Tim Burton’s abandoned “Superman Lives” movie is one of the great what-if stories in Hollywood history. After successfully turning Batman into a blockbuster film franchise, Burton was recruited to apply his touch to DC Comics’ other most iconic superhero with Nicolas Cage in the titular role. The film was scrapped after a highly publicized development process, and remains the most well-known unmade project of both Burton and Cage’s careers.
In a new interview with BFI, Burton revealed that he still thinks about the abandoned film and wonders what could have been.
“No, I don’t have regrets,” Burton said when asked about the scrapped project. “I will say this: when you work that long on a project and it doesn’t happen, it affects you for the rest of your life. Because you get passionate about things, and each thing is an unknown journey, and it wasn’t there yet. But it’s one of those experiences that never leaves you, a little bit.”
The fate of “Superman Lives” has been a popular topic in recent years, with many speculating that renewed interest in Cage’s career and the prevalence of superhero multiverses could lead to some version of the movie eventually being made. Cage eventually paid tribute to the scrapped project by suiting up as Superman for a cameo in “The Flash,” though he joked about the brevity of his blink-and-you’d-miss-it appearance.
When asked if he was interested in playing Superman in a full movie, Cage didn’t entirely rule it out — though he made it clear that he’s perfectly content to simply let fans wonder what his take on the character would have looked like.
“That’s always been both a positive and a negative to me,” Cage said in 2022. “It’s a positive in that it left the character, and what Tim [Burton] and I might have gotten up to, in the realm of imagination — which is always more powerful than that is concrete. And a negative in that I think it would have been special. Is there a chance? Who knows.”
Billboard is bringing its signature artist showcase Down Under. The media company is teaming up with American Express to deliver The Stage at the inaugural South by Southwest in Sydney, Australia. XG will take the stage as the evening’s headliner for the one-night-only Oct. 20 concert, which will open with Lil Cherry and GOLDBUUDA.
“It’s an honor to work with our partners at SXSW Sydney to bring THE STAGE to a global audience,” Dana Droppo, chief brand officer of Billboard, said in a press statement. “We pride ourselves on providing unparalleled music experiences and with the help of American Express are thrilled to have XG headlining our first Australian show.”
“Billboard’s legendary SXSW shows have long been a highlight in Austin,” added Colin Daniels, SXSW Sydney’s managing director. “We’re so excited to partner with them in our inaugural year to provide SXSW Sydney attendees and the public an exclusive performance from one of the buzziest pop artists in the world right now.”
Since the group’s 2022 debut, XG have been making waves in Korea, Japan and the United States. The septet — which consists of members Jurin, Cocona, Chisa, Hinata, Maya, Juria and Harvey — are gearing up to release their first mini album New DNA on Sept. 27. “Every stage we’ve had the honor to perform on has been incredibly special and unforgettable,” said Harvey. “The memories of meeting our ALPHAZ in-person and the scenery we’ve seen with our fellow members are all unforgettable. We look forward to visiting more countries and regions, sharing our music, and creating beautiful memories with everyone we meet! I’m really excited about the opportunity to perform at a festival in Australia. It would mean a lot to me if I could show my performance to my grandparents, and I’m feeling very nervous about it!”
The Stage at SXSW Sydney will take place at The Hordern Pavilion at Moore Park. Tickets will be available to purchase for American Express cardholders starting Wednesday (Sept. 20) at 10 a.m. AEST. The general on-sale will begin at 10 a.m. AEST on Friday (Sept. 22). Additionally, a reserved number of tickets will be available exclusively for SXSW Sydney Platinum Badge holders, SXSW Sydney Music Badge Holders and SXSW Sydney Music Festival wristband holders on a first come, first serve basis.
Billboard will be reporting live from SXSW Sydney on October 20, and viewers can tune in by visiting Billboard.com and following @billboard on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the latest news and announcements.
Penske Media Corporation, Billboard‘s parent company, is an investor in SXSW.
“The Jennifer Hudson Show” has pushed back its previously-planned premiere date and paused production amid backlash during the writers strike, Variety has learned.
Jennifer Hudson’s talk show was supposed to premiere its new season on Monday, Sept. 18. But after mounting criticism — spurred by Drew Barrymore publicly announcing her talk show would be returning while writers are on the picket lines, and then reversing course — all eyes on have been on daytime.
On Sunday, Barrymore announced that her talk show would not be returning, after all. Her decision has now created a domino effect across daytime. Barrymore had been facing intense blowback after she posted on her Instagram that her talk show would be returning amid the strikes. Shortly after Barrymore’s decision to pause production on her show until after the strikes are over, CBS’ “The Talk” also pushed back their premiere date.
On Monday, Sherri Shepherd’s talk show “Sherri” will return, though it is not a struck show covered by the Writers Guild of America. Kelly Clarkson’s talk show, which moved from Los Angeles to New York City over the summer, has not announced a premiere date yet. “The View,” which has two WGA writers on staff, has been airing throughout the strikes without its writers.
Talk shows operate under the SAG-AFTRA Network Code, allowing hosts like Hudson and Barrymore to continue in their hosting role, so none of the hosts are violating SAG-AFTRA rules.
Hudson’s nationally-syndicated show, which is covered by the WGA, had been planned to begin its season without writers, and intended to resume WGA writers once a new contract is in place.
Over 300 people were in attendance at the Conexus Art Centre in Regina on Sept. 16, as the community looks to heal from one of the darkest chapters in Canadian history.
Named “The truth telling gathering” and hosted by the Keeseekoose First Nation, the event hosted over 30 speakers, many of whom shared stories of their times students in residential schools, facing mental, physical and sexual abuse.
The Keeseekoose chief, Lee Katchemonia, said remembering the uncomfortable history is important, adding that those unfamiliar with residential schools, tend to brush off the experiences of survivors.
“That’s the whole reason why a lot of them won’t come forward, because of the backlash they might get, plus there’s a lot of shame involved,” Katchemonia said.
He added, “a person has to carry that shame, for all those years, and it’s not their shame to carry, it’s not their fault. They were just children when it happened.”
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Katchemonia attended a day school where students were abused. He said the healing process will take a while as the best approach is helping one person at at time, as everyone is on a “different step in their healing journey.”
He added that teaching this history to the next generation will help them understand and connect with their elders.
Alvin Musqua Jr. Is the first generation in his family to not attend a residential school.
He said he saw first hand, his grandparents and parents deal with the trauma of residential school, but is grateful that his parents broke the cycle when they had him.
It’s a tradition he aims to continue with his own children, he said.
“I also wanted to be a good role model to them, I work in Keeseekose but I also work a full time for Mosaic at the Esterhazy mine, to show them that there’s a lot of opportunities out there that you can get, you don’t only have to stay on the reserve like how it was in the past,” Musqua Jr. said.
Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce probably knew he would get a lot of kidding when he revealed that he tried to give Taylor Swift a friendship braclet with his phone number on it when he attended her Kansas City concert.
But he probably didn’t think that the alleged romance – which hasn’t been confirmed by either party — would be used as a reference in an NFL broadcast.
Today, when Kelce scored a nine-yard touchdown in the second half of the Chiefs game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, CBS announcer Ian Eagle had some fun.
“Kelce finds a blank space for the score,” Eagle said, a reference to Swift’s song, “Blank Space.”
But there was still a lot of football left to play in the game, so Kelce had time to Shake It Off.
In an online meeting with anti-vaccine activists on June 27, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a Democrat running for president, falsely said there was good evidence that vaccine research had caused millions of deaths during the 1918 Spanish flu epidemic. He also claimed that such research could have created Covid-19, H.I.V. and other deadly viruses.
But in an appearance before Congress on July 20, Mr. Kennedy made none of those assertions. When lawmakers asked him about vaccines, he said: “I have never been anti-vax. I have never told the public to avoid vaccination.”
Even as Mr. Kennedy is a long shot for the Democratic nomination, he remains a case study of how a political figure can spread falsehoods and conspiracy theories at a large scale. And since he declared his presidential run in April, a gulf has appeared between what he says at political and campaign events and what he says on podcasts, at events and on shows that cater to anti-vaccine activists and conspiracy theorists, according to a review of his comments by The New York Times.
In large public forums like Congress, Mr. Kennedy, 69, has moderated his extreme views, while continuing to advocate them in other settings. At campaign stops in Iowa, Vermont and Virginia this summer, he spoke about the environment, foreign policy and the war in Ukraine, according to The Times’s review. He did not mention vaccines and limited his comments on Covid to criticism of pandemic lockdowns.
Yet during that same period, Mr. Kennedy appeared on more than two dozen podcasts hosted by personalities popular with the right wing, such as Jordan Peterson and Joe Rogan, as well as in online meetings and video streams where he brought up a variety of fringe ideas. At times, he made unfounded claims about vaccines and questioned whether chemicals in the water supply were causing “sexual dysphoria” among children in the United States.
The shift in Mr. Kennedy’s behavior is stark after his nearly two decades of promoting unsubstantiated theories about vaccines and other matters. Misinformation researchers said the candidate had probably tempered his most extreme positions to appeal to a wider audience and win over voters.
“If you only hear what he says in those big, open forums, you might think this is a reasonable, moderate person I want to support — and that is the point,” said Kolina Koltai, a misinformation researcher who has studied anti-vaccine conspiracy theories. “He is making himself mainstream.”
When Mr. Kennedy raises topics that he has extreme views on, he now does so more subtly, Ms. Koltai said. In campaign forums, he often poses his ideas about vaccines as questions, such as asking if coronavirus vaccines were produced too quickly or questioning the safety protocols around other vaccines, she said.
Mr. Kennedy’s campaign did not respond to requests for comment, but previously said in a statement to CNN that the candidate was being “mischaracterized.”
Recent opinion polls suggest that Mr. Kennedy, a scion of the Kennedy family and an environmental lawyer and activist, has the support of around 12 percent of Democratic voters. He has attracted some high-profile backers, including Elon Musk, the Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, the National Football League star Aaron Rodgers and the actress Alicia Silverstone.
Mr. Kennedy’s public work against vaccines began in 2005, when he published articles in Rolling Stone and Salon claiming a link between vaccines and autism. The news outlets later withdrew the articles. In 2018, he founded Children’s Health Defense, a nonprofit in Washington that has promoted anti-vaccine ideology.
During the coronavirus pandemic, Mr. Kennedy spoke at dozens of events where he claimed that the drugs ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine could help treat Covid. Numerous studies published during and after the pandemic have found otherwise. Mr. Kennedy has not addressed those studies.
Mr. Kennedy also produced a 2021 movie that suggested Black Americans should not get vaccinated, even as health officials said such claims were dangerous. And he wrote a book claiming that Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, President Biden’s top medical adviser for the pandemic, and Bill Gates, a founder of Microsoft, conspired with drug companies to profit from vaccines. Dr. Fauci and Mr. Gates have rebutted the claims.
In 2021, the Center for Countering Digital Hate, a nonprofit that conducts research on social media, named Mr. Kennedy as one of the “Disinformation Dozen,” which it called the top 12 superspreaders of misinformation about Covid on the internet.
Mr. Kennedy has also used his platform to promote other misleading ideas, including that 5G networks are being used for mass surveillance.
“You have a bleeding-over from vaccines to broad conspiratorial ideas on a number of topics,” said Jonathan Jarry, a scientist and science communicator with McGill University’s Office for Science and Society. “He promotes a whole worldview that is not just about opposing vaccines — it is about distrust of government, media and other bodies, while promoting trust in him.”
When Mr. Kennedy said he was running for president, his behavior shifted immediately. In a nearly two-hour speech announcing his candidacy, he did not mention vaccines or promote conspiracy theories.
“My mission over the next 18 months of this campaign and throughout my presidency will be to end the corrupt merger of state and corporate power,” he said, going on to criticize government spending, corporate power and pandemic lockdowns.
In campaign appearances over the summer, Mr. Kennedy was circumspect. During a June 5 audio event with Mr. Musk on X, the service formerly known as Twitter, Mr. Kennedy made a passing reference to vaccines and limited his remarks to the difficulties that people faced during the lockdowns.
He similarly skirted mentioned of vaccines when he campaigned in June in Vermont and at last month’s Iowa State Fair, a popular stomping ground for presidential candidates. In an interview with Mr. Kennedy that was posted on Aug. 14, Tucker Carlson opened by noting that it would make no mention of vaccines.
At the same time, Mr. Kennedy espoused extreme views on podcasts. In June, he told Mr. Peterson, a psychologist and an author, that chemicals in the water supply could turn children transgender. That same month, Mr. Kennedy appeared on Mr. Rogan’s podcast and presented false or unfounded claims, including that aluminum in vaccines causes autism and that Wi-Fi causes chronic illness.
Late last month, Children’s Health Defense announced a “people’s bus tour” across the United States to collect stories from people who were harmed by vaccinations and other health protocols introduced during the pandemic. The side of the bus was emblazoned with “Vax-Unvax,” the title of Mr. Kennedy’s new book.
The 2022 Norwegian comedy-drama Sick of Myself is a gory, stomach-churning romp that might as well be a horror movie. Written and directed by Kristoffer Borgli, the movie follows young couple Signe (Kristine Kujath Thorp) and Thomas (Eirik Sæther), who have an unhealthy relationship. They are sickeningly competitive and narcissistic, and are always trying to one-up each other. As Thomas, a sculpture artist, begins to get attention from the art community and magazines, Signe decides to poison herself with an illegal drug from Russia, which causes her to develop a skin disease. After Signe makes headlines for her “bravery” in battling the condition and signs onto a major modeling company, she begins to spiral into madness over her fears of getting caught. The movie is a devious satire on social media obsession, and takes things to the extremest of extremes. Give this one a watch, but maybe not on a full stomach.
The comedian Russell Brand denied “serious criminal allegations” against him in a video he posted shortly before three British news organizations published an investigation Saturday in which four women accused him of sexual assault.
The investigation was a collaboration by The Sunday Times and The Times of London newspapers, and Channel 4 Dispatches, a television program that broadcast a documentary about the allegations on Saturday. They reported that the women had accused him of sexual assault in a series of incidents between 2006 and 2013.
Mr. Brand, an actor and former TV host who has more recently built a significant following on his YouTube channel, where he often opines on wellness and interviews prominent conservative figures, released a short video on social media on Friday in which he said he had received notes from media organizations listing “a litany of extremely egregious and aggressive attacks.”
“Amidst this litany of astonishing, rather baroque attacks are some very serious allegations that I absolutely refute,” Mr. Brand said in the video, going on to say that while he has spoken previously about a “time of promiscuity” in his life, the encounters during that time were “always consensual.”
His literary agency, Tavistock Wood, announced this weekend that it had cut ties with him, saying in a statement that it believed it had been “horribly misled” by him when he denied an allegation in 2020.
The allegations were published as the comedian, 48, was on a short stand-up tour. At a show in northwest London on Saturday night, he opened the evening with an oblique reference to the accusations.
“I’ve got a lot of things to talk to you about,” he said, according to news media reports. “There are obviously some things that I absolutely cannot talk about and I appreciate that you will understand.”
In the investigation, one woman accused Mr. Brand of raping her against a wall in his Los Angeles home in 2012. The news organizations said that the woman had provided medical records confirming that she had been treated at a rape crisis center. Another woman accused him of forcing her to perform oral sex on him when she was 16, despite her pushing him away.
In his video, Mr. Brand did not address the specifics of the accusations by the four women, three of whom were not identified in the reports. He said there were “witnesses whose evidence directly contradicts the narratives” that had been put forward to him by the news organizations, but according to the article, a lawyer for Mr. Brand did not respond to an inquiry about providing such evidence. A legal representative The New York Times contacted on Sunday did not respond to a request for comment on the specific allegations in the investigation.
Known for raunchy, boundary-pushing humor that has gotten him in trouble at times, Mr. Brand’s fame grew in Britain in the 2000s with a one-man show about his heroin addiction, and then as a BBC radio and Channel 4 reality television host. He broke into American pop culture with a prominent role in the rom-com “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” in 2008 and a remake of “Arthur” in 2011, and was briefly married to the pop star Katy Perry.
The investigation reported on Saturday also included complaints about Brand’s workplace behavior, including from unnamed production workers from Channel 4. They said that Brand would ask staff members to approach female audience members so he could arrange to meet them after filming, according to the reports.
Channel 4 and BBC have said in statements that they are investigating allegations against Brand from the periods when he worked at their companies.
The Metropolitan Police in London released a statement in response to the article saying that the department had been in touch with the journalists behind the story, and it encouraged any victims of sexual assault to report it to them.
Brand did not address the workplace complaints in his video.
Mr. Brand’s commentary on his YouTube channel, which has 6.6 million followers, tends to revolve around health, spirituality, so-called woke culture and free speech, and his guests have included Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, Tucker Carlson and the conservative commentator Candace Owens. In his video on Friday, he accused the “mainstream media” of launching what he called a “coordinated attack” against him. Elon Musk responded to Mr. Brand’s post on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, writing: “Of course. They don’t like competition.”
Mr. Brand has spoken about and written extensively about battling addictions to drugs, alcohol and sex, writing in his memoir that he was treated for a sex addiction in 2005.
“Meet the Press” premiered Sunday morning with a new moderator, a former president and a disturbingly familiar pattern of mainstream media normalizing extremist chicanery for ratings.
Kristen Welker, NBC News’ co-chief White House correspondent, sat down with the Republican frontrunner for president for a segment that was teased as Donald Trump’s “first network interview since leaving office,” a tame descriptor for someone who’s been indicted on numerous felonies involving efforts to overturn the 2020 election, and who’s been found liable of sexual assault in a civil trial since losing the White House to Joe Biden.
But the television event also highlighted a problem that traditional news outlets have faced since Trump emerged as a potent figure on the political scene in 2016. Treating the former reality TV star like any other presidential candidate or victor before him assumes that he’s playing by the same set of rules as his predecessors. Newsflash: He’s not.
One storming of the U.S. Capitol and four indictments later, it’s clear that interview dynamic that “Meet the Press” has employed since Harry Truman was in office does not work in 2023. At least for folks who would actually like to see a substantive conversation — or grilling — of past or future leaders.
Sunday’s “new chapter” of “Meet the Press” set the stage for the interview with an opener mentioning impeachment, the president’s legal troubles and how his questionable dealings with family members might affect his chances in the 2024 election. But they were talking about President Biden, not Trump. The set up validated long-held complaints of bothside-ism in legacy journalism, when an issue between opposing beliefs is presented as more balanced than evidence supports.
The show’s producers surely saw this as opportunity to showcase the skills of Chuck Todd’s successor, to prove that she could hold her own against a notoriously difficult interview subject. Todd announced last week that he was leaving his post after nine years of hosting the public affairs talk show, though he remains with NBC News. Welker is the first Black journalist to moderate “Meet the Press,” which is the longest running show on television. Trump’s camp likely saw it as a chance to reach viewers beyond his loyal Fox News constituency, normalizing a troubled candidate for a wary electorate.
But it’s doubtful that Sunday’s show moved the needle one way or another. There was no chance at arriving at any sort of shared truth in response to Welker’s questions about abortion policy, Ukraine, China, the storage of classified documents or his involvement in a deadly Jan. 6 insurrection.
Trump steamrolled over his interviewer, attacking his opponents with a barrage of insults while pushing the narratives he wants to push. To her credit, Welker did better at challenging him than most of her peers, including Chris Wallace and Megyn Kelly. She pressed him on federal versus state bans on abortion, his slow response to the Jan. 6 attack, and whether — if he were elected — again he would send troops to Taiwan if China were to invade. There were no great revelations in his answers but plenty of bluster about Florida Gov. Ron “DeSanctimonious” DeSantis and the “deranged, lunatic prosecutor” whom he says targeted him.
Welker asked about Russian President Vladimir Putin’s praise of him after Trump criticized Biden’s handling of the Russia-Ukraine war, arguing that if he were in office, he would quickly put an end to the conflict. In an earlier report, NBC News covered Putin’s praise of Trump at the Eastern Economic Forum in Russia last week, where he said, “We surely hear that Mr. Trump says he will resolve all burning issues within several days, including the Ukrainian crisis. We cannot help but feel happy about it.”
Trump’s response, “Well, I like that he said that, because that means what I’m saying is right.”
Although Trump’s admiration for Putin shined bright, he toned down his combative nature for the pretaped interview. Instead of charging at his questioner and silencing her with bully tactics, he complained that Welker was cutting him off and not allowing him to finish his thoughts. Quite a comment coming from the King of Interrupters.
He responded to harder questions with untruths that may have shocked us seven years ago but are par for the course now. “What did you do when the Capitol was attacked?” asked Welker.
“Nancy Pelosi was in charge of security,” he claimed. “She turned down 10,000 soldiers. If she hadn’t, the attack wouldn’t have happened.
“Nancy Pelosi didn’t have the authority, you did,” pressed Welker.
“Pelosi is responsible for Jan. 6,” insisted Trump.
It was futile in the moment to correct the outright lies, so Welker did so before commercial breaks. “A bit of context here on Mr. Trump’s allegations. He ordered troops in the days leading up to the Jan. 6 attack. The Defense Department says the former president never gave a formal order to have 10,000 troops ready to be deployed to the Capitol. Of course it’s unreasonable to blame former Speaker Pelosi or lawmakers on Capitol Hill for what happened that day. Pelosi’s office said at the time that the claim that she turned down troops was quote ‘completely made up.’”
The sit-down may prove to be a ratings boon for the network, and perhaps even further boost Welker’s career, but it failed to cut through the usual low-information bluster of past interviews with the former president. Trump was Trump. Legacy media was legacy media.
But somewhere in between is the high-stakes story of ratings versus journalistic responsibility and the dangers that dance presents to our democracy.
Superman and Batman won’t be the only heroes getting a new version with James Gunn’s DCU. Max will welcome a new original tv show set in the world of Green Lantern, with John Stewart and Hal Jordan as the lead characters.
After the major flop that ended up being the live-action adaptation with Ryan Reynolds, a new story featuring a large group of members from the Green Lantern Corps was in development, but the project was ultimately canceled with a new tv show now in the works as a part of the DCU led by Gunn and Peter Safran.
The Green Lantern tv series, titled Lanterns, will offer a different take on the popular mythology within DC Comics. Inspired by True Detective, the show will focus on Hal Jordan and John Stewart trying to solve a mystery, potentially across the galaxy, and will connect with a larger plot that will serve as the franchise’s guideline.
Superman and Batman won’t be the only heroes getting a new version with James Gunn’s DCU. Max will welcome a new original tv show set in the world ofGreen Lantern, with John Stewart and Hal Jordan as the lead characters.
After the major flop that ended up being the live-action adaptation with Ryan Reynolds, a new story featuring a large group of members from the Green Lantern Corps was in development, but the project was ultimately canceled with a new tv show now in the works as a part of the DCU led by Gunn and Peter Safran, which will connect with the rest of the productions from the franchise.
Despite the fact the movie centered on Han Solo was not one of the biggest hits within the world of Star Wars or even in Ehrenreich’s career, the actor proved he can take being part of a huge franchise, so joinig the DCU wouldn’t be a problem for him and could actually help him left that bad experience behind, and get a new chance thanks to the superhero genre.
It’s been a long time since fans got to see an official version of Green Lantern on the big screen in live-action format, so most of them are eager to see what Gunn and his team will do with one of the most important mythologies within DC Comics. In fact, the co-CEO of DC Studios has already chosen an actor to play one of the most famous Lanterns, Guy Gardner, with Nathan Fillion joining the cast of Superman: Legacy to play him.
But the story center on Jordan and Stewart will offer something very different. When Gunn and Safran announced the first projects that will be part of the first pahse of the new DCU, titled Gods & Monsters, the Green Lantern tv series was presented as a show inspired by True Detective, which will have the two main characters trying to solve a mystery, probably across the galaxy.
The story is set to connect with a larger plot that will actually be the guideline for the whole franchise, which could be one of the reasons why Gunn included Gardner in Superman: Legacy. Since the show is replacing the previously announced project, which would include several other Lanterns, the new story could still do something like that, with Jordan and Stewart crossing paths with some other heroes from the corps, mostly considering the series’ name is Lanterns.
For now, none official release date has been announced for Lanterns, and since most upcoming projects are currently on pause because of the strikes, it could take a while for fans to get news about it.
This post was written by Meagan Keane and originally appeared on Adobe blog on Jun. 16, 2023.
Tom (Alex Wolff), a devoted member of his fraternity, is enamored with the high social status and influential connections promised by the fraternity. However, when he counters Annabelle, a classmate from outside his social circle, his devotion begins to falter, and Tom is faced with a life-altering decision.
Editor Ted Feldman chose Premiere Pro to cut this coming-of-age thriller, capturing both the wild excitement of being young and the dangers of living without fear of consequences. “We used Premiere Pro on this project because it is quick and easy, I like the way it’s organized, and because the Adobe suite lets me keep my options open for effects,” Feldman shares.
The Line premiered at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival. Read below to learn more about Feldman’s editing workflow in bringing this gripping narrative to life.
Can you tell us about your experience as a filmmaker and how you got started in the industry?
I studied film at Wesleyan University and met many future collaborators. For about seven years after graduation, I lived in Brooklyn, juggled dueling careers in music and film, taking whatever gigs I could to keep up my film chops when I wasn’t in a tour van — or sometimes when I was. I worked as a PA, a boom operator, a DIT, but mostly as an editor. In 2017 l moved to LA, where some of my college friends and collaborators were kind enough to vouch for me for editing work. I managed to land some good music videos, then documentary series, and now features.
How and where did you first learn to edit?
In-camera on my parents’ VHS camcorder, growing up with my two brothers. And then playing around with a few editing platforms in high school and college at Wesleyan.
How do you begin a project/set up your workspace?
On a technical level, I try to make sure there is a plan in place for the very end of the project and set up the project with that in mind. I try to get the director to talk as much as they can about their vision, and then I watch absolutely everything.
Tell us about a favorite scene or moment from this project and why it stands out to you.
The climactic scene of the film is this very uncomfortable hazing scene in a garage, where the character Gettys (played by Austin Abrams) is refusing to play the submissive pledge, challenging the fraternity brothers’ authority. It’s shot with really stark lighting and the camera is right in the middle of the action—the insults are flying—you know something bad is going to happen. And from an editorial standpoint, it was my job to build that tension and shape the arc of how it all devolves by using the angles deliberately, supporting Austin’s incredible performance, and connecting with our main character Tom (Alex Wolff), who knows this is a bad situation.
What were some specific post-production challenges you faced that were unique to your project? How did you go about solving them?
There was a lot of improvised dialogue, overlapping dialogue. And the scenes that were coming in from production were much longer than what had been written in the script. That was a challenge for time and for continuity. One solution I found was that overlapping the dialogue myself—manufacturing a “naturalism” that already existed elsewhere—was very helpful in keeping the tone consistent and in manipulating the rhythm of a scene.
What Adobe tools did you use on this project and why did you originally choose them? Why were they the best choice for this project?
We used Premiere Pro on this project because it is quick and easy, I like the way it’s organized, and because the Adobe suite lets me keep my options open for effects.
If you could share one tip about Premiere Pro, what would it be?
This seems small but I like timeline audio scrubbing. It’s very helpful for finding the exact frame to cut.
Who is your creative inspiration and why?
As an editor? Bob Fosse & Alan Heim for creating meaning through intercutting, Martin Scorsese & Thelma Schoonmaker for energy over cleanliness and Steven Soderbergh for efficiency.
What’s the toughest thing you’ve had to face in your career and how did you overcome it? What advice do you have for aspiring filmmakers or content creators?
It can be very frustrating to not land a gig because your resume is thin, but everyone wants you to have already done the thing before they give you a chance to do the thing. My advice would be to do your best work on every project, no matter how small, and to value the relationships you make. Every opportunity I’ve ever gotten has been through people I’ve already worked with believing in me, who brought me along to the next step. And a lot of those times it’s been Ethan (the director of The Line), so get yourself a loyal friend like that.
This post was written by Meagan Keane and originally appeared on Adobe blog on Jun. 16, 2023.
The world is finally getting a look at Bad Bunny‘s first on-screen kiss. And, though brief, it’s made an impact.
The 29-year-old “Ojitos Lindos” reggaeton rapper portrays Felipe, a lucha libre fan who is getting close to Gael García Bernal‘s titular character, Cassandro. In the scene, the duo appears to be in a bar’s office alone when Bernal’s character goes in for the kiss.
Felipe, at first, seems into it, even placing his right hand on Bernal’s hip. But just seconds later, Felipe uses that same arm to push Cassandro away from him.
“I really can’t do this,” Felipe says in Spanish, to which Cassandro responds with, “It’s OK. Don’t freak out. It’s OK.”
After Felipe apologizes, Cassandro tells him, “See you around, stud.”
Bernal plays the titular pro wrestler, a real-life legend who became a well-known luchador as an openly gay “exotico.”
Cassandro, an Amazon original film, tells the story of Saúl Armendáriz, who was born and raised in El Paso, Texas, and Juárez, Chihuahua, with a love of lucha libre. After making his lucha debut to limited success, Armendáriz meets a new trainer, Sabrina (A League of Their Own’s Roberta Colindrez), who suggests he try competing as an “exotico,” a type of luchador who dresses in drag and portrays gay caricatures.
Armendáriz makes a name for himself as Cassandro — named after Cassandra, a beloved brothel owner in Tijuana — though he faces plenty of pushback along the way, both for his flamboyant character in the ring and for being openly gay in real life.
The film — which jumps from English and Spanish to Spanglish — also stars Raúl Castillo, Perla De La Rosa, Joaquín Cosío, and El Hijo del Santo.
Back in March, Bad Bunny — whose real name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio — told Time for its April double issue that kissing Bernal in the biopic was “badass.”
“It was cabrón (badass). My first kiss for a movie and it was with a man,” the Puerto Rican rapper said. “That’s the penalty I get for being with so many women during my life.”
Bad Bunny also explained why he said yes when producers asked him about kissing a man in the film.
“If you’re acting, you’re being someone you’re not,” he said. “That’s the fun part. So when they asked me for that I said, ‘Yes, I’m here for whatever you want.’ I think it was very cool. I didn’t feel uncomfortable. It’s part of acting. It’s part of what I’m doing.”
Cassandro is now in select theaters and available Sept. 22 on Prime Video.
Bollywood’s Jawan and star Shah Ruhk Khan livened up a slow specialty market, grossing close to $2.5 million in 776 locations in week two for a cume close to $12.2 million. The Yash Raj actioner is no. 6 at the domestic box office.
Its weekend split was $694,724k Fri.; $1.024m Sat,; $775k Sunday asJawan races to records in India, including the top box office opening last week for a Hindi film. Commentators are noting that the dubbed Telugu and Tamil versions – a key to box office in India, and Stateside — are also raking in more than they have for any other Hindi film. Indian films continue to be a gift to U.S. exhibitors as loyal audiences who follow release schedule closely turn out weekly and in force for the films that open day and date. A breathlessly awaited, well-reviewed movie there is the same here.
Sony notable Dumb Money by Craig Gillepsie (I, Tonya, Lars and the Real Girl), banked a projected $217k for the first leg of three-step platform release in eight theaters across six markets (LA, NYC, Chicago, DC, Boston, San Francisco). The film captures the meme-stock frenzy that saw scrappy retail traders flood onto social media, egging each other on to buoy GameStop and other shares in dramatic showdown with traditional Wall Street players. It made $92K Friday, $74K Saturday and an estimated $50K Sunday for a per-screen average of $27,080. A decent number since there was zero publicity due to the actors’ strike by very marketable stars from Pete Davidson to Seth Rogen, to Paul Dano, and that hurts. Gillepsie did some Q&As in NYC and LA.
The R-rated film that premiered to strong reviews at TIFF is banking on word of mouth as it expands to 200+ screens next weekend and goes wide September 29. No social data but anecdotal reports from theaters of positive reactions from advance screenings, and high audience scores.
The original release strategy was a four-step platform that would likely have garnered significantly higher PSAs on fewer screens this weekend. But Sony condensed the plan and skipped a step to leave a few weeks for Dumb Money before the mid-October opening of Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour – an event that’s hit $65 million in presales, with a $100 million opening within reach.
Paul Dano in ‘Dumb Money’
Sony Pictures
Other specialty openings: From Roadside Attractions, Camp Hide Out is posting an estimated three-day gross of $510,160 on 848 screens for a PSA of $602.
The Inventorstop-motion animation from Blue Fox Entertainment grossed an estimated $201k+ from 700 runs. From flying contraptions, war machines, and studying cadavers, Leonardo da Vinci takes on the grand meaning of life itself with the help of French princess, Marguerite de Nevarre. Directed by Jim Capobianco, the film stars Stephen Fry, Marion Cotillard, Daisy Ridley, Matt Berry & Gauthier Battoue.
Limited release: Documentary Invisible Beauty from Magnolia Pictures grossed $10,500 at the Film Forum. Expanding on Friday to LA, Chicago, Washington, DC and Atlanta. Fashion revolutionary Bethann Hardison looks back on her journey as a pioneering Black model, modelling agent and activist.
Kino Lorber’s release of Radical Wolfe grossed $8,270 at IFC Center. Based on bestselling author Michael Lewis’s 2015 Vanity Fair article, the documentary traces the author’s rise from a journalism pioneer to bestselling novelist and celebrity whose singular voice and iconic white suit made him one of the most recognizable literary figures of all time. Expands to LA, Toronto and additional markets Sept. 22.
Thriller Rebel from Yellow Veil Pictures grossed $6,500, also at IFC Center. By Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah. it expands to LA’s Nuart next weekend. A young man leaves Belgium to help war victims in Syria, but once there is stranded and forced to join ISIS. His younger brother back home becomes easy prey for radical recruiters who promise a reunion.
Oscilloscope’s Canary grossed $8,350 on three screens. The distributor — in partnership with REI Co-Op Studios and Boardwalk Pictures — presents the true story of Dr. Lonnie Thompson, the world’s greatest living climatologist, in NYC, LA and Columbus, OH. Expanding Wed. nationwide to over 140 theaters.
Noting Oscilloscope’s CatVideoFest 2023 has crossed half a million theatrical in week seven, grossing $30k on 20 screens for a cume of $502k. It’s a new best for the event that celebrates all things feline and which Oscilloscope has handled since 2019. The compilation, which has also raised over $50k for cats in need, will continue to add new engagements throughout the fall.
Holdovers: Variance Films’ expanded Amerikatsi, Armenia’s official Oscar submission for Best International Feature, grossed an estimated $91,932 on 19 screens in week two for a per-screen average of $4,839 and a new cume of $167,697.
Also Noting Bottoms from MGM is heading towards $10 million in week four. Emma Seligman’s rauchy teen comedy starring Rachel Sennott and Ayo Edebiri has successfully reached a younger movie-going audience and racked up another $1.2M on its way to a current estimated cume of $9.87M.
And A24’s low-budget horror Talk To Me, ditto with younger fans, is still on 570 screens, where it grossed $567,472 this weekend for a cume of nearly $47 million since it opened July 28.
Pictured: Spy Kids: Armageddon, New Amsterdam and The Machine
Welcome to your look ahead at the new additions coming to Netflix over the next seven days. Below, we’ll pick out three of our most anticipated new releases and then give you the most comprehensive walkthrough of what’s to come.
This week, we should get a more expansive look at the new arrivals scheduled for October. Until then, we’ve got the list we updated today with a handful of new titles scheduled for the month.
Featured Videos & Trailers – Article Continues Below…
As always, you can find a comprehensive look at the new releases with daily recaps, trailers, previews, and more via our new on Netflix hub.
Now, let’s get into some highlights coming up this week:
Most Anticipated Releases Coming to Netflix This Week
New Amsterdam (Season 5)
Coming to Netflix: Wednesday
Picture: NBC
One of the many licensed TV pickups Netflix has made in 2023 has been New Amsterdam, which added four seasons in the earlier parts of this year. Now, just months later, they’ll be joined by the fifth and final season of the medical drama series.
Spy Kids: Armageddon (2023) Netflix Original
Coming to Netflix: Friday
If you can believe it, it’s been 22 years since the first Spy Kids movie was released. After three sequels and a spin-off, the new entry comes exclusively to Netflix with Gina Rodriguez and Zachary Levi leading the cast.
Here’s what you can expect:
“When the children of the world’s greatest secret agents unwittingly help a powerful Game Developer unleash a computer virus that gives him control of all technology, they must become spies themselves to save their parents and the world.”
While plenty have taken online to poo-poo on this new family movie publicly, we’d advise that the last time Robert Rodriguez dropped a family movie on Netflix, it entered the list of all-time most-watched list (we’re referring to We Can Be Heroes). We wouldn’t count this one out, either.
The Machine (2023)
Coming to Netflix: Saturday
Following up on a comedy skit from comedian Bert Kreischer is this feature-film from Sony Pictures that makes its streaming debut on Netflix this coming weekend.
He stars alongside Mark Hamill (who will soon appear in Netflix’s The Fall of the House of Usher), who plays the role of Bert’s father. You’ll follow the pair being potentially kidnapped in Russia and having to retrace their footsteps in the hope of atoning for his prior crimes.
Full List of New Releases Coming to Netflix US This Week
Coming to Netflix on September 18th
My Little Pony: Make Your Mark (Chapter 5) Netflix Original
Coming to Netflix on September 19th
Kountry Wayne: A Woman’s Prayer (2023) Netflix Original
Netflix Stories: Love is Blind Game (Android and iOS) Netflix Original
The Saint of Second Chances (2023) Netflix Original
Coming to Netflix on September 20th
Hard Broken (Season 1) Netflix Original
Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal (Season 2)
New Amsterdam (Season 5)
Coming to Netflix on September 21st
Baby Gorilla Cam (Episode 3) Netflix Original LIVE
Kengan Ashura (Season 2) Netflix Original
Scissor Seven (Season 4) Netflix Original
Sex Education (Season 4) Netflix Original
Coming to Netflix on September 22nd
How To Deal With a Heartbreak (2023) Netflix Original
Itxaso and the Sea (Season 1)
Love is Blind (Season 5) Netflix Original
Song of the Bandits (Season 1) Netflix Original
Spy Kids: Armageddon (2023) Netflix Original
The Black Book (2023) Netflix Original
Coming to Netflix on September 23rd
What’s Coming to Netflix on September 24th
A Nation of Kimchi (Season 1 – New Episodes)
What are you going to be checking out on Netflix this week? Let us know down below.
The actor died Friday in Austin, Texas, and was struggling with manic depression at the time, his manager told The Hollywood Reporter on Sunday, which would’ve marked Miller’s 44th birthday. His cause of death is not available at this time.
Miller broke out when he landed the role of Richie Novak on ABC’s All My Children. Shortly after he left the soap opera, he was cast as Billy Abbott on CBS’ The Young and the Restless. He portrayed the character to much critical acclaim over the course of more than 700 episodes. The same year Miller left the CBS soap, he took on another long-running part as Jason Morgan/Drew Cain on ABC’s General Hospital.
Following three, long back-to-back stints on some of the biggest soap operas on cable, Miller moved on to recurring roles in drama series like Suits and Truth Be Told. He also appeared in Ray Donovan, Fatal Honeymoon, American Sniper, Ringer, Castle and Justified over the course of his career.
William John Miller II was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Sept. 17, 1979, and raised in Grand Prairie, Texas. He attended the University of Texas in Austin and studied production sequence. Upon graduating, he moved to Los Angeles and began working in the mailroom at an entertainment management/production company.
After some friends dared him to pursue a career as an actor, he did, and his first successes came from the commercial world, where he booked multiple national ads. In addition to acting, Miller also owned several Los Angeles restaurants and bars for many years.
He is survived by his mother, Patricia, sister Megan, brother-in-law Ronnie, nephew, Grayson and niece, Charley.
Anitta is opening up about her private health struggles.
The 30-year-old Brazilian singer reveals in a new interview with InStylethat she suffered from a cancer scare in late 2022 that left her hospitalized for “months.” In the end, she says, it was an unconventional treatment that put her on the road to recovery.
“I had problems in my lungs, I had a cancer [scare]. I spent months in the hospital. Nobody could figure out what I had,” she tells the outlet, explaining that extensive testing never revealed the source of her issues. Instead, she was directed to seek spiritual remedies as she enlisted the support of a shaman.
“I came back completely changed,” she says, adding that her next round of medical tests came back clear.
InStyle reports that Anitta, whose real name is Larissa de Macedo Machado, understood that she had gone through a mental shift that allowed her a renewed sense of energy to combat her physical and psychological suffering.
With that newfound toughness, Anitta says she’s doubling down on her persona as a “b**ch” who “destroys hearts” through her music.
Dia Dipasupil/FilmMagic
The revelation comes on the heels of a pair of splashy performances at the MTV Video Music Awards earlier this week, where Anitta took home the Best Latin award for “Funk Rave.” She hit the stage to deliver a medley of her own hits, and debuted her new “Back for More” collaboration with K-pop phenom Tomorrow X Together.
ET was also with Anitta on the VMAs red carpet on Tuesday.
“I feel fantastic, I feel sexy, I feel hot — the hottest b**ch — I feel amazing,” she raved.
Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” keeps climbing at the box office with more than $900 million in global ticket sales to date.
Over the weekend, the R-rated historical drama added $12.8 million globally, including $10.7 million overseas and $2.1 million domestically. After nine weeks of release, “Oppenehimer” has grossed a staggering $910 million worldwide, with $318 million from North American theaters and $594 million internationally.
“For ‘Oppenheimer’ to cross the $900 million global mark after just nine weeks in theaters is a remarkable achievement,” says Paul Dergarabedian, a senior Comscore analyst. “It shows how an amazing film with a superstar director and a star-studded cast can turn a three-hour historical epic into a blockbuster mainstream hit.”
“Oppenheimer,” starring Cillian Murphy as the so-called “father of the atomic bomb,” continues to crush expectations and stands as the third-highest grossing release of the year behind “Barbie” ($1.41 billion) and “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” ($1.36 billion). At this rate, the $1 billion benchmark isn’t out of the question — but it would require “Oppenheimer” to continue playing in theaters for several more weeks. (Awards attention and theatrical re-releases would help as well.)
“Those last few miles of any theatrical run are the toughest,” Dergarabedian adds. “But at this point, […] it’s a total winner no matter the ultimate outcome.”
Whether it hits that rare milestone, the $100 million-budgeted film is already hugely profitable for Universal and Nolan. It’s the director’s third-biggest movie ever, behind “The Dark Knight” ($1 billion) and “The Dark Knight Rises” ($1.08 billion). As for Universal, it’s the studio’s biggest non-franchise film of all time and 12th-highest grossing film in history ahead of “The Secret Life of Pets” ($894 million).
Nolan used Imax cameras to film “Oppenheimer,” and the final product has been hugely popular on the company’s premium format screens — especially the 70mm prints. It became one of the top-five highest grossing Imax titles ever with $180 million globally, trailing only “Avatar,” “Avatar: The Way of Water,” “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” and “Avengers: Endgame.”
Nolan adapted “Oppenheimer” from the Pulitzer Prize-winning book “American Prometheus.” The somber biographical epic follows the American theoretical physicist who led the development of the atomic bomb, which helped to end World War II. The cast includes Robert Downey Jr., Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Florence Pugh and Alden Ehrenreich.
Hailey Bieber, 26, looks incredible in a new sexy Instagram photo. The model posed in a white slip dress and black boots as she gave a serious look to the camera, in a new post she shared on Sept. 15. She had her hair down and also rocked a B necklace, which was most likely to represent her last name.
In addition to the epic new photo, Hailey shared several other recent photos and video clips in the same post. One showed her wearing a white crop top under a blue hoodie while another showed her wearing a black crop top under a tie-dye style jacket, a black mini skirt, and black boots. She also topped off the look with a short pink wig.
In other photos, she sizzled in a leopard print bikini and white silky mini dress with a long black coat. Her husband Justin Bieber was also featured in two of the photos. He wore a white collared shirt as he held a glass of what appeared to be white wine while posing with his wife, in one photo. He also happily smiled and posed beside Hailey as he donned a black leather jacket over a white collared shirt and loose black pants.
Hailey’s memorable post comes after she and Justin celebrated their fifth wedding anniversary. They both shared public tributes to each other that included PDA-filled photos and sweet messages.
“To the most precious, my beloved. 5 years,” Justin wrote in his tribute. “You have captivated my heart. I know from the depths of my soul down to my bones that this journey with you will only exceed our wildest expectations. So let’s keep dreaming big baby. Cheers to forever and ever. I love you with every fiber of my being. HAPPY 5TH YEAR ANNIVERSARY!!!”
Hailey’s message was simple but powerful. “5 ✨? I love you,” she wrote.
Hailey and Justin were married at a courthouse in New York City, NY on Sept. 13, 2018. They then celebrated a star-studded wedding at the Montage Palmetto Bluff resort in South Carolina a year later.
“Denuvo is no longer in Payday 3“. Those are the words of developer Starbreeze’s SBZ_Almir, who stopped by Steam just long enough to welcome heisters to New York City and confirm that – despite prior plans – the third instalment of the fan-favorite shooter would no longer use the troublesome Denuvo DRM system.
As noted by PC Gamer, the change of heart likely comes in the wake of a heated thread on the franchise’s subreddit, which saw hundreds of fans share their dismay that the anti-piracy software – so often associated with poor PC performance – would be included.
Although neither Starbreeze nor publisher Deep Silver responded to the thread at the time, it certainly seems that someone noted it, as all mentions of Denuvo have since been scrubbed from the game’s Steam storefront.
Payday 3 is set to release on PC (Steam/EGS), PS5, and Xbox Series X/S on September 21. Xbox Game Pass subscribers will be able to play from day one, too.
Developer Starbreeze also recently confirmed a jam-packed calendar of seasonal DLC content, outlining its plans for the next 12 months that will keep players of the co-op action game well-fed for much of 2024.
A total of four DLCs have been planned, kicking off with Syntax Error DLC, which will drop later this year. Boy in Blue, The Land of the Free, and Fear and Greed DLCs will all come out throughout 2024. There’s also additional content planned, such as new playable characters, skill trees, enemies, weapons, features, and quality-of-life updates. What we don’t know yet is how much this additional content will cost, as players who don’t opt for the Payday 3 Gold Edition will have to buy these DLC packs separately.
Starbreeze Studios also announced that Unreal Engine 5 updates will also be planned in conjunction with the seasonal DLC content.
If you can’t wait for the release of Payday 3, then be sure to check out all of these fantastic co-op games, as well as the best MMO games available to play with friends right now.
In the Blind Spot, Ayşe Polat’s documentary-style conspiracy thriller set in modern-day Turkey has won the German Independence Award for best film at the 30th Oldenburg International Film Festival.
The drama, which premiered in the Encounters section of the Berlin Film Festival this year, follows a German film team shooting a documentary in a remote Kurdish village who begin to witness mysterious happenings and become entwined in a sinister conspiracy.
Oldenburg’s best actor honors went to Jon Jacobs for playing Cassian Elwes in the biographical drama Passenger C, Elwes’ directorial debut. Alexandrea Meyer won best actress for Truman Kewley’s horror thriller Beautiful Friend, in which she plays the object of obsession for a violent incel, played by Adam Jones.
Jon Jacobs in ‘Passenger C’
Alexandrea Meyer in ‘Beautiful Friend’
Oldenburg’s audacity award, given to a film that pushes the boundaries of modern cinema, went to Jérôme Vandewattyne’s The Belgian Wave, a psychedelic drama set in the early 1990s when there was a wave of UFO sightings in Belgium and the country was diagnosed with a collective psychosis.
‘The Belgian Wave’
The prize for best first film went to Takayuki Hayashi for From Dawn Till Noon on the Sea, a drama looking at the kidnapping of a young schoolgirl and its aftermath.
The winners were announced at the closing ceremony for the 30th Oldenburg Film Festival on Sunday night. The gala was followed by the world premiere of Torsten Ruether’s boxing drama Uppercut starring Ving Rhames and Luise Großmann.
In this week’s MarvelBlog News, the MCU may call for a Doctor to join his Companion, Werewolf by Night adds some color, and Bad Bunny says no.
Now I’m a Sad Bunny
Source: wearemitu.com
We speculated on this one several months ago, and it’s officially a reality now.
Bad Bunny himself has commented on the record about his joining Sony’s Spider-Man universe. The answer is apparently no.
Source: Marvel/ Sony
During a wide-ranging interview with Vanity Fair, Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, aka Bad Bunny, struggles to say anything directly.
However, his representative joins him in the conversation and ultimately dashes all hope.
Here’s what happened. The interviewer asks Bad Bunny what happened with the reported El Muerto project.
Source: Cinemablend.com
As a reminder, Sony basically went to the musician and stated that the studio would happily make a movie based on any Marvel character he chose.
Obviously, the constraint involved Sony’s need to own the license, which narrowed the choices to characters in Spider-Man comics.
Still, the fledgling actor sounded happy to portray El Muerto, a character who holds personal meaning to him.
Source: nbcnews.com
The interviewer describes “an awkward silence” as the question hangs in the air.
Unsure of what to say, Bad Bunny remains silent. Eventually, his representative states, “Next question!”
That behavior seems telling in and of itself. However, Martinez circles back to the question. He responds, “I don’t know what to say.”
Source: Marvel/ Sony Pictures
Later, Martinez describes the entire matter as “delicate.” Immediately afterward, his representative kills all hope by stating: “Obviously, it’s out.”
So, that’s that. While we may never know the explanation as to what happened, Bad Bunny won’t play El Muerto in a Sony-produced Marvel movie.
Not coincidentally, Sony has declared the El Muerto project officially dead.
Source: Sony Pictures
That’s no surprise since the main reason Sony had greenlit the project was at Bad Bunny’s behest.
I know that we reported on this story a short while ago, but now we have details and a finite answer about El Muerto. It’s just not happening.
Yes, Another Fantastic Four Rumor
Source: Marvel
With the Hollywood strikes lingering indefinitely, studio executives have little on their plates right now.
The last time a gap like this happened was 15 years ago, and a bunch of them discovered Pokemon, Sudoku, and Facebook.
Seriously, I had friends at studios asking me how to use Facebook because they’d never heard of it before the strike.
Source: Marvel Studios
Something similar is happening right now, but Peridot just isn’t the same as Pokemon, and nobody new in 2023 is gonna win a round of Fortnite.
So, people who work at studios are re-thinking everything at the moment as they have a rare opportunity to reflect.
Not coincidentally, more Fantastic Four rumors are cropping up. And the latest one circles back to something I’d previously mentioned.
Source: Marvel Studios/ Marvel
Six weeks ago, I mentioned Matt Smith as a potential candidate for the film.
Specifically, some insiders suggested that Smith, the former star of Doctor Who, was in contention to play Reed Richards.
That idea makes perfect sense to me. I mean, what is the T.A.R.D.I.S. if not a giant spaceship? What’s Reed Richards? An astronaut!
Step into the Negative Zone. Photo: Marvel Comics
Matt Smith has already played a sometimes serious, sometimes silly role and absolutely nailed it thanks in large part to his on-screen Companion, Amy Pond.
Well, Karen Gillan, the actress who played Amy Pond, must have put in a good word for him, as Smith is reportedly back in the pole position.
Yes, an MCU reunion of Smith and Gillan is possible if Disney chooses to cast Smith as Reed Richards.
A future Avengers film would pretty much have to stick the character in a scene with Nebula for Doctor Who fans like me, too.
Do I think this is happening? Probably not. However, Matt Smith makes as much sense as anyone in the role of Reed Richards.
Must Be a Full Moon
Source: Marvel Studios
Have you watched Werewolf by Night yet?
I’ve previously raved about the outstanding quality of this standalone story on Disney+.
Source: Marvel Studios
Academy Award-winning musician Michael Giacchino knocked it out of the park with his directorial debut.
Realistically, Werewolf by Night is more of a Halloween project than something that people will watch throughout the year.
Source: Marvel Studios
The programmers at Disney+ know this, just as they understand how spectacular the story is. So, Disney+ will do something special this year.
On October 20th, Disney+ will unveil a color version of the 50-minute mini-movie that was previously available in black & white.
Werewolf by Night is legitimately one of the best things I watched in 2022. I highly recommend it! Also, I can’t wait to watch the colorized version.
Marvel Miscellany
Source: Marvel Studios
The other significant story this week is still evolving.
As expected, Marvel Studios’ visual effects (VFX) workers voted to join IATSE.
BREAKING: Marvel Studios’ Visual Effects (VFX) Workers UNANIMOUSLY voted in favor of unionizing with IATSE in a labor board election.
This marks the first time a unit of solely VFX Workers has unionized with IATSE since VFX was pioneered nearly a half-century ago. pic.twitter.com/gqMx2dIQj3
The shock isn’t that they unionized. Instead, it’s the voting total. The vote was unanimous, which should make Marvel very nervous.
That’s a strong sign of unhappy workers. IATSE states that it “anticipate(s) this is the first of many organizing victories within VFX.”
Source: Marvel Studios
Speaking of Marvel special effects, the studio released a trailer for the IMAX version of The Marvels coming on November 10th:
Those Flerkens are gonna look huuuuge on an IMAX screen!
Okay, that’s all I’ll discuss this week. However, if you’re interested in learning more about season two of Loki, I’ll pass along some intel.
Disney treated its fans at the Destination D23 event to the first ten minutes of the season premiere.
Image: Marvel
There are plenty of recaps and spoilers out there if that sort of thing interests you.
Personally, I’m gonna wait three more weeks for the show’s debut.
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Recently aired episodes in DC’s popular Teen Titans Go! cartoon will soon be imported onto Warner Bros.’ streaming service, Max.
Teen Titans Go! has run for over a decade by this point. Based on the fan-favorite and often somewhat dark Teen Titans animated series that was around in the mid-2000s, Go! is far more kid-friendly than its predecessor.
With eight seasons and almost 400 episodes of the zany, irreverent take on Robin, Beast Boy, and the gang (plus a theatrically released film and a few television specials), the Cartoon Network show is definitely not in short supply.
Teen Titans Go! Season 8C Hitting Max Soon
DC
Season 8C, the third grouping of episodes of Teen Titans Go!’s eighth season, will officially drop for streaming on Max on Friday, September 15. Season 8C was initially broadcast on Cartoon Network in late July.
In addition to the last portion of Season 8, Max is home to a wide selection of other content from the Teen Titans Go! franchise:
Teen Titans Go!, Season 1 – Season 8B
Teen Titans Go! to the Movies (2018)
Teen Titans Go! vs. Teen Titans (2019)
Teen Titans Go! See Space Jam (2021)
Teen Titans Go! & DC Super Hero Girls: Mayhem in the Multiverse
How the Teen Titans Continue To Grow at DC
Despite fans holding the belief that Teen Titans Go! is far inferior to the 2003 Teen Titans animation, Go!’s enduring success is nothing to sneeze at. After all, a series doesn’t run eight seasons because no one’s watching it.
Teen Titans Go! even spoofed Zack Snyder’s Justice League in 2022 when the director guest starred on the show for its 365th episode. The results were promptly met with acclaim.
But if the series, which is ostensibly made for children, isn’t one’s cup of tea, there are plenty of other options for Teen Titans media out there.
For starters, there’s the much-loved, aforementioned Teen Titans that ran from 2003 to 2006. There’s also the grim and gritty live-action Titans that streamed on HBO Max and recently wrapped up its four-season storyline (Season 5 was ultimately scrapped).
And not to forget Young Justice, another Cartoon Network show that ended up jumping to HBO Max for two revival seasons after it was unceremoniously canceled by the cable channel in 2013. While Young Justice isn’t specifically a Teen Titans property, it does deal with the same basic concept: rookie superheroes forming a league of their own.
A ninth season for Teen Titans Go! has yet to be confirmed by Cartoon Network or Warner Bros.
Wizardry took the gaming world by storm when it was released for the Apple II back in, gulp, 1981, and now it’s coming back to enthrall new generations of RPG fans. Developer Digital Eclipse is remaking the turn-based title, which is now called Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord.
The remake is a modernized version of the 1981 RPG and its built right on top of the original Apple II code, so you can easily swap from the old-school interface to the brand-new graphics, similar to how the ‘Halo 2: Anniversary’ edition handled things, or the just-announced Tomb Raider remasters for the Nintendo Switch.
Modern visuals are nice, but Wizardry is over 40 years old, so the gameplay’s likely a bit dated. To that end, the developers promise a number of quality-of-life improvements, including a revamped party management system, new spellcasting options and navigation tools, among other minor upgrades.
Wizardry is generally considered to be the first party-based RPG ever released for computers or consoles and inspired countless modern franchises, including Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest. It’s not the first Dungeons & Dragons style RPG to grace computers, but it did invent many mechanics that are still active in JRPGs to this day. It was an instant hit when it launched for the Apple II and was ported over to numerous other systems including the Mac, C64 and even the NES and Game Boy Color.
Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord is available today as an early access build via Steam and GOG. The game costs $30, but the developers say that price will likely increase as we get closer to an official release.
Oscar winner Erik Messerschmidt, ASC to be honored in Mallorca
The festival’s Cinematography Focus, a new sidebar programme introduced last year, welcomes directors of photography from across the world to participate in panels, networking events, and screenings. As guest of honour this year, Messerschmidt will participate in events within the sidebar and the festival will screen the Oscar-winning drama Mank, showcasing his impressive and extensive body of work.
Having lensed two of the most talked about films at this year’s Venice film festival — Ferrari, directed by Michael Mann, and The Killer, by David Fincher, Messerschmidt also recently wrapped Sinking Spring for director Ridley Scott and Apple TV+.
Previously, he shot Fincher’s acclaimed Mank, chronicling the screenwriter Herman Mankiewicz’s turbulent journey to write Citizen Kane alongside Orson Welles. Messerschmidt’s meticulous and striking black-and-white recreation of the period’s aesthetic earned him the Academy Award for Best Cinematography, an ASC Award for Outstanding Cinematography in a Feature Film, a BSC Award for Best Cinematography in a Theatrical Feature Release, a BAFTA Award nomination for Best Cinematography, as well as Best Cinematography award nominations from multiple film critics bodies.
Other credits include Devotion for director J.D. Dillard; several episodes of the HBO Max original series Raised By Wolves from producer Ridley Scott; and the first and second seasons of Fincher’s Emmy-nominated hit thriller series, Mindhunter for Netflix.
The 12th Evolution Mallorca International Film Festival edition is only 1 month away! See you in Mallorca!
Britain’s official post-WWI administration of Palestine lasted from 1920-48 and is probably the UK colonial enterprise least addressed by its fiction filmmakers. But now prolific writer-director Michael Winterbottom (“The Trip,” “A Mighty Heart”) uses that complicated era as a backdrop to the compelling historical romance “Shoshana.” A passion project 15 years in the making and based on real people and events, the film employs the ill-fated, cross-cultural relationship between a ranking member of the British Palestine Police Force and a young Jewish woman to explore the way extremism and violence push people apart, forcing them to choose sides.
It’s worth noting upfront that while the British rulers had to deal with both Palestine’s Arab and Jewish citizens, each of whom want an independent country, the narrative here hews firmly to a British and Jewish p.o.v., with Arabs barely characterized except as victims and troublemakers. By the 1930s, Palestine is a cauldron of unrest with the Arab and Jewish populations at each other’s throats. In response, the British increase their police presence in the country, with new officer Geoffrey Morton (Harry Melling) assigned to the Arab villages around Jenin, and fellow recruit Tom Wilkin (Douglas Booth) allocated undercover anti-terrorist work in the growing, modern Jewish city of Tel Aviv.
Wilkin, who is mastering Hebrew, loves the city and its people, particularly Shoshana Borochov (the terrific Russian actor Irina Starshenbaum, of “Leto,” in her first English-language role), a strong, independent-minded Russian émigré who works for a newspaper. She is a member of the underground territorial defense force Haganah, and mixes with those who, like her, advocate the creation of an independent Jewish state by peaceful means.
For Tom, the Haganah reps the least of the British worries. Even if they have illegal guns, they are nominally on the UK’s side. Besides, the British police have their hands full trying to track down the Jewish militant groups who launch terror attacks against both their Arab neighbors and the occupying power. One such group is the paramilitary organization Irgun, led by the Polish-born poet Avraham Stern (Aury Alby).
For the British, who appear to have no consistent policy apart from clumsily trying to uphold the terms of the 1917 Balfour Declaration, the constant provocations from the Jewish groups are a bewildering annoyance and embarrassment. Even if audiences occasionally get confused as to who is doing what to who amid the onslaught of bombings, bank robberies and scenes of police interrogation and torture, the ambience of Winterbottom’s film is more important. He captures the casual anti-Semitism of the over-dressed British officials who remark, “That’s one less of them,” about a bomb-maker who has accidentally blown himself up, and the High Commissioner who limits Jewish immigrants from Nazi-occupied Europe.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere among the many Jewish characters is heated, with much discussion of what will get them to the future state that is almost within their grasp. The cautionary voices of those like Shoshana are overwhelmed by the revolutionary fervor of the Irgun, who believe the land of Israel can only be built by violence. As the costs to the British Mandate rise, so too do the challenges to Wilkin and Shoshana’s passionate relationship.
Given a complicated era to compress and make understandable, Winterbottom and co-writers Laurence Coriat and Paul Viragh were lucky to discover the relationship between Wilkin and Shoshana and be able to use it as a key to understanding some of the divisions of the time. Although both characters actually existed and were lovers, the film’s narrative is fictionalized.
While it may seem as if there are glimpses of Tel Aviv’s beautiful white Bauhaus buildings and a glimmer of its sparkling Mediterranean beaches, the attractive picture was actually shot on location in Apulia, Italy. Kudos to production designer Sergio Tribastone for an authentic look that carries over from the striking archival footage that contextualizes the film’s timeframe at the beginning. Likewise, praise is due to costume designer Anthony Unwin, whose good-looking period work provides a visual shorthand to who is British, Jewish or Arab.
Cinematographer Gilles Nuttgens, who previously shot Winterbottom’s mockumentary “Greed,” gives the visuals a thriller-like aspect, which complements the pacey editing of Marc Richardson and David Holmes’s suggestive score. In addition to sterling work by the three young principals, Ian Hart gives a standout performance as the British High Commissioner’s ubiquitous righthand man, offering a supercilious, world-weary gravitas that seemingly epitomizes the official British attitude to the Mandate.
The first season of Yellowstone will be rerun on CBS starting tonight, and that will likely spark additional interest in the modern Western drama series. The first half of the fifth season has aired on Paramount Network, and the second half has been stalled due to the actors and writers strikes, as well as a dispute with its star, Kevin Costner. The latter was likely a contributing factor to the very popular show’s cancellation by Paramount.
Starring Costner, Luke Grimes, Kelly Reilly, Wes Bentley, Cole Hauser, Kelsey Asbille, Brecken Merrill, Forrie Smith, Denim Richards, Ian Bohen, Finn Little, Ryan Bingham, Gil Birmingham, Mo Brings Plenty, Wendy Moniz, Jen Landon, Kathryn Kelly, the Paramount Network drama follows the Dutton family of Montana, the owners of the Yellowstone ranch.
More has come to light about the behind-the-scenes drama. Costner has spoken about the series during his divorce proceedings, and previous reports revealed that the actor did try to work things out with Paramount and series creator Taylor Sheridan.
A new report from Puck reveals that the actor really wanted to come back to the series, and he and his representatives tried to work things out for the second half of season five and the potential sixth and seventh seasons.
Sheridan had already written season 5B without Costner’s John Dutton but was willing to rewrite scripts to add him back in after the WGA strike ended. Sheridan and Costner had a call to try to work things out, and the actor reportedly wanted more money (he supposedly already makes $1.3 million an episode), a reduced shooting schedule, and the right to review and veto every Yellowstone script. The series creator, who writes the scripts himself, reportedly balked at that last demand, and negotiations ended sometime later.
It’s unknown how Costner’s John Dutton will be written out of the show, but the actor will have his say about it. He supposedly has a “moral death” clause in his current contract that lists, in general terms, the ways that the character can and cannot be killed off, including deaths that would cause shame and embarrassment to John Dutton and, implicitly, to Costner and his family.
Sheridan is looking ahead to an untitled Yellowstone spin-off series that will likely include some cast members from the original show and star Matthew McConaughey, though he hasn’t signed on yet.
What do you think? Are you surprised by these new Yellowstone developments? Were you hoping for more of the drama?
Check out our status sheets to track new TV series pickups, renewals, and cancellations. You can find lists of cancelled shows here.
CBS has reversed its plan to premiere The Talkon Monday.
“The Talk is pausing its season premiere scheduled for September 18, CBS said in a statement. We will continue to evaluate plans for a new launch date.”
The announcement follows Drew Barrymore’s decision today to pause the return of her self-titled talk show Monday as well, amid WGA backlash. The Drew Barrymore Show is produced and distributed by CBS Media Ventures.
WGA picketers had targeted The Talk outside CBS Radford since it was announced that the show planned to return.
The Talk, hosted by Akbar Gbajabiamila, Amanda Kloots, Natalie Morales, Jerry O’Connell and Sheryl Underwood, went dark in May as a result of the writers strike.
At the time it was revealed that the show would return, sources said that The Talk is primarily unscripted and only has one writing position on its staff of around 150 employees. No one will be handling this writing role during the writers strike and hosts will be ad-libbing.
The Talk, which is produced by CBS Studios, is heading into Season 14.
Rob Crabbe, who was previously exec producer of The Late Late Show with JamesCorden, is now showrunner and exec producer of The Talk after Kristin Matthews left the show after 13 years.
The View, with hosts including Whoopi Goldberg, has also been regularly picketed by the WGA. Live with Kelly and Mark, hosted by actors Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos, also returned recently with its 36th season. The former’s WGA writers are currently on strike.
Barrymore announced earlier today that she was pausing the return of her talk show amid the criticism she has received from the WGA and her fellow actors.
“I have listened to everyone, and I am making the decision to pause the show’s premiere until the strike is over,” Barrymore announced Sunday on Instagram. “I have no words to express my deepest apologies to anyone I have hurt and, of course, to our incredible team who works on the show and has made it what it is today. We really tried to find our way forward. And I truly hope for a resolution for the entire industry very soon.”
Barrymore’s decision followed a tumultuous few days for the show’s host and executive producer. After issuing an emotional apology video Friday, which was met by even more criticism, Barrymore decided to pull the plug on the show’s return.
2019 was such a great year and we had no idea what was coming. In some positive news, the Jonas Brothers reunited and released their 5th album: Happiness Begins.
In a way, 2019 felt like a turning for the Jonas Brothers. The brothers also released their documentary: Chasing Happiness which chronicled their rise to fame including their Disney days along with their breaking up and eventually, reuniting. It was incredibly emotional and such a treat for the fans.
In addition to everything, they released Happiness Begins, their 5th studio album. It ended up producing 3 singles which were “Sucker,” “Cool” and “Only Human.” The band also embarked on their Happiness Begins tour, which was a huge affair for them and their fans.
2019 was a great year to be a Jonas Brothers fan and honestly, it brings back fond memories for me as that’s the year I met them. With that being said, I’m excited to rank the three singles from Happiness Begins!
Let’s start with the coolest song from Happiness Begins at #3.
3. “Cool”
Okay, that joke was slightly bad but #3 on my list is “Cool.” When I first heard previews of this song, I didn’t love it but it did grow on me. However, it does feel a little bit more gimmicky of a song. “Cool” is a fun summer song and one that is great for dancing and hearing live, so don’t get me wrong.
The music video was amazing, but it just isn’t as good as the other two on the list. Aside from that though, “Cool” feels like it was for fun more than anything. Either way with fall creeping up, it ended up at the bottom spot of my list.
Irish Grinstead, a singer in the R&B girl group 702 best known for the 1999 hit “Where My Girls At,” died on Saturday. She was 43.
Grinstead’s sister and fellow 702 group member, LeMisha Grinstead, announced the news of her death on Instagram.
“It is with great sadness that I have to let you know that my beautiful sister and friend has passed away this evening,” she wrote. “She has had a long battle and she is finally at peace. That girl was as bright as the stars! She was not only beautiful on the outside, but also within. Sharing the stage with her was a joy I will cherish for the rest of my life! We, the family ask for prayers and respect for our privacy as we grieve an outstanding loss to our family.”
While a cause of death was not provided, the R&B group announced in December that Irish was taking “a medical leave of absence due to serious medical issues.”
Grinstead was born on June 2, 1980. Her identical twin sister Orish died from kidney failure in 2008 at age 27.
702, consisting of the Grinstead sisters and Kameelah Williams, was named after the area code of their hometown, Las Vegas.
The group released their debut album “No Doubt” in 1996, featuring a guest appearance by Missy Elliott on the single “Steelo.” They released their second album “702” in 1999, which featured the hit song “Where My Girls At.”
After releasing their final album “Star” in 2003, the group disbanded in 2006 and took an 11-year hiatus. In 2021, the Grinstead sisters appeared on “BET Presents: The Encore,” a 10-episode reality series that follows nine former R&B girl-group members and their attempts to create an album in 30 days by forming a supergroup.
702 was nominated for an American Music Award, a BET Award and several Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards, winning best R&B/soul album of the year by a group, band or duo for “No Doubt” in 1997.
Williams paid tribute to Grinstead in an Instagram post, writing, “Devastated & heartbroken. I struggled with this post because to me this isn’t real. There’s a lot I want to say, but there’s no way to say what your heart hasn’t fully accepted. It’s hard to acknowledge this is even happening. I know you’re feeling better now and hugging your twin Orish which makes me smile cus I know how much you missed her. You & I have known each other since we were kids and we’ve laughed, cried, celebrated, and everything in between which is why I just don’t want to believe this.”
Two men are recovering in hospital after being stabbed during an attempted robbery early Saturday morning in Winnipeg’s St. Boniface neighbourhood.
Police were called to the the area of Provencher Boulevard and Tache Avenue around 2:00 a.m. They found three men, two with serious stab wounds, police said in a media release Sunday.
The victims were taken to hospital in unstable condition and later upgraded to stable.
An investigation revealed the victims were walking to their car when four men attempted to rob them before stabbing two. The victims managed to flee and called police.
Police say no arrests have been made, and the investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to call 204-986-6219, Crime Stoppers at 204-786-TIPS (8477), or online at winnipegcrimestoppers.org.
Man sentenced to six years in prison for random stabbing at Winnipeg Olive Garden
Siesta Key has featured hookups, breakups, makeups and everything in between since its 2017 premiere.
When the show debuted, Alex Kompothecras was at the center. Before filming began, he had a relationship with his lifelong friend Madisson Hausburg and went on to date Juliette Porter and Kelsey Owens before settling down and starting a family with Alyssa Salerno.
Madisson, for her part, dated Brandon Gomes before eventually settling down with the show’s former producer Ish Soto who is 20 years her senior.
“It’s really tough. I mean, I’m so grateful that people care and want to, you know, put their two cents in and have their opinions and, like, are so invested in our show,” Madisson exclusively told Us Weekly in May 2021. “But at the same time, like, it’s really hard to put ourselves out there and then to get so much criticism in return.”
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The letters trickled in at first, and then they flooded the community. Nearly every resident of Littlehampton, a small coastal town in England, received an offensive note in 1920. Most of the libelous messages haven’t survived, but the ones that did display a dexterity with foul-mouthed language. They are a window into a different time — a rare look, in the words of historian Christopher Hilliard, at the “tangles of devotion and resentment, desire and manipulation” concealed under a working-class neighborhood’s genteel demeanor.
Mystery, tension, gossip and humor defined the Littlehampton scandal, but you wouldn’t be able to tell from Thea Sharrock’s odd screen translation. Wicked Little Letters, which premiered at the Toronto Film Festival, takes a one-note farcical approach to this slice of history, a peculiar move that deserts its formidable cast and squanders its thrilling premise.
Wicked Little Letters
The Bottom Line
A forced farce.
Two years after The Lost Daughter, Olivia Colman and Jessie Buckley reunite as the women at the center of this slanderous mystery. Colman plays Edith Swan, a quiet and repressed eldest daughter who represents a fading feminine respectability politics. (Wicked Little Letters is set in the throes of the suffrage movement.) The actress’ portrayal of a pious woman who still lives with her parents (played by Timothy Spall and Gemma Jones) depends on severe pouts and a stiff posture. Her mannered persona opposes that of Buckley, who plays fast-talking and fiercely independent émigrée Rose.
Rose has recently moved into the house neighboring Edith’s and, initially, the two women strike up a friendship. The single mother from Ireland fascinates Edith, a devout Englishwoman whose grandest excursions are to Sunday service. Here, again, politics matter: Wicked Little Letters takes place on the heels of the Irish War of Independence; the townspeople’s mistrust of Rose goes deeper than her gender.
The relationship between Rose and Edith consists of run-ins and light conversation. Edith tries to evangelize to Rose, convinced she can save the wayward migrant’s soul. But there’s also a hint of fascination, adoration even: Edith could never be as brash, confrontational or vocal as Rose. The quest to save Rose gets tangled in a desire to be her too.
Wicked Little Letters tries to give its scandalous premise a feminist bent by underscoring the difference between the two women. But Jonny Sweet’s screenplay never moves beyond a shallow #girlboss energy, which blunts and tempers the film’s impact. Sweet also attempts to frame the events in Littlehampton as the stuff of dark comedy, but there’s no bite to his one-note telling of the story.
The film opens with Edith receiving another in what’s been a series of letters filled with creative insults. Fed up with the harassment, the Swans file a police complaint. The main officers, a bumbling duo played by Hugh Skinner and Paul Chahidi, vow to arrest Rose, whom they believe to be the culprit. There’s no evidence that Rose is the letter writer, but when Gladys (a delightful Anjana Vasan), the only woman on the force, tries to open a real investigation, she is unceremoniously ignored.
Most of the jokes in Wicked Little Letters revolve around the struggles of women in the workplace, the foul nature of the letters and British people cursing and insulting one another. The comical tone rubs up, often awkwardly, against the more serious themes the film introduces about repression and misogyny. Edith’s relationship with her family becomes a secondary narrative thread that tries, with some success, to shed light on her severity. Her father (Spall) is a tyrant who polices his wife and his daughter’s behavior. There are scenes that could have been harrowing — especially considering the dramatic skills of Spall and Colman — that land instead with an odd thud.
Indeed, Wicked Little Letters swerves between comedy and tragedy without ever hitting its stride. The movie is at its best when it doesn’t strain to turn every moment into a joke, instead letting the story breathe a bit. Colman and Buckley are typically strong, while Vasan delivers her lines in a hilarious deadpan, reminiscent of her work on We Are Lady Parts. But it’s an unflattering reflection on the film that not even this cast can sustain our interest in the dramas of Littlehampton.
Full credits
Venue: Toronto International Film Festival (Special Presentations) Production companies: StudioCanal, Film4, Blueprint Pictures, South of the River Pictures, People Person Pictures Cast: Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Timothy Spall, Anjana Vasan Director: Thea Sharrock Screenwriter: Jonny Sweet Producers: Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin, Ed Sinclair, Olivia Colman, Jo Wallett Executive producers: Anna Marsh, Ron Halpern, Joe Naftalin, Ollie Madden, Daniel Battsek, Farhana Bhula, Diarmuid McKeown, Ben Knight, Thomas Carver, Jonny Sweet, Simon Bird Cinematographer: Ben Davis Production designer: Cristina Casali Costume designer: Charlotte Walter Editor: Melanie Ann Oliver Composer: Isobel Waller-Bridge Casting director: Jina Jay Sales: StudioCanal
1 hour 42 minutes
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Kristen Welker’s Meet the Pressdebut was focused on her interview with former president Donald Trump, and their sit-down, his first with a major broadcast network since leaving office, was pretty much what you would expect.
Welker tried, successfully at points, to make news and also to counter him on certain key facts. There were several moments that will likely prove important to his criminal indictments, as well as his presidential campaign on issues like abortion.
But interviewing Trump is perhaps a greater challenge and even risk for news outlets now than it was in 2016 or even 2020, as he has hardened in his determination to churn out long-debunked claims, to try to divert attention, to obfuscate and deflect. As The New York Times’s Peter Baker told Welker later in the broadcast, “He’s just a bulldozer shoveling falsehoods and lies throughout your interview and you are fact-checking him all along the way, but he is creating a different reality that has been successful for him so far in leading the Republican nomination fight.”
One of the most frequent — and consequential for the coming election year — is Trump’s claim that Special Counsel Jack Smith’s criminal indictments against him are politically motivated, ordered up by President Joe Biden.
“They saw this happening, and went to the attorney general of the United States, and he told them, ‘Indict Trump,’” Trump told Welker at one point, one of several moments when he referred to them as “Biden indictments.”
“There is just no evidence of that, Mr. President,” Welker said to him.
Perhaps aware of the difficulty of matching every Trump claim with a fact check, Welker interspersed the pre-taped interview with “context,” elaborating with viewers later, “Former President Trump referred to the federal indictments against him as Biden indictments. The indictments have been charged by a special counsel. And according to the White House, President Biden has not spoken to the attorney general about that, and the White House found out about them from news reports.”
Yet in this case, the context goes beyond just what the White House says. Trump’s claim that the indictments were at the behest of Biden, repeated by his allies and others in the GOP field, seems to be based entirely on the fact that they are happening under Biden’s watch, or that Biden has has embellished facts in the past. (At one point Trump claimed that Biden has lied about his golf handicap.)
But there’s no evidence that Biden called up, emailed or even spoke to Attorney General Merrick Garland or to Smith about the case, as Baker noted later in the show. Smith on Friday asked a federal judge to place restrictions on what Trump can say about the case, arguing that it prejudices the jury pool and is “substantially likely to undermine confidence in the justice system.”
NBC News’s announcement that Trump would be Welker’s first guest drew a social media backlash, as a ratings-getting gimmick that platforms someone who sought to remain in power even after he lost the 2020 election, and who has called for the “termination” of provisions in the U.S. Constitution.
The network has defended its decision by noting its newsworthiness, as he is the leading contender for the GOP nomination. NBC News also was quick to note was that this would be pre-taped and not before a live audience, differing from the CNN town hall with Trump that drew criticism, from inside and outside the cable network, that it played out like a rally. In addition to broadcasting an edited interview with moments of context, NBC News also did a fact check on its website.
That said, Welker’s sit down still underscored the vexing challenges of interviewing him.
Welker’s strategy in the interview appeared to be to bypass some of Trump’s oft-repeated claims and instead elicit other answers.
That was apparent when Welker asked Trump about why he ignored lawyers in his administration, who told him that his election challenges were over, and instead turned to outside lawyers.
“They turn out to be RINOs, or they turn out to be not so good,” he said. “In many cases I didn’t respect them. But I did respect others. I respected many others that said the election was rigged.”
Welker then asked, “You called some of your outside lawyers, you said they had crazy theories. Why were you listening to them? Were you listening to them because they were telling you what you wanted to hear?”
Trump responded, “You know who I listen to? Myself. I saw what happened. I wanted that election, and I thought that the election was over at 10 o’clock in the evening.”
Trump then tried shift the focus to books “that were written on how the election was rigged,” but Welker pressed him. “Just to be clear, were you listening to your lawyers’ advice, or were you listening to your own instincts?”
Trump continued to divert to his claim that the “election was rigged,” and to a book by Mollie Hemingway, but Welker pressed him further.
“Were you calling the shots, though, Mr. President, unfortunately?” Welker said.
“As to whether or not I believed it was rigged? Oh sure,” Trump said.
“It was my decision,” he finally said. “But I listened to some people.”
The exchange may undermine a defense by Trump’s attorneys, who have been leaning into the idea that he was relying on legal advice as he pursued efforts to overturn the election results.
At other moments, the former president repeated a long-debunked claim that Nancy Pelosi was “responsible” for the January 6th attack, eliciting another moment for Welker to point out Trump’s authority as commander in chief and to later provide context. “Of course it’s unreasonable to blame former Speaker Pelosi or lawmakers on Capitol Hill for what happened that day,” Welker told viewers. At another moment, Trump was silent when Welker asked him what he was doing as the Capitol attack unfolded.
“Were you in the dining room watching TV?” she asked.
“I’m not going to tell you,” Trump responded.
His non-answer was telling in itself. And in the months ahead, as Trump is willing to step out of the conservative media comfort zone, other news outlets likely will make their own efforts at a sit down. It’s the accountability function of journalism in the midst of a presidential campaign. But amid those lofty goals, his choice as Welker’s first Meet the Press guest shows that he remains a mighty media temptation.
Zareen has entered into an agreement with the event management company for participating in a function on the occasion of a religious festival in the city.
(Photo Credits: Instagram)
An arrest warrant has also been issued against the former manager of the actress with whom the event management company coordinated in the matter, a city police official aware of the development said
A court in Kolkata on Sunday issued an arrest warrant against Bollywood actress Zareen Khan on charges of cheating a city-based event management company way back in 2018.
The arrest warrant has been issued following the charge sheet filed by the investigating officer in the complaint filed against her by the event management company for not appearing for a show scheduled in Kolkata in 2018 despite being paid Rs 12 lakh in advance for her appearance fees.
An arrest warrant has also been issued against the former manager of the actress with whom the event management company coordinated in the matter, a city police official aware of the development said.
Zareen has entered into an agreement with the event management company for participating in a function on the occasion of a religious festival in the city.
It is learnt that the actress ignored notices one after another for appearance at the court. Finally the court issued the arrest warrant against her.
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – IANS)
In her own cheerfully chaotic way, the former child star-turned-quirky daytime host has shown the power of a carefully crafted celebrity narrative — and the ease with which even the most convincing comeback story can fall apart.
On Sunday, after a week of mounting backlash over her decision to go back into production on her daytime talk show, which employs members of the Writers Guild of America who are currently on strike, Barrymore issued the latest in a series of statements on Instagram.
This time, as if to acknowledge the damage the preceding days had caused her reputation, she announced that “The Drew Barrymore Show” would “pause the show’s premiere” until after the strike is over. (CBS Media Ventures, which produces the show, confirmed that it would also halt production.)
“I have no words to express my deepest apologies to anyone I have hurt and, of course, to our incredible team who works on the show and has made it what it is today,” Barrymore wrote. “We really tried to find our way forward. And I truly hope for a resolution for the entire industry very soon.”
That “way forward” was, to say the least, a winding one — a week from PR hell that began Sept. 10, when she announced that she was resuming production on her daytime talk show amid the ongoing strike by the WGA.
“I want to be there to provide what writers do so well, which is a way to bring us together or help us make sense of the human experience,” she wrote in the initial post, which has since been deleted. “I hope for a resolve for everyone as soon as possible. We have navigated difficult times since we first came on air. And so I take a step forward to start season 4 once again with an astute humility.”
The statement, with awkward and so-very-Drew phrases like “an astute humility,” demonstrated the value of professional writers.
It also prompted a swift and ferocious backlash against a freakishly resilient star who endured so much scrutiny during her turbulent childhood and rebellious adolescence that, as an adult, she has largely floated above criticism, seeming almost immune to damaging scandal.
That is, until now.
After the Sept. 10 announcement, the WGA immediately set up a picket line outside the studio in Manhattan. Audience members wearing WGA pins were kicked out of a taping. The National Book Foundation announced that it had rescinded Barrymore’s invitation to host the group’s annual awards ceremony. “Our commitment is to ensure that the focus of the Awards remains on celebrating writers and books,” the group said in a statement. On the platform formerly known as Twitter, professional writers piled on Barrymore with a kind of glee formerly reserved for Warner Bros. Discovery Chief Executive David Zaslav.
Even the Onion weighed in with the tongue-in-cheek headline, “Drew Barrymore Opens GM Assembly Plant Amid Impending Autoworker Strike.” When your once-beloved name becomes so synonymous with “scab” that it can be used in effective satire, you’re probably doing something wrong.
If the cast and writers of “Saturday Night Live” weren’t also on strike, Chloe Fineman would surely be prepping a Barrymore-themed sketch for the next episode.
In the video — filmed against a rustic, ropy wall hanging in what appears to be the primary bedroom of her Hamptons home — Barrymore apologized to writers and to unions, but doubled down on her decision, framing it as yet another hardship she has had to face in the public eye.
“I’ve been through so many ups and downs in my life,” she said. “And this is one of them.”
Barrymore’s video, with its strategically modest mise-en-scène and overwrought delivery, instantly invited comparisons to the disastrous pseudo-apology that Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher posted to Instagram last week for writing letters in support of convicted rapist Danny Masterson.
By Friday evening, as peers including Bradley Whitford and Alyssa Milano spoke out against her, Barrymore had already taken the video down.
As a result of these missteps, Barrymore managed to squander much of the goodwill she stockpiled over more than four decades in the business, including three years as a growing force in daytime TV. With a few ill-advised social media posts, the savvy producer of hits like “Charlie’s Angels” punctured her carefully honed image as an endearing kook and excruciatingly sincere Hollywood survivor who learned to embrace her eccentricities rather than let the industry wring them out of her. Fans were left to wonder whether America’s adorkable sweetheart was just doing a bit the whole time.
Drew Barrymore earlier this year.
(Kevin Wolf / Associated Press)
Some have wondered why Barrymore has seemingly been singled out for such fierce criticism when other shows have gone back into production while the strike endures, including “Real Time With Bill Maher.
Part of the anger stemmed from the fact that Barrymore opened the floodgates, enabling others to cross the picket lines with less scrutiny.Surely there were dozens of conversations in the last week along the lines of: “IfDrew did it, why can’t we?” By deciding to go back into production, Barrymore did as much to fire up striking writers as any unnamed executive quoted in Deadline.
Barrymore also justified her initial decision to resume production by saying that the show “is bigger than me” — an implicit nod to the many crew members on her payroll. But by her own admission, the show went dark before the strike began in May and was on a previously scheduled hiatus throughout the summer. The strike hadn’t disrupted her plans or caused months of unanticipated hardship for her employees — yet.
The truth is, we’ve come to expect this kind of behavior from Maher, a professional contrarian who delights in undermining liberal orthodoxies. Barrymore, on the other hand, is — or at least was — cherished by so many precisely because she hadn’t withered under pressure from Hollywood or let the ruthlessness of the industry turn her into another showbiz phony.
Barrymore’s entire brand is about authenticity, kindness and an earnestness so pure that it can melt the icy heart of the most committed cynic. (Just look at how much she enjoys rain!) She may have been born into dysfunctional showbiz royalty, but she wasn’t a creature of Hollywood. And viewers have been on her side — at least, those of us of a certain generation have — since she became an international celebrity at age 7.
When it comes to Barrymore, I’m reminded of the moment in “America’s Next Top Model” when Tyra Banks scolded a contestant for her underwhelming performance, which has now been immortalized as one of the internet’s favorite GIFs.
To paraphrase Tyra: I was rooting for you, Drew. We were all rooting for you, through every bad movie, every unfortunate haircut or lipstick choice, even through the short-lived marriage to Tom Green, which seemed weird at the time but was honestly kind of sweet in retrospect.
Her travails are well known. She was hosting “SNL” before she lost all her baby teeth, but Barrymore’s home life was a mess. She descended into drug and alcohol abuse and, by age 14, she was in rehab, considered a has-been in the industry.
But she started changing the narrative at 15, when she published an unflinching memoir, “Little Girl Lost,” which, it’s worth noting, was written with a professional author, Tony Gold.
She staged a comeback, starring in a string of projects that played up her bad-girl image, including “Poison Ivy” and — deep sigh — “The Amy Fisher Story.” She was subjected to the salivating misogyny and egregious double standards that were endemic to entertainment journalism of the era, portrayed as a dangerous Lolita type in magazine profiles. (Karina Longworth unpacks the madness around Barrymore in an excellent episode of her podcast, “You Must Remember This.”) Barrymore sometimes acted in ways that seemed to play up this caricature, flashing her breasts to David Letterman on TV, for instance. But she was young and free-spirited, and we were all just glad she was alive.
Once she reached her 20s and 30s, she moved away from edgy material and rebranded herself — yet again — as a wacky and highly bankable everywoman, starring in the romantic comedies “Never Been Kissed,” “The Wedding Singer” and the underrated classic “Music and Lyrics.”
She also branched out into producing and became a savvy Hollywood player who made fun but empowering female-centered projects like “Charlie’s Angels.” The name of her company, Flower Films, captured the sunny yet untamed image she was trying to cultivate, as did “Wildflower,” her second memoir.
Her latest career incarnation, as a divorced mom of two, lifestyle entrepreneur and daytime host, saw her apparently unrehearsed demeanor perfectly matched to the moment: “The Drew Barrymore Show” launched in September 2020, when COVID-19 was still raging, and through ratings were modest, her loopy, off-kilter approach to the format won her a devoted fan base. Barrymore interviewed actors in character as Josie Geller from “Never Been Kissed” and was known to roll around on the floor, or burst into tears when Steven Spielberg stopped by.
As Barrymore told The Times earlier this year, she’d taken a hiatus from acting for several years because the job wasn’t “emotionally available to me right now,” presumably because she was tired of being someone other than herself on camera. Network executive Elaine Bauer Brooks, who pitched Barrymore on the gig, recalled telling her that in daytime, “It’s not enough to just be well known — you need a certain relatability and warmth. When we met, I asked her: ‘Why do you think you can do this?’ And she said: ‘Because I am who you think I am.’”
Whether Barrymore’s decision to halt production and delay the season premiere will repair the damage of the last week remains to be seen. Her initial instinct to put her show’s survival ahead of striking writers may be forgiven but not forgotten, as it were.
Still, Barrymore does appear to have heeded — at least to an extent — the advice of Rosie O’Donnell, another actor-turned-daytime star. Over the weekend, O’Donnell took to Instagram, urging Barrymore to stop taping the show and offering some unsolicited PR advice: “Ask someone to craft you three declarative sentences. They should follow along these lines: I made an error. I apologize to the WGA for disrespecting the work of professional writers. I apologize to all union members who are withstanding real hardship as I live a life of luxury.”
In other words: time to bring in the professionals.
Times staff writer Christi Carras contributed to this report.
And speaking of Fox, they had a Gambit movie in development for many years that would’ve starred Channing Tatum in the titular role. However, after multiple failed starts and a lengthy stint in development hell that produced some intriguing storyboard art, the picture finally got the kibosh in 2019.
New Deadpool 3 Rumor Suggests a Channing Tatum Appearance
Marvel
A new update to the IMDb page for Marvel’s upcoming Deadpool 3 (via DeadpoolUpdate on X) seemingly indicated that the titular Merc with a Mouth’s third solo outing would include none other than Channing Tatum, presumably portraying Gambit.
Joel Adrien was added to the film’s crew page on IMDb as the stunt double for Channing Tatum.
Now, it’s very important to note that anyone who creates an account on the Internet Movie Database can make edits as they please, so this Tatum in Deadpool 3 business might not hold that much water.
However, well-known internet film scooper MyTimeToShineHello posted a message that “Channing Tatum has already filmed a cameo as Gambit for Deadpool 3” back in July. But as with any pre-release tidbit that originates on social media, that info should be taken with several grains of salt.
Is Gambit Really in Deadpool 3?
So, what’s the story with ol’ Remy LeBeau? Is he actually going to show up in the Marvel threequel?
It seems very much like a no-brainer for the studio to include him. Tatum was attached to play character for nearly a decade and to him, and to many of his fans, it was a sizable letdown that his version was left out in the cold after the Disney/Fox acquisition.
So, even though it’s not confirmed by any official sources, it feels very possible that Channing Tatum could indeed crop up as Gambit in Deadpool 3. This, however, remains to be seen, and it will likely stay that way until the film arrives in theaters considering Marvel’s famously tight-lipped approach to spoilers.
Marvel Studios’ Deadpool 3 is presently set to open on May 3, 2024, but could be subject to a pushback in the event that the WGA and SAG-AFTRA do not reach deals with the studios soon.
Sylvester Stallone expresses regret over the action film Cobra, feeling it was “half-baked” and could have been better if he had directed it himself.
At 77 years old, Stallone addresses the impracticality of returning as Rambo in another film, jokingly questioning if he would be fighting arthritis.
Stallone announces his departure from the Expendables franchise, expressing bittersweet feelings and passing the baton to Jason Statham. He acknowledges that the time for these adventures may be over.
Sylvester Stallone, the action star with a career spanning over four decades, has shared his regret regarding the action filmCobra. While the film was initially criticized, it managed to carve out a place in 1980s action cinema as a cult classic. Stallone’s journey to stardom began in 1976 with the groundbreaking Rocky. His talent extended beyond acting, as he took on the role of director for most of the Rocky franchise films.
Speaking at the Toronto International Film Festival (via JoBlo.com), Stallone revealed his remorse over Cobra. He admitted that the film felt “half-baked” and could have been significantly improved. What particularly haunts him is the missed opportunity to direct the film himself, as he believes it could have turned out differently if he had taken the helm.
“Cobra to me, was half-baked, I could have done better, but I wasn’t concentrating enough. I felt as though that’s something I should have directed, and I didn’t, and I regret that. That’s one thing about making movies, aside from watching your hairline recede, you go, ‘god, why didn’t I try harder?”
At 77 years old, Stallone is well aware of the limitations that come with age, particularly when it comes to playing action-heavy characters. During a recent appearance at the Toronto International Film Festival to promote Sly, Stallone addressed the possibility of returning as Rambo in another film. While there is some interest in Hollywood for a new Rambo sequel, Stallone humorously pointed out the impracticality of the idea at his age, asking, “What am I fighting, arthritis?”
In the upcoming Netflix documentary Sly, viewers will have the chance to take a deep dive into the life and career of Sylvester Stallone. For nearly half a century, he has remained a prominent figure in Hollywood, captivating audiences with his roles in iconic franchises. However, Sly promises to go beyond these well-known characters, offering an intimate portrait of the man behind the roles. The documentary paints a vivid picture of a Hollywood legend, exploring his journey as an Oscar-nominated actor, writer, director, and producer. It highlights that Stallone’s life is a story “made for the movies,” shedding light on the person who brought these unforgettable characters to life.
Stallone also previously made a heartfelt announcement while on the set of Expend4bles, revealing that the fourth installment of the series would mark his departure from the franchise. He expressed his bittersweet feelings about leaving a project he had been attached to for over a decade, dating back to its inception, and mentioned his readiness to pass the baton into the capable hands of Jason Statham, who has been his double act partner throughout the series.
“This will be my last day,” Stallone said while back in 2021. “I’m enjoying it, but it’s always bittersweet when something you’ve been so attached to – I guess since, well now it’s been about 12 years – and ready to pass the baton on to Jason in his capable hands.”
Despite the desire to revisit the characters, Stallone recognizes that the time for the adventures has likely come to an end, leaving fans with a legacy of action-packed films to remember.
The Pokemon Company and the Van Gogh Museum have announced an official collaboration.
A teaser video that was released this week shows Pikachu and Eevee running through a field of sunflowers, in a reference to one of Van Gogh’s signature paintings.
A drop of paint then lands on Pikachu’s head, as they look up to see the sky being reimagined as one of Van Gogh’s paintings.
The end of the trailer shows a version of Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, reimagined to feature the Pokemon Sunflora. Beyond this, neither The Pokemon Company nor The Van Gogh Museum has elaborated on what the collaboration will consist of, other than it will launch on September 28.
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This isn’t the first time that The Pokemon Company has collaborated with a famous museum. In 2018, Pokemon collaborated with the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum between October 27 and January 20, 2019.
During this time, visitors to the museum were able to purchase one of five promotional Pokemon Trading Card Game cards that featured characters drawn in the style of Munch’s The Scream.
These cards are highly sought after in the collector community due to their scarcity, and the fact they were only available during very limited periods. For example, the Pikachu Munch Promo card was available for one week, Japan’s Pokemon Week, which runs from December 10 until December 16.
According to the Trading Card price index Price Charting, the card is now worth roughly $670 (£540).
Soap star Billy Miller was remembered today by his daytime drama colleagues for his talent, great humor, and his warm and charming personality.
Miller died Friday at age 43 in Austin, Texas, with word just reaching the public today. He was a three-time Daytime Emmys winner, and appeared on “The Young and the Restless” and “General Hospital,” among many other shows.
Some of the reactions from social media:
“General Hospital” costar Nancy Lee Grahn, posted her condolences. “So very sorry to hear this very sad and unexpected news. I would like very much for my beloved General Hospital to have no more of it. #RIPBillyMiller“
Eileen Davidson of Y&R remembered Miller’s humor. “I’m so sad to hear of Billy Miller’s passing. His infectious charm and warmth left lasting impressions on all of us who were lucky enough to have him in our lives. I’m gonna miss that mischievous smile. Love you Billy.”
Jason Thompson, who took over the role of Billy Abbott three years after Miller’s exit: “I’m so sorry and saddened to hear about my friend, Billy Miller. Heartbreaking. He was funny, had a great laugh and very talented. Light and love to his family and friends.”
The Bold and the Beautiful head writer Bradley Bell released a statement. “Billy Miller was a great man and a gifted actor. Billy left an indelible mark on The Young and the Restless with his brilliant portrayal of Billy Abbott. He will be sorely missed.”
Stephen Nichols starred opposite Miller on “The Young and the Restless” recalled Miller’s warmth. “Oh, Billy Miller. I so enjoyed his fun-loving spirit and immense talent. We had some good times. This is a great loss. Rest peacefully. Love to his family and all who loved him.”
“General Hospital” costar Kathleen Gati said, “I am beyond sad to hear this tragic news.#BillyMiller was always so kind, professional and a wonderfully talented colleague @GeneralHospital Deepest condolences to his family, friends and fans.”
Actor Michael Muhney of Y&R saluted his fellow statesman. “Billy, My fellow Texas brother. You lit up every room with your smile. Your quiet intensity onscreen was second only to your gentle kindness and genuine care in private.”
I always wanted to work with Billy Miller. I never met him but I respected his work as an artist. Tremendously talented. ??? https://t.co/MbJRXgt62T
Michelle Wolf infamously roasted Sarah Huckabee Sanders and other members of the GOP so hard at the 2018 White House Correspondents’ Dinner that journalists on both sides were pissed off. It’s no surprise, then, that the comedian—who recently released a new Netflix special called It’s Great To Be Here—is not exactly in the business of being swayed by other people’s opinions.
Roseanne doesn’t want to be lumped in with Louis CK and Chappelle
In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, Wolf was asked about controversial comics Dave Chappelle and Louis C.K., neither of whom she shied away from discussing.
Chappelle—who has been in hot water multiple times but most notably for his transphobic jokes in 2021 special The Closer—is actually a close personal friend of Wolf’s, she said—close enough, in fact, for her to live with him and his family in their Ohio home for the better part of a year during the pandemic. “Dave is the kindest, most generous person I know. And he’s also great at comedy,” she said, explaining that the standups would often do “cornfield shows” together in 2020. When the interviewer pressed her on Chappelle’s views, Wolf responded:
I think people really miss a lot of what he’s saying. He says it very clearly in his one special: “Why was it easier for Caitlyn Jenner to change her gender than it was for Cassius Clay to change his name?” I think that spells it out right there. He wants everyone to be able to live the way they want to live, including Black people. Time and time again we see that, as a country, we literally don’t want Black people to live and we don’t do anything about it. They try to act like Dave is some sort of villain when he’s not. He’s a hero. He’s fighting for his people.
Wolf is also critical of the #MeToo movement in her special, calling it “the worst-run movement I’ve ever seen,” because, as she explained to RS, “I think it was a very black-and-white approach that they took, when in fact it was an incredibly gray subject matter that required a lot of conversations that we literally weren’t allowed to have.” Her following comments on Louis C.K. probably fall into that bucket.
“Louis, I feel, is the only one who actually admitted to anything or apologized. And we can go back and forth about how good or bad his apology was, but I don’t think you’re ever going to have an apology that everyone is going to be happy with,” she said. “He’s the only one who did that, and it seems like he got punished the most for it… He apologized and wants to make things better, and instead people were like, ‘No, you can’t. There’s no way for you to make things better unless you do this and this.’ But nobody said what ‘this and this’ was. Nobody said what he could do because nobody agreed on what he could do.”
You can read Wolf’s full Rolling Stone interview here.
Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” has generated $626 million at the domestic box office, overtaking Marvel’s 2012 blockbuster “The Avengers” ($623 million) as the 11th-highest grossing release in history.
In order to crack the top 10, “Barbie” will need to outpace 2015’s “Jurassic World” (No. 10 with $653 million), “Titanic” (No. 9 with $674 million), “Avengers: Infinity War” (No. 8 with $678 million) and “Avatar: The Way of Water” (No. 7 with $684 million). None of these ticket sales were adjusted for inflation.
“Barbie” is already the highest grossing domestic release of the year. The cotton candy-colored behemoth has earned $1.4 billion globally and, weeks ago, surpassed “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” ($1.35 billion) as the biggest worldwide release of 2023. It’s the 14th-biggest global release of all time, trailing “Frozen II” ($1.453 billion) and “Top Gun: Maverick” ($1.495 billion).
The plastic, fantastic “Barbie” began its record-breaking theatrical run in July, landing the biggest debut of the year ($162 million). It remained the No. 1 movie for four consecutive weekends and in the top five for more than two months. “Barbie” also landed the biggest opening weekend for a film directed by a woman and became the highest-grossing movie directed solely by a woman. Gerwig co-wrote the screenplay with Noah Baumbach.
Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling play the stereotypical versions of Barbie and Ken, who leave behind their seemingly perfect reality to confront the highs and lows of life in the real world. America Ferrera, Issa Rae, Will Ferrell, Kate McKinnon, Simu Liu and Michael Cera round out the cast.
SZA was originally in talks to perform at MTV’s VMAs this year, turn outs—until the awards show decided that the bestselling SOS artist didn’t qualify as a potential Artist Of The Year. This is per THR, which talked to manager Terrence Henderson about his decision to pull SZA’s performance from the annual awards show, calling her non-inclusion in its Artist Of The Year category “disrespectful.”
Michael Jai White on “Outlaw Johnny Black” and his favorite Western movie
“Obviously, she had one of the best years, if not the best year, of any artist at this point,” Henderson told press. “I don’t see why she wouldn’t be nominated for artist of the year. It just really didn’t make any sense to me. It’s disrespectful.” He also noted that some of the artists who were nominated—Karol G, Nicki Minaj, Beyoncé, Doja Cat, Shakira, and Taylor Swift, who ultimately won—“Were even off-cycle. They didn’t have an album out. I mean, no disrespect to them or anybody else; everybody’s great and all of that, but still, you can’t discredit what SOS has done and is currently doing.” (In fact, of the artists nominated, only Karol G and Swift have put out albums in the last 12 months; Minaj and Doja Cat are both expected to release new albums before the year is out, while Shakira and Beyoncé have confined themselves to singles.)
Henderson says tensions broke out while SZA’s team was negotiating for a potential performance at the show, which went forward, sans SZA, on September 12. According to the manager, MTV “Couldn’t give a clear answer as to why she wasn’t [nominated]. It was just, ‘Well, she’s nominated for all these other [awards].’” (SZA was nominated for Video Of The Year, Song Of The Year, Best R&B, Best Direction, Best Art Direction, and Best Editing at the show, winning only for Best R&B for SOS’s “Shirt”—which she wasn’t in attendance to accept.)
Noting that his client is “a very sweet person,” Henderson made it clear that the decision to pull out of the show was his call. “I figured, why go perform and do this if she’s not going to be respected to the highest level? So, it was my call to actually pull out of the performance.” Meanwhile, SZA and her entire team will have to merely content themselves with the fact that SOS, released in December of 2022, has been really, ridiculously successful: The album sat at the top of the Billboard album charts for a decent chunk of the year, and its single “Kill Bill” topped the publication’s Hot 100 list.
Miller’s manager confirmed the news to Variety in a statement on Sunday, which would’ve marked the actor’s 44th birthday.
“The actor was struggling with manic depression when he died,” the statement reads.
Miller was born on Sept. 17, 1979, and grew up in Grand Prairie, Texas. Throughout his childhood, he battled with Tarsal coalition, a rare condition that affected the cartilage in his ankles.
His break into the entertainment industry came when he was signed as a model to Wilhelmina, going on to play Richie Novak for a short while in the soap opera “All My Children.” Then, Miller would move over to “The Young and the Restless” to take over the role of Billy Abbott.
Miller’s role on “The Young and the Restless” landed him three Daytime Emmys, including two for outstanding supporting actor in a drama series and outstanding lead actor in a drama series. He exited the soap in 2014 and joined “General Hospital.”
Miller played the roles of Jason Morgan and Drew Cain on “General Hospital,” starring as a series regular until 2019 and then joining “Suits” for five episodes.
His additional credits include appearances on “NCIS,” “The Rookie,” “Truth Be Told,” “Major Crimes,” “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” “Castle” and “Enormous.” He was also featured in Clint Eastwood’s 2014 war drama “American Sniper” and Craig Brewer’s 2016 “Urban Cowboy” TV movie drama, which starred Nathalie Kelley.
Miller is survived by his mother Patricia, sister Megan, brother-in-law Ronnie, nephew Grayson and niece Charley.
Tens of thousands of people, including students, retirees, scientists, politicians and celebrities, began to fill the streets of Midtown Manhattan on Sunday to demand that world leaders quickly pivot away from the fossil fuels that are dangerously heating up the planet.
Sunday’s demonstrations were part of a weekend of large peaceful protests in Germany, England, Senegal, South Korea, India and elsewhere, mostly led by young people.
“Rather than taking meaningful climate action, the government is supporting the fossil fuel industry to prioritize corporate interests and groups of power,” said Borim Kim, who helped organize the event in Samcheok, South Korea, where protesters marched along a road next to coal trucks and stood in front of the city’s newest coal-fired power plant.
“Let’s end fossil fuels,” they chanted in Korean, according to Ms. Kim. “We can still do it.”
The climate protests, the largest since before the Covid-19 pandemic, come on the heels of the hottest summer on record, exacerbated by planetary warming, and alongside record profits for oil and gas companies.
And they signal the flashpoint looming over the United Nations’ meetings in New York this week and climate talks scheduled for November in the United Arab Emirates. Activists are demanding that coal, oil and gas remain in the ground while industry leaders say they can continue to drill while cleaning up the pollution that fossil fuels produce.
“In order to solve the climate crisis, we have to stop our reliance on fossil fuels,” said Emma Buretta, 17, a New York City high school student and an organizer with the Fridays for Future movement. “A lot of previous climate marches haven’t focused on that.”
The protests indicate a shift in message and tone from climate advocates, who have grown increasingly frustrated at the continued expansion of fossil fuel projects alongside promises by oil and gas companies to use emerging and often costly technologies to capture carbon dioxide from the air and bury it underground.
According to scientific models as well as projections by the International Energy Agency, nations must stop new oil, gas and coal projects if the world is to stay within relatively safe levels of atmospheric warming.
“We know there can be no new drilling if we want a habitable world, yet politicians in these countries are still bowing to the demands of this profiteering industry that will push us past critical climate limits if allowed,” said Lauren MacDonald, a British activist campaigning to stop the approval of a new oil and gas field, called Rosebank, in the North Atlantic.
Activists are especially angry that this year’s U.N. climate negotiations are set to take place in the United Arab Emirates, a leading oil-producing state, and will be overseen by Sultan al-Jaber, head of the Emirati state-owned oil giant, ADNOC.
But he is not the only target of the activists’ ire. They are also keen to send a pointed message to President Biden as he begins his push for re-election: Do more if you want our votes.
The Biden administration has shepherded through the United States’ most ambitious climate law and is working to transition the country to wind, solar and other renewable energies.
But the United States has also continued to approve permits for new oil and gas drilling. That has enraged many of Mr. Biden’s traditional supporters, as well as politicians on the left flank of the Democratic Party, who want him to declare a climate emergency and block any new fossil fuel production. A few lawmakers from the party’s progressive wing are scheduled to speak Sunday afternoon at a rally at the end of the march.
“Just this year, President Biden has already approved the Mountain Valley Pipeline, the Willow project, and so many other mega projects,” said Jean Su of the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group, at a news conference before the start of Sunday’s march. “Scientists have said that the only way we can actually stop the tragedies that we are feeling right now is to stop the expansion and phase out. So we’re here today to tell our leaders loud and clear you need to phase out fossil fuels.”
At the same time, climate protests are becoming more confrontational, with civil disobedience actions that invite arrest. Activists have thrown pies at glass-covered paintings, disrupted a U.S. Open tennis match and glued themselves to oil company buildings.
Civil disobedience actions are planned for Monday in Lower Manhattan.
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