

”Our obsession is broadening the international reach of the festival at all levels,” Cienfuegos says.

The Official Section offers a panorama of current international cinema. Its 17 competition titles describe a broad gamut. Among them, new features by standout international auteurs such as Bertrand Bonello, compete with “The Beast,” Alice Rohrwacher’s “La Chimera” and Marco Bellocchio’s “Kidnapped.”

The opening gala will screen the European premiere of Danish Lone Scherfig’s “The Movie Teller,” a Spain-France-Chile co-production toplining Bérénice Bejo, who will receive a Spike of Honor.

Further honorary plaudits take in Charlotte Rampling, who will receive a another Spike of Honor on Oct. 28 at the closing gala, which will screen her film “Juniper,” directed by Matthew J. Saville.

Spanish actress Blanca Portillo (“Volver,” “Teresa”) and Kity Mánver (“Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown,” “Mamacruz”) and photographer Cristina García Rodero (“Eyes of the Soul”) plus the European Film Academy will also be feted at this year’s edition.

“To maintain the festival’s freshness, it’s essential to present new trends and the riskiest of propositions to the audience,” Cienfuegos explains.

Revitalized sidebars Meeting Point and Time of History explore beyond conventional documentary.

A competitive parallel showcase of first and second fiction films, Meeting Point’s 15 titles boast road movies as a recurrent feature, but also characters who are going on a journey, or aspire to.

The Spanish films in Meeting Point take in Marta Lallana’s “Muyeres,” winner of the jury Grand Prix and best cinematography plaudit at June’s Shanghai Intl. Film Festival, and two Locarno players: Catalan-Basque film “Negu Hurbilak,” the debut feature from the Negu Film Collective, and “Elite’s” Omar Ayuso-starrer “On the Go,” by first-timers Maria Gisèle Royo and Julia de Castro.

This year, Time of History includes multiple hybrid titles or genre blenders, while stories range broadly.

A case in point is the world premiere of Virginia García del Pino’s “Romance Scam,” about a group of people reading a movie script on a scam artist who enamoured victims, whose characters come alive slamming romantic clichés; in “An Inhabited Volcano,” a Visions du Réel world premiere by David Pantaleón and Jose Víctor Fuente, delivers a collective portrait of the friendship and strength of the Canary island of La Palma’s inhabitants during 2021’s volcano eruption; Oskar Alegría’s Telluride Festival player “Zinzindurrunkarratz,” turns on a home movie that captures a long-ago New Year’s family party.

“We seek to attract not only the oldest audience but also new generations of viewers,” the Seminci director says.

“Within our conception of programming as an organic and homogeneous whole, these sections must be understood not as parallel sections, but as roots that intertwine with one other and with the official competition, foundations that build and strengthen the Seminci brand,” he explains.

Valladolid launched this year two new sidebars: Memory and Utopia, a pioneering section aimed at rediscovering the history of cinema; and Alchemies, a new competitive showcase of original youth cinema.

To bring Spanish films closer to the spectator, Valladolid and Spanish rights body DAMA have jointly launched Dama Dialogues, a meeting point for debate and reflection with a large list of Spanish filmmakers attending the festival.

Based on a solid organization, whose foundations were laid by prior directors Fernando Lara and Javier Angulo, the new Valladolid team is also reinforcing the festival’s industry edge.

Running Oct. 25-27, Valladolid will co-organize the third Independent Film Market (MERCI Valladolid), which took place at the Seville Festival in previous years.

A joint venture with Adicine, the Spanish indie distributors association, MERCI Valladolid will show exclusively to more than 120 TV channels and platforms programmers, distributors and exhibitors a selection of films scheduled for a Spanish release between this year’s end and across the next.

As part of MERCI, the organizers will also offer a series of industry meetings, conferences and roundtables, for example, around new film promotion tools.

Also disembarking in the Seminci is the European Film Academy, who celebrates its yearly meeting under president Agnieszka Holland in Valladolid, as well further activities aimed at both film industry members and the audience, such as the encounter Moving Your Films Beyond Their Boundaries of Origin,” with a special focus on the regional industry.

The Seminci has also organized an EFA Selection screening of seven films by European auteurs, among them Justine Triet’s Palme D’Or winner “Anatomy of a Fall,” Christian Petzold’s Berlinale grand jury prize “Afire” and titles in the international Oscars race such as Aki Kaurismaki’s “Fallen Leaves,” Italian Matteo Garrone’s “The Captain,” and Jonathan Glazer’s “The Zone of Interest” from U.K..

Continuing Valladolid’s drive into path international, Europe Cinemas, the network of theaters specializing in European and auteur cinema that brings together 1,221 cinemas in 38 countries, will develop over Oct. 25-28 an Innovation and Audience Development lab.

“Seminci’s consolidation as a meeting and promotion space for industry is vital for us,” Cienfuegos argues.

The new route undertaken by the Seminci will also focus on film heritage, “which can be seen as an industry since it generates jobs and business,” in Cienfuegos words.

Promoted by org Acción Cultural Española and moderated by Catalunya Cinematheque director, Esteve Riambau, European experts will debate in two roundtables about the challenges of film archives facing the digital dilemma and how to program cinema of the past today.

“We must not give up our efforts to program films from the past and program them well, especially at a festival like Valladolid, with so many years of history,” the director adds.

One of Spain’s biggest and oldest movie

Spider-Man 2 Miles Morales, Taskmaster, Black Cat, Kraven, Norman Osborn

MCU

All 19 Main Characters Who Appear In the Game

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, is finally out on PlayStation 5, featuring nearly two dozen iconic characters from Spider-Man lore.

Insomniac Games has followed up on its success from 2018’s Marvel’s Spider-Man and its 2020 Miles Morales spin-off on the PS5, as Spider-Man 2 continues the web-slinger’s story in epic fashion.

After Peter Parker’s battle with Dr. Octopus and Miles’ duel with Simon Kreiger, the two join forces to take down a whole new slew of villains, all while dealing with their own inner demons along the way.

All 19 Characters Featured in Spider-Man 2

1.) Peter Parker/Spider-Man -Yuri Lowenthal

Yuri Lowenthal

Complete with the new facial design first seen in Miles Morales, Yuri Lowenthal is back in tow as the PS5’s Spider-Man, Peter Parker. This time around, the young web-slinger has several challenges to tackle, including keeping his family home after Aunt May’s death.

More pressing is the fact that his suit has been infected with the Venom symbiote, winding up with a new black suit and darker attitude. This results in a much more aggressive Peter than fans have seen in this universe who is no easy task to deal with as he tries to fight the darkness inside him.

2.) Miles Morales/Spider-Man -Nadji Jeter

Nadji Jeter, Miles Morales — Nadji Jeter

Following his own solo efforts in the Miles Morales PS5 game, Nadji Jeter’s young hero looks to further cement his place in New York City as the newest friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Getting a fresh new set of threads to wear as he swings across the Big Apple, Miles takes on a co-leading role in Spider-Man 2 alongside his mentor.

With the hero still being young, he has gotten quite a drastic age-up, sporting a new hairdo and a new outlook on life, as he prepares to apply to college. Miles shows off a handful of new Spidey powers for the Harlem hero as players get to unleash new kinds of damage on all sorts of bad guys in Miles’ path.

3.) Mary Jane Watson – Laura Bailey

Laura Bailey, Mary Jane Watson — Laura Bailey

After being promoted to Associate Editor at the Daily Bugle in Marvel’s Spider-Man, Mary-Jane (MJ) Watson is back at Peter Parker’s side with Laura Bailey returning to the role. She was last heard from in the Miles Morales spin-off, leaving New York City to visit Silver Sable’s home country, Symkaria.

MJ is back in the USA for Spider-Man 2, working as an investigative reporter and published author as she rekindles her relationship with Peter. Fans get to play as MJ for a couple of side missions similar to the first game, wither her helping investigate the arrival of Kraven in New York.

4.) Sergei Kravinoff/Kraven the Hunter – Jim Pirri

Jim Pirri, Kraven the Hunter — Jim Pirri

Taking a spot as one of the two big villains in Spider-Man 2 is Jim Pirri as Sergei Kravinoff, better known to Spider-Man fans as Kraven the Hunter. First shown in the game’s initial trailer six months before the story starts, Kraven is seen investigating where to begin his next hunt, settling on Manhattan and its countless powered people.

While looking for the ultimate hunt, Kraven is brought to New York City to take on Spidey and his rogues’ gallery. However, something else draws his gaze after seeing the Symbtioe in action.

5.) Venom – Tony Todd

Opposite Kraven on the villain side is a new version of Venom, played by voice-acting star Tony Todd. Teased in the final moments of the game’s first trailer from September 2021, Venom adds a new layer of drama into Peter and Miles’ lives as he wreaks havoc across New York.

After mysteriously emerging in New York City, Peter obtains the symbiote; however, after seeing just how dangerous the mysterious substance is, knows he and Miles have to destroy it. Once Venom evolves into his final form, he is a powerful force for the wall-crawlers to take down as he wreaks havoc in NYC.

6.) Harry Osborn – Graham Phillips

Graham Phillips, Harry Osborn — Graham Phillips

Replacing Scott Porter in Marvel’s Spider-Man, Graham Phillips takes over the role of Harry Osborn, Peter Parker’s best friend, in Spider-Man 2.

After being completely incapacitated thanks to a degenerative disease during the first game, Harry is miraculously up and walking again as he and Peter Parker revive their friendship in this story. Some theories also point to him being the human host for the Venom symbiote, potentially pitting him and Peter against one another before long.

7.) Norman Osborn – Mark Rolston

Mark Rolston, Norman Osborn — Mark Rolston

Norman Osborn held a position as the Mayor of New York in the first Spider-Man game, eventually resigning after the Devil’s Breath crisis and slinking away from the public eye to take care of Harry.

At the end of the Miles Morales game, Osborn is seen angrily pushing for Harry to be released from the container in which he was kept for recovery, setting up even darker moments for both of them in the sequel, as he has done everything he can to cure his boy.

8.) Ganke Lee – Griffin Puatu

Griffin Puatu, Ganke Lee — Griffin Puatu

First introduced in Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Ganke Lee is Miles Morales’ best friend, tech guru, and “guy in the chair” who helps Miles through his regular and superhero lives.

Griffin Puatu returns to play the role in Spider-Man 2 as he meets Team Peter Parker for the first time, gaining even more new insight into the dangers and excitement that come from having a web-slinger for a best friend.

9.) J. Jonah Jameson – Darin De Paul

Darin De Paul, J. Jonah Jameson — Darin De Paul

Darin De Paul brought angry and abrasive energy to former Daily Bugle Editor-in-Chief J. Jonah Jameson, who started a podcast called Just The Facts to share his vitriol for Spider-Man regularly.

Seen in person for a split second at the start of the Miles Morales game, Jameson played a smaller role in that spin-off, still making enemies as he waged his war against the web-slingers before continuing to do the same in Spider-Man 2 as MJ’s boss at the Bugle.

10.) Rio Morales – Jacqueline Piñol

Jacqueline Piñol, Rio Morales — Jacqueline Piñol

Jacqueline Piñol plays a central role in all three games as Miles Morales’ mother, Rio Morales, who takes on the immense challenge of raising Miles as a single mom after her husband Jefferson Davis was killed by the Demons in Marvel’s Spider-Man.

She later runs for city council before winning the election, doing everything in her power to help Harlem become a better place while also learning how to come to terms with Miles being a superhero.

11.) Martin Li/Mister Negative -Stephen Oyoung

Stephen Oyoung, Martin Li, Mr. Negative — Stephen Oyoung

Martin Li served as the benefactor of FEAST in the first game before revealing himself to be the supervillain Mr. Negative, with Peter eventually defeating him on the path toward Doc Ock.

Li does return in Spider-Man 2, as Miles Morales has to come to terms with the man who killed his father still being out there.

12.) Yuri Watanabe/Wraith – Tara Platt

Tara Platt’s Yuri Watanabe served as a police captain in the NYPD throughout the first game, although the added DLC put her on a much darker path. She winds up lashing out against crime boss Hammerhead and leaves the force altogether.

Going on the run after the first game, Yuri returns as a vigilante herself in this new adventure under the moniker of “Wraith.” Pete meets her as she is hunting down a mysterious cult-like organization that has set up shop in the Big Apple.

13.) Felicia Hardy/ Black Cat – Erica Lindbeck

Erica Lindbeck, Felicia Hardy, Black Cat — Erica Lindbeck

Only playing a supporting role in the main game during the first Spider-Man, Felicia Hardy was a central player in the three DLC stories that came after the initial game’s release. She even faked her death after duping Peter into getting her the entire wealth of the Maggia crime families, but she wound up revealing herself again after Hammerhead turned into a full-blown machine.

She is back in Spider-Man 2 to give Peter (and this time, Miles) trouble, which is only exacerbated by the fact that Pete and Felicia previously dated. Not playing as a straight villain to the Spider-Men, Black Cat causes the wall-crawlers plenty of headaches walking the line between Robin Hood-like vigilante and full-on cat burglar.

14.) Aaron Davis/Prowler – Ike Amadi

Ike Amadi, Aaron Davis, Prowler — Ike Amadi

Miles Morales’ uncle, Aaron Davis, first came into the picture during the Miles Morales game as he quickly figured out that his nephew was the new Spider-Man in town.

The two would eventually team up with one another as Davis assumed his comic alter-ego, the Prowler. Spider-Man 2 finds Uncle Aaron on the straight and narrow as a reformed vigilante trying to teach his super-power nephew a few things on the way to full-blown super-herodom.

15.) Tombstone – Corey Jones

Tombstone, Marvel's Spider-Man — Insomniac Games

Tombstone will once again be utilized as a side villain with Corey Jones playing the role yet again. The drug trafficker/biker gang leader will be back in play with his nearly unbreakable skin and fury only matched by a few in the comic universe.

Having worked closely with Martin Li in the last game, Lonnie Lincoln finds himself living his life as a (potentially) reformed villain in Spider-Man 2.

16.) Shocker -Michael Beattie

Michael Beattie, Shocker — Michael Beattie

Eventually joining Spider-Man‘s Sinister Six that took the spotlight against Peter Parker, Shocker was a consistent presence throughout the first game before Spidey eventually took him down in a battle with the Vulture.

He is currently locked away in the Raft, along with several other big bads from the first game.

17.) Curt Connors/Lizard – Mark Whitten

Curt Connors, Lizard, Marvel's Spider-Man 2 — Insomniac Games

First introduced at the end of the Miles Morales game, Curt Connors was forced to let Harry Osborn out of his glass cage before he eventually turns into his comic book villain alter-ego, the Lizard.

Peter has previously taken on Conner’s scaly alter-ego, with Spider-Man 2 picking up with the scientist having left his Lizard days behind (at least for now).

18.) Flint Marko/Sandman -Leandro Cano

Sandman in PlayStation 5's Spider-Man 2 — Insomniac Games

Included in a last-minute piece of marketing for the super-powered sequel was Leandro Cano’s Flint Marko/Sandman.

The particulate-based big bad is seen swallowing up entire city blocks with his sand in Spider-Man 2 as the pair of Spider-Men try to stop Flint from turning Madison Avenue into his own personal beach.

19.) Quentin Beck/Mysterio

First teased in September 2023’s gameplay breakdown for the title, Quentin Beck (aka Mysterio).

The iconic supervillain and special effects artist joins Spider-Man 2 by promoting some new immersive theme park-style experiences that may have more nefarious purposes.

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 from Insomniac Games is available on PS5 now.

DCU

DC Calls It Quits With Jason Momoa as Aquaman (Report)

The newly-formed DC Studios has shut the door on Jason Momoa’s run as Aquaman in the DC Universe (DCU).

Momoa‘s next solo movie Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom will be a milestone moment for DC Studios as it marks the official end of the former DC Extended Universe (DCEU).

Following that film, new DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn will bring forth his new slate of projects in a fresh DCU, which doesn’t appear to include Momoa playing Aquaman or any other legacy hero back again.

DC Finished with Jason Momoa as Aquaman

In a recent Variety report noting scenes from Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom featuring Amber Heard that were removed, it was revealed Jason Momoa will no longer play Aquaman for DC Studios.

This is the same situation for other stars from the former DCEU such as Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman, Henry Cavill’s Superman, Ben Affleck’s Batman, and Ezra Miller’s Flash.

However, the situation is different for Momoa, as he’s reportedly entered talks with Gunn and company to play the famous DC antihero Lobo in a future project.

Rumors pointed to him potentially taking on this role as early as 2025 with an appearance in Superman: Legacy, which cast its first two leading actors, David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan, in June.

Will Jason Momoa Return to the DCU?

There’s no doubt that Jason Momoa is all-in on a DC comeback, as he teased that he discussed his “dream project” with Gunn and Peter Safran after they officially took over the franchise.

He’s spoken cryptically about not being finished with the DCU and he’s been fairly blatant about the fact in other public appearances, making it almost inevitable that he will be back at some point.

For the time being, Superman: Legacy is waiting to get its production started until the actor’s strike comes to an end, and Gunn still has work to do in casting other major characters outside of Lobo.

And with Safran already hinting that Momoa has a future under the new DC banner, many fans feel that it is only a matter of time until his new role becomes a sure thing.

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom will debut in theaters on December 20.

Comics

Xbox Finally Owns Activision, What Happens Now? | Spot On

After two years of economic and legal jousting, Microsoft and Xbox has finally closed the deal to buy Activision Blizzard King for $68.7 billion.

It’s Microsoft’s biggest acquisition of all time and one of the largest in the history of the business world across all sectors. This means that Xbox is now in possession of some of the biggest intellectual properties in the video games industry, which naturally has led to the question: what happens now? While it’s difficult for us to really plot out what is actually going to happen now, we have thoughts on what we’d like to see happen and what we’d like to see avoided.

On this episode of Spot On, Lucy and Tam talk through some of the things Microsoft and Xbox should keep in mind as it approaches the next few years, and figuring out how Activision Blizzard King fit into its portfolio. They also discuss how they think the company should deal with the vast catalogue of IP it now has in its possession, especially given that many of them are beloved by gamers on all platforms as opposed to just Xbox.

Spot On is a weekly news show airing Fridays in which GameSpot’s managing editor Tamoor Hussain and senior producer Lucy James talk about the latest news in games. Given the highly dynamic and never-ending news cycle of the massive video game industry, there’s always something to talk about but, unlike most other news shows, Spot On will dive deep into a single topic as opposed to recapping all the news. Spot On airs each Friday.

The products discussed here were independently chosen by our editors.
GameSpot may get a share of the revenue if you buy anything featured on our site.

Festivals

Alden Ehrenreich on His Latest Short, Shadow Brother Sunday

The best advice we can give young filmmakers who want to make their first feature is to make the story a short film first. Features cost a lot of money to make, and no one is interested in giving money to someone who can’t show off their skills as a filmmaker. Creating a short film to pitch alongside your feature is a brilliant play that shows a snippet of the story, your ability to work with a cast and crew, and whether your project is worthy of an investment.

Last night, Alden Ehrenreich‘s short film, Shadow Brother Sunday, showed off the actor’s ability to tell rich family dramas in 15 minutes, leaving the audience craving more as it ends abruptly on a cliffhanger. While the story does not have a clear, middle, and end, it aches to be longer, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

Shadow Brother Sunday Trailer ll Tribeca Festival 2023youtu.be

Inspired by moments in his own life and rich dramas like Rachel’s Getting Married, Ehrenreich crafted a story in late 2019 for his directorial debut. The short film focuses on the black sheep of a family (played by Ehrenreich) struggling in his personal life and in his relationship with his successful younger brother.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the short film’s four-day production was pushed, but Ehrenreich and his team used the time to focus heavily on pre-production.

“The rehearsal process was super important to me,” Ehrenreich said during the Q&A after his film screened for a small audience at the Huron Substation in Los Angeles, CA. From Zoom marriage counseling to improv class and family dinners, Ehrenreich spent time with his cast to develop a complicated relationship that would have to extend off-screen.

“That was because I wanted you to believe this was a family and I wanted you to believe that there were details and that there was a world on screen. This sort of idiosyncrasy, Rachel’s Getting Married is a movie I thought about a lot that really feels that way because a lot of times, as you obviously know, this is your mom and you hate her and you’re going, ‘Oh hi, nice to meet you.’ And you have to sort of fight against all these instincts to get along with people. And when you have that rehearsal process, you get to know each other,” Ehrenreich says.

Alden Ehrenreich on set of ‘Shadow Brother Sunday’Credit: Discussing Films

The long pre-production also gave Ehrenreich the time needed to navigate the pacing, framing, and shot list he and his team re-created through animatics. When he arrived on set, both as an actor and director, Ehrenreich understood exactly what was needed to film, and still had the ability and time to experiment.

The most surprising aspect of being a director for Ehrenreich stepped into the editing bay. “When I got to the editing room, I did very few closeups and I thought I’d a ton,” Ehrenreich said, “because when you’re inside of it, it’s a different thing and it was fun. We could experiment, we could throw it sideways and I knew that I was not going to, I can’t fail. Basically. I have the final say.”

While Shadow Brother Sunday strives to be a story that leaves you wanting more, Ehrenreich carefully and deliberately showed his prowess as a filmmaker who has what it takes to make great adult family dramas. This type of sharpness comes from someone who has grandiose ideas and can mold those ideas into a tangible story.

As Ehrenreich said in his final moments during the Q&A, “Write every day … You can’t do anything without the vehicle of a great piece of writing and a great piece of material. If you don’t sort of make yourself a servant to that process, which is so hard, then you don’t have anything to do with all that fervor. I would have been writing every single day instead of talking.”

‘Shadow Brother Sunday’Credit: Vanishing Angle

Ehrenreich is a filmmaker that we should listen to as his career as a filmmaker grows. Not only is he willing to take risks, but he believes in his feature ideas so strongly that he is making the short film to show what is possible. Shadow Brother Sunday is aspiration and the voice behind it is inpriation. This is truly indie filmmaking at its finest.

Here’s what The Marvels means to its fans (Part One)

There are a few things worth knowing about me. One, I’m a massive Marvel fan (perhaps unsurprising, given my bevy of Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)-centric contributions to Culturess). And two, I’m an even more massive The Marvels fan.

I recognize that these are objectively similar-sounding statements. Trust me when I say, though, that there’s an important distinction to be made here.

A lot of people are Marvel fans – the MCU alone is a multi-billion dollar franchise, and that’s not even mentioning those who enjoy the vastness of the Marvel Comics universe, the multitude of animated projects featuring these characters, or the many previous attempts to bring these heroes to the big screen.

In this day and age, being a Marvel fan is a bit like saying you enjoy watching professional sports – for better or for worse, depending on how you look at it, Marvel fandom has become near-ubiquitous.

Conversely, being a The Marvels fan (the sequel to 2019’s Captain Marvel, coming to theatres November 10th) is a much more specific classification. It’s something I’ve come to learn and very much cherish in the year or so that I’ve spent on the fandom side of Twitter (nonsensically rebranded as X.com earlier this year) for this movie.

More so than for any other superhero-led project that I’ve followed closely, be it a movie or a TV series (which, from 2016 onward, has been all of them from the MCU), the lead-up to The Marvels has just felt different. There’s no other way to describe it. It’s like there’s this special breed of us who all seem to be flocking to this movie with an earnestness and enthusiasm and dedication that’s both unprecedented and truly admirable. I’m very proud to count myself among them.

Some way, somehow, this movie speaks to each of us in deep, meaningful ways, and it hasn’t even come out yet! It speaks to those of us who have been underrepresented in the media we watch. To those of us who once upon a time gravitated towards a particular character and can’t wait to finally see them on screen again and get their due. To those of us who already feel emotionally bonded to the story Nia DaCosta, Megan McDonnell, and Elissa Karasik (the director/co-writer, first co-writer, and second co-writer) have set out to tell here.

As a physical manifestation of my place in this fandom, I’ve taken to collecting various merchandise and artwork related to the likes of Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel, Monica Rambeau/Photon, and Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel. Just under two months ago, I was hanging up a framed, full-sized version of the official theatrical poster for The Marvels on the wall of my home.

My father was there to help me, and, being the well-meaning parent that he is, asked, “What if you don’t like the movie?”

It was an entirely warranted question – in fact, a friend had asked me the very same one earlier this summer. Back then, I’d responded (rather stubbornly, I’ll admit!) that I just wouldn’t let myself not like it.

This time, however, I was more prepared with an answer. I told my father that even if there’s something in the movie I don’t end up enjoying, or it’s not as perfect as I’ve made it out to be in my head over these last few years, that doesn’t matter here. The experience of anticipating this movie, endlessly theorizing about it, and talking to people about it for hours on end in the lead-up to its release has been so much fun, that for these reasons alone, it’s worth commemorating.

That’s essentially the same guiding principle for this article (and, as is often the case when I’m particularly excited about something, this ‘article’ has ballooned into a two-part series). Having spent the last nearly three years aware that there’s just something special about The Marvels, to me and other fans, I’ve made it my mission to find out what that is.

The logical solution was to ask – and that’s exactly what I did.

Earlier this month, I reached out to some of my fellow The Marvels fans, all of whom I’ve had the immense joy of connecting with over the last year. I sent each individual a short list of prompts, and the remainder of this article (as well as Part Two) will be dedicated to featuring their responses.

First up, we’ll be hearing from Anazia, who is a self-described “short-time and long-time (wink) lover of Monica Rambeau, Captain Marvel, and Kamala Khan!”

She has considered herself a fan of the MCU for about three years now. “[That time period] isn’t too long considering how long [the MCU] has been around. It’s easy for me to say that I’ve been having an adrenaline-packed time watching the movies and shows, plus engaging in discourse surrounding my favorite projects.”

Conversely, she began feeling excited about The Marvels around January of 2021, which is when she first heard about the movie. “I remember having finished the WandaVision series with a strong urge to know more about Monica Rambeau’s journey in the MCU. I’d found my way to Twitter seeking more conversations. There I’d seen someone mention The Marvels and I’ve been emotionally bound since.”

When asked what this movie means to her personally, Anazia had this to say:

“This movie, to me, is a whirlwind of emotions. I’ve never been this emotionally invested in a movie ever in my life, which surprised me! But to put it into words…hmm…I’d say this movie marks a huge beginning and end for emotion. It breeds new possibilities, new powers of self, and new emotional depths. I’ve grown as a person while I’ve followed this movie, so I know it will leave a lasting mark on my life.”

Each fan who participated in this article series was asked a final question: what’s on their wish list for this movie? Anazia considered the question in the global sense first, and then provided a thoughtful answer for each of the three heroes we’ll be seeing on the big screen next month:

“The two words I see blinking in my mind are “New” and “Growth.” Between these three iconic characters, I can foresee the bountiful growth and change that will be set alight. It’s a change that has not yet been considered, but a change that will influence the rest of their superhero lives. I think that the change you don’t see coming is the best change there is.

For Photon (Monica Rambeau), I can’t wait to see how she levels up power-wise. Seeing her take a journey in the cosmos where she is at the peak of her power set will be beautiful to see, as she is a captain who is analytical and set on helping those that may come off as violent to others. She sees the core of a hurt person and targets that with logic.

For Ms. Marvel, I’m stoked to see how she enters a new world beyond her own. A world where she is no longer the savior but has to be saved—constantly!

Captain Marvel is someone I’m really stoked to see. She’s a soloist by heart because that is all her heart can handle. She will be challenged in this movie in more ways than one, and I’m prepared to see how a woman whose perception is built upon hurt and injustice faces the opposite of those things within herself.”

The next fan I interviewed for this series was Cy (@avengingphoton on Twitter/X), who is 25 years old and identifies as non-binary. They’ve been a fan of the MCU since the very beginning, with the release of 2008’s Iron Man.

With The Marvels, Cy noted that they’ve been excited about this movie ever since its announcement, citing a love of the sequel’s main hero, Carol Danvers, thanks to her debut in 2019’s Captain Marvel. “Carol Danvers was the first superhero since Tony Stark where I left the theater thinking, “I want to see more of them.” It was such a cool feeling, too, because Tony had been my number one for YEARS, and then suddenly there was a challenger. I’m happy to report that now they both live as best friends in the number one spot.”

When asked the all-important question of what The Marvels means to them and what’s special about it, Cy gave this response:

“This movie, in whatever way, I think is going to be life changing for me. Off the bat, one of my favorite characters is returning to a headlining position. I couldn’t hide my excitement about that if I wanted to. But what else is super special about this movie to me is that we get to revisit the Rambeau family. I absolutely adored Maria in Captain Marvel, and while there’s been some…tragedy there since then, I know that her presence is going to be strong in this movie. I’m also excited to see Monica in a leading role on the big screen. I feel like I was the only one who didn’t know until it was revealed that Geraldine in WandaVision was actually Monica Rambeau, and when that moment came, I was out of my seat with excitement. She was such an easy character to love in Captain Marvel, and that has been carried on throughout her later appearances, and I know it’s going to continue in The Marvels.”

And as for what Cy is wishing to see in this movie? A fitting tribute to Maria Rambeau, Carol’s best friend, and Monica’s late mother.

“Honestly, I hope to see acknowledgement for how important Maria was to both Carol and Monica’s lives. It sucks that WandaVision gave her an offscreen death, especially when she was such a standout performer and character in Captain Marvel. I really want to see that love the three of them shared, even though it might be tough to watch. I want Maria Rambeau to get the respect she deserves!”

The third and final fan featured in Part One of this series is Mal (@photonsmight on Twitter/X). Mal is a college student who lives for pop culture and comic book media, and loves writing and singing, but acknowledges that reading books and watching amazing movies is how they like to escape. Mal also created the Twitter community “The Marvel Corps” back in February of 2022. This online community currently boasts a membership of over 2200 fans (myself included!) who love this movie and these three characters.

Mal became a fan of the MCU after seeing Captain Marvel and Avengers: Endgame in theatres back in 2019. “A few years ago you could’ve asked me what the MCU was and would’ve just gotten a blank stare,” they shared, although all that changed in 2019. “But I only really did my homework in 2021 when we saw Monica Rambeau in WandaVision.”

When it comes to The Marvels, Mal recalls having been excited since the minute it was first announced. “I was a fan of the first movie, and to know there was a black woman [Nia DaCosta, the aforementioned director and co-writer of The Marvels] at the helm as director only increased that excitement tenfold.”

To Mal, this Captain Marvel sequel means “defying expectations, especially the expectations of people who are counting you out.”

They then expanded upon this description:

“In the first movie, when we see Carol get up so many times after falling, it really struck a chord with me. The Marvels is a living testament of that, after so much vitriol was spread about the movie by trolls, the first movie soared to heights and gave space for The Marvels to be born.

What’s special to me is that The Marvels is going to be an incredible team up of bada** women from diverse backgrounds with untold levels of dazzling power, coming together to solve a universe-endangering threat.The director is so talented and the main cast is filled to the brim with talented people like Brie [Larson] and Teyonah [Parris] who are really going to sell the emotional aspects of this story, while also serving up some delicious action sequences with their visually stunning super powers.

I can’t wait to see these ladies let loose, to not just see them defy expectations, but also gravity.”

As a devoted fan of Monica Rambeau (a.k.a. Photon), Mal’s primary wish for this movie is straightforward – they’re looking forward to the character’s feature film debut as a full-fledged superhero (Monica originally appeared as a child in Captain Marvel).

“I just really want to see Monica Rambeau, the first black woman to lead the Avengers [in the Marvel Comics], soaring amongst the stars on the big screen for the first time. This has been a journey over 40 years in the making.”

And now, in just three weeks, this wish is finally coming true.

[Stay tuned for Part Two of this fan-focused series, which will be debuting right here on Culturess in the coming weeks!]

The Marvels premieres in theatres on November 10th, 2023. Pre-sale tickets are available now.

Published on 10/19/2023 at 12:00 PM EDT
Last updated on 10/19/2023 at 12:00 PM EDT

There are a few things worth

Hollywood Heavies Give Big to Boot Lauren Boebert From Congress

October 20, 2023 @ 1:13 PM

In his battle to unseat MAGA-touting Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert, Democratic challenger Adam Frisch is tapping into a surge of support in Hollywood.

According to Federal Elections Commission records released this week, industry Democrats are giving big to Frisch with the hopes of denying far-right Republican Boebert a third term. Contributors to Frisch’s fundraising haul — which topped $3.4 million last quarter — include Barbra Streisand, Jackson Browne, “Evergreen” songwriter Paul Williams, along with actor Ryan Reynolds and “The Incredible Hulk” producer Gale Anne Hurd.

This helped Frisch out-raise Boebert by more than 3 to 1 last quarter. The Aspen money trader’s list of supporters also includes a number of studio executives and producers — among them former CBS Entertainment Chairwoman Nina Tassler, “Hoffa” producer Cotty Chub, and Propagate CEO Ben Silverman — all eyeing the chance to send Boebert back to Rifle, Co., her tiny hometown on the western side the Continental Divide.

While most industry donations typically benefit presidential and senate candidates, occasionally Hollywood kicks in cash to seemingly random U.S. House of Representatives races. This time Boebert, who barely won her Colorado District 3 seat over Frisch in 2022, has become an obvious target for Dems hoping to recapture the House in 2024.

In the 2022 election, Boebert edged Frisch by 0.16 percent of the vote, after outspending him. She spent almost $8 million during that campaign, to Frisch’s $6.7 million. But this time, Boebert is facing stiff competition from GOP primary challenger Jeff Hurd.

Long-time GOP political consultant Steve Schmidt took to Twitter to express his his support for Frisch, saying the Democrat “speaks about working FOR the people of Colorado’s 3rd district, not just making waves and creating chaos like Lauren Boebert.”

Currently, Frisch has $4.3 million in cash on hand, compared to Boebert’s $1.4 million. Even so, the Democrats are taking nothing for granted.

With dual strikes in Hollywood this season inhibiting Democrats from traveling to Los Angeles for in-person fundraisers, some members of the entertainment industry have been using the ActBlue donation portal to make quick contributions, according to a review of finance records by TheWrap.

Frisch’s list of Los Angles supporters includes an interesting mix of backers, including actress Heather Thomas, “The Road” producer Steve Schwartz, “Matlock” director Dean Hargrove, and Chilean author Isabelle Allende, who is now living in the Bay Area.

“It’s a tough time to be raising money in Hollywood,” said Los Angles political consultant Rick Taylor. “It’s hard to do anything because of the strikes. People still want to find a way to be supportive.”

A woman with light-toned skin speaks emphatically. She wears glasses and bright red lipstick and has long brown hair. She speaks in a formal setting with apparent wood paneling in the background.

October 20, 2023 @ 1:13 PM In his

What to Watch

Meet Hulu’s Slightly Cheaper Live TV Plan With Some Limitations

Later this month, Hulu will raise the price of its live TV service to $76.99, but did you know Hulu has a slightly cheaper live TV option? Quietly for some time now, Hulu has had a cheaper live TV plan that costs just $68.99 but will go up to $75.99 next week. This plan comes with all the same live channels like ESPN and your locals that the $76.99 plan but doesn’t come with Disney+, ESPN+, or Hulu’s on-demand service.

Here is how Hulu describes this plan:

Live TV Only: For $68.99/month. This plan gives subscribers access to live content only and does not include the Hulu streaming library or access to Disney+ or ESPN+.

This plan is cheaper, and for many, this will be a fine option, but for an extra $1 a month, you can get a ton of additional content. With the higher-end plan, you can get Disney+, ESPN+, and Hulu on-demand. This gives you a huge collection of live events, movies, TV shows, and specials that you won’t get with the cheaper plan.

So, if all you want is the live TV channels and you want to save some money, this new Hulu live TV-only plan may be for you if you want to save $1. This will also be a great option for anyone who gets the Disney+ bundle free from, for example, the old grandfathered Verizon offer.

Here are all the channels that Hulu + Live TV:

	Hulu
ABC	✓
CBS	✓
FOX	✓
NBC	✓
CW	✓
A&E	✓
ACC Network	✓
American Heroes Channel	✓
Animal Planet	✓
	Hulu
BET	✓
BET Her	✓
Big Ten Network	✓
	Hulu
Bloomberg Television	✓
Boomerang	✓
Bravo	✓
Cartoon Network/Adult Swim	✓
CBS SportsNet	✓
Cheddar	✓
Cinemax	✓
CMT	✓
	Hulu
CNBC	✓
CNBC World	✓
CNN	✓
Comedy Central	✓
Comedy TV	✓
Cooking Channel	✓
Cozi TV	✓
	Hulu
Destination America	✓
Discovery	✓
Discovery Family	✓
Discovery Life	✓
Disney Channel	✓
Disney Junior	✓
Disney XD	✓
Magnolia	✓
E!	✓
	Hulu
ESPN	✓
ESPN2	✓
ESPN Bases Loaded	✓
ESPN Deportes	✓
ESPN Goal Line	✓
ESPNEWS	✓
ESPNU	✓
	Hulu
Food Network	✓
Fox Business	✓
Fox News	✓
Freeform	✓
FS1	✓
FS2	✓
	Hulu
FX	✓
FX Movie Channel	✓
FXX	✓
FYI	✓
Golf Channel	✓
	Hulu
Great American Country	✓
Hallmark	✓
HBO	✓
HGTV	✓
History	✓
Investigation Discovery	✓
	Hulu
Lifetime	✓
Lifetime Movies	✓
MAV TV	✓
Motortrend	✓
	Hulu
MSNBC	✓
MTV	✓
MTV2	✓
MTV Classic	✓
NatGeo	✓
NatGeo Wild	✓
NBC Sports RSNs	✓
	Hulu
NFL Network	✓
NFL RedZone	✓
	Hulu + Live TV
Nick Jr.	✓
Nickelodeon	✓
Nicktooons	✓
Outdoor Channel	✓
OWN	✓
Oxygen	✓
	Hulu
Paramount Network	✓
PBS	✓* In Some Markets
Pop	✓
Science Channel	✓
	Hulu
SEC Network	✓
Showtime	✓
Smithsonian	✓
SNY	✓
Sportsman	✓
Start TV	✓
SyFy	✓
	Hulu
TBS	✓
TeenNick	✓
Telemundo	✓
TLC	✓
TNT	✓
Travel Channel	✓
Tru TV	✓
	Hulu
Turner Classic Movies	✓
TV Land	✓
Universo	✓
	Hulu
USA Network	✓
VH1	✓
ViceTV	✓

Later this month, Hulu will raise the

Awards

The Layers Behind ‘Loki’ Episode 3 Have an Unexpected Source – IndieWire

From Steven Soderbergh to Zhang Yimou, many directors also spend time as cinematographers. Fewer directors come out of production design, but when they do (hi Robert Eggers) it also makes sense. Filmmaking is image making, and what’s arranged inside the frame is ultimately what creates the evocative texture and feeling of a whole world. Or, in the case of “Loki,” it’s what creates the feeling of whole timelines.

So it’s both a little surprising and makes complete sense to learn that “Loki” production designer Kasra Farahani stepped into the writers’ room for Season 2 and the director’s chair for Episode 3 of this season. One of the great joys of “Loki” is its dense, retro-future look; it’s one that required a lot of collaboration between the writing and production design teams in Season 1 and led to Farahani and his art department making a lot of visual additions.

LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 10: George Clooney attends "The Tender Bar" Premiere during the 65th BFI London Film Festival at The Royal Festival Hall on October 10, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by Dave J Hogan/Getty Images)

“Environments like the chrono monitoring set, for example, were not strictly scripted, but they were something that we proposed within the art department as a place to capture a lot of smaller places in the script, to create a more central hub. Same with the design of the Loki palace, [that] was not in the script, for instance. So there was a really nice back and forth between writing and design,” Farahani told IndieWire.

As Season 2 dives straight into the (actively crumbling) foundations of the TVA and Loki’s (Tom Hiddleston) quest to save it, it felt natural to bring Farahani into the writer’s room. It gave him a more total understanding of the emotional arcs for each of the characters and the chance to start prep on production as early as possible, shifting from a mod ‘60s aesthetic of the polished TVA services to a more Cold-War-bunker look underneath.

“I wanted the temporal core and the systems level generally, where OB’s [Ke Huy Quan] workshop is, to have a more raw, rough, and more primitive feel,” Farahani said. “Which is why you see a lot of these minty greens. There’s actually a whole spectrum of greens from warm to cool that populate the space.”

Farahani started his career as a concept artist, illustrating possible looks and feels of worlds both as fantastic as “Black Panther” and as grounded as “Jarhead.” From there he moved into production design. But along the way he had aspirations across his own TVA-worthy branching timelines. “A lot of my colleagues who are brilliant concept artists, they would go home and they would practice their craft and they’d learn new software and techniques to become better and better concept artists,” Farahani said. “I put in that work too, but I spent that work learning how to write scripts and making short films. I made the choice to diversify my skill set, which was a perilous choice, honestly. People like to have a clear idea of what you can do. It can be confusing if you do a lot of different things.”

There’s a real benefit to having the kind of command of story that comes from approaching it across a number of different disciplines. “From illustrator to art director to production designer to writer/director, you’re just getting a bigger paintbrush,” Farahani said. “You’re making an image that is representing 10 different things going on at the same time.”

(L-R): Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Ke Huy Quan as O.B., and Owen Wilson as Mobius in Marvel Studios' LOKI, Season 2, exclusively on Disney+. Photo by Gareth Gatrell. © 2023 MARVEL. — “Loki”Courtesy of Gareth Gatrell / Marvel / Disney+

The process becomes even more focused when directing. “Every little detail in the frame, every piece of blocking that you work out with the actors, every piece of blocking that you work out for the camera — whether it’s handheld or something smoother on a Steadicam or a dolly — the choice of lens, the curation of the props and the environment itself: all of these things are critical decisions,” Farahani said. “All of them come together to make a single two-dimensional image that imparts meaning.”

In the case of “Loki” Episode 3, Farahani had to balance a set of large-scale locations tied to the Chicago World’s Fair with the ongoing tension between Loki and Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino); with Renslayer’s (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) and Miss Minutes’s (Tara Strong) ongoing light treason against the TVA with He Who Remains (Jonathan Majors); with introducing Victor Timely (also Jonathan Majors), a variant of Kang (still Jonathan Majors) who might hold the key to the TVA’s survival and/or to the death of all worlds.

Farahani built, lit, and shot the Chicago sets first in order to craft a sense of mystery around Victor. “We knew the audience would obviously know that at some point a Kang variant would show up,” Farahani said. But the audience wouldn’t know the nature of the variant. “So basically the objective is to keep the nature of this character shrouded.”

Jonathan Majors in — “Loki”screenshot/Disney+

The World’s Fair itself holds that same sense of mystery in its scale, with Loki and Mobius (Owen Wilson) scurrying down pathways and around corners in search of any clues. But for that, Farahani and his design team needed to build up. “You always try to design, when you’re in a set like that, you try to build up high enough. So I think we went 16 feet, sometimes in some places higher than 16 feet, so that you’re not having to [digitally extend the set] in every single shot,” Farahani said.

Farahani saves more dramatic camera movement and intensive collaborations with VFX for the moments of pure chaos, as when Loki and Sylvie fight inside the Ferris Wheel as a giant Miss Minutes terrifies the World’s Fair patrons. “That giant Miss Minutes sequence was so fun and so complicated, just the sheer number of extras, the camera movement, the design and the lighting effect of a giant Miss Minutes,” Farahani said. “The choreography of that scene was super elaborate.”

But it feels natural and right that the most electric moments of the episode aren’t when Loki and Sylvie are shooting magic blasts at each other. It’s the atmospheric introduction Farahani constructs for Victor, which was also used for the post-credits sting in “Ant Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.” The stilted, bombastic cadence of Majors’ performance combines with the quickening, thready rhythm of the cuts by editor Emma McCleave and with Farahani’s framing of the silhouetted figure we know to be Kang. Or at least a Kang. Together, they imbue Victor with a power he wouldn’t have if we could see him clearly from the start.

“Hopefully you [create] this tension in the audience when they can tell by the voice that it’s a Kang variant but you delay as long as possible revealing what it is that he’s up to,” Farahani said. “I didn’t know it was going to be a post-credit scene. I think that was something that was decided later and I was incredibly flattered to have it on the big screen.”

From Steven Soderbergh to Zhang Yimou, many

Music

Cybotron: “The Golden Ratio (Version)” Track Review

Detroit techno as we know it—which means, effectively, techno as we know it—began with the sleek synths, driving drum programming, and coolly futurist aura of Cybotron. The duo of Juan Aktins and Richard Davis began drafting their blueprint on 1981’s “Alleys of Your Mind” and 1982’s “Cosmic Cars”; by their 1983 debut album, Enter, they had laid the foundations of the genre. Now, 40 years later—and 27 since Cybotron’s last release, “Cosmic Raindance”—Atkins revives the project.

This time, rather than the reclusive Davis, Atkins is joined by a new collaborator: Laurens von Oswald, the curator of Berlin’s Atonal festival—and also, perhaps not coincidentally, the nephew of Basic Channel’s Moritz von Oswald, with whom Atkins has collaborated multiple times, beginning with the early-’90s project 3MB and continuing up through their duo project Borderland in the mid 2010s. The moody instrumental cut is propelled by the same snapping syncopations that distinguished all of Cybotron’s classic work; what has changed this time is the sumptuousness of the production. Where the original duo’s early songs presented an eerie, skeletal take on funk, with synthetic basslines snaking ominously through brittle electronic drums, the textures of “The Golden Ratio (Version)” are soft and expansive, luminous clouds of synthesizer billowing around dry, flinty snares. The track testifies to just how fully formed Atkins’ vision of techno was right from the start: After all this time, he still sounds like nobody but himself.

Detroit techno as we know it—which means,

Docs

Spanish Art Films: Success and Challenges

In times of dramatic change for the film-TV industry, Spanish auteur cinema is booming, goosed by multiple significant and high-quality titles, reaping prizes, critical praise and profile at international festivals.

Beyond the preeminent interest in established auteurs such as Pedro Almodóvar, Alejandro Amenábar, J.A. Bayona, Isabel Coixet and Rodrigo Sorogoyen, Spanish sales agents and distributors celebrate the increasingly strong presence of young local film auteurs on the international scene. The big question is, however, how this profile can translate into box office impact and substantial sales.

“We are living a very sweet moment in terms of the recognition of our cinema at international festivals, with ever more filmmakers who are creating dazzling works,” says Luis Renart, founder of Santa Cruz de Tenerife-based sales company Bendita Films.

“There’s a generation of creators and producers who look to international auteur cinema when they build their projects, made with a European sensibility and a very marked identity, and backed by more international financing and co-production structures from the earliest development stages,” thinks Álex Lafuente, co-founder of indie producer-distributor Bteam.

“New film regulation during the last government has allowed the production of markedly more audacious films with – a priori – less potential for box official return but a larger one for festival impact. They are films favored by a bet on Spain’s non-majority languages, and especially those directed by a fantastic new batch of female directors,” argues Antonio Saura, Latido Films CEO.

“Due to their subjects, their undoubted quality and because they are not obviously commercial, these films are of more interest to festival selection committees,” he adds.

Led by José Luis Cienfuegos, the new management team behind the Valladolid Intl. Film Festival, the Seminci as it is known in Spain, has made a strong bet on Spanish art films, selecting a total 15 local features for its competitive sections.

“Spanish auteur film is booming and Seminci’s new direction has been able to capture it in a lineup with a markedly auteurist seal of a very high level,” adds Lafuente, the producer-distributor behind Paula Ortiz’s period drama “Teresa,” which world premieres in main competition.

“For those of us who are dedicated to Spanish film sales, it is very appreciated that important festivals focus on national films, which would allow us to better promote them. And even more so now, that we see Cannes and Venice with a clear commitment to promote their respective countries’ productions,” Saura says.

“These bets on the national, when the national quality is evident, later helps a lot to position films in an international context,” adds Saura, who handles José Luis López Linares’ docu “Rioja, la tierra de los mil vinos,” a Valladolid world premiere. Latido has also teamed with Embankment to manage Latin American rights to opening film, Lone Scherfig’s Spain-France-Chile co-production “The Movie Teller.”

“It’s crucial that the Seminci becomes an essential event for the best Spanish cinema, complementing the San Sebastián Festival programming as a key event for the presentation of Spanish film releases in the fall,” Lafuente says.

“Cienfuegos will surely know how to welcome those quality Spanish films that cannot find a place at September’s San Sebastian, but that also have values and elements to aspire to have a certain impact in the race for nominations and awards,” says Filmax head of international, Iván Díaz.

Recent international auteurist successes selected for the Seminci’s main competition take in Lois Patiño’s “Samsara,” winner of an Encounters Award at February’s Berlinale.

“The Seminci’s timing on the annual calendar is both its greatest challenge and its best strength,” says Díaz, who, at Filmax, handles international rights to three Spanish world premieres in competition: Manuel Martín Cuenca’s “Andrea’s Love,” Paula Ortiz’s “Teresa” and Patricia Font’s “The Teacher Who Promised the Sea.”

Sold by Bendita, “Samsara” is going beyond its intense run on the festival circuit, experiencing a formidable international sales career, with deals for commercial release in territories such as the U.K., Ireland, France, Taiwan and Brazil.

A “Samsara” Dec. 15 theatrical release in Spain is planned by Galician distributor Atalante Cinema, counting on the impact of the film’s Seminci play.

To take advantage of Spanish auteurs’ international visibility and advance in exports, Renart says the challenge is “to strengthen coherent and ambitious promotion and support policies for international distribution, sustained over time, in addition to working on creating audiences at the domestic market.”

In times of dramatic change for the

Global

Israel Palestine war news LIVE: Israel unveils ‘three-phase’ Gaza war plan amid mounting protests around the world

By Tom Cotterill and David Averre

Published: 03:47 EDT, 20 October 2023 | Updated: 15:45 EDT, 20 October 2023

Biden ‘overjoyed’ with release of US hostages

US President Joe Biden said Friday he was ‘overjoyed’ after Hamas released two American hostages abducted during the militant group’s surprise attack from Gaza on Israel.

‘Today, we have secured the release of two Americans taken hostage by Hamas during the horrific terrorist assault against Israel on October 7,’ Biden said in a statement.

‘Our fellow citizens have endured a terrible ordeal these past 14 days, and I am overjoyed that they will soon be reunited with their family, who has been wracked with fear.’

Biden thanked Qatar, the Gulf state that hosts a Hamas political office and has previously brokered deals between the group and Israel, and the Israeli government ‘for their partnership in this work.’

The US president vowed that work would continue to win the release of other Americans being held by Hamas since the attack, some of whose families he spoke to last week.

‘We will not stop until we get their loved ones home. As president, I have no higher priority than the safety of Americans held hostage around the world,’ Biden said.

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Shutterstock (14159355c) United States President Joe Biden during a meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, DC, US,. The US and European Union failed to reach an accord on steel and aluminum ahead of a summit on Friday and are poised to keep negotiating until a year-end deadline, when tariffs would return on billions of dollars of transatlantic trade in the absence of a deal. Biden Hosts Meeting with EC President Charles Michel and EU President Ursula von der Leyen, Washington, District of Columbia, USA - 20 Oct 2023

Justin Trudeau says Canada is ‘committed’ to two-state solution

Canada is still committed to a two-state solution to create peace in the Middle East, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Friday, reiterating the country’s long-time position in the wake of deadly Hamas attacks against Israel earlier this month.

‘Canada remains firm and steadfast in our commitment to a two-state solution,’ Trudeau told reporters in Toronto.

‘The world and the region needs a peaceful, safe, prosperous, viable Palestinian state alongside a peaceful, prosperous, democratic, safe… Israel.’

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Canadian Press/Shutterstock (14159189l) Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau makes an announcement regarding new housing in Brampton, Ont., Friday, Oct. 20, 2023. Pm Green Housing Transportation, Brampton, Canada - 20 Oct 2023

Greta Thunberg today deleted a pro-Palestine social media post after critics claimed a stuffed octopus in the photo could be viewed as an ‘anti-Semitic’ symbol – with the activist saying the toy helps with her autism.

The 20-year-old wrote: ‘Today we are striking in solidarity with Palestine and Gaza. The world needs to speak up and call for an immediate ceasefire, justice and freedom for Palestinians and all civilians affected.’

While many criticised her for failing to condemn Hamas attacks on Israel, others questioned why the image of her with three other activists featured a blue octopus, branding it an ‘anti-Semitic trope’ for an imaginary worldwide Jewish conspiracy.

In response, Ms Thunberg deleted the original photo and replaced it with one showing the octopus cropped out.

She wrote: ‘It has come to my knowledge that the stuffed animal shown in my earlier post can be interpreted as a symbol for antisemitism, which I was completely unaware of.

‘The toy in the picture is a tool often used by autistic people as a way to communicate feelings. We are of course against any type of discrimination, and condemn antisemitism in all forms and shapes. This is non-negotiable. That is why I deleted the last post.’

Israel said it will cut ‘the umbilical cord’ with Gaza to create ‘a new security reality’ and block all crossings after annihilating Hamas in a ground invasion.

The Israeli military today punished Gaza with airstrikes and authorities inched closer to bringing aid to desperate families and hospitals.

Israel will enforce a buffer zone within the Gaza Strip once the war is over, Israel’s agriculture minister Avi Dichter said on Thursday.

In comments that seemed to refer to setting up a buffer zone in the coastal strip, Israel’s foreign minister Eli Cohen said on Wednesday that ‘at the end of this war, not only will Hamas no longer be in Gaza, but the territory of Gaza will also decrease’.

Hamas has released two US nationals who were being held hostage in Gaza, in the first such show of mercy since the terror group’s brutal surprise attack on Israel nearly two weeks ago.

The Daily Mail understands the names of the hostages are Judith Raanan and Natalie Raanan, a mother and daughter from Chicago who were visiting Israel for a relative’s birthday when they were kidnapped.

The two women have left Gaza and entered Egypt under the guidance of the Israeli branch of the Red Cross, Israeli state-run media outlet KAN 11 reported.

Protests against Israel continue in Muslim countries and beyond

Thousands of people in Muslim countries and beyond held demonstrations Friday in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

They called for an end to Israel’s blockade and airstrikes following a brutal incursion into southern Israel by fighters from the Hamas militant group that rules Gaza.

Demonstrators headed to Israeli military checkpoints after Friday prayers in the West Bank and gathered in Iraq at the country’s border crossing with Jordan; in Jordan itself; in locations across Egypt; in Turkey’s capital Ankara and its most populous city of Istanbul; and in Indonesia, Malaysia, Morocco and South Africa.

There were also protests in the Iranian capital of Tehran and in Sanaa, the capital of Yemen.

Demonstrators wave the flags of Palestine and the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah during a protest in Tehran in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip on October 20, 2023 amid the ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (Photo by AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

Yemenis chant slogans during a march in Sanaa on October 20, 2023, to express their solidarity with Gaza. (Photo by MOHAMMED HUWAIS / AFP) (Photo by MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel’s Iron Dome shoots down Hamas rockets

Israel’s Iron Dome has continued to shoot down Hamas rockets aimed towards the country from Gaza.

Dramatic images show four missiles launched by the terrorist group being intercepted by the £1.3billion defence system tonight.

Rockets are launched from the Gaza Strip, as seen from Ashkelon, in southern Israel, October 20, 2023. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets launched from the Gaza Strip towards Israel, as seen from Ashkelon, in southern Israel, October 20, 2023. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Turkish president Erdogan calls for Israel to stop attacks

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Friday called on Israel to stop its attacks on Gaza, which he said amounted to genocide, and urged governments worldwide to work for a humanitarian ceasefire in the region.

While initially condemning civilian deaths and calling for restraint as it sought to repair ties with Israel after years of animosity, Ankara has toughened its stance against Israel as the fighting and humanitarian crisis in Gaza has intensified.

‘I repeat my call for the Israeli leadership to never expand the scope of its attacks on civilians and to immediately end its operations amounting to genocide,’ Erdogan said on X, formerly known as Twitter.

He added Israel was provoking non-regional actors instead of turning back from its mistakes in Gaza, and said that the region needed saving from the “frenzy of madness” supported by Western powers and media. Erdogan also said Ankara was working to end the fighting before it reached ‘a point of no return’.

‘It is clear that security cannot be achieved by massacring children, women, civilians; by bombing hospitals, schools, mosques, and churches,’ Erdogan said.’Cruelty does not bring prosperity.’

FILE PHOTO: Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan addresses the 78th Session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York City, U.S., September 19, 2023. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

Palestine Red Crescent says Israel is demanding evacuation of hospital

The Palestine Red Crescent, an aid charity which works in the Gaza Strip, says it has received warnings from Israel’s armed forces telling them to evacuate a hospital.

The organisation says it has been told to evacuate Al-Quds Hospital, where 400 people are patients and 12,000 civilians have taken refuge from Israeli air strikes.

Hamas says it has released two US hostages

Gaza’s ruler Hamas said Friday its armed wing has released two American hostages, from around 200 captives abducted in attacks by the militant group in Israel on October 7.

‘In response to Qatari efforts, (Ezzedine) al-Qassam Brigades released two American citizens (a mother and her daughter) for humanitarian reasons,’ Hamas said in a statement posted on Telegram.

The Islamist group did not detail how or when the hostages were released.

The Israeli military said earlier Friday that most of those abducted to Gaza were still alive.

‘The majority of the hostages are alive. There were also dead bodies that were taken… to the Gaza Strip,’ an army statement said.

The military said more than 20 hostages were minors, while between 10 and 20 were over the age of 60.

There are also between 100 and 200 people considered missing since the Hamas attacks, the army added.

With instructions such as ‘kill the problematic ones’, a hostage-taking manual found on Hamas gunmen makes for bone-chilling reading.

It is a detailed eight-page ‘how to’ guide for snatch squads who stormed Israeli settlements to kill and abduct the residents.

Urging the terrorists to ‘create chaos’, the directions are spread over eight chapters which have titles such as ‘Isolation and control’ and ‘Camouflage and hiding’.

Intriguingly, the manual suggests the October 7 atrocity may not have gone according to plan – with the fanatics not supposed to take hostages all the way back to Gaza.

Some 203 terrified innocents ended up as ‘human shields’ in the territory. But the manual indicates the original purpose of the hostage-taking was to keep them in Israel possibly to aid a protracted standoff. Or, as the manual starkly puts it, ‘cannon fodder’.

You can see the full manual in the article below:

Satellite images show trucks massing at Gaza border as they wait to bring aid into Palestine

Satellite photos have shown a long convoy of trucks filled with humanitarian aid waiting to cross the border from Egypt to the Gaza Strip, analysts today claimed.

More than 200 trucks carrying roughly 3,000 tons of aid were positioned near the crossing, according to aid officials. The provisions are intended to bring some relief to the Palestinians in Gaza, which is being blockaded by Israel in response to the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas militants on towns in southern Israel.

Many in Gaza, reduced to eating one meal a day and without enough water to drink, are waiting desperately for the aid. It was unclear whether fuel would be allowed across to power hospital generators.

On Friday, workers began repairing damaged to the crossing caused by Israeli bombings. Officials hoped to open the crossing on Saturday.

This satellite photo from Planet Labs PBC shows the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing where an aid convoy sat Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023. Satellite photos analyzed Friday, Oct. 20, 2023, by The Associated Press show a massive convoy of semitruck trailers lined up at the Rafah border crossing on the Egyptian side, likely waiting for approval to cross into the besieged Gaza Strip as the Israel-Hamas war rages. (Planet Labs PBC via AP)

Rishi Sunak meets with Palestinian Authority President during trip to Egypt

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak shook hands with the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas during a meeting in Egypt on Friday.
This is Mr Sunak’s third stop on his tour of the region, as part of a diplomatic effort to stop the Israel-Hamas war from escalating.
Earlier, the PM held a meeting with the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi during his trip to Cairo.
In a statement, Downing Street said Mr Sunak and his Egyptian counterpart agreed leaders needed to ‘avoid a contagion of conflict’ in the Middle East.

epa10928937 A handout photo made available by Number 10 Downing Street shows British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak (L) meeting the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (R) in Cairo, Egypt, 20 October 2023. This is Sunak's third stop on his tour of the region, part of a diplomatic effort to stop the Israel-Hamas war from escalating. EPA/SIMON WALKER / NO 10 DOWNING STREET / HANDOUT HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

Enraged Palestinian supporters have continued ripping down posters of Israeli children kidnapped by Hamas – with one telling people filming her to ‘f*** off’ and another saying ‘go cry’.

Shocking footage has been posted online showing woman in London tearing down posters of kidnapped Israeli citizens and claiming there was ‘inaccurate information’ on them about women being raped.

Appalled witnesses filmed the young woman, who has not yet been identified, clutching the torn down posters depicting the innocents taken hostage by Hamas terrorists in Israel on October 7.

This is the shocking moment a CNN journalist was accosted by a furious crowd of Palestians during a live broadcast.

Reporter Sara Sidner was filming a live report on the West Bank – one of two Palestinian territories – when she was ambushed by an outraged man

‘You are a genocide supporter. You are not welcome here!’ he screamed at Sidner, inching closer to her face while others surrounded them.

‘F*** CNN! F*** CNN!’ the man yelled while Sidner and her retreated away from the shouting crowd.

Fears are growing the bitter conflict between Israel and Hamas could push tensions across the Middle East to breaking point, with experts warning the region is teetering on the edge of a ‘deep and dangerous abyss’ as the spectre of war looms large.

The crisis comes after Iranian-backed Houthi rebels launched a rocket attack, forcing American Arleigh Burke-class destroyer the USS Carney to blast the missiles out of the sky.

Tor Wennesland, the UN’s Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, said any escalation of violence may instantly alter the trajectory of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for the worse and drag the entire Middle East with it.

‘The events of the past days have served to reignite grievances and reanimate alliances across the region,’ he told the UN Security Council earlier this week.

‘The risk of an expansion of this conflict is very, very real and extremely danger.’

More than 1,000 officers mobilised by the Met Police ahead of major protest in London over the war between Israel and Gaza

More than 1,000 police officers are being mobilised ahead of a major protest in London on Saturday, the Met has said.

The ‘significant demonstration’ is being staged by Palestine Solidarity Campaign and follows from a similar rally last week, which saw thousands of people marching from the BBC’s New Broadcasting House to Downing Street last Saturday.

Protesters are expected to begin marching through the capital at midday, starting at Marble Arch, before heading towards Hyde Park Corner, Piccadilly and Trafalgar Square. It will again end outside Whitehall.

In a post on social media today, the Metropolitan Police added it would clampdown on those openly supporting terror organisations like Hamas or Hezbollah.

‘Supporting the Palestinian cause or criticising Israel is not, in itself, unlawful. Support for proscribed organisations such as Hamas or Hezbollah is,’ the force said.

‘Anyone wearing, carrying or otherwise displaying symbols that are supportive of a proscribed organisation can be arrested.’

Fresh pictures reveal huge columns of tanks and armoured vehicles lined up in preparation for Israeli ground assault into Gaza

New photos have this afternoon revealed the huge column of Israeli armour gathered on the outskirts of Gaza ahead of a potential ground invasion.

Dozens of tanks as well as other armoured fighting vehicles have been pictured massing close to the border of the coastal enclave.

Israel’s Defence Force has not yet commented on when any ground offensive to root out and destroy Hamas will be launched, following the terror group’s deadly attack on October 7.

But tens of thousands of troops along with military kit have been ammassed in the past few days.

Overnight, Israel launched a devastating series of bombing runs, strking more than 100 targets.

The latest images come as Israel’s defence minister Yoav Gallant told lawmakers about the country’s plan to defeat the terror group.

Gallant said Israel expected a three-phase war, starting with airstrikes and ground maneuvers. It anticipates then defeating pockets of resistance, and finally, ceasing Israel’s ‘responsibility for life in the Gaza Strip’.

An Israeli armoured column masses near the Gazza Strip today, 20th October 2023 ahead of a possible invasion into the Gazza strip.Sam Greenhill words.

Antisemitic and Islamophobic hate crimes soar in London after Israel attacks, Met Police reveal

Metropolitan Police reveal antisemitic offences in London have skyrocketed by a staggering 1,353 per cent this month compared to the same period last year.
Meanwhile,Islamophobic offences have ballooned 140 per cent in the wake of the attack by Hamas on Israel.
There have been 218 antisemitic offences between October 1 and 18 in London, compared to 15 in the same period in 2022.
Islamophobic offences were up to 101, from 42.
In a statement, the Met said: ‘Regrettably, despite the increased presence of officers we have seen a significant increase in hate crime across London. This includes abuse directed at individuals or groups in person or online, racially or religiously motivated criminal damage and other offences.’
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called the rise in antisemitism sickening and vowed that Britain would not tolerate any hatred.

Under-fire BBC boss Tim Davie told of Jewish community’s ‘outrage’ over Hamas language at meeting with top leaders

The Board of Deputies of British Jews have met with under-fire BBC boss Tim Davie, the corporation’s director general.

The meeting came amid fury over the broadcaster’s stance in recent days to describe Hamas as ‘militants’ rather than terrorists, and for it initial coverage of Tuesday’s explosion at the al-Ahli Arabi hospital in Gaza.

In a statement following the meeting, the board of deputies said: ‘The BBC confirmed it was committed to continued dialogue. It also confirmed it is no longer BBC practice to call Hamas militants. Instead, the BBC describes the group as a proscribed terrorist organisation by the UK government and others, or simply as Hamas.

Marie van der Zyl, the president of the board of deputies, added: ‘We emphasised our outrage at the refusal of the BBC to describe Hamas’ barbaric actions as terrorism and the damaging, false report of the rocket which killed innocent civilians. We will both continue dialogue as well as pursuing legal avenues.’

The scene at BBC Broadcasting House in London, after red paint was sprayed over the entrance. Picture date: Saturday October 14, 2023. PA Photo. See PA story POLITICS Israel BBC. Photo credit should read: James Manning/PA Wire

In pictures: UN secretary-general speaks during visit to Rafah border crossing with Gaza

Macron speaks to relatives of French hostages held captive by Hamas and says ‘France is not abandoning its own people’

Emmanuel Macron has spoken to families of French hostages held captive by Hamas terrorists – as he committed the Government would do ‘everything’ it could to bring them home safely.

The French president spoke to distraught relatives via a video link, he announced on social media.

Writing on X, formerly Twitter, Mr Macron said: ‘France is not abandoning its own people. We are doing everything possible to obtain the release and return of our compatriots. The Nation stands with them.’

Hamas says it has 200 hostages and that 50 more are held by other armed groups in the enclave. It said more than 20 hostages have been killed by Israeli air strikes, but has not given any further details.

Israel today insisted the ‘majority’ of the hostages still held captive by the terrorist group were ‘still alive’.

France has not said exactly how many of its citizens are held in Gaza, although there are seven unaccounted for after the attacks, of which some are being held hostage.

Israel has today revealed its three-part plan in its war to defeat Hamas terrorists in Gaza.

Speaking to lawmakers today, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant discussed the long-term plans for Gaza..

The news comes ahead of an expected Israeli ground offensive following a night of intense bombings, which saw the IDF striking more than 100 targets.

The Israeli military said it had struck more than 100 targets across Gaza linked to the territory’s Hamas rulers, including a tunnel and arms depots.

On Thursday, Gallant ordered soldiers to prepare to see Gaza ‘from the inside’, hinting at a ground offensive aimed at crushing Hamas rulers nearly two weeks after their bloody incursion into Israel.

Officials have given no timetable for such an operation.

Israeli soldiers listen to Israel's Defence Minister Yoav Gallant as he meets them in a field near Israel's border with the Gaza Strip, in southern Israel October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

epa10928576 Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike in the Tal Al-Hawa neighbourhood in Gaza, 20 October 2023. More than 3,700 Palestinians and 1,400 Israelis have been killed according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Palestinian Health authority since Hamas militants launched an attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip on 07 October. Israel has warned all citizens of the Gaza Strip to move to the south ahead of an expected invasion. EPA/MOHAMMED SABER

Angry anti-Israel protests have erupted across the world today after Hamas leaders demanded thousands of demonstrators take to the streets and target Israeli and US embassies ahead of an imminent ground invasion of Gaza.

The demonstrations were staged after Friday prayers in Muslim communities across the world – including in Bangladesh, South Korea and Iraq – with thousands of protesters condemning Israel’s attacks on Gaza and showing support for the two million Palestinians who are trapped in the war-torn enclave.

Death toll in Gaza rises to 4,137, claims the Hamas-controlled health ministry

The Hamas-controlled health ministry claimed at least 4,137 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip since Israel began bombarding the Palestinian enclave.
The ministry added another 13,162 people have been wounded in the Israeli strikes, which have been ongoing since October 7.
The figures are yet to be independently verified.

Israel aims to end its responsibility for Gaza Strip with its military campaign against Hamas, says country’s defence minister Yoav Gallant

Israel’s defense minister today said one objective in the military campaign in the Gaza Strip is to end Israel’s responsibility over the Palestinian coastal enclave.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant made the remarks during a briefing to parliament’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, his office said.
‘Gallant detailed the objectives of the campaign including the elimination of Hamas and destruction of both its military and governing capabilities, the complete removal of Israeli responsibility from the Gaza strip, and the creation of a new security reality in the region,’ the statement said.

SDEROT, ISRAEL - OCTOBER 19: Israeli Minister of Defence Yoav Gallant meets soldiers on the Israeli border with the Gaza Strip on October 19, 2023 in Sderot, Israel. As Israel prepares to invade the Gaza Strip in its campaign to vanquish Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that launched a deadly attack in southern Israel on October 7th, worries are growing of a wider war with multiple fronts, including at the country's northern border with Lebanon. Countries have scrambled to evacuate their citizens from Israel, and Israel has begun relocating residents some communities on its northern border. Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of residents of northern Gaza have fled to the southern part of the territory, following Israel's vow to launch a ground invasion. (Photo by Amir Levy/Getty Images)

Israeli air strike targeted three Hezbollah terrorists near the Lebanese border, Israel’s military reveals

‘Three Hezbollah terrorists were identified in the area of the border with Lebanon. Israel Defence Forces aircraft struck the terrorists,’ Israeli authorities said.

‘In addition, a short while ago, IDF snipers opened fire toward gunmen that were identified operating in the area of the border with Lebanon.’

‘Majority’ of the 200 hostages kidnapped from Israel and held captive by Hamas in Gaza ‘are alive’, insist Israeli army

The majority of some 200 people kidnapped in Israel by Hamas militants and taken to the Gaza Strip are still alive, the Israeli military said Friday.
In a statement by the Israeli Army, a spokesman said: ‘The majority of the hostages are alive. There were also dead bodies that were taken… to the Gaza Strip.’
The news comes ahead of an expected Israeli ground offensive to assault key Hamas positions following more than 100 strikes by the IDF overnight.
The military said more than 20 hostages were children, while between 10 and 20 were over the age of 60.
Israel adds between 100 and 200 people are still considered missing since the Hamas attacks.
Meanwhile, the Hamas-controlled health ministry claimed at least 4,137 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip since Israel began bombarding the Palestinian enclave.
In figures yet to be independently verified, the ministry added another 13,162 people have been wounded in the Israeli strikes, which have been ongoing since October 7.

epa10928614 Palestinians inspect the damage around the Greek Orthodox Saint Porphyrius Church following an overnight airstrike in Gaza, 20 October 2023. At least 18 people were killed, according to Palestinian authorities in Gaza. More than 3,700 Palestinians and 1,400 Israelis have been killed according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Palestinian health authority since Hamas militants launched an attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip on 07 October. Israel has warned all citizens of the Gaza Strip to move to the south ahead of an expected invasion. EPA/MOHAMMED SABER

Jets carrying humanitarian aid land near Gaza as Egypt border crossing barriers are removed

Another plane carrying fresh humanitarian aid has arrived in Egypt just 20 minutes from the border with Gaza.

The arrival comes as calls increase to open up a corridor to send vital ‘life-saving’ supplies into Palestine.

Overnight, barriers blocking the border crossing between Gaza and Egypt were removed.

The World Health Organization called for the ‘immediate, unimpeded and sustained humanitarian access, including through Rafah’.

Biden comment comparing Putin to Hamas is blasted as ‘unacceptable’ by Kremlin – as Russia continues its invasion of Ukraine

The Kremlin said on Friday that remarks by U.S. President Joe Biden comparing Russian President Vladimir Putin to the Palestinian militant group Hamas were ‘unacceptable’.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters the current time was a potentially dangerous moment on the international agenda, and that the threat to Russian citizens would grow exponentially once Israel started its expected ground operation to try to oust Hamas from Gaza.

Peskov declined to say who would represent Russia at a peace summit for the Palestinian conflict in Cairo on Saturday, referring the query to the foreign ministry.

The comments from the Kremlin official come as Putin’s forces continue their murderous invasion of Ukraine, with Russian shelling of the city of Vovchansk reportedly injuring two men, aged 57 and 69, and damaged a children’s building and four residnetial properties

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting with members of the Security Council via videoconference at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Oct. 20, 2023. (Gavriil Grigorov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

World Health Organization Director-General left ‘shocked, appalled and saddened’ by conflict in Israel and Gaza

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), has told of his anguish at the war between Israel and Gaza.

In an emotive post on X, formerly Twitter, the health chief said: ‘All of us at the WHO have been shocked, appalled and saddened by the conflict in Israel and Gaza.’

Deploring the ‘attacks on health care in boith Gaza and Israel’, Dr Adhanom Ghebreyesus pleaded for more ‘life-saving supplies’ to be delivered into Gaza.

Calling on Israel to send fuel as part of its contribution, the health boss added: ‘Our trucks are loaded and ready to go.’

He continued: ‘Bullets and bombs are not the solution to this situation. War will bring nothing but destruction and horror.’

Protesters march on American embassies in Indonesia and Malaysia as demonstrators burn pictures of Israeli President in Kuala Lumpur

About 1,000 protesters from several mosques in Jakarta marched on the heavily-guarded US embassy in Indonesia’s capital, on Friday.
They were denouncing the staunch American support for Israel and demanded an end to Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip.
Similar protests also took place outside the UN mission, a few miles from the US embassy, and in the compound of the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In Kuala Lumpur, Malasyia, demonstrators torched pictures of Israeli President Isaac Herzog outside the US embassy.

Protesters shout slogans as they wave Palestinian flags during a rally supporting the Palestinian people outside the building housing the U.N. representative office in Jakarta, Indonesia, Friday, Oct. 20, 2023. Hundreds of people staged protests in Indonesia's capital Friday to denounce the staunch American support for Israel and demand an end to Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Malaysians burn Israeli President Isaac Herzog's pictures and the country's flags as they protest outside the U.S. embassy, in support of Palestinians in Gaza after an explosion at a hospital in Gaza, as the conflict between Israel and Hamas continues, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, October 20, 2023. REUTERS/Hasnoor Hussain

Hamas ‘appropriated’ humanitarian aid money to build an underground bunker system, top former Israeli government adviser claims

Ashley Perry, former senior advisor to the Israeli government accuses Hamas of using aid money to build an underground network of tunnels in Gaza.
Mr Perry told Sky News Hamas bunkers were built ‘for them and their families’ adding Hamas ‘don’t care about the average civilian on the ground’.
He adds Israeli blockade was ‘ensuring the water, electricity and air was cut out’ from the bunkers ‘pushing’ Hamas chiefs onto ground to allow IDF to target them.

Video reveals the moment IDF pounds Gaza blasting more than 100 targets in overnight bombardment ahead of ground offensive

The Israel Defence Forces posted an update to X sayinng fighter jets attacked more than hundred ‘operational targets’ run by Hamas
Attacks destroyed ‘tunnel shafts, munitions warehouses and dozens of operational headquarters’, IDF said.
Israel also claimed to have ‘eliminated a terrorist who was in the naval force’ of Hamas who ‘took part in the murderous terrorist operations in the Gaza Strip’.

Aid trucks will enter Gaza in ‘the next day or so’, UN relief chief says

Trucks stuffed with international aid for Gaza should be rolling “in the next day or so,” the United Nations said Friday.
A spokesman for UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths told reporters in Geneva they were in “deep and advanced negotiations” with all sides to ensure aid moves “as quickly as possible.”
“A first delivery is due to start in the next day or so,” they said.
Medicine, water purifiers and blankets were being unloaded at El Arish airport near Gaza, an AFP reporter saw, with Ahmed Ali, head of the Egyptian Red Crescent, saying he was getting “two to three planes of aid a day”.

IDF now says Israelis living in Kiryat Shmona are not obliged to evacuate

The Israel Defence Forces has changed its messaging over the evacuation of Kiryat Shmona near the border of Lebanon.
Some 20,000 residents were told to leave their homes earlier today but the IDF now says the evacuation order is not mandatory.

More world leaders flock to meetings in attempt to contain Israel-Palestine violence

French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna will attend a meeting on the Palestinian-Israeli issue in Egypt on Saturday, a French diplomatic source said on Friday.
Colonna had already travelled to Cairo, Beirut and Israel last week as Paris looks to reduce the risk of an escalation across the region.
Diplomatic sources said there was still a possibility that President Emmanuel Macron would attend the meeting.
It comes as British PM Rishi Sunak and US President Joe Biden visited the region this week.

Orthodox church in Gaza is destroyed in overnight blast amid fears it was sheltering hundreds

Saint Porphyrius Greek Orthodox church in the Gaza Strip is destroyed overnight, the Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem said.
Unconfirmed reports by Gaza health officials claimed 500 Muslims and Christians were sheltering in it at the time of the blast.
The Israeli military told AFP that its fighter jets had hit a command and control centre involved in launching rockets and mortars towards Israel.
In a statement, the IDF said ‘as a result’ of the strike, ‘a wall of a church in the area was damaged’, adding: ‘We are aware of reports on casualties. The incident is under review.’
Footage from the scene shows rescue workers sifting through large piles of rubble and debris.
The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem expressed its ‘strongest condemnation’ of the strike.

Palestinians search the destroyed annex of the Greek Orthodox Saint Porphyrius Church, the oldest church still in use in Gaza, damaged in a strike on Gaza City on October 20, 2023, amid the ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. Thousands of people, both Israeli and Palestinians have died since October 7, 2023, after Palestinian Hamas militants based in the Gaza Strip, entered southern Israel in a surprise attack leading Israel to declare war on Hamas in Gaza on October 8. (Photo by Dawood NEMER / AFP) (Photo by DAWOOD NEMER/AFP via Getty Images)

Israeli forces form up on Gaza border ahead of expected ground assault

Columns of Israeli tanks have massed on the Israel-Gaza border and tens of thousands of soldiers appear to be steeling themselves for battle today.
The massing of artillery and men at the border comes after heavy machine gunfire was heard along the border in the early hours of this morning.

epa10928433 Israeli armored vehicles gathered at an undisclosed location near the border with Gaza, in Israel, 20 October 2023. More than 3,700 Palestinians and 1,400 Israelis have been killed according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Palestinian Health authority since Hamas militants launched an attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip on 07 October. Israel has warned all citizens of the Gaza Strip to move to the south ahead of an expected invasion. EPA/HANNIBAL HANSCHKE

epa10928432 Israeli armored vehicles gathered at an undisclosed location near the border with Gaza, in Israel, 20 October 2023. More than 3,700 Palestinians and 1,400 Israelis have been killed according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Palestinian Health authority since Hamas militants launched an attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip on 07 October. Israel has warned all citizens of the Gaza Strip to move to the south ahead of an expected invasion. EPA/HANNIBAL HANSCHKE

epa10928438 Israeli armored vehicles gathered at an undisclosed location near the border with Gaza, in Israel, 20 October 2023. More than 3,700 Palestinians and 1,400 Israelis have been killed according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Palestinian Health authority since Hamas militants launched an attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip on 07 October. Israel has warned all citizens of the Gaza Strip to move to the south ahead of an expected invasion. EPA/HANNIBAL HANSCHKE

It was supposed to be a scene of joy – a mother reaching out to her crying newborn daughter and cradling her to her chest after months of feeling her little kicks.

But instead, the hospital room was silent as the doctor carefully placed the unborn baby, no bigger than his palms, onto her mother’s unmoving body.

UN refugee chief says any more military escalation will be ‘catastrophic’ for Gaza as Israel hits ‘more than 100’ targets overnight

Any escalation of military activities in the Gaza Strip will be “catastrophic” for people there, the UN high commissioner for refugees said Friday.
“(I) can tell you with certainty that any further escalation or even continuation of military activities will just be catastrophic for the people of Gaza,” Filippo Grandi told reporters in Japan.
While stressing that refugee agency UNHCR has no formal mandate in the Palestinian Territories or Israel, Grandi said that he “shares the extreme worry and anguish that has been expressed by many of my colleagues including the UN secretary general” about the conflict.
It comes as the UN said the first aid delivery into the besieged Gaza Strip via the Rafah border crossing with Egypt should take place “in the next day or so”.
The Israeli military said it had struck more than 100 targets across Gaza linked to the territory’s Hamas rulers overnight, including a tunnel and arms depots.

EDITORS NOTE: Graphic content / A picture taken from the southern Israeli city of Sderot on October 20, 2023, shows smoke ascending over the northern Gaza Strip following an Israeli strike, amid the ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. Thousands of people, both Israeli and Palestinians have died since October 7, 2023, after Palestinian Hamas militants based in the Gaza Strip, entered southern Israel in a surprise attack leading Israel to declare war on Hamas in Gaza on October 8. (Photo by Jack Guez / AFP) (Photo by JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

DEIR AL-BALAH, GAZA - OCTOBER 20: Relatives of the Al Kurd family, who died in the Israeli airstrikes mourn ahead of the funeral ceremony at Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir Al-Balah, Gaza on October 20, 2023. After the Israeli warplanes attack in which more than 10 members of the Al Kurd family died, their dead bodies were brought to Al-Aqsa Hospital. (Photo by Ashraf Amra/Anadolu via Getty Images)

epa10928495 Smoke rises in the northern Gaza Strip following an Israeli airstrike, as seen from Sderot, Israel, 20 October 2023. More than 3,700 Palestinians and 1,400 Israelis have been killed according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Palestinian Health authority since Hamas militants launched an attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip on 07 October. Israel has warned all citizens of the Gaza Strip to move to the south ahead of an expected invasion. EPA/ABIR SULTAN

Chinese official says Beijing and Moscow will ‘work together’ to help resolve conflict

China and Russia “share the same position on the question of Palestine,” China’s Special Envoy on the conflict, Zhai Jun has declared.
“China and Russia share the same position on the question of Palestine, and China is ready to maintain communication and coordination with the Russian Federation in order to cool down the situation as soon as possible,” the envoy said in comments carried by Chinese broadcaster CCTV.
Beijing argues the conflict is inflamed because ‘the legitimate national rights of the Palestinian people have not been guaranteed,’ according to Zhai.

Hamas spokesperson has been arrested in West Bank in Israeli raid, officials claim

Hamas spokesman Hassan Yousef was arrested by Israeli troops amid a raid on the West Bank yesterday.
Israel’s security agency Shin Bet confirmed the arrest this morning speaking with CNN.
Yousef is top Palestinian politician and also serves as Hamas’ official spokesperson in the West Bank.

Sheikh Hassan Yousef (C), a prominent leader of the Hamas Islamic movement, holds the party's flag and talks on a phone following his release on January 19, 2014 after spending 28 months in Israel's Ofer prison, near the West Bank city of Ramallah. Yousef, who is also a member of the Ramallah-based Palestinian Legislative Council, told reporters after being released that he would work with Hamas rivals "Fatah and other Palestinian factions to achieve reconciliation." AFP PHOTO / ABBAS MOMANI (Photo credit should read ABBAS MOMANI/AFP/Getty Images)

Rishi Sunak and Emir of Qatar say violence must not spread across the Middle East

Rishi Sunak and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani have agreed to work together to prevent the spread of violence throughout the Middle East.
Downing St. statement said the pair “underlined the imperative of avoiding any escalation in the violence” and “agreed that leaders had a responsibility to do everything possible to prevent it”.
“They agreed on the urgent need to get food, water and medicine to civilians who are suffering,” the statement read.
“The leaders looked forward to meeting again soon to deepen the bilateral relationship between our countries.”

Sir Keir Starmer declares Israel must not withhold humanitarian aid from Gaza

Sir Keir Starmer has said Israel does not have the right to withhold humanitarian aid from Gaza.
‘(Israelis) have the right to self-defence – that right they do have – but not the right to withhold that humanitarian aid that needs to get in. It is now absolutely urgent.’

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer speaks during Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons, London. Picture date: Wednesday October 18, 2023. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: House of Commons/UK Parliament/PA Wire

Rishi Sunak is travelling to Egypt as part of an intensive diplomatic effort to prevent the Israel-Hamas war spiralling into a wider regional conflict.
The Prime Minister has already held talks with Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu and Saudi Arabia‘s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Downing Street said he would hold further meetings with counterparts from the region in Egypt.

WATCH: Moment Israeli military convoy heads for Gaza Strip

Toll from Israeli West Bank raid rises to 13: Palestinian ministry

The death toll from a raid by Israeli troops in the occupied West Bank rose to 13, Palestinian health officials said Friday, as casualties mounted in the territory while war rages in Gaza.
At least 81 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli troops or settlers in the West Bank since the Gaza conflict erupted on October 7, according to figures from the Palestinian health ministry in Ramallah.
One member of the Israeli security forces has also been killed in the territory.

People wave Palestinian flags as they demonstrate against Israel in the streets of the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah on October 19, 2023. Thousands of people, both Israeli and Palestinians have died since October 7, 2023, after Palestinian Hamas militants based in the Gaza Strip, entered southern Israel in a surprise attack leading Israel to declare war on Hamas in Gaza on October 8. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP) (Photo by JAAFAR ASHTIYEH/AFP via Getty Images)

A senior Israeli official said the government could take action if the BBC continued ‘crossing the line in accordance with our laws’.
It came after Israel’s president Isaac Herzog said its policy of referring to Hamas as militants was ‘atrocious’.
Israel’s communications ministry is currently looking at the possibility of closing Qatari-owned

Al Jazeera’s local bureau over claims its coverage was favourable to Hamas.

Heavy machine gun fire was heard along the Israel-Gaza border in the early hours of Friday, after the green light was given for a ground invasion.
Yoav Gallant, the Israeli defense minister, on Thursday visited troops positioned along the Gaza border, and told them that they would soon see the Palestinian enclave ‘from inside’.
An infantry commander in the IDF told DailyMail.com on Thursday that they were ready to invade, adding there was ‘a very high level of optimism’ among his troops.

Tech

Report: Scammers are targeting over-heating iPhone 15 issue with fake recall scam

Scammers are a fast and opportunistic bunch who are now, according to a new report, looking to cash in on Apple‘s admitted iPhone 15 overheating issues.

In a fascinating and worrisome story over at Mashable, a tech reporter was targeted by scammers who, posing as Verizon reps, tried to convince her to send them her new iPhone 15 before she’d even received and unboxed it. They said they had it on good authority that the phone she was receiving was among those that would overheat.

Let’s rewind a bit. A couple of weeks ago, some iPhone 15 owners began reporting that the phone was getting too hot. In my own iPhone 15 review, I noted that the new phone “can run a little hot.” It wasn’t anything too concerning. New iPhones often run hot because they’re scrambling in the background to restore your full backup, a process that can take days (depending on how often you have access to good Wi-Fi).

Apple admitted as much but also noted that, in addition to third-party background app activity, there was an iOS 17 bug that was “impacting some users.” All of this was potentially “overloading the system.” iOS 17.1, which should be coming soon, will address that iOS bug.

The scammers, though, have a different plan and by posing as legitimate carrier representatives, are trying to convince unsuspecting users that Apple issued a recall for the iPhone 15 to address the heating issues.

To be 100% clear: Apple has issued no such recall.

Doing the right thing

The Mashable reporter, though, is a smart cookie and contacted Verizon directly to find out exactly what was going on. This is good advice for virtually all phone scams. When someone calls you up and claims a weird recall, that you owe money to Amazon, or that your bank account has been breached, you hang up and call those companies directly.

The most incredible and cheeky part of this tale is that the scammers did send a FedEx truck to pick up the reporter’s iPhone 15. She did not hand it over but had she done so, it would’ve, according to the report, gone to Florida, and not Apple’s return center.

While we have no indication that this scam is widespread, there is a good chance some iPhone 15 owners and buyers out there could be targeted.

Just remember, scammers almost always call you, don’t give them what they want, and then call the real company on your own. As for your iPhone 15, Apple has an iOS 17 update it wants to give you and you should definitely accept it.

Scammers are a fast and opportunistic bunch

YouTube will now show a blank homepage if you don’t have watch history on

Video

Get ready to see a lot more product ads in YouTube videos

YouTube is giving creators better tools to show certain product ads exactly when they want to in their videos. According to an announcement on Wednesday, YouTube creators will be able to add timestamps to products they tag in their videos so that a shopping button appears at an opportune moment while you’re watching.

A GIF showing the timestamp tool.

GIF: Google

It’s a little thing, but it could make things easier for companies and creators that are working together on a video. I imagine both a creator and a sponsor will be happy about giving the creator control over when the shopping button appears. (Creators might also appreciate the controls given that YouTube is taking some other ad options away starting in November.)

YouTube is giving creators a few other new features for shopping, too. Creators will be able to bulk tag affiliate products in their video libraries, which YouTube says could “help you earn revenue from older content that still gets high traffic.” And YouTube Studio will be able to show creators which affiliate products bring them the most revenue beginning sometime “in the coming weeks.”

YouTube is giving creators better tools to

Entertaintment

Bad Bunny Steps Into WWE 2K23 Game as a Playable Character

Bad Bunny is officially making his big crossover into video games: The hugely popular Latin music artist is featured in a new edition of 2K’s best-selling WWE 2K23 wrestling title.

Take-Two Interactive’s 2K division announced the WWE 2K23 Bad Bunny Edition, available as of Friday. Bad Bunny is a well-known fan of WWE, having participated in the the San Juan Street Fight at WWE’s Backlash 2023 premium live event — where defeated Damian Priest. The playable Bad Bunny character in WWE 2K23 wears the Adidas Men’s Tech Fall 2.0 Wrestling Shoe and clothing he wore at Backlash 2023.

The news comes after Bad Bunny just announced dates for his Most Wanted Tour across North America.

“Following the global success of Bad Bunny’s new album ‘Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va a Pasar Mañana’ last week, and his historic match at WWE Backlash in Puerto Rico, we are excited to continue to collaborate with the biggest artist in the world and continue to break records with the WWE 2K23 Bad Bunny Edition,” said Neil Lawi, WWE’s head of music.

The Bad Bunny Edition of the game is available for $139.99 (list price) and includes the WWE 2K23 Icon Edition with the Bad Bunny Superstar Pack, which includes the following content: The playable version of Bad Bunny; Bad Bunny Diamond tier MyFaction EVO card, which can upgrade to Pink Diamond; Bad Bunny MyFaction logo, nameplate and background; LWO Puerto Rico shirt part for Superstar Creator; and 15,000 VC (the game’s virtual currency).

The WWE 2K23 Icon Edition also features the Ruthless Aggression Pack, featuring John Cena’s early “Prototype” character, as well as “Leviathan” Batista, developmental rookie versions of Brock Lesnar and Randy Orton, the John Cena Legacy Championship and WrestleMania 22 Arena; along with other content.

Players who already own WWE 2K23 can purchase the Bad Bunny Superstar Pack for $9.99. The Bad Bunny Bundle also is available for $89.99 and includes the WWE 2K23 Cross-Gen Standard Edition, the Bad Bunny Superstar Pack, Bad Bunny Bonus Pack, and 32,500 VC.

Separately, on Saturday, Oct. 21, Bad Bunny is host and perform as musical guest for NBC’s “Saturday Night Live.”

Bad Bunny is officially making his big

Movies

Anil Kapoor Goes Invisible On Insta To Confirm Mr India 2?; Shilpa Shetty, Raj Kundra Spark Divorce Rumours

Anil Kapoor deleted his Instagram posts. Raj Kundra shared a cryptic note.

Anil Kapoor deleted all his Instagram posts. Raj Kundra shared a cryptic note on X.

Anil Kapoor has caught everyone’s attention after he removed all his posts and his display picture on Instagram. The actor, who will be seen in Animal, left fans and even his daughter Sonam Kapoor in shock with his move. While at first, it appeared as though it was a promotional stunt for his upcoming film starring Ranbir Kapoor and Rashmika Mandanna, a source told News18 Showsha exclusively that the move had a Mr India 2 connection.

Shilpa Shetty’s husband Raj Kundra has shocked everyone with his latest post on X, formerly known as Twitter. Taking to his official account, Raj Kundra announced his separation. Without mentioning Shilpa, he wrote, “We have separated and kindly request you to give us time during this difficult period.” Raj Kundra and Shilpa Shetty got married in 2009. They have two kids together–Viaan and Samisha.

Tiger Shroff and Kriti Sanon’s much-awaited movie Ganapath is finally in theatres. Directed by Vikas Bahl, the film is getting a positive response from the audience as of now. After watching the first show on Friday, several social media users took to the microblogging site X to appreciate the movie. While some called Ganapath ‘futuristic’, others laud the film for its top-notch action sequences.

Leo, starring Vijay, Trisha Krishnan and Sanjay Dutt, has created history by becoming scoring the biggest worldwide opening day for any Tamil movie. As per early estimates, Lokesh Kanagaraj’s directorial Leo has managed to collect Rs 74 crore gross in India. While its overseas collections are somewhere around Rs 66 crore.

Even though Aamir Khan’s son Junaid stays away from the limelight, he has caught everyone’s attention with one of his recent pictures. On Thursday, celebrity photographer Avinash Gowariker took to his Instagram handle and dropped a picture of Junaid from one of his recent photoshoots.

Anil Kapoor deleted his Instagram posts. Raj

Oh baby, the mother of all problems has arrived with ‘Kandasamys: The Baby’

Oh baby, the mother of all problems

MCU

Clues from LOKI Season 2 – FANgirl Blog

The God of Mischief is back! Episodes 1 and 2 of Loki Season 2 were released on October 6th and 12th, and there’s a lot to address. With so much going on in the MCU timeline, let’s take a moment to look at some of the hidden easter eggs giving us further insight into the multiverse.

At the end of Season 1, we saw Loki pushed into a time door, which caused him to “slip” into another branch of time (which in this case was the past). The first episode picks up here while Loki is being chased by Mobius and TVA Pruners. Loki is plagued with a condition known as time-slipping, which rips him between past, present, and future across various branched timelines. Essentially, the key details can be easily missed if we don’t pay attention closely enough.

Kang’s Statue:

In the opening chase sequence, the camera pans backward from the statue of Kang and back to the TVA building, positioning the statue’s angle to seem like it’s watching the events unfold. This could be a possible reference to both He Who Remains and Kang’s presence in Loki Season 2, hinting at the many ways these variants have affected everything that’s been happening so far.

Spider-Verse Glitching:

Just like Loki, Sony’s Spiderverse movies have also explored the multiverse concept. In the Spiderverse movies, the characters “glitch” when they’re in a universe that’s not their own. The visuals of both glitching and time-slipping are extremely similar, which could definitely point to a potential crossover soon in the MCU.

MoonKnight:

During the opening chase sequence, Loki runs into Casey (from the past) as he’s listening to a podcast about mindfulness and meditation. This was the same exact podcast that Steven Grant (MoonKnight) was listening to in the early episodes of MoonKnight. Maybe we could see a Steven and Casey crossover?

“Breaking Bad”

Episode 2 of Loki was titled “Breaking Brad”, a riff on the AMC series Breaking Bad. The TVA’s Hunter X-5 goes rogue, abandoning his former life and trying to live the life (as famous actor Brad Wolfe on the timeline) he was supposed to be a part of. This is almost exactly like Walter White’s story in Breaking Bad, where Walter leaves his former life as a father and husband, to become the biggest and most successful drug dealer in New Mexico. The episode title could also be interpreted literally. As Loki interrogated Hunter X-5 after he was caught, he threatened to break “Brad” within the shrinking confines of an energy cube.

Loki’s New Powers:

As Hunter X-5 attempts to escape Loki and Mobius after seeing them in his timeline, Loki really lives up to his name as The God of Mischief by showing off his powers. He uses a combination of powers from the past, like duplication casting, blasts of green energy, and several illusions to distract “Brad Wolfe”. He also debuts a new power which involves him using his own shadows to hold X-5 still in an alleyway. This new power could be a consequence of time-slipping, or it could just be a new power for the God of Mischief.

Sylvie’s TemPad

At the end of Episode 2, we see Sylvie sitting in a car holding onto a device that looks like an advanced version of TVA TemPad. She seems to hold onto He Who Remains’s device after killing him in the previous season. This TemPad could allow Sylvie to have some of the same powers as Kang, which could potentially save and preserve the timelines, or destroy them all.

I am beyond excited for the rest of Loki Season 2! These connections and references make it even more enticing to watch. I especially love the balance between the contrasting maturity and humor within the show, and I’m curious to know what the multiverse’s future looks like….or past…or both? of the multiverse…or the past..or both?

Hi! My name is Siya Patel and I’m a 16 year old writer for FANgirl Blog! I love the MCU, watching sitcoms, and music!

Anatomy of a Fall Ending, Explained

Summary

Anatomy of a Fall is a harrowing courtroom drama that challenges moral values and blurs the line between fact and speculation.
Sandra is indicted based on evidence suggesting her husband’s death occurred under suspicious circumstances, including a violent fight and discrepancies in the scene reenactment.
The film places emphasis on Daniel’s judgment, as his conclusion about his father’s death is ultimately what matters most to Sandra and the viewer.

Anatomy of a Fall is one of 2023’s best movies, a harrowing courtroom drama that secured a spot in cinema history by winning the prestigious Palme d’Or at the 76th annual Cannes Film Festival. In the film, the lives of Sandra, a successful writer, and Daniel, her visually impaired son, turn upside down when Sandra’s husband Daniel dies under suspicious circumstances. As a trial ensues to conclude whether Samuel’s death was an accident, a suicide, or a homicide, the relationship between mother and son is put at stake.

Without ever leaning on easy answers, Anatomy of a Fall invites the audience to take their sides in a trial that challenges traditional moral values and crosses the boundaries between facts and speculation. Sandra Hüller delivers her most emotionally charged performance yet, embracing the ambiguity of her character with precision. In the end, there are more questions than answers to dissect, leaving plenty of room for interpretations.

Why Was Sandra Indicted in Anatomy of a Fall?

Neon

The catalyst for Anatomy of a Fall‘s biggest conflict wasn’t the death of Samuel, but rather the pieces of evidence that suggested it occurred under suspicious circumstances. Although the cause of death was inconclusive, there was no proof or indication that Sandra could’ve been behind her husband’s fall, but the discovery of a compromising recording on a USB key belonging to Samuel revealed the couple had a violent fight just one day before his death.

Other two elements were crucial to Sandra’s indictment: firstly, the blood spatter analysis of the scene found evidence that contradicted the theory of an accidental fall, indicating the possibility of the victim receiving a blunt force blow in the head. Secondly, the reenactment of the death suggested several discrepancies, likely intensified by Daniel’s confusion about where exactly he was when he heard his parents talking to each other.

Daniel’s Experiment With His Dog, Explained

Anatomy of a Fall‘s biggest plot twist takes place in the film’s final 30 minutes, in which the focus shifts from Sandra to Daniel as he prepares to testify one more time. Over the weekend, the boy asks his guardian to ensure Sandra leaves the house and secretly puts aspirin in his dog’s food. The experiment nearly kills Snoop, the dog, but Daniel and Marge succeed in making the animal vomit in time. Daniel’s motivations behind the experiment are just as complex as the trial his mother is facing, but enable key information to come to life.

The reason why Daniel decided to give his dog aspirin is linked to Sandra’s claims that Samuel previously attempted suicide six months before his death. She claimed that a few weeks after Samuel quit his medication, she found him passed out in his room and vomit on the floor, which contained aspirin. Daniel could never have suspected the incident before, but with hindsight from his mother’s testimony, he remembered that around that time he found Snoop clearly sick and smelling like vomit.

Suspecting his dog might have eaten his dad’s vomit and that was what made him sick, Daniel decided to give Snoop aspirin and evaluate the dog’s reaction. Things unfold just as Daniel suspected, indicating that his mother was likely telling the truth.

How Did Sandra’s Husband Die?

Although Anatomy of a Fall ends with Sandra being acquitted of the charges against her, the film’s biggest mystery is ultimately left unresolved, for director Justine Triet decides not to show the circumstances of Samuel’s death. Just like the jury in the courtroom, viewers get to know everything that happened prior to and after Samuel’s death, but never the fall itself. While Daniel claims he simply couldn’t picture his mother bringing herself to murder his father while his father taking his own life was something that made sense in his head, the movie makes it clear that there’s enough evidence to sustain both theories.

The prosecutor pointed at several indications that Sandra was guilty; she not only lied about her arm injury, but also omitted Samuel and her had a fight the day before his death. The recording found in Samuel’s USB key indicates a violent version of Sandra and an abusive relationship different from what her public image displays. The blood spatter analysis is inconclusive but suggests Samuel was hit by a blunt object. The prosecutor makes sure to point out passages from Sandra’s books detailing a wife’s fantasies of murdering her husband. And of course, his death occurred while the only witness, Daniel, was absent.

On the other hand, Samuel’s fragile mental state is evident in the recording he made of their fight, and Sandra’s claims that he inflicted injuries on himself during tantrums back up her case. His previous suicide attempt was initially merely speculation, but Daniel coming forward with his own memories of the incident gives substance to this theory. Finally, Daniel’s reminiscences about Samuel’s words about death six months earlier made the boy realize his father was in great pain, despite his choice of suffering in silence.

Why Daniel’s Judgment Is the Only Thing That Matters in Anatomy of a Fall

What makes Anatomy of a Fall so different from other great courtroom dramas is how despite spending the majority of its runtime on the trial, it’s the family drama that prevails. The audience watches a 152-minute movie, yet the only thing that matters is Daniel’s conclusion. Regardless of the key role he plays in the final verdict, the only judgment and decisions that matter most to Sandra, and consequently, the viewer, are those of the son.

While the movie never shows the actual circumstances of Samuel’s death, Triet makes sure to display the possibilities being played out in his head during the trial. What might seem like a narrative choice to illustrate what’s being said on trial foreshadows the pivotal moment in which Daniel claims that the only scene that makes sense in his head is that of his father’s suicide. While the characters spend the majority of Anatomy of a Fall trying to figure out what happened, constantly getting into a dead-end alley, Daniel is the only one focusing on “why” it happened.

Summary Anatomy of a Fall

Comics

Jagex Continues to Tweak RuneScape’s Combat with Upcoming Necromancy Balances and Combat Beta

When Jagex stated that Necromancy would shake up the long-existing combat triangle, assumedly, they did not mean that it would shake it up to the point that Necromancy was far superior to previous combat methods and negatively impacted in-game playstyles.

Jagex is looking to fix this and has released information regarding the continued balancing of the Necromancy skill, as well as the upcoming Combat Beta.

Regarding the Necromancy Skill Balances

On Monday, October 23rd, 2023, players can expect a Necromancy rebalance to go live. The aim is to adjust Necromancy in such a way that the clear strengths that it has as a combat skill do not make it far superior to the other three combat skills, so that all four skills can remain relevant.

The initial rebalance will include the following:

We’re adjusting conjured spirits to tone down their power level while improving their quality of unlife.

Adrenaline cost has been removed from conjure and command abilities

We’ve observed this play style and feel that separating conjures from adrenaline is the best approach going forward.

This should help normalize damage across the entire encounter instead of it all being frontloaded at the beginning.

Addressing the power of ‘Command Vengeful Ghost’

There was a bit too much power in the ‘Woo’

We’ll also be introducing a new ability: ‘Conjure Undead Army’.

This ability requires 99 Necromancy and is available at tier 7 of the Well of Souls talent tree. This ability allows a player to conjure multiple spirits at once.

Ectoplasm costs will be equal to double each conjure ability included, and the ability can be right-clicked and customized to select/remove conjure abilities.

Jagex, October 20, 2023

Regarding the Combat Beta
On the following Monday, which lands on October 30, 2023, Jagex will be initiating the Combat Beta. The goal of this beta is to work closely with the player base when it comes to every skill change that will be adjusted and implemented. If this is done in a way where player feedback is taken on and is well received, it will undoubtedly be a step in the right direction for Jagex after some recent blunders on their part. The plan is that all combat styles will have the attention that they deserve so that they maintain their own individual style and importance.

The first beta that will go live will have the following three main changes:

Enable ‘Damage Potential’ for all combat styles for the player

This is the removal of hit chance and instead, a damage scaler based on % chance to hit (e.g. 50% = do 50% of your damage instead of having a 50% chance to miss)

Increase the ‘Damage cap’ for all combat styles

This is an increase from 10,000/12,000 to 30,000

Implement a simplified ‘Critical strike system’ for all combat styles

Each style will have a % chance to critically strike and then when you critically strike your damage is increased by your critical strike damage % which increases with level

Critical Strike Chance: 10% by default for all styles, however this could change based on beta feedback

Critical Strike Damage: Same formula as Necromancy for all styles, however this could change based on beta feedback (e.g. Melee could have 100% critical strike damage)

Note: Melee uses the ‘Strength’ stat for this

Jagex, October 20, 2023

The Complete List of Necromancy Patch Notes

The following patch notes provide more detail as to what will actually be altered and adjusted when the rebalancing goes live on October 23, 2023.

‘CONJURE SKELETON WARRIOR’ ABILITY

Damage range has been reduced to 22%-28% (was 27%-33%).

Additional damage has been changed to a damage increase:

Previously, each rage stack would offer 1% ability damage, The average damage would be 55% ability damage per hit at max stacks (30% base + 25% from stacks).

Now each rage stack increases the damage by 3%. This is now 43.75% at max stacks (25% base + 75% damage increase from stacks)

‘CONJURE PUTRID ZOMBIE’ ABILITY

Adrenaline Cost Removed

Base Duration reduced to 42s (-3 seconds)

Movespeed increased from walking to running

The zombie’s passive poison damage has had its damage range reduced from 27-33% to 8-12%.

Passive proc interval rate increased from 1.8s to 3s.

We have reduced the damage and tick rate of poison as currently it was offering too much passive damage for minimal investment and we want poison builds to have their moments but still require equipment investments to see their full effects.

Bug fix: Passive damage will no longer attempt to apply poison while wearing Cinderbane Gloves.

‘COMMAND PUTRID ZOMBIE’ ABILITY

Ability can now be cast without a target.

‘CONJURE VENGEFUL GHOST’ ABILITY

Adrenaline cost removed

Heal value reduced to 125% (was 175%)

Healing now happens on-hit, as opposed to on-attack, which means that the healing value will scale up based on damage modifiers (e.g. if the target is inflicted with debuffs such as “Haunted” or “Vulnerability”)

‘COMMAND VENGEFUL GHOST’ ABILITY

Adrenaline Cost Removed Command now has a fixed duration of 30s and will require recasting to upkeep. Changed the effect from 100% of base damage up to a cap of 35% ability damage -> 10% of base damage up to a cap of 20% ability damage as bonus damage.

The intention with this change is to still enable the benefit of amplifying hard-hitting abilities while reducing how much extra damage was being generated from lots of instances of low-damage hits.

‘LIFE TRANSFER’ INCANTATION

Increase duration from 20.4s to 21s.

Changed from maximum life points to base life points. E.g., if you have 15000 Life Points with 99 Constitution, you will only lose 4950 (which is 9900/2) instead of losing 7500 which is what you would lose in the current version.

‘INVOKE DEATH’ INCANTATION

Increased duration to 12 seconds (was 6 seconds)

It’s still one application per cast, but there was an overreliance at the start of fights on being tick-perfect with invoke death which made it feel clunky to interact with.

GENERAL

Necromancy shields will no longer cause conjured spirits to despawn.

Necromancy Shields are now classified as having an ‘Underworld connection’ which allows them to maintain conjured spirits but they cannot be used to conjure them

Resolved some issues related to Death Mark. Fixed an issue that caused it to trigger multiple times. Fixed an issue where the damage from the mark was delayed. Fixed an issue that allowed Death Mark’s insta-kill damage to reflect at the player.

Jagex, October 20, 2023

The general consensus and feedback that has been provided by the community is that they are cautiously optimistic as to the proposed changes. Most agree that Necromancy does need to be rebalanced in some form and that combat needs to be adjusted to make Necromancy, Ranged, Melee, and Magic all stand on their own without any one method being vastly superior to another.

The community will hopefully see an improvement in the way that Jagex handed content changes, and updates from here. One can hope that they have learned hard lessons from the Hero Pass controversy and changes going forward will be implemented with community input, much more like how the Old School RuneScape updates are handled.

About the Author

Priscilla Wells

Priscilla is both the weekend editor and a freelance writer at Prima Games. She began working at Prima Games in early 2023. Prior to this, she spent nine years writing for both her own personal gaming blog, and other related websites. Priscilla has grown up playing video games, and most often plays her PS5 and Nintendo Switch consoles. You can find her playing Final Fantasy XIV, RuneScape, Pokemon GO, or lost in the latest RPG to release.
She is an Australian living in the United States with her American husband, three children, and her Basset Hound. Before moving to the United States, Priscilla obtained a Bachelors of Secondary Education majoring in English and Japanese Language. This allowed her to teach English and Japanese in a high school setting.
You can follow her on Twitter/X at @Cilllah

Tracy Held, Barry Schkolnick

When Jagex stated that Necromancy would shake

Festivals

Brian Tee Producing Anthology Limited Series; Season 1 Focuses On Tokyo Rose – Deadline

EXCLUSIVE: Brian Tee (Chicago Med, Expats) is set to produce the anthology limited series The Scapegoat. The project is currently being shopped around to streamers and premium cablers.

Season 1, titled Tokyo Rose, will adapt the Mike Weedall historical novel, Iva, The True Story of Tokyo Rose. It will tell the story of Iva Toguri, who was wrongfully convicted of treason and sent to prison for being the infamous radio propagandist “Tokyo Rose” during World War II.

Tee, whose grandparents were imprisoned in an Internment Camp during the war, believes that Tokyo Rose is “just the first of the many universal stories that can be told in future seasons of The Scapegoat, including contemporary tales, featuring people who endured the hateful sides of this country and survived, emerging as hopeful symbols of our American ideals.” Tee also notes that the box office success of Oppenheimer over the summer demonstrates the “audience’s appetite for stories that test the complicated moral fabric of our history.”

Rob Eves/Courtesy

Barry Schkolnick (Law & Order, The Good Wife) will write the series alongside playwright Tracy Held, vice-chair of the WGA’s Asian American Writers Committee. Schkolnick will also serve as showrunner.

The project is being created with the support of the civil rights organization The Japanese Americans Citizens League. The JACL is a long-standing national organization dedicated to securing and safeguarding the civil and human rights of Asian and Pacific Islander Americans.

“With hate crimes against Asian Americans continuing to be daily occurrences in the United States since the Covid outbreak, the time is right to contemplate the legacy of our country during the Second World War and the way that Japanese Americans were victimized despite being loyal citizens of the place they called home. Iva’s story is a cautionary tale of the injustices that can take place when a nation and its powerful institutions are blinded by the flames of prejudice,” the JACL tells Deadline in an exclusive statement.

“With a voracious media, eager to peddle messages of fear, Iva battled the darkest sides of America against a nation in need of a scapegoat to blame for the horrors of the war, racial discrimination and the internment of all Americans of Japanese descent. Themes of the dark undersides of today’s America,” they added.

Tee is coming off 8 seasons on NBC’s Chicago Med and is gearing up to premiere in Lulu Wang’s limited series for Prime Video Expats in 2024. Expats, set against the fabric of Hong Kong, tells the story of an international community whose lives are bound together forever after a sudden family tragedy.

Tee’s departure from the hit Dick Wolf procedural was so he could spend more time with family and pursue other opportunities expanding on his experience as an actor, a budding director, and a producer. His first project out the gate is The Scapegoat with others also on his radar.

Tee is represented by A3 Artists Agency and Behr, Abramson, et al. Schkolnick is represented by Culture Creative, Mazo Partners and Jackoway Austen.

EXCLUSIVE: Brian Tee (Chicago Med, Expats) is

Film

24 Winter Capsule Wardrobe Essentials Our Editors Love and Endorse

Of course, there’s something about winter’s shorter, gloomier days that makes most of us gravitate towards darker shades and muted color palettes—we get it, they’re easy to wear and require little styling forethought. But if there’s one fall fashion trend we’re keen on keeping alive, it’s unequivocally color—red, grey, and metallic silver to be exact.

These hues look great with black, of course, but they also compliment each other, as well as other neutral colors like navy and shades of white and cream. Metallic silver (another mainstay on the runways) looks more sophisticated than ever, and for a textural juxtaposition, pairs perfectly with denim and cashmere. Along with a requisite sequin or velvet moment, we also love it for holiday dressing.

Before succumbing to impulse buys (winter clothes are expensive!), revisit what’s already in your closet and figure out what fall purchases you made that’ll definitely still work for the foreseeable future. From there you can decide what’s missing or past its prime. The winter season is a long one, but below you’ll find all our tested and endorsed layering pieces and other winter wardrobe essentials for making this time of year your warmest, most stylish one yet.

A closet overhaul—or restock—adds up, so save when you shop your winter capsule wardrobe with these Amazon, Free People, Anthropologie, Madewell, Nordstrom, and Saks Fifth Avenue promo codes, as well as coupons from Shopbop and Net-a-Porter.

The T-Shirt

For most people, the underpinning of a well-rounded wardrobe is a perfectly-fitting T-shirt. White is a universal choice, though heather grey is the fashion must of the season. The below are Glamour editor and reader favorites; they have a crewneck silhouette and mid-weight fabric. (My go-to of late is Savannah Morrow’s soft and stretchy “Essential Tee,” which has more of a boatneck silhouette that cuts below the clavicle and is fitted throughout.) If you prefer a V-neck over a crewneck, check out our edit of the best V-neck tees.

Hanes Essentials T-Shirt (4-Pack)

Skims Cotton Jersey T-Shirt

Ninety Percent Organic Cotton-Jersey T-shirt

Savannah Morrow Essential Tee

The Winter Legging

The time for warm, brushed leggings is now. Lululemon’s Align pants aren’t the thickest of the bunch, but they hold up just fine when paired with a long coat or puffer. (For more heavy-duty styles for working out, read up on these tested and recommended styles we love.) Oh, and if you only want to buy leggings on Amazon, our shopping writer Andrea Navarro vouches ofr the set linked below that has almost 33,000 five-star reviews.

Fengbay High-Waist Yoga Pants (2-Pack)

The Base Layer

Whether worn alone, underneath a button-up shirt or sweater, or ski clothing, a base top is a lightweight non-negotiable. It helps you hold on to heat, but can also be taken off if it ends up being one too many layers.

Uniqlo Heattech Turtleneck Long-Sleeve T-Shirt

Lululemon Wundermost Ultra-Soft Nulu Long-Sleeve Turtleneck

The Everyday Knit

The easiest way to tap into the red and grey color trend of the season is with a knit—and we’re loving the ones from Naked Cashmere and Banana Republic. Alex Mill and Loulou Studio also have great, everyday knitwear options for minimalists and maximalists alike.

Naked Cashmere Eden Crew Neck

Banana Republic Astrid Cashmere Polo Cardig

Alex Mill Betty Wool Turtleneck Sweater

Loulou Tala Wool & Yak Hair Blend V-Neck Sweater

The Slip-On Shoes

The window for wearing mules and slip-ons is a short one, so maximize this time with a design that’s foolproof to style. Ugg’s platform slipper is treaded and raised enough that you won’t mind wearing it out of the house, but if you can’t bear to pack up your Arizonas, opt for its shearling-lined cousin and style it with fuzzy socks from Amazon.

Ugg Discoquette Genuine Shearling Slide Slippers

Birkenstock Arizona Big-Buckle Shearling-Lined Sandals

The Sneakers

You might be not walking as much in winter as you did in the fall, but when you do venture out for your daily walks (and you don’t need boots) you want to make sure it’s something cute, comfy, and not entirely porous—few things are worse than realizing your sneakers are too ventilated and your socks too thin after you’ve left the house. Reformation and Veja have a limited edition collab going that’s one of our favorite new fashion launches of the season, while the Adidas Sambas—one of the best white sneakers we’ve tried—comes now in this cool navy that’s perfect for wearing a long grey coat.

Reformation x Veja Venturi Sneakers

The Black Boots

The range of black boots on the market is limitless, though it’s hard to go wrong with the below two: One dressy option for work and another plush staple for weekends. You’re set.

Staud Nancy Leather Knee Boots

Ugg Classic Ultra Mini Platform Boot

The Long-Sleeve Top

The perfect in-between when temps are mild enough that you can get away with wearing a snuggly coat and a single layer.

J.Crew Perfect-Fit Long-Sleeve Crewneck T-shirt

Buck Mason Pima Long Sleeve Boxy Crew

The Bodysuit

Bodysuits are another editor staple around these parts since they work as both a stand-alone tops and mid-layers underneath sweaters. The Skims one below has earned top marks from our shopping writer, Andrea Navarro, while Lululemon’s newest “Wundermost” fabric is cosigned by yours truly—and our commerce director Brie Schwartz—for its sleek fit and incomparably soft feel.

Skims Essential Long-Sleeve Scoop-Neck Bodysuit

Lululemon Wundermost Ultra-Soft Nulu High-Neck Sleeveless Bodysuit

The Winter Coat

The best winter coats are selling out fast! Boden’s reversible iteration delivers sophisticated teddy bear vibes, and is great quality for the price. If you want to snag a high-quality style for just $300, be sure to check out the options at Banana Republic—its grey oversized top coat is a Glamour-editor must. For more of a splurge, consider something from Reiss—our commerce director almost exclusively wears its outerwear—or Totême, a buzzy brand our senior shopping editor loves.

Boden Reversible Faux Shearling Coat

Totême Annecy Open Front Wool & Cashmere Coat

Reiss Brooks Belted Wool Blend Coat

Banana Republic Amina Oversized Top Coat

The Cozy Sweatshirt

Lululemon’s half-zip has voluminous sleeves and slightly cropped fit that works great with jeans or high-waisted black leggings, while Alo’s bestselling Accolade hoodie is what oversized loungewear dreams are made of. (I personally live in mine whenever I’m home.)

Lululemon Scuba Oversized Funnel-Neck Half-Zip Sweatshirt

The Even Cozier Sweatpants

Some would argue that you can never own too many sweatpants, but we’re of the mind that you only need one or two really great styles since that’s all you’ll realistically be wearing day in and out. Vuori and Alo’s have all the hallmarks of an MVP: Soft, durable, and entirely unfussy.

Vuori Performance Joggers

The Sweater Dress

A one-and-done piece that’s chic, office-appropriate, and easy to style with winter boots or heels. Reformation’s cashmere dress is especially worthwhile for its soft knit and slightly flared hem that moves when you walk.

Reformation Evan Cashmere Sweater Dress

J.Crew Side-Slit Sweater Dress

The Holiday Outfit

Sequins, rosettes, plaid—start with these fab winter dresses as you plan out your holiday party ‘fits.

Rixo Samantha Sequin Midi Dress

Hill House Home The Ophelia Dress

Reformation Nelle Body-Con Dress

Bardot Erika Rosette Cutout Halter Cocktail Midi Dress

The Tights

You’ll be needing these to wear with dresses and skirts (or under jeans if it’s really cold)—and at the top of our shopping list are the sheer and opaque styles from Wolford and Commando. Tights have a ton of utility (not to mention versatility) and these brands make quality pairs that won’t rip or snag second you put them on.

Wolford Velvet de Luxe 50 Tights

Commando Ultimate Opaque Matte Tights

The House Sock

For wearing in (and perhaps out of) the house. These pair best with the Uggs and Birks you were eyeing above.

Cozy Earth The Plush Socks

The Puffer Jacket

Bundle up in one of the season’s best down coats—Vuori has a great active option, while anything from The North Face will be an investment you enjoy for years to come.

Vuori Hillside Down Jacket

The North Face Nuptse Water Repellent 700 Fill Power Down Short Puffer Jacket

The Weatherproof Boot

Black ice, sleet, and rain have nothing on these water-resistant boots; Moon Boot’s classic ankle boot is our senior shopping editor’s preferred style for snow as well since it’s cute, very warm, and easy to buy online because of the “universal” sizing.

Moon Boot Icon Low Nylon Boot

Sorel Brex Waterproof Chelsea Boot

The Fleece Jacket

The power of a great fleece can’t be understated. FP Movement’s snap-button jacket has been a celeb staple for years and comes in a bunch of colors and styles, including a quarter-zip pullover with contrasting piping. We’re also obsessed with the The Great’s colorblock pullover from its new Outdoors line.

FP Movement Hit the Slopes Fleece Jacket

The Great. The Plush Colorblock Terrain Half-Zip

The Knit Pant

The elevated sister of joggers, knit pants are a no-fuss option for when you want to feel relaxed but still put-together—and look great with either sneakers or boots. You can find quality wool and cashmere blends for under $200, or splurge on pure cashmere ones if budget isn’t a concern. (Pro tip: Keep a sweater comb handy to remove pilling.)

Naadam Cashmere Paperbag Wide Leg Pants

The Andre Luxe Cashmere Pant

The Cold-Weather Essential

Protect your extremities with gloves, a mohair or down scarf (trust, it’s so cute IRL), and warm winter beanie.

The Great The Down Quilted Puffer Scarf

Vince Boiled Cashmere Gloves

Everlane The Alpaca Beanie

Cos Oversized Mohair-Blend Scarf

The Bag

If a designer bag is on your holiday wish list, consider DeMellier’s New York midi tote your new day-to-night winter staple. (If you’re unfamiliar with the brand, the British label is a noted favorite of Kate Middleton who loves its structured crossbody bags and top handles.) Banana Republic also has a great new shoulder bag that would make for an excellent work option.

DeMellier London The Midi New York

The Silver Accent

Accessories are a great way to a touch of silver to your look—and we’re especially loving Lié Studio’s sterling silver drop earrings and Marina Raphael’s stunning crystal bag that’d be just perfect for a New Year’s Eve look.

Lié Studio The Caroline Sterling Silver Earrings

Mejuri Croissant Dôme Ring

Marina Raphael Baby Riviera In Silver Crystal

Schutz Arissa Ballet Flats

The Finishing Touch

Let your personal style shine with one of season’s sparkliest pieces. Ours include Dorsey’s lab-grown heirloom earrings (a new launch to its standout collection of lab-grown rivières and rings) and Kimaï’s wavy ring featuring a double band of white gold and lab-grown diamonds. For statement necklaces, we’re also into Aurate’s take on the now-popular rivière and Forte Forte’s crystal choker.

Dorsey Crawford, Baguette and Asscher Nano Crystal Emerald Earrings

Aurate White Sapphire Tennis Necklace

Forte Forte Crystal-Embellished Choker Necklace

Of course, there's something about winter's shorter,

Matthew Vaughn Thinks ‘Star Wars’ Should Be Only About Skywalkers – IndieWire

Matthew Vaughn is weighing in on the direction of the “Star Wars” film franchise.

The “X-Men: First Class” director said during the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast that he would only be interested in helming a “Star Wars” film if he could recast the core original characters Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Darth Vader for a new generation.

“For me, doing a ‘Star Wars’ movie is to play with the characters I love. If they said to me they’d reboot ‘Star Wars’ and actually have Luke Skywalker, Solo, and Vader and do your version of it…Everyone would say you’re an idiot to try, but that would excite me,” Vaughn said. “Why are the [‘Star Wars’] characters so hallowed that from 1977 you can’t re-do it for a new audience?”

He added, “That’s what I would do. Everyone is going to go batshit crazy but let’s bring it on. If you want a new generation, make the movie for them. The old generation, hopefully you make it well enough that they enjoy it.”

"Cruel Intentions," "Poison Ivy," "Fear," and "Wild Things"

Vaughn added that Lucasfilm and Walt Disney Co. have strayed from the signature storyline of “Star Wars” about the Skywalker family. According to Vaughn, the Disney+ series have done a far better job propelling the franchise forward than the films.

“‘Star Wars’ is the Skywalker family and that’s where I think they’ve gone wrong. They’ve forgot,” Vaughn said. “They’ve done brilliantly in TV but it needs an epic new film.”

Vaughn spoke to the need for franchise content overall, saying, “The studios, it’s like any artistic form. The music business, movies, fashion… the financing and the commerce has taken over the creative. That always means eventually for short-term gains you do well, but long term you kill everything. That’s what’s happening now… film, music, art. Commerce took over and now the pendulum is starting to swing back. Creativity should always be the driving force of any decision and then you think about how to make money out of it afterwards. If you try to make money upfront, you’ll kill some great franchises.”

Meanwhile, Taika Waititi, who is set to direct an upcoming “Star Wars” film, revealed his installment will step away from preexisting characters.

“Look, I think for the ‘Star Wars’ universe to expand, it has to expand,” Waititi told Total Film about his yet-to-be-titled movie. “I don’t think that I’m any use in the ‘Star Wars’ universe making a film where everyone’s like, ‘Oh great, well that’s the blueprints to the Millennium Falcon, ah that’s Chewbacca’s grandmother.’”

He continued, “That all stands alone, that’s great, though I would like to take something new and create some new characters and just expand the world, otherwise it feels like it’s a very small story.”

Matthew Vaughn is weighing in on the

A press image of Owen Daniels as AI Guy standing between two Uploads in Season 3 of Upload.

What to Watch

Upload Director Compares Picking His Favorite Version Of AI Guy To ‘Picking A Favorite Taylor Swift Song,’ And I Feel His Pain

Much like how Taylor Swift’s discography is made up of over 200 songs, in Upload, there are hundreds of versions of AI Guy that make up the staff of Lakeview. In the Amazon Prime series, this lovable form of artificial intelligence is always hilarious, and the various variants of Owen Daniels’ characters never cease to make me laugh. So, as you can imagine, picking a favorite AI Guy is as hard as “picking a favorite Taylor Swift song,” as director Jeffrey Blitz told me, which means there are too many stellar choices, and it’s impossible.

While speaking about Season 3 of Upload, which just premiered on the 2023 TV schedule, Jeffrey Blitz, who directed the first two episodes of this installment, spoke to CinemaBlend about Owen Daniels’ fan-favorite character (or should I say characters). Obviously, I had to ask which version of AI Guy was his favorite, and using a very apt comparison, Blitz told me, via email:

Picking a favorite AI Guy is like picking a favorite Taylor Swift song: it can only generate outrage. So let me take the easy way out and say that my favorite is Boris Netherlands.

It’s hard enough to pick my favorite surprise song from the Eras Tour, which means picking a favorite Taylor Swift song in general is basically an impossible and maddening task. The same is true for AI Guy, from the receptionist version of him to the waiter to the elevator operator to some of the more unique versions of the Lakeview assistant, there are too many stellar options to choose from. So, I totally sympathize with Blitz.

I’m also obsessed with his consolation answer, which is Boris Netherlands, the in-universe actor who was paid $1200 so they could use his likeness to create AI Guy. In Swiftie terms, this kind of answer feels like saying “she’s perfection, and I can’t pick one,” which is valid.

Much like how I’m always shocked whenever Swift announces another upcoming project, I’m always amazed by the new variants of AI Guy that show up from season to season in Upload. I’m also always so impressed whenever they have Daniels’ playing multiple versions of his character in one scene. When it comes to shooting moments like that, Blitz told me:

There’s a planning that goes into a scene with multiple AI Guys. Sometimes it’s a simple kind of film-schooly locked off camera, but sometimes it’s a much more complicated approach using a motion control rig and re-running the camera move and scene action multiple times. Often there’s a fun (and exhausting) wardrobe and hair change for Owen, too.

From his typical bellhop costume to his waiter outfit and more, Daniels really does change often, and he really commits to playing every version of AI Guy, and he’s always so entertaining to watch. This character is also such a unique aspect of Upload, and to me, it’s one of the many reasons why Greg Daniels’ comedy is one of the best original series on Amazon Prime.

To see all the versions of AI Guy in action, and to attempt to pick your favorite — trust me, it’s as hard as trying to choose between “Anti-Hero” and “Cruel Summer” — you can stream the first two episodes of Upload right now with an Amazon Prime subscription. Make sure to keep tuning in too, as new episodes will drop on the platform every Friday.

Much like how Taylor Swift’s discography is

Awards

Britney Spears Slams Headlines About Her Memoir

October 20, 2023 @ 11:23 AM

Britney Spears posted a response to the reception of her book by the media, denouncing the headlines that have come out of early excerpts.

“My motive for this book was not to harp on my past experiences which is what the press is doing and it’s dumb and silly !!!” she wrote on social media. “I have moved on since then !!! #TheWomaninMe”

“The Woman in Me,” is slated to publish on Oct. 24.

“Most of this book is from 20 years ago … I have moved on and it’s a beautiful clean slate from here !!! I am here to establish it that way for the rest of my entire life,” she wrote. “Either way, that is the last of it and shit happens !!! This is actually a book I didn’t know needed to be written … although some might be offended, it has given me closure on all things for a better future !!!”

The celebrity also stated that she quit the entertainment business four years ago because of headlines like the ones she has been reading about her memoir. The book entered the media this week when People published an exclusive excerpt in which Spears revealed she had an abortion after getting pregnant with Justin Timberlake’s baby.

“I don’t know if that was the right decision. If it had been left up to me alone, I never would have done it,” Spears wrote in her book. “And yet Justin was so sure that he didn’t want to be a father.”

Spears and Timberlake dated for three years starting in 1999 when Spears was 17 and Timberlake was 18. Timberlake is now married to actress Jessica Biel, with whom he has two sons. Timberlake’s rep did not respond to a request for comment from People.

“It was a surprise, but for me, it wasn’t a tragedy. I loved Justin so much. I always expected us to have a family together one day. This would just be much earlier than I’d anticipated,” Spears writes of the pregnancy in the book. “But Justin definitely wasn’t happy about the pregnancy. He said we weren’t ready to have a baby in our lives, that we were way too young.”

October 20, 2023 @ 11:23 AM Britney Spears

Music

Aérea Negrot, Electronic Artist and Hercules & Love Affair Collaborator, Dies at 43

Aérea Negrot, the Venezuelan-born, Berlin-based singer and electronic musician who frequently collaborated with Hercules & Love Affair, has died. Negrot’s label, BPitch Control, announced the news earlier this month in a post on social media. “Her light, music and beautiful uplifting voice, her one of a kind artistic approach and performance have touched every soul they have ever encountered,” the label wrote. “A classically-trained ballet dancer, singer, songwriter and an uncompromising DJ, there never was a stage she did not make her own. We are forever grateful to have had the honor to cross our path with such a giving and talented human and artist.” Negrot was 43.

Aérea Negrot was born in Caracas in 1980 and raised by a family of professional dancers. She was classically trained in ballet like her parents and grandmother, but refocused on nightclub performances after sustaining a knee injury. As a 16-year-old, she would put on lip-synching shows, often interpreting songs by Erykah Badu. Around that time, she formed the group La Familia Felíz with Fata Kiefer and Milton Fermat, who had a small international hit with their track “La Disco.”

Negrot, whose real name was Danielle Gallegos, first performed under her stage name in Amsterdam when she was 17. “Aérea” referred to flying, as she told Remezcla in a 2016 interview. She apparently adopted the name after having a tryst with a flight attendant—who booted Negrot out of their home. Negrot relocated to Berlin in 2004.

Negrot released her debut album, Arabxilla, in 2011, though she has been an active performer and DJ since the late 1990s. In 2005, Negrot met Hercules & Love Affair’s Andy Butler at an Antony and the Johnsons concert in Berlin, sparking a years-long collaborative relationship with Butler and his project. Roughly a year after meeting Butler, Negrot joined the group’s touring lineup.

Negrot featured prominently on Hercules & Love Affair’s 2011 sophomore LP, Blue Songs, and has collaborated with a number of artists in the ensuing years, including Tobias., Miguel Toro, Billie Ray Martin, Massimiliano Pagliara, System of Survival, and more.

In her 2016 interview with Remezcla, Negrot reflected on her relationship with performing. “Performing was for me always an extension of that passion and ambition I got from my family,” she said. “And was pretty good at it, even before I could walk.”

Aérea Negrot, the Venezuelan-born, Berlin-based singer and

Docs

Intersex people speak their truth in "Every Body"

“Every Body” explores the history, science and politics of people who were born with reproductive anatomy that doesn’t easily fit the categories of male or female. Filmmaker Julie Cohen profiles three people who went public with their stories.

"Every Body" explores the history, science and

Global

Saskatchewan government passes and enacts controversial ‘Parents’ Bill of Rights’

The Saskatchewan government on Friday passed its proposed Parents’ Bill of Rights, which also received royal ascent and is now in force across the province.

On Friday, the legislature voted on the third reading, which was passed using the notwithstanding clause to prevent the new law from court challenges under certain provisions of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The new law also protects the legislation from challenges under the Saskatchewan Human Rights Code.

The new law will prevent children under 16 from changing their names or pronouns at school without receiving parental consent.

“Parents and guardians have a right to know what is being taught in their children’s school,” education minister Jeremy Cockrill said in a statement. “The Parents’ Bill of Rights’ is an inclusionary policy that ensures that parents are at the forefront of every important decision in their child’s life.”

Story continues below advertisement

Cockrill says he expects all school divisions to abide by the legislation.

The opposition Saskatchewan NDP has opposed the bill since it was announced in the summer.

“Teachers will have to choose between shoving kids back in the closet or putting them in harm’s way,” NDP Leader Carla Beck said.

The Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission has also heavily opposed the introduction of the policy. Earlier this week, Human Rights Commissioner Heather Kuttai resigned from her position to protest the bill.

Moreto come.

&copy 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Descrease article font size Increase article font size The

Trending

Hilarie Burton Talks Protecting Sophia Bush Amid Divorce and New Romance: ‘That’s a Good Woman’ (Exclusive)

Together forever!

In a new interview with ET, Hilarie Burton made it clear her bond with former One Tree Hill co-star and longtime friend Sophia Bush is an infinite one.

“She’s just not afraid to throw herself in front of the line of fire,” Burton told ET’s Deidre Behar. “She’s done it for me so many times and so, I want to protect her at all costs.”

“Everybody’s had an internet scuffle or two and Sophia is the first person that will rush in and that is why my husband loves her so much because he’s like, ‘You know, other than me — the person who comes to your defense and the person who will fight for your honor is Sophia,’ and so I love that she’s unafraid,” Burton elaborated. “Sometimes with people who are so strong and unafraid, they hide their soft inside and so it’s my job as her best friend to protect her as well because she really is the most wonderful human and, yeah, we’ll still be working together when we’re in our eighties.”

In August, ET learned Bush filed for divorce from husband Grant Hughes shortly after their 1-year wedding anniversary. More recently, a source told ET that she’s now dating soccer pro Ashlyn Harris.

“Sophia and Ashlyn are dating and are into each other,” the source said. “Although it’s new, the two are on the same page and talk about their future together.”

While Burton did not address the new person in her bestie’s life, she did make it clear that she’s all about having her friend’s back through everything life brings. “I think being able to celebrate every chapter of a loved one’s life is so important and that even means like the chapters that are awkward or the chapters that maybe didn’t work in the past,” she said. “We were together last night and being able to just be together and hold each other and be like, ‘Whatever is coming next, like, I’m here for it’ and that’s exciting ’cause she’s held me in some dark chapters and so, for her, I wanna celebrate the wins and I wanna again, like, protect her at all costs. That’s a good woman.”

And it’s clear the feeling is mutual. Mere days after Burton’s book, Grimoire Girl: A Memoir of Magic and Mischief, was released earlier this month, Bush wasted no time celebrating it. “This book is a guide and a teacher — much like Hilarie to each of us lucky enough to be loved by her — about illuminating the world around you with mischief and goodness and found wonder,” Bush praised in an Instagram post.

Her other cheerleader? None other than her famous husband, Jeffrey Dean Morgan. “I’ve met a number of writers who are like, ‘My partner doesn’t think me sitting at the kitchen table scribbling in a notebook is real work’ and he has always treated my work as real work and that feels very nice to be supported in that way,” she said.

In addition to her life as an author and host of the podcast, True Crime Story: It Couldn’t Happen Here, Burton is also mom to son Augustus, 13, and daughter George, 5, with Morgan. Together, the proud parents have kept busy raising their youngsters on a farm.

“I think we both really liked surprising each other with the skill sets that we didn’t know the other person had,” she said of her and Morgan. “He’s really good with, like, machinery and cars. He’s building a car with my son right now.”

Added the actress, “And he’s very good looking — that doesn’t hurt.”

Grimoire Girl: A Memoir of Magic and Mischief is out now.

RELATED CONTENT:

Together forever!In a new interview with ET,

Tech

The 25 Best New Movies to Stream in October 2023

October is here, and with it a whole host of new movies are available to stream. There is, of course, a bounty of new horror movies coming our way this month as many are ready to celebrate Halloween, but our curated list of the best new movies to stream in October includes plenty of non-horror fare as well. We’ve gone through what’s new on Netflix, Prime Video, Max, Peacock, Paramount+, Hulu and Disney+ to put together a viewing guide that offers something for everyone. From bona fide new releases to library titles newly streaming, you won’t be disappointed.

Check out our picks for the best new movies to stream in October 2023 below.

“The Faculty”

Peacock – Oct. 1

One of the most underrated movies of the 1990’s, “The Faculty” was an attempt by Dimension to replicate the success of “Scream,” which they had released two years earlier and had become a sensation. “Scream” screenwriter Kevin Williamson was brought on to juice up a script that the studio had already purchased, with Robert Rodriguez, coming on the heels of Dimension’s horror hit “From Dusk Till Dawn,” stepping in to direct (at one point Williamson was meant to direct but instead chose “Teaching Mrs. Tingle” instead). The long and short of the premise is: what if your teachers were replaced by space aliens? And as it turns out, that can go a long way! While “The Faculty” it was born of a crass exercise, it wound up being a true gem, with Williamson and Rodriguez synthesizing various tropes from “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” and “The Thing” into a fresh concoction, with a hip, youthful energy and a cast of wonderful performers, as both the students (among them: Elijah Wood, Clea DuVall, Jordana Brewster and Josh Hartnett) and villainous teachers (Robert Patrick, Salma Hayek, Piper Laurie and Famke Janssen). There was also that cool cover of “Another Brick in the Wall” by a bunch of ‘90s all-stars. If you’ve never seen “The Faculty,” you’re in for a treat. And if you’ve already watched it, it’s worth a revisit. – Drew Taylor

“Beetlejuice”

Max – Oct. 1

Tim Burton’s comedy classic is a great watch pretty much anytime, but especially so in October. “Beetlejuice” revolves around a couple who die in a car accident (played by Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis) and become ghosts trapped inside their home where they’re forced to witness its sale and renovation by a gauche family from the city. They enlist the help of a “bio-exorcist” named Beetlejuice (played by Michael Keaton), and all hell breaks loose. The film is a colorful and inventive twist on the afterlife, offering up a darkly comic spin on the living dead. And now that the sequel is officially coming, there’s no better time to brush up. – Adam Chitwood

“Meg 2: The Trench”

Max – Oct. 1

That’s right. Just when you thought it was safe to be Jason Statham, “The Meg” is back. The sequel to 2018’s entertaining-enough giant shark movie sees Statham return, along with some brand-new leviathans from the deep. This time there are multiple megalodons, plus a giant octopus and some air-breathing dinosaur-type things. It’s a real monster mash. And it’s a much more entertaining movie than the first film, full of villainous baddies, double-crosses and giant monsters. Plus, the movie is directed by Ben Wheatley, the oddball British director behind “Kill List,” “Sightseers” and that weird “Rebecca” remake that Netflix did a few years ago. His authorial stamp is absent (or maybe invisible) but he does have a keener understanding of what audiences want from this kind of thing. And what they want is Statham kicking a bad guy at exactly the moment a megalodon swims by so the megalodon eats the bad guy and everybody cheers (yes, even if you’re at home). God bless you, “Meg 2.” – Drew Taylor

“Trick ‘r Treat”

Max – Oct. 1

A Halloween classic, “Trick ‘r Treat” is a perfect pick to either kick off Spooky Season or celebrate on All Hallow’s Eve. The 2007 film is an anthology that tells five separate horror stories, all revolving around Halloween. Each one has terrifically spooky vibes, some intense R-rated gore and a twist ending that’ll have you reaching for the lights. The less said the better, but if for some reason you’ve never seen this one there’s no time like the present. – Adam Chitwood

“The Empty Man”

Hulu – Oct. 1

This horror movie flew way under the radar but quickly drew a cult following and will have you obsessing over its mythology long after it ends. Part of the delight of “The Empty Man” is the discovery, so we’ll tread lightly here, but broadly the story follows a former detective grieving the death of his wife who gets pulled into a conspiracy involving an entity known as The Empty Man. When summoned, those involved all die. Is it a supernatural death trap, secret cult or something else entirely? – Adam Chitwood

“Nightmare Alley”

Hulu – Oct. 1

Bradley Cooper and Guillermo del Toro teamed up for 2021’s new take on the noir “Nightmare Alley” to terrific (and shocking) results. This one could conceivably be considered a horror film as the story follows a drifter who joins a carnival and then remakes himself into a mystic, gaining success and notoriety in high society. Set in 1939 and 1941, the film finds del Toro crafting lush noir visuals and anchoring the story with an all-star ensemble that also includes Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, Willem Dafoe and Toni Collette. – Adam Chitwood

“Doctor Sleep”

Hulu – Oct. 1

Mike Flanagan is beloved for his Netflix horror series “The Haunting of Hill House” and “The Haunting of Bly Manor,” but his 2019 “The Shining” sequel “Doctor Sleep” is a criminally underseen effort. Based on the book by Stephen King, the film serves as a bridge of sorts between Stanley Kubrick’s iconic (but divisive) adaptation of “The Shining” and the book upon which that 1980 film is based. Ewan McGregor plays a grown up Danny Torrence who’s in recovery for alcoholism when he becomes mentally connected with a young girl named Abra with “the shining.” Rebecca Ferguson plays a devilish cult leader who sucks the souls out of children, and the story builds to an incredible finale at the Overlook Hotel. If you watch and enjoy this on Hulu, seek out the Blu-ray to watch the even longer director’s cut. – Adam Chitwood

“BlacKkKlansman”

Netflix – Oct. 1

Spike Lee’s 2018 film “BlacKkKlansman” is at once compelling, provocative, infuriating and funny. So, a Spike Lee joint. Based on a true story, the film takes place in 1970s Colorado Springs where the first Black officer in the department finds himself leading an investigation into the local KKK. Unable to infiltrate the hate group himself, he speaks only by phone and teams up with a white officer (played by Adam Driver) to do the actual undercover work. The film was one of Lee’s most acclaimed yet, winning the filmmaker his first competitive Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay and securing nominations for Best Picture, Director and Supporting Actor for Driver. – Adam Chitwood

“Dune”

Netflix – Oct. 1

No, your eyes don’t deceive you. The relatively new release Warner Bros. adaptation of “Dune” is now streaming on Netflix, not just Max. Based on the Frank Herbert tome of the same name, the story follows the rise of a young heir played by Timothee Chalamet who is thrust into the spotlight when his family’s mining operation on the planet Arrakis is seized by a nefarious rival. Will Paul Atreides rise to the occasion or hide in the desert for the rest of his life? The film covers the first half of Herbert’s book with director Denis Villeneuve chronicling the second half in the upcoming “Dune Part Two,” which brings back nearly the entire cast and same craftspeople that brought this Oscar-winning sci-fi film to life. – Adam Chitwood

“Mission: Impossible,” “Mission: Impossible 2,” “Mission: Impossible 3,” “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol”

Netflix – Oct. 1

There is quite literally not a bad time to have a “Mission: Impossible” marathon, and the first four entries in the franchise are now streaming on Netflix. Each entry in this spy franchise molds itself to fit the director at the helm: Brian De Palma’s 1996 film is a sexy and duplicitous; John Woo’s 2000 sequel is full of over-the-top, balletic action; J.J. Abrams’ 2006 installment is romantic, funny and personal; and Brad Bird’s 2011 entry is almost a cartoon come to life as Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt tackles his highest-flying set pieces in the franchise so far. This series is a delight head to toe. – Adam Chitwood

“Haunted Mansion”

Disney+ – Oct. 4

When “Haunted Mansion” was released this summer, it had the misfortune of both strikes and the unstoppable juggernaut that was “Barbie”/”Oppenheimer.” This is a shame, because “Haunted Mansion” is a ton of fun. Based on the Disney attraction that first opened back in 1969 (it was previously adapted, 20 years earlier, into a lame Eddie Murphy vehicle), the movie stars Rosario Dawson as a young single mother whose new home is infested with 999 happy haunts. In order to rid her of the otherworldly presence, she calls on a group of spiritual advisors – a ghost tour guide (LaKeith Stanfield), a priest (Owen Wilson), a historian (Danny De Vito) and a psychic (Tiffany Haddish). Of course, they are all in over their head, especially when they come up against the sinister Hatbox Ghost (Jared Leto), a character that has deep ties to the Haunted Mansion mythology. With a winning mixture of humor, heart and scares, “Haunted Mansion” was one of the more delightful Disney movies released this year. And now you can watch it at home – just in time for Halloween! – Drew Taylor

“The Boogeyman”

Hulu – Oct. 5

Boo! “The Boogeyman,” based on the short story by Stephen King, was originally meant to be a direct-to-Hulu original, before being bumped to a theatrical release. And now the movie is back to where it was supposed to be – Hulu. The movie follows a family that has just lost their mother in a sudden car accident. Each member is following a different approach, but when the father (Chris Messina), a psychiatrist, diving into work. That’s where he meets an oddball patient (David Dastmalchian) who tells him the story of The Boogeyman, a fearsome creature that isn’t content until you’re scared to death, and then seemingly passes along that creature to the family. This leads the family’s teenage daughter (Sophie Thatcher from “Yellowjackets” and “The Book of Boba Fett”) to investigate who or what the Boogeyman actually is to rid her grieving family of this curse. The movie has a lot of good jump scares and expands the original King story with aplomb. You could do a lot worse this Halloween. – Drew Taylor

“Fair Play”

Netflix – Oct. 6

Here’s a movie explicitly made for people who say “They don’t make ‘em like this anymore.” Chloe Domont’s erotic thriller “Fair Play” follows two young financial analysts at the same firm who strike up a secret romance – played by “Bridgerton” star Phoebe Dynevor and Han Solo himself Alden Ehrenreich. But can a relationship flourish in the cutthroat world of finance? Complex sexual and gender politics are explored as Dynevor doesn’t shy away from the “erotic” aspect of the genre but also digs deeper than many of the 1990s entries did. The result is something compelling and sharp, with a true humdinger of an ending. – Adam Chitwood

“Totally Killer”

Prime Video – Oct. 6

Why not celebrate the season with a brand-new slasher movie? “Totally Killer” is built around an ingenious set-up – a young girl (Kiernan Shipka) witnesses her mother’s murder and, thanks to a time machine, goes back to 1987 to not only stop her murder but to save several young women who fell victim to the same sadistic serial killer. Cool right? Thankfully, “Totally Killer” pays off that set-up. It’s incredibly fun – a joyful, bloody, neon-tinged extravaganza that playfully mixes scares and laughs in equal measure. (It was directed by Nahnatchka Khan, the creator of countless TV series and the director of “Always Be My Maybe.”) Shipka is great as a progressive teen experiencing all of the rougher aspects of living in the 1980’s (there are a lot of great jokes about people smoking around children, among other things) and Julie Owen and Olivia Holt play the same character at two different points in time terrifically. Also, Randall Park shows up as a dopey cop and steals every scene. It’s a bloody good time. – Drew Taylor

“Pet Sematary: Bloodlines”

Paramount+ – Oct. 6

Remember the “Pet Sematary” remake from a couple of years ago? Well, even if you didn’t, this should serve of some interest – it’s a prequel to that film but also fills in some gaps from the story original that was written by Stephen King and first adapted in 1989 by Mary Lambert. This film follows a young Jud Crandall (played in the original by Fred Gwynne and in the remake by John Lithgow) and his dealings in the 1960’s with the evil pet cemetery and the mysteries that surround it. If, for some reason, you’re not in the spooky season mood yet, this should do the trick. – Drew Taylor

“The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial”

Paramount+ – Oct. 6

The final film from the late, great William Friedkin is an update of the 1953 play by Herman Wouk (the original play was based on his 1952 novel “The Caine Mutiny”). The setting of the story, about a U.S. Naval captain who, following signs of mental instability, faces a court-martial, has been updated, but the drama remains the same. Kiefer Sutherland, Jason Clarke, Jake Lacy, Lance Reddick (in what would ultimately be one of his final roles), Lewis Pullman and Jay Duplass star. “The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial” got solid reviews following its premiere at the Venice Film Festival and some of Friedkin’s most compelling works, particularly later in life, were for television (just watch his crackling remake of “12 Angry Men”), meaning this is a court-martial you shouldn’t want to skip. If only to say goodbye to one of the masters. – Drew Taylor

“The Burial”

Prime Video – Oct. 10

This looks delightful. “The Burial” tells the true story of Jerry O’Keefe (Tommy Lee Jones), a funeral home owner, who hires a flashy lawyer named Willie E. Gary (Jamie Foxx) to help him with a lawsuit against a big funeral home company. Talk about David versus Goliath. But if you know anything about the case (and, really, don’t Google it), the case had some unpredictable twists and some huge upsets. The movie premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it was warmly reviewed (it has a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes) and generally seems like the kind of movie that they don’t make very often anymore. Also, how are you going to really argue against a movie with a cast that also includes Jurnee Smollett, Mamoudou Athie, Bill Camp and Alan Ruck? That’s right: you’re not going to argue with it. You’re just going to sit back and watch. – Drew Taylor

“The Devil on Trial”

Netflix – Oct. 17

This feature-length documentary recounts the famous 1981 “Devil Made Me Do It” trial in Connecticut, where a man (Arne Cheyenne Johnson) accused of killing his landlord used, for the first time in court, the explanation of demonic possession. This was uncharted territory for many and was widely covered by local and national media. Ed and Lorraine Warren, the famous ghost hunters, were also a part of the mystery, when they attempted to purge a demon years earlier that instead chose Johnson as its host. (These events were later dramatized in the third “Conjuring” film, subtitled, of course, “The Devil Made Me Do It.”) As strange and unsual as the case was, this documentary could be even stranger, considering you’re hearing from the people that were actually involved. This one should make your skin crawl. – Drew Taylor

“Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken”

Peacock – Oct. 20

When “Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken” opened earlier this summer, it underperformed. And that’s a real shame, because this DreamWorks Animation feature is charming and fun, full of truly gorgeous animation. Ruby (Lana Condor) is a teenage Kraken passing as a normal human girl in a lush seaside town. Her family has been keeping her true lineage from her, which she discovers during an encounter with her mother (a fiery Jane Fonda). She also uncovers an age-old battle between krakens and mermaids, which is particularly upsetting after she discovers one of classmates is indeed an evil mermaid (Annie Murphy). Full of imaginative set pieces (including a mermaid vs. kraken kaiju battle worthy of “Pacific Rim”) and terrific vocal performances (the cast also includes Toni Collette, Colman Domingo, Sam Richardson and Will Forte), the movie, directed by animation great Kirk DeMicco, didn’t deserve to be ignored. But now is your chance to catch up with “Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken.” Soak it up. – Drew Taylor

“Cobweb”

Hulu – Oct. 20

One of the year’s very best – and most underrated – horror movies arrives on streaming just in time for Halloween. And it’s perfect timing, because “Cobweb” is super Halloween-y – for some reason the central family (the parents are played by a wonderfully off-kilter Lizzy Caplan and Anthony Starr) have a pumpkin patch in the backyard and the climax takes place on Halloween night. The movie stars Woody Norman (the little kid from “C’mon C’mon”) as a little kid who begins to suspect a long lost sibling is trapped in the walls of his home. (Cleopatra Coleman plays his concerned teacher.) Director Samuel Bodin eschews the typical tropes for something more stylized and heightened – this is more of a fable or fairy tale than it is a traditional, modernly told scary movie. And the movie is all the better for it. When Lionsgate dumped the movie into theaters this summer, against “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer,” it quickly vanished. But this deserves to be a new cult classic. Make it a part of your Halloween programming. It’ll be an annual favorite. – Drew Taylor

“Master Gardener”

Hulu – Oct. 26

The latest from writer/director Paul Schrader, and the conclusion of his so-called “lonely man trilogy” (which started with “First Reformed” and continued with “The Card Counter”), “Master Gardener” might not be as powerful as those earlier films but it weaves its own kind of spell. Joel Edgerton plays Narvel Roth, a man with (wouldn’t you know it?) a shadowy past who gets a job as a groundskeeper for a wealthy southern woman (Sigourney Weaver). When he starts up a relationship with a young woman working on the grounds (Quintessa Swindell), it threatens to dismantle his carefully manicured new life. There’s a lot of simmering tension underneath the surface of “Master Gardner,” but it never quite reaches the boil you’re probably expecting. But that’s okay. This is a movie full of wonderful performances, with Schrader content to let the mood take hold. When it does reach its conclusion, it’s surprisingly sweet and satisfying, especially for the typically wounded Schrader hero. – Drew Taylor

“Pain Hustlers”

Netflix – Oct. 27

David Yates, who directed several of the latter “Harry Potter” movies and the “Fantastic Beasts” spin-offs as well, trades wands for over-the-counter drugs in “Pain Hustlers.” Instead of a broader look at the opioid epidemic, “Pain Hustlers” (based on the New York Times article and book by Evan Hughes) follows a pair of unscrupulous pharmaceutical reps, played by Emily Blunt and Chris Evans. They’re both, at least initially, just trying to make a living but the cost of their aggressive salesmanship winds up costing people their lives. Told in a kind of “Wolf of Wall Street” style, Yates gives it his all, as do Blunt and Evans, who both fearlessly go to some pretty ugly places. (There are also great supporting roles from Catherine O’Hara as Blunt’s mom and a particularly sleazy Andy Garcia as the head of the pharmaceutical company.) If you want to get down to the nitty gritty and understand how the pills wound up in peoples’ hands, “Pain Hustlers” will do the job. It’s a tragedy, ultimately, but one told with style and panache. – Drew Taylor

“Sister Death”

Netflix – Oct. 27

2017’s “Veronica” is one of the best (and indeed scariest) horror movies in recent memory. Supposedly based around a true story of a young woman who, in the early 1990’s, died following her use of a Ouija board. It was really, really terrifying. And thankfully director Paco Plaza is back for more. “Sister Death” is a prequel to “Veronica,” this time focused on a young nun (Aria Bedmar) who exhibits some very supernatural traits in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War. Honestly, how great does that sound? Plaza is one of the world’s most creative and exciting genre filmmakers (he also oversaw the “REC” series). Any new movie from Plaza is an event but a spin-off of arguably his very best movie is cause for celebration. This one will undoubtedly scare the pants off of you. – Drew Taylor

“Five Nights at Freddy’s”

Peacock – Oct. 27

Continuing 2023’s streak of high-quality videogame adaptations (including “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” “The Last of Us,” “Twisted Metal”) continues with “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” a movie that asks the age-old question: What if the Chuck E. Cheese or Showbiz Pizza was haunted by the spirit of dead children? Part of the fun of the movie is playing up the inherent creepiness of those jittery audio-animatronics that would play music while sugar-fueled kids play Skee-Ball. And this is especially true since Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, responsible for the characters in “The Dark Crystal” and the first “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” (truly the height of Chuck E. Cheese’s) came up with the animatronic creatures for this movie. And there is a pretty involving mystery at its heart, too, as a beleaguered security guard (Josh Hutcherson) works to uncover the truth behind a series of disappearances somehow connected to Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, the spooky decrepit pizza joint. Plus, this is one of those PG-13 horror movies that still has enough edge to delight every nightmare-seeker in your family. – Drew Taylor

October is here, and with it a

Video

‘Yellowstone’ Sets Season 2 Run on CBS After Ratings Success

October 20, 2023 @ 11:00 AM

After “Yellowstone” Season 1 scored ratings success during its broadcast debut on CBS, the network will air the second season of Paramount Network hit beginning later this month.

“Yellowstone” Season 2 will premiere Sunday Oct. 29 on CBS, with new episodes of the sophomore installment dropping on Sundays. The Season 2 launch will pick up one week after CBS airs the drama’s Season 1 finale this Sunday, Oct. 22.

Continuing to air “Yellowstone” is an obvious decision for CBS, as the Kevin Costner-led series has drawn in nearly 21.6 million viewers who tuned in to at least one episode over the airing of its first installment. Its CBS premiere on Sept. 17 drew in 6.83 million viewers and scored a 0.67 rating in the key broadcast demographic among adults 18-49, marking the largest audience for a scripted series since the “NCIS” series finale in May.

Since its September debut on CBS, “Yellowstone” has secured the No. 1 primetime entertainment program each Sunday night, and has averaged 5.49 million viewers per episode.

The launch of the Taylor Sheridan series has also exposed a new audience to the Dutton family drama, with 52% of its CBS viewers having not seen a single episode of “Yellowstone” in the past year on either Paramount Network or streaming services.

CBS’ move to leverage the hit series from within its parent company came amid the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strike this summer, which prompted the major broadcast networks to shuffle their fall schedules as the labor dispute halted production on virtually all scripted programming from struck studios.

The network also moved several Paramount+ streaming shows, including “Seal Team,” “FBI True” and Paramount+ spin-off “NCIS: Sydney,” which was originally slated to air exclusively on Paramount+, to its fall schedule, while also importing the British version of “Ghosts” for the fall slate.

“From ‘Yellowstone’ to ‘NCIS: Sydney’… from ‘Survivor’ to ’60 Minutes’… from ‘FBI True’ to more versions of ‘Ghosts’ and brand-new reality series, we have a lineup with more than 220 hours of original programming that speaks directly to our CBS audience,” CBS Entertainment EVP of programming strategy Noriko Kelley said in a statement to TheWrap about the network’s fall schedule in early September.

October 20, 2023 @ 11:00 AM After “Yellowstone”

'Yellowstone' Season 2 to Air on CBS Following Ratings Success of First Broadcast Run

Entertaintment

CBS to Continue ‘Yellowstone’ Broadcast Run With Season 2

“Yellowstone” fans who recently caught the first season of the western drama will soon be able to catch Season 2. CBS reveals the broadcast event will continue on with Season 2 beginning on Oct. 29 following the telecast of the Season 1 finale, which will air on Oct. 22.

The series debuted on CBS on Sept. 17, snagging 21.6 million viewers to date that have tuned in to at least one episode of “Yellowstone,” according to the network. 52% of those viewers are new to the series, having not seen a single episode in the past year on either linear or streaming. As Variety previously reported in September, the debut episode alone delivered 6.6 million viewers to CBS. That figure eventually jumped to 7.5 million total viewers after three days of delayed viewing via VOD, DVR and other platforms.

Since then, the series has averaged an audience of 5.49 million viewers for each episode, Nielsen reports.

“Yellowstone” follows the Dutton family “who controls the largest contiguous cattle ranch in the United States. Amid shifting alliances, unsolved murders, open wounds, and hard-earned respect – the ranch is in constant conflict with those it borders – an expanding town, an Indian reservation, and vicious business rivalries,” reads the official description.

The premiere season finale titled, “The Unraveling: Pt. 2,” will follow John Dutton (Kevin Costner) who must discover which family members and allies will stand with him as he faces outside forces. The episode will air on CBS on Oct. 22. The Season 2 episode titled, “A Thundering,” follows on Oct. 29 and follows Kayce (Luke Grimes) as he settles into his new role at the Ranch. “A damaging article threatens to expose John. Rainwater pitches his new plan to the tribal council,” reads the description, per CBS.

“Yellowstone” fans who recently caught the first

Movies

‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ Debuts Apple’s New Film Strategy

But “strong reviews and Mr. DiCaprio’s own box office history — especially with Mr. Scorsese — provide ample amounts of good will for audiences,” he added, and work in the film’s favor. “The market hasn’t had a high-profile film targeted toward adults for a while.” (“Oppenheimer,” with a similar run time and equally serious subject matter, defied odds this year and earned $942 million worldwide.)

While Apple has said very little about its shift in strategy, theater owners are ecstatic.

Apple is “a major company that has the ability to do a lot of high-quality work, and I think that the recognition on their part that movies belong in theaters is a strong signal,” Michael O’Leary, chairman of the National Association of Theater Owners, a trade association, said in an interview. “Prioritizing theatrical will help them get major filmmakers to come into their tents, and to create even more dynamic, entertaining fare in the years ahead.”

Mr. Scorsese and his co-writer, Eric Roth, began adapting David Grann’s nonfiction book “Killers of the Flower Moon” in 2017. Paramount agreed to finance and distribute the film, but when the production costs soared, the studio brought in Apple in 2020 to finance the project.

Others wanted it, said Mr. Thomas, who initially purchased the adaptation rights to “Killers” with his partner, Dan Friedkin. It was Apple, however, that guaranteed a full theatrical release — a must for Mr. Scorsese, whose last film, “The Irishman” for Netflix, had a truncated run in theaters.

Paramount stayed on in a deal that saw Apple reimburse the studio for its development costs on the movie and a portion of Mr. Scorsese’s overall deal, according to two people with knowledge of the agreement, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the details were not public. Paramount controls all theater bookings and media buys for the film’s trailers and commercials, while Apple controls its publicity and marketing materials.

But “strong reviews and Mr. DiCaprio’s own

Cher on Joe Biden’s age and what she wants for Christmas

Cher is curled on an enormous sofa at her enormous home in Malibu, a gentle ocean breeze slipping in through open doors to stir the scented candle burning between us. The weather outside is anything but frightful. Yet the 77-year-old showbiz legend is here to talk about Christmas — specifically “Christmas,” her first holiday album in a career that stretches back more than a half a century to the mid-1960s, when she broke out as half of a husband-and-wife duo with the late Sonny Bono.

“I never wanted to do a Christmas album, as you can tell, since I’m this age and I never made one,” Cher says. “But I guess this was just the time.”

With guest appearances by Stevie Wonder, Cyndi Lauper and Michael Bublé, “Christmas” features renditions of holiday classics like “Santa Baby,” “Run Rudolph Run” and “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home),” the last of which Cher does as a duet with the great Darlene Love. (At 17, Cher sang backup on Love’s original record.) It also has a handful of originals, including one called “Drop Top Sleigh Ride,” which features a verse by the rapper Tyga and which was co-produced by Cher’s boyfriend, 37-year-old record exec Alexander Edwards, whom she met at a fashion show.

Does she have a favorite Christmas album by someone else? “Nat King Cole,” says Cher, who has two children: Chaz Bono, a writer and trans activist whose father was Sonny Bono, and Elijah Blue Allman, a musician whose father was the late Gregg Allman. (The younger Allman, who’s struggled with addiction, made headlines last month when his estranged wife accused Cher of kidnapping him as part of a planned intervention.) “And I think Etta made a Christmas album,” she adds. “I was a big Etta James fan.”

Dressed in black track pants and a thin gray hoodie, the singer — whose 1998 comeback hit “Believe” just marked its 25th anniversary — offers me a sparkling water then asks an assistant to bring her a chocolate protein shake. “I’m not, like, a big eater,” she says.

Cher attends the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures opening gala in 2021.

(Matt Winkelmeyer/WireImage via Getty Images)

You just don’t care for food?
It’s OK. But I’m so specific. It’s awful.

Do you remember special dishes around the holidays when you were a kid?
Christmas dinner was always turkey and cornbread stuffing and my mother’s cheesecake. We were poor, but my mom was unbelievable on Christmas and birthdays — she always got it together. My favorite thing was decorating the tree. I was like, “Only three pieces of tinsel at a time, Georganne” — my sister. I did that part. “You’re not gonna do it right!”

When do you put up the Christmas tree these days?
Ten days before Christmas. Maybe two weeks. I like it to smell fresh.

What do people get Cher for Christmas?
My friends know the things that I like. Strange things — strange clothes and strange objects. [Points to a small sculpture of an elephant carrying a crystal ball.] That was a Christmas present. I think it’s supposed to have matches in it. But I don’t smoke.

Your mother passed away last year at 96. Would you want to live to that age?
No. I’m thinking about 80. I mean, I’m already past my sell-by date. My mom was great at 80 — I did a special with my mom at 80. But I’m not so much for over 80. I don’t want to not be me.

Do you think you’ll tour again?
I hope so. I want to. When I want something I’m pretty good at striving. Barbra Streisand and I were doing a telethon once and we had a break. Barbra reached over me — reached over, I don’t remember, Billy Crystal — and she said, “Why are you still doing this?” And I said, “Because there will come a time when I can’t.”

She’s still doing it. What was her answer?
Well, she’s not running across the stage making 14 costume changes. I never stop moving the whole time. It takes a lot of effort. I’m gonna have to really get into shape to do it.

So as you sit here now, without a specific plan—
Let’s stop there. I never have a plan.

But if tomorrow someone said, “Cher, I think you should tour next year…”
They’re always asking me. But it’s daunting. What I want is the feeling I have during rehearsal where I stand on the stage and I open my mouth and I can feel stuff that’s coming from my chest, and it’s big. Because I’m small — but when I open my mouth to sing, what comes out is big. There’s nothing else that corresponds with that feeling in any way.

Elton John was very deliberate in framing his most recent shows as his farewell tour.
I’ve had a million of those. Every time I call it a farewell tour, it’s not. I always think it is.

So now you’d know better than to call it that.
Oh no — I’d call it that for sure.

Who was the last big pop star you went out to see?
Usher [in Las Vegas]. Unbelievable.

Why’d you go see Usher?
Because Alexander said, “I want you to see Usher.”

Did Usher know you were in the house?
Yeah, he called out to me. He called out to a lot of people. But I got a huge applause. I was really happy.

Do you follow the Taylor Swifts and Lady Gagas of the world?
I like all of those girls a lot. I always know what they’re doing — it’s impossible not to. But I’m really proud of this new generation of women because they get a chance to do what they want to do. And I feel that I might have been a part of that. There’s a lot of us old women that were just kind of balls-to-the-wall, “Don’t f— with me, fellas.” But it took a long, long time to get there.

Did you see that Madonna has a video clip in her new show from an old interview of yours where you said that she’s mean?
I said a lot worse than that.

What’s your beef with Madonna?
It’s not a beef. I actually like her. But come on.

Come on?
Come on.

You’re saying she’s mean?
She can be. We buried that hatchet a long time ago because I called her something so much worse, and she forgave me. But I give her this: There’s no one like her that had their ear to the ground and knew everything before anybody else. I mean, she knew what was coming, and she was right on it. I always felt that was her greatest gift — that she could know the trends before any of us.

What did you call her that was worse?
Look it up.

A musician/actress mother and her two young children pose for a photo in the 1980s.

Let’s say tomorrow is Election Day. Are you voting for Joe Biden, Donald Trump or Robert F. Kennedy Jr.?
F—, are you kidding me? Look, I’m not thrilled with everything Joe does, but I’ve known him since 2008. And he’s not senile. He’s got a bad back. I don’t know why people don’t say that. But he’s smart, and he works hard. I agree with a lot of the things he does. Some of the things I don’t, but he’s making decisions all the time. Trump, I’m never gonna go there. I’d rather jump off a building.

Do you wish someone younger than Biden was running for president?
I wish there was someone younger than me. But I still trust him. It doesn’t scare me.

Is that because you’re close to his age and you know that you’re—
I’m capable. I don’t have that strength. But it’s like, he couldn’t go onstage. I’ve done that all my life. He’s done [politics] his whole life. Also, he has a moral compass. And Trump has no moral compass whatsoever.

What do you think of RFK Jr.?
I don’t like his views.

Do you know him?
No. I know Caroline [Kennedy], and I was around Eunice [Kennedy Shriver]. Oh, and Jackie [Kennedy Onassis]. Jackie told me once that when her kids were little, they used to sing “I Got You Babe.” But that’s as much as I know of the family.

You’ve lived in L.A. for decades. Lots of Angelenos in your socioeconomic class say this city is falling apart — that it’s not as great at it used to be. Are you optimistic or pessimistic about the state of L.A.?
I’m realistic. And you can’t think that it wasn’t better before.

In what ways was it better?
The crime is crazy. Homeless people are everywhere. And I know a lot about homeless people — how you strike up a conversation and how you don’t have to be frightened. I used to stop everyone that was homeless and talk to them. But I’m careful now because so many homeless people are having mental difficulties, and we don’t have the facilities to take care of them. Honestly, I don’t think the government in California is very good.

You mean Governor Newsom.
He’s handsome, but I’m not so sure that he’s capable. He could be in the movies. I met [French President Emmanuel] Macron lately. He’s so suave. But I don’t like what [Newsom] is doing. He’s not taking care of anything. That you can smash and grab in Beverly Hills is insane. You shouldn’t be able to do it anywhere, but it shows the insanity of it that it’s there.

You ever get involved in city politics? Host a fundraiser here for somebody seeking office?
There’s no one that I thought was great. If someone came with a vision, I would host them.

But you haven’t seen the vision.
No. Also, our taxes are ridiculous.

You and Alexander have been together for more than a year. Would you ever get married again?
Probably not.

Why not?
Because I’ve done it. I’m really happy with Alexander. [Flashes a very large diamond ring.] He gave me that last Christmas.

But it’s not an engagement ring.
Not so much. He just wanted to give it to me. Usually I wear it on my right hand because he said, “It’s the right ring for the right woman on the right hand.”

Talk about suave.
He writes songs, and I almost stopped talking to him because I went, “Come on, dude — you’ve done these lines in a song.” But he just wasn’t taking no for an answer. So somehow we’re together.

A celebrity couple poses during a Fashion Week event

Because he’s significantly younger than you, do you ever find yourself having to explain a cultural reference?
Every once in a while. One time I got kind of pissed off and I said, “OK, you probably don’t know who Clark Gable is,” and he said, “I know who Clark Gable is, baby.”

You’ve navigated things as a parent that not all parents navigate. I wonder if your experience has been—
Difficult? Challenging? Exciting? Interesting? It wasn’t easy with either husband. Sonny was a much better husband. No, not a better husband — a better father. But I was working all the time, and I’m sure my children suffered from it. When Chaz went through the transition, that was difficult for me. It shouldn’t have been because, you know, I’ve had gay friends forever. I just met some beautiful trans chicks and we have an affinity. Now I’m totally fine. But it’s hard to lose one child to get a new one, especially so late. I think that was the hard thing for me. I don’t think it was the transition. It was waiting to see who the person would be, and would they be so much different than the person that was before them…

Because you loved the previous person.
Yes. But Chaz was unhappy.

Are you the type of parent to look back and think you could have done such-and-such better?
Oh yeah. Because it’s the truth. But I did the best I could, which is such a bulls— answer.

You ever go to therapy?
What the f— kind of question is that? I think everybody could use therapy.

Everybody could use it, but not everybody goes.
I’ve had to go a couple of times. I’ve had down periods in my life, and when you’re down, you’re looking for something, you know? I had one great therapist maybe 30 years ago. I got her from the “Road Less Traveled” writer. Why can’t I think of his name?

Seems indelicate to say you’re having a senior moment.
It happens. See, I don’t think Joe has them. Joe has stuttering, but I don’t think he has senior moments.

I’ll have to think about that.
M. Scott Peck! I called him and I said, “I need a therapist.” He called me back and said, “OK, as luck would have it, my wife came up with someone.” I met her and I went to her for a year. She was amazing. And I’m not easily molded. But she was a genius. Then she had to move to Atlanta. But that year really changed me a lot.

Cher is curled on an enormous

MCU

How Did Disney Make a FURRY Spider Backpack Adorable??

Looking for a new park bag? If so, you’re in luck!

Animal Kingdom Loungefly

You can get spooky bags, festive bags, celebratory bags–even park-themed bags! And, of course, there are also plenty of bags inspired by various Disney characters–like the Spider-Man backpack we found today at Disney World!

Spider-Man Loungefly Backpack

Remember the furry Spider-Man spirit jersey…

Spider-Man Spirit Jersey

…and knit Spider-Man Minnie Ears?

Spider-Man Ears

Well, now you can complete the outfit with the Furry Spider-Man Loungefly Backpack! “Furry” and “spider” are two words we never want to hear in the same sentence–but we’re making an exception for this one. The $88 backpack has a tan, faux-fur material…

Spider-Man Backpack

…with a Spider-Man emblem on the front pocket and a blue, red, and white grid pattern trim, which imitates school paper.

Front pocket

There are accents of red around the bag, featuring the same paper-inspired trim…

Red accents

…which is also on the bag’s straps. The back of the backpack says “with great power” with a Spider-Man logo on the bottom.

Back of bag

So head over to World of Disney to grab this heroic bag! But we have a secret…you can grab it for cheaper on shopDisney, where it’s currently $70.40.

We’ll keep you updated with the latest in all things Disney, so stay tuned to MickeyBlog.com!

Thanks for visiting MickeyBlog.com! Want to go to Disney? For a FREE quote on your next Disney vacation, please fill out the form below and one of the agents from MickeyTravels, a Diamond-Level Authorized Disney Vacation Planner, will be in touch soon!

The spiny Millennium Era version of the King of the Monsters in Godzilla 2000. This movie will air as part of Godzilla Day 2023 celebrations.

DCU

One-Night-Only Screening of GODZILLA 2000 and More Highlight Godzilla Day 2023

November 3 is a very special day in the annals of history. It’s my wedding anniversary. End of article. Oh, and November 3 is also Godzilla Day, the yearly celebration of Toho Studios’ infamous King of the Monsters. We are all very excited for the release of the next movie in the Japanese film series, Godzilla Minus One, and fans will be able to preorder tickets for it on Godzilla Day. The movie hits cinemas in North America on December 1. But don’t fret! Several other Godzilla offerings are available that weekend, including a one-night-only screening of the first film in the Millennium Era, Godzilla 2000.

Just so there’s no confusion, the Godzilla 2000 nationwide screening actually take place on Wednesday, November 1. It’s anticipatory for Godzilla Day.

After seven movies from 1984 to 1995, Toho relaunched the Godzilla continuity in 1999 with Godzilla 2000. It saw a theatrical release in North America in summer 2000 and was the last Japanese Godzilla movie to have such a release until Shin Godzilla in 2016. The movie depicts a world where Godzilla is a literal force of nature, like hurricanes or tornados, and a government agency tracks his movements. At the same time, an ancient, frozen flying saucer is discovered and suddenly springs to life. The aliens need genetic information only Godzilla possesses. What happens when an irresistible force meets an immovable object? Kaiju battles! We’re definitely looking forward to Godzilla 2000 returning to theaters for Godzilla Day 2023.

Toho Studios

But that is not the only Godzilla goodness in store. Both the Pluto TV Godzilla channel and Shout TV (Shout! Studios’ streaming service) will marathon giant monster movies all day long on November 3. Shout!’s sister channel, TokuSHOUTsu, will likewise stream kaiju movies all week long in the lead-up to Godzilla Day, beginning October 30.

More information on the Godzilla 2000 theatrical screening is at Fathom Events’ website.

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. He hosts the weekly pop culture deep-dive podcast Laser Focus. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.

Nintendo Switch PC PS4 PS5 Sonic Superstars Xbox One Xbox Series X thegg.net

November 3 is a very special day

Comics

Sonic Superstars Review – The Blue Blur is Back! | COGconnected

TGG_overlord|1d 20h ago |News|2|

“Gotta go fast! – Today, SEGA® released “Sonic Superstars”, the highly-anticipated new take on classic 2D Sonic the Hedgehog™ high-speed action platforming, featuring Sonic, Tails, Knuckles and Amy in a never-before-seen adventure.” – SEGA.

Read Full Story >>

thegg.net

TGG_overlord|1d 20h ago |News|2|▼InfoAdd Alt Source"Gotta go

Festivals

Britney Spears Says Memoir Not Meant to ‘Offend Anyone,’ Slams Media

Britney Spears‘ “The Woman in Me” won’t hit the shelves until Oct. 24, the memoir has already made headlines for its shocking and scandalous revelations about the embattled pop star.

Spears is apparently not pleased with how she has been painted by the media thus far, as excerpts about her tumultuous relationship with Justin Timberlake, short-lived acting career and conservatorship make the rounds.

“My book’s purpose was not to offend anyone by any means! That was me then… that is in the past! I don’t like the headlines I am reading… that’s exactly why I quit the business four years ago!” Spears wrote in a statement posted to social media. “Most of the book is from 20 years ago… I have moved on and it’s a beautiful clean slate from here! I am here to establish it that way for the rest of my entire life! Either way, that is the last of it and shit happens!”

Spears continued, “This is actually a book I didn’t know needed to be written… although some might be offended, it has given me closure on all things for a better future! Hopefully I can enlighten people who feel particularly alone in most cases or hurt or misunderstood! Again, my motive for this book was not to harp on my past experiences, which is what the press is doing and it’s dumb and silly! I have moved on since then!”

The latest gossip from Spears’ memoir to stir up the internet is about her fling with Colin Farrell. Spears writes that after her relationship with Timberlake dissolved, she began seeing the Irish actor, with whom she “had a two-week brawl” (per Time magazine). “Brawl is the only word for it — we were all over each other, grappling so passionately it was like we were in a street fight,” writes Spears.

Previously leaked excerpts revealed Spears’ thoughts about Timberlake’s 2002 music video for “Cry Me a River,” which Spears says turned her into a “harlot who’d broken the heart of America’s golden boy.” The video painted Spears as a villain in the mainstream media as it featured Timberlake dealing with an unfaithful girlfriend that looked more or less like the “Baby One More Time” singer. That seemed to confirm the song was inspired by Spears and perpetuated a rumor that Spears had cheated on Timberlake.

Spears also reveals in the memoir that she had an abortion with Timberlake, writing in an excerpt obtained by People magazine, “Justin definitely wasn’t happy about the pregnancy. He said we weren’t ready to have a baby in our lives, that we were way too young. It was a surprise, but for me, it wasn’t a tragedy. I loved Justin so much. I always expected us to have a family together one day. I don’t know if that was the right decision. If it had been left up to me alone, I never would have done it. And yet Justin was so sure that he didn’t want to be a father.”

Timberlake has yet to publicly respond.

Spears’ “The Woman in Me” will be released on Oct. 24, complete with an audiobook narrated by five-time Oscar nominee Michelle Williams.

Britney Spears‘ “The Woman in Me” won’t

Film

Bob Odenkirk, Erin Odenkirk Talk Book Zilot & Other Important Rhymes – The Hollywood Reporter

Bob Odenkirk knows he should probably leave his kids alone. But the Better Call Saul star spent the pandemic working on an Audible murder comedy podcast with his son, Nate, 23, and collaborating on a children’s book with his artist daughter, Erin, 22. “If I want to do a good job as a dad, I know I have to let them be,” he says. “But that’s not easy because they’re very fun people and their ideas are so exciting.”

Zilot & Other Important Rhymes (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers) combines illustrations by Erin (the recent Pratt Institute grad calls her dad Bob) with poems written by the kids when they were young, with an update by the Odenkirk family (including Odenkirk’s wife, Naomi); it hits bookstores Oct. 10. The father-daughter duo’s national book tour includes an appearance at the opening night of the SCAD Savannah Film Festival on Oct. 21. The pair offers a sneak peek:

How did the idea to publish your old childhood poems come up in the first place?

ERIN ODENKIRK We’d always had the idea in the back of our minds, and then I was home from college during the pandemic, and Bob was like, “Let’s get to work.” I didn’t think it would ever be a real book!

BOB ODENKIRK I thought that publishing their old poems was something I’d do as a grandfather one day, but the pandemic gave us loads of free time. I loved looking back on what they wrote as kids. I saw something similar to what I look for when I produce sketch groups: There’s a shared sensibility throughout, which is the same thing Monty Python had.

Zilot & Other Important Rhymes

Courtesy of Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

What did you learn about each other from working together?

BOB Erin has really grown in the past few years. She was extremely shy …

ERIN Not extremely shy.

BOB She listened well but didn’t speak up for herself, which can be worrisome because I want her to have the strength to speak out — there are many times life will call upon you to do that. She also learned to take notes, which is something only a truly confident person can do.

In your screenwriting and comedy career, did taking notes come easily to you?

BOB No, no, no. Every note that was true, every critique that was impactful and smart, would hurt my feelings. When I was at Saturday Night Live, I often had that feeling when someone else saw a better way forward for an idea. I worked with writers like Jack Handey, Jim Downey and Al Franken, and whenever they had a pitch for a sketch I wrote, I would have to learn to sacrifice my part in it in order to have a better sketch in the end.

What are you most excited about with this book tour?

BOB Savannah, to be honest with you. We have a whole day off to take in the town, which I’ve heard wonderful things about.

ERIN We’ve always traveled well together. We like to walk around a lot and go to cafes early in the morning, then hit bookstores and get nice dinners. We take big family trips every couple of years, and after the last one, Bob and I went to Berlin together at the end and spent the week just meeting people and going to bars, libraries and museums.

*Zilot & Other Important Rhymes*

Courtesy of Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Erin, I assume you’ve spent time visiting your dad on set, but is this your first time seeing the publicity side of his job firsthand?

ERIN He’s told me stories about it, like getting flown to London and spending four days there, but never once stepping outside the hotel because he was just on the phone doing interviews all day. It’s been quite the experience doing this, and I feel a little overwhelmed but also grateful because he’s shown me the way and made me feel a little less crazy about all of it.

BOB She’s come to talk shows with me before, but never on a full tour. I’m doing one of the first post-strike episodes of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert [which aired Oct. 5], and that interview will be just me, but I think she’ll get to come. And that is just really, really cool. I can’t believe we’re back.

Have you had a hard time dealing with the work stoppage element of the strikes?

BOB Yes, but I’ve always been like that. One of the reasons I chose to aim my career toward writing was that I didn’t want to have to wait around for somebody to give me a job. With acting, someone has to put you in a project, but a writer can just go make something right now. During a strike, or any break, if you give me a piece of paper, I’ll fill it with ideas and figure out which one is worth chasing.

What’s next for you both?

ERIN I’m actually not sure. I’d like to get back to drawing every day, get a studio and see what I come up with. I’d love to work on a graphic novel or short story, but we’ll see.

BOB Hopefully, the SAG strike will be over when this book tour is done. If not, I’ll be picketing until it’s settled. If we can find a way to fair terms, I’ll get to make — hopefully — some movies. And I’m going to do a USO tour over Thanksgiving.

Interview edited for length and clarity.

This story first appeared in the Oct. 11 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.