Categories
Widget Image
Trending
Recent Posts
Tuesday, Oct 20th, 2026
HomeStandard Blog Whole Post (Page 869)

As the Hollywood writers’ and actors’ strike continues, the latest star to go public with a small residual cheque is actor William Stanford Davis.

The 71-year-old star of Abbott Elementary, who was upped to a series regular last year, took to social media at the weekend to reveal he had received a recent payment for three cents, for his role in an unnamed show – holding his cheque up to the camera to demonstrate.

In his video, Davis said:

“I’ve been a member of the Screen Actor’s Guild for 32 years, and for those 32 years, my wages haven’t increased at all. I want to give you an example of what a residual cheque looks like. I showed this to my brother and he fell over laughing… it ain’t f**king funny.

The amount? Exactly three cents.

“That’s a residual cheque,. I’m not going to say who produced it, because I can’t tell you who these cheap motherf***ers are. But anyway, I’m standing in solidarity with the writers, and we’re going to be on strike until we get what we need to make a living.”

In the same video, Davis revealed another cheque – this one for five cents.

“You see that? Can you believe that? That’s [five] cents. The postage, the paper, everything costs more than that. That’s what they think of us as actors. This is why we’re on strike for better wages, for better residuals [and] for a piece of the subscription and to not give in to AI.”

Davis is not the first actor to speak out about the struggle of living on residual payments for work in successful shows. This is Us star Mandy Moore spoke out last week to say she had sometimes received cheques for “very tiny [amounts], like 81-cent cheques,” and several members of the cast of Orange is the New Black said they had had to keep their day jobs while starring in one of the world’s most popular TV series.

Moore spoke from the picket line last week, saying: “We’re in incredibly fortunate positions as working actors having been on shows that found tremendous success in one way or another … but many actors in our position for years before us were able to live off of residuals or at least pay their bills.”

Source link

As the Hollywood writers’ and actors’ strike

The patient was a 39-year-old woman who had come to the emergency department at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. Her left knee had been hurting for several days. The day before, she had a fever of 102 degrees. It was gone now, but she still had chills. And her knee was red and swollen.

What was the diagnosis?

On a recent steamy Friday, Dr. Megan Landon, a medical resident, posed this real case to a room full of medical students and residents. They were gathered to learn a skill that can be devilishly tricky to teach — how to think like a doctor.

“Doctors are terrible at teaching other doctors how we think,” said Dr. Adam Rodman, an internist, a medical historian and an organizer of the event at Beth Israel Deaconess.

But this time, they could call on an expert for help in reaching a diagnosis — GPT-4, the latest version of a chatbot released by the company OpenAI.

Artificial intelligence is transforming many aspects of the practice of medicine, and some medical professionals are using these tools to help them with diagnosis. Doctors at Beth Israel Deaconess, a teaching hospital affiliated with Harvard Medical School, decided to explore how chatbots could be used — and misused — in training future doctors.

Instructors like Dr. Rodman hope that medical students can turn to GPT-4 and other chatbots for something similar to what doctors call a curbside consult — when they pull a colleague aside and ask for an opinion about a difficult case. The idea is to use a chatbot in the same way that doctors turn to each other for suggestions and insights.

For more than a century, doctors have been portrayed like detectives who gather clues and use them to find the culprit. But experienced doctors actually use a different method — pattern recognition — to figure out what is wrong. In medicine, it’s called an illness script: signs, symptoms and test results that doctors put together to tell a coherent story based on similar cases they know about or have seen themselves.

If the illness script doesn’t help, Dr. Rodman said, doctors turn to other strategies, like assigning probabilities to various diagnoses that might fit.

Researchers have tried for more than half a century to design computer programs to make medical diagnoses, but nothing has really succeeded.

Physicians say that GPT-4 is different. “It will create something that is remarkably similar to an illness script,” Dr. Rodman said. In that way, he added, “it is fundamentally different than a search engine.”

Dr. Rodman and other doctors at Beth Israel Deaconess have asked GPT-4 for possible diagnoses in difficult cases. In a study released last month in the medical journal JAMA, they found that it did better than most doctors on weekly diagnostic challenges published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

But, they learned, there is an art to using the program, and there are pitfalls.

Dr. Christopher Smith, the director of the internal medicine residency program at the medical center, said that medical students and residents “are definitely using it.” But, he added, “whether they are learning anything is an open question.”

The concern is that they might rely on A.I. to make diagnoses in the same way they would rely on a calculator on their phones to do a math problem. That, Dr. Smith said, is dangerous.

Learning, he said, involves trying to figure things out: “That’s how we retain stuff. Part of learning is the struggle. If you outsource learning to GPT, that struggle is gone.”

At the meeting, students and residents broke up into groups and tried to figure out what was wrong with the patient with the swollen knee. They then turned to GPT-4.

The groups tried different approaches.

One used GPT-4 to do an internet search, similar to the way one would use Google. The chatbot spat out a list of possible diagnoses, including trauma. But when the group members asked it to explain its reasoning, the bot was disappointing, explaining its choice by stating, “Trauma is a common cause of knee injury.”

Another group thought of possible hypotheses and asked GPT-4 to check on them. The chatbot’s list lined up with that of the group: infections, including Lyme disease; arthritis, including gout, a type of arthritis that involves crystals in joints; and trauma.

GPT-4 added rheumatoid arthritis to the top possibilities, though it was not high on the group’s list. Gout, instructors later told the group, was improbable for this patient because she was young and female. And rheumatoid arthritis could probably be ruled out because only one joint was inflamed, and for only a couple of days.

As a curbside consult, GPT-4 seemed to pass the test or, at least, to agree with the students and residents. But in this exercise, it offered no insights, and no illness script.

One reason might be that the students and residents used the bot more like a search engine than a curbside consult.

To use the bot correctly, the instructors said, they would need to start by telling GPT-4 something like, “You are a doctor seeing a 39-year-old woman with knee pain.” Then, they would need to list her symptoms before asking for a diagnosis and following up with questions about the bot’s reasoning, the way they would with a medical colleague.

That, the instructors said, is a way to exploit the power of GPT-4. But it is also crucial to recognize that chatbots can make mistakes and “hallucinate” — provide answers with no basis in fact. Using them requires knowing when it is incorrect.

“It’s not wrong to use these tools,” said Dr. Byron Crowe, an internal medicine physician at the hospital. “You just have to use them in the right way.”

He gave the group an analogy.

“Pilots use GPS,” Dr. Crowe said. But, he added, airlines “have a very high standard for reliability.” In medicine, he said, using chatbots “is very tempting,” but the same high standards should apply.

“It’s a great thought partner, but it doesn’t replace deep mental expertise,” he said.

As the session ended, the instructors revealed the true reason for the patient’s swollen knee.

It turned out to be a possibility that every group had considered, and that GPT-4 had proposed.

She had Lyme disease.

Olivia Allison contributed reporting.

Source link

The patient was a 39-year-old woman who

Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, SAG-AFTRA’s national executive director and chief negotiator, dismissed a studio rebuttal of what the guild says are the primary disagreements that led to a strike.

“It’s just not true,” he told TheWrap after taking part in a panel on AI at San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday.

And specifically, regarding a claim by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) that it had in fact made robust offers to address the guild’s concerns about the use of AI in entertainment, Crabtree-Ireland was blunt: “That is not in any way what they offered.”

Among its reasons for going on strike, SAG-AFTRA says that studios, among other things, demanded the right to scan background actors (extras) using AI and retain rights to their likeness in perpetuity, including to replace real background actors, without further compensation. Guild leaders also say that AMPTP refused to agree to meaningful protections for actors against use of AI to replace them.

In its rebuttal, released Friday afternoon, (read it here), AMPTP denied it made any such demand regarding background actors, and asserted it had offered guarantees of consent, the right to bargain separately for use of digital replicas, and of full transparency for how such replicas would be used.

Crabtree-Ireland said he isn’t ready to respond to every part of the studios’ rebuttal, adding that a “team of people” is currently examining the AMPTP statement.

“But let me just say this,” he said. “As far as background performers go, you know, and this is actually something you can apply to many of the things that they’re saying, the devil is in the details.”

“So when they say, ‘Oh, yes, we agree that there should be consent.’ OK, technically, that is true. But what they agreed to was that there should be consent at the time of initial employment, right?” Crabtree-Ireland continued. “And what that actually means in the real world of our members is you have a background actor, let’s say, who is going to be hired to work on a project, [and] that the company says, ‘We’re gonna hire you to work on this project for a day, and you’ll be digitally scanned.’”

“And if the background actor says, ‘Well, what if I don’t want to sign consent to have this digital scan that you can keep in use forever?’ ‘Then we won’t hire you.’” Crabtree-Ireland added.

“So that’s the kind of consent that we’re talking about. And to me, that’s not real consent. And I don’t think our members think that’s real consent. What real consent would be is you scan the person if you use it only for the project that they’ve been engaged for,” Crabtree-Ireland said. “And if you ever want to use it again, in the future, you go back to them, you tell them what it’s going to be used for, you give them an opportunity to say yes or no, and you offer them compensation for that future use.”

“That is not in any way, what they offered. And if they’re trying to sort of parse words to make it seem like that, that’s just not true,” he declared.

In response to TheWrap’s request for comment, AMPTP said, “We stand by our rebuttal.”

For all of TheWrap’s strike coverage, click here. And for all our San Diego Comic-Con coverage, go here.

Source link

Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, SAG-AFTRA’s national executive director and

Summer is all about relaxing outside and soaking up the warmth of the sun. And it looks like even superstar actors aren’t immune to its charms. On July 9, Millie Bobby Brown dropped a picture of herself lounging by the pool in a white bikini. The young actress gave major summer vibes laying down while reading her debut novel Nineteen Steps. It was indeed a picture-perfect moment as she wore a cute pair of red-tinted sunglasses, showing off her diamond ring on a glam red manicure. Now weeks after that fashionable sun time, she has revealed her true poolside favorite.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

Only a few hours back, Millie Bobby Brown turned to her Instagram to post a new story. People who follow her on the platform might know that the teen has been regularly sharing glimpses of her weekends. In the latest post, she rolled out a picture of her morning favorite, aka Florence by Mills Coffee.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

The 19-year-old clicked a photo of the iced coffee in her brand tumbler sitting by the pool with the blue water flowing in the background. It is no wonder she is a big fan of coffee and her days do not begin with it, especially on weekends. Remember last month she let fans slide into her Sunday routine, sharing a similar picture and writing “peaceful morning”.

It seems she started this weekend sipping her favorite brew while diving into the pool of her home. Meanwhile, with this business venture, she has once again proved that age is just a number when one has the passion to do it.

Millie Bobby Brown brushes her shoulders with big names who ventured into the coffee business

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

It might be surprising for many people that Millie Bobby Brown is not the first celebrity to make coffee. But she might be the youngest to join the ranks of celebrities exploring the coffee industry. It includes the immensely famous rapper Snoop Dogg and Titanic’s Leonardo DiCaprio. Just two months before, Dogg launched his premium coffee brand named INDOxyz. This idea came out during his trip to his native country, Indonesia.

As for the Oscar winner, DiCaprio started his coffee brand named Lyon in 2012, collaborating with La Colombe. The actor started this company intending to donate all profits towards environmental protection and disaster relief through DiCaprio’s Foundation. On the sale of every coffee bean package, they donate $2 to the ACLU.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

What do you think about her poolside favorite? Drop your comments below!

Source link

Summer is all about relaxing outside and

Stream it on Tubi.

A friend recently showed me some photos from a party I was at in the ’90s; in one, I’m smiling with another friend and his boyfriend. Yet, I have no memory of the boyfriend despite the evidence. Could this stranger have been the victim of a demon who made him, and my memory of him, vanish? That’s the macabre premise of this unnerving, spooky and elegantly directed film from the writer-director Andy Mitton.

Monique (Gabby Beans) goes to stay with and care for an old friend, Mavis (Emily Davis), who says she suffers from waking nightmares in her sleep and a living nightmare by day, one we all remember: the Covid lockdown. When Monique starts having similar scary dreams, she and Mavis consult a demonologist who tells them the towering creature they’re seeing — who wears a plague doctor’s long-beaked mask — likes the pandemic because isolation is how he gets in people’s heads and makes them disappear. And they’re next.

Mitton’s movie is a poignant story about loneliness and fear disguised as a “Nightmare on Elm Street”-style movie about lurking contagion and a killer entity. Mitton limits his settings and trusts Beans and Davis, two magnetic New York stage actresses, to do their jobs, and the result is a naturalistic scary movie that delivers the creeps far more effectively than would a more unhinged interpretation of the material. Man, the ending broke my heart.

At a gas station in nowhere New Mexico, Jessica (Ashley Denise Robinson) bumps into her old friend Elena (Callie Hernandez), who’s living in a trailer after being involved in a horrible car accident. When Jessica reveals that she fled California to avoid a stalker — a former classmate named Kevin (Will Madden) — Elena offers her a place to stay. But then Kevin shows up looking like death, and Elena realizes that only she and her dopey friend Benny (Andy Faulkner) can ensure that Kevin disappears.

I hope the director-editor-cinematographer Pete Ohs doesn’t mind that I put his film in a horror column. Because while he directed this demented and funny cautionary tale about bad men, trauma and zombies — typical horror stuff — what he really made is an unclassifiable genre-hopper with a fiercely feminist heart. His cast gives wonderfully understated performances that pair nicely with a script, written by Ohs and his actors, that tackles grief and guilt with deadpan humor and a subversive understanding of the afterlife. It’s an oddball delight.

Stream it on Netflix.

Sumi (Mawar Eva de Jongh) is a teenager living in rural Indonesia who dreams of city life. Instead she’s having nightmares of being visited by a pasty-faced demon (Adipati Dolken) who stands at a lake with his arms outstretched. Plus, the town doctor went and chopped off her mean dad’s infected leg, and it now sits in a freezer even though her father wants her to bury it to lift the family’s curse. Then the demon actually appears and convinces Sumi to hack off a chunk of the leg and serve it to her dad in a Sweeney Todd-style curry.

I’ll stop there because if that description makes your nerves tingle — and that’s just the film’s first 20 minutes — I highly recommend watching this breakneck terror tale from Rako Prijanto. Best to have a fortified constitution: The film is chockablock with grindhouse butchery, folk-horror supernaturalism, copious decapitation and even an exploitation-style town idiot. Although the story loses steam as it nears the finish, unable to clearly flesh out what the madness means, the trip there is paved with gross-out mayhem. It ends with the promise of a sequel, and I’m ready for seconds.

Stream it on Tubi.

What we’ve got here is a “Shining”-like setup with Lynchian aspirations: 28 years after Hugh (Clark Moore) watched his mother fatally slash her neck, he and his wife, Lyla (Jolene Andersen), and their young son, Lars (Mason Wells), go to a secluded lakeside cabin where Hugh hopes to work on his long-gestating book. Along the way, Hugh keeps meeting people who say they know him, but he’s stumped.

As Hugh and Lyla bicker endlessly at the cabin, his writing suffers and he goes spiraling, killing a visitor and wandering through the collapse of time and space. Or something. When the cabin’s groundskeeper says, “It’s easy to lose yourself out here,” I thought, “Out here too, pal.”

I’m recommending this screwy psychological thriller because, as impenetrably enigmatic as it turned out, the writer-director Gordon Cowie is a gifted cinematographer with a visual style that’s eerie and striking, as when he turns a steamed-up phone booth into a kind of netherworld portal. Cowie has a terrific partner in Andrés Acosta, whose score of fat static, fluttering thumps and brooding slow-core strings makes the movie sound as darkly bewitching as it looks.

Stream it on Shudder.

The 10-year-old Etheria film festival is dedicated to showcasing genre films directed by women. This year’s edition of its annual short-film anthology is an entertaining mix of mostly horror shorts from 10 directors.

My favorite is Nikki Taylor Roberts’s “Go to Bed Raymond,” a sinister little gem about a boy who keeps waking up his parents in the middle of the night to tell them that “the bad kids who live in the woods” are in his room, and they’re angry. It’s seven minutes of tightly paced dread, with a delightfully deadpan performance by Adam Blackstone Jr. as the creeped-out boy from the title.

Other highlights: “No Overnight Parking,” Meg Swertlow’s bloody dark comedy starring Alyssa Milano as a woman who faces an assailant in a parking lot; “Sucker,” Alix Austin’s creature feature about sisters attacked by a life-sucking leech; and “The Erl King,” Genevieve Kertesz’s folk-horror fairy tale about a girl who learns that even magical woods house smooth-talking jerks.

Source link

‘The Harbinger’Stream it on Tubi.A friend recently

A sex scene in Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” featuring a line from Hindu holy scripture “Bhagavad Gita” has led to protests even as the film rakes it in at the box office.

The film was passed with a U/A certificate by India’s Central Board of Film Certification.

SPOILER ALERT: The sex scene features Cillian Murphy as Robert Oppenheimer and Florence Pugh as Jean Tatlock. Pugh stops during intercourse, gets up and goes over to the bookshelf, picks out a copy of the “Bhagavad Gita” and asks Murphy to read from it. Murphy reads the line “I am become Death, destroyer of worlds,” the quote from the “Bhagavad Gita” that Oppenheimer famously thought of when the first nuclear bomb was detonated – as intercourse resumes.

The 700-verse “Bhagavad Gita” – literally the word of God – is a part of the Indian epic “Mahabharata” and consists of a dialogue on a battlefield between the prince Arjuna and the divine Krishna as the former undergoes a moral dilemma.

India flocked to see “Oppenheimer” in Imax and other formats from shows beginning as early as 3am, as Nolan is a huge draw in the country. Protests began on social media almost immediately after.

Among them was Uday Mahurkar, a journalist who was appointed by the Indian government as an information commissioner in 2020. Mahurkar is also the founder of the Save Culture Save India Foundation.

In a letter addressed to Nolan on Twitter, Mahurkar wrote on behalf of the foundation:

“It has come to our notice that the movie ‘Oppenheimer’ contains a scene which make a scathing attack on Hinduism.  As per social media reports, a scene in the movie shows a woman makes a man read Bhagwad Geeta aloud while getting over him and doing sexual intercourse. She is holding Bhagwad Geeta in one hand, and the other hands seems to be adjusting the position of their reproductive organs. The Bhagwad Geeta is one of the most revered scriptures of Hinduism. Geeta has been the inspiration for countless sanyasis, brahmcharis and legends who live a life of self-control and perform selfless noble deeds.  We do not know the motivation and logic behind this unnecessary scene on life of a scientist. But this is a direct assault on religious beliefs of a billion tolerant Hindus, rather it amounts to waging a war on the Hindu community and almost appears to be part of a larger conspiracy by anti-Hindu forces.”

The letter goes on to say that Hollywood “is very sensitive about the fact that Quran and Islam is not depicted in any manner that may offend the value system of a common Muslim, even if you make something based on Islamist terrorism,” and asks, “Why should not the same courtesy be also extended to Hindus?”

The letter urges Nolan to “remove this scene from your film across world” and adds, “Should you choose to ignore this appeal it would be deemed as a deliberate assault on Indian civilisation.”

Meanwhile, the film is a box office success in India, grossing $3.6 million in its first two days of release, comfortably outperforming “Barbie,” which collected $1.2 million.

This is not the first time a quote from the “Bhagavad Gita” has been used in a Hollywood studio picture. An orgy scene in Stanley Kubrick’s last film “Eyes Wide Shut” (1999) featured the lines “For the protection of the virtuous, for the destruction of evil and for the firm establishment of Dharma, I take birth and am incarnated on Earth, from age to age.” Following protests from Hindu groups, Warner Bros. edited out the lines from the soundtrack.

Source link

A sex scene in Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer”

A first look at Miles Morales’ aged-up look was revealed ahead of the release of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. 

The upcoming PS5 exclusive from Insomniac Games will finally allow players to take control of two different Spider-Men in Peter Parker and Miles Morales. 

Some time has passed since the events of Spider-Man 1 and Spider-Man: Miles Morales, as Peter continues to tutor Miles in the ways of being one of New York’s wall-crawling heroes. 

And the two will need all the help they can get, going up against the bloodthirsty Kraven the Hunter and the murderous Symbiote, Venom.

A New Look for Miles Morales

PlayStation

A redesign for Miles Morales debuted as a part of the Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 story trailer released during San Diego Comic-Con.

Miles 2
PlayStation

This new aged-up redesign sports a new flashy haircut, with faded dreads instead of the straight buzzcut seen in the previous games. 

Miles 3
PlayStation

Spider-Man 2 takes place only “nine or 10 months” (via IGN) after the events of Miles Morales, but Miles looks a little older, as the young hero goes from high schooler to prospective college student. 

Miles 4
PlayStation

The trailer sees Miles interacting with Peter and co. both in and out of costume, with his Spidey look not having changed too much since his 2020 solo spin-off game. 

The full trailer can be seen below:

How Spider-Man 2 Character Changes Continue

While Miles Morales may have gotten a bit of a new look for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, his slight redesign is probably the most subtle of any of the game’s main characters. 

Miles’ character model largely remains the same except for a new haircut and subtle changes to his face. 

The same could not be said for someone like Mary Jane Watson. Spider-Man 2‘s MJ has a completely different look, with a revamped face and slightly different hair from the previous titles. 

And Miles’ partner in super-powered crimefighting, Peter Parker, already got his visual upgrade, getting a totally different look for the PlayStation 5 remaster of Marvel’s Spider-Man. 

It will be interesting to see if these physical changes stop at the game’s core cast or if supporting characters or villains from the first two games also get a similar sort of upgrade. 

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is set to hit PlayStation 5’s worldwide on October 20. 

Source link

Summary

  • James Gunn is unveiling new franchise plans, including a new Justice League movie titled Crisis on Infinite Earths set to release in 2024.
  • This new Justice League movie could be part of Gunn’s rebooted DC Universe, as indicated by the “DC Universe Movie” tag.
  • Alongside the Justice League movie, an animated Watchmen movie was also announced by the official DC Twitter account for a 2024 release.

As James Gunn continues slowly rolling out his new franchise plans, a new Justice League movie has seemingly been revealed for the DC Universe. The last time the DC Comics team were seen together in live-action was 2021’s Zack Snyder’s Justice League, a newly assembled cut of the 2017 flop with unused footage closer to the eponymous director’s vision. While the 2021 HBO Max release was set in the former DC Extended Universe, Gunn’s hiring as DC Studios co-CEO has led to an impending overhaul of the franchise, the ball of which got rolling with The Flash.

Though the movie studio may have skipped out on 2023’s San Diego Comic-Con, the official DC Twitter account has revealed two new movies coming to the screen in 2024.

The post, as shown above, reveals that a new Justice League movie in the forms of Crisis on Infinite Earths has been set for a 2024 release. Though paired with the announcement of an animated Watchmen movie, it does feature the “DC Universe Movie” tag above the title treatment, potentially making it part of Gunn’s rebooted universe, even as an animated property.

Some fans swiftly took to sharing their concerns about adapting the iconic crossover story this soon, whether it be for Gunn’s yet-to-begin DCU, or the ongoing DC Animated Movie Universe continuity known as the Tomorrowverse.

Even those open to the concept of it being part of the Tomorrowverse took to questioning whether Crisis on Infinite Earths would involve universes shown in live-action, as was the case with the Arrowverse’s adaptation of the storyline that saw Ezra Miller’s Flash interact with Grant Gustin’s.

With the new Crisis On Infinite Earths movie being an animated project, other audiences took to sharing their hopes for what should be included, namely work from late Batman actor Kevin Conroy prior to his death to pass the torch to a new actor.


DC’s New Timeline Is Already Too Confusing

Even though Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths will be an animated movie according to DC’s announcement, labeling it as a DC Universe Movie still may find it attached to Gunn’s franchise plans, especially considering he indicated plans for everything from TV shows to video games would all be part of the DCU. Given the comic storyline involved killing off the DC Multiverse and reboot it to one unified Earth in order to be more accessible to readers, it seems hard to believe that it wouldn’t have some kind of repercussions for Gunn’s live-action DCU.

The uncertainty of Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths‘ DCU ties also further proves how messy Gunn’s new timeline has already become before its first official entry, Superman: Legacy. The studio head has stated Xolo Maridueña’s Blue Beetle will carry on into the DCU while Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom has undergone multiple rounds of reshoots in order to better fit Gunn’s plans. The Flash was speculated to better establish this new vision, but still left audiences scratching their heads as to what its George Clooney and Jason Momoa cameos meant for the future.

Related: The Flash Movie Proves The DC Universe Needs A Real Reboot

Given the Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths announcement comes with the DC Universe Movie tag while Watchmen has a “DC Animated Movie” one, it does seem likely to hold some ties to Gunn’s new franchise. As some users noted above, this would be pretty soon into both the DCU and Tomorrowverse to tackle such an iconic storyline, especially when the Arrowverse’s Crisis On Infinite Earths project waited nearly a decade before trying their hand at it. With Gunn careful about sharing too much insight on his plans, audiences will have to keep their eyes peeled for further clarification on Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths‘ franchise ties.

Source: @DCOfficial & Various/Twitter [see links above]

Key Release Dates

Source link

Summary James Gunn is unveiling new

Genvid Entertainment and Gearbox have announced Borderands EchoVision Live, an interactive streaming series. It’s a community-led game where players decide how a story unfolds, similarly to something like Twitch Plays Pokemon.

The game follows eight tourists who want to be Vault Hunters. After spending money on a tour of Eden-6, they find themselves stuck in the town of Greywater Junction. They must work together and overcome bandits in order to survive.

The audience will engage with the story to determine how the characters develop and decide their fates. “Every decision you make, every moment you participate matters.” explained Jacob Navok, CEO of Genvid Entertainment in a press release. “This is your chance to make a mark, to leave a legacy in this world. Decisions don’t have a reset button and are shared by all participants.”

“We love the Borderlands universe because the fanbase has fully embraced its focus on diverse characters, heartfelt storytelling, and irreverent humor, traits that fit our communal storytelling format perfectly,” added Genvid Entertainment Chief Creative Officer Stephan Bugaj. “Borderlands EchoVision Live is not only a brand-new story and cast set in the Borderlands universe, but an exciting new type of experience for the franchise in which the entire audience collaborates and competes to drive narrative outcomes.”

Genvid Entertainment is also currently working on Silent Hill: Ascension, which is another interactive streaming series. While it’s unknown which platforms these games will be on, Genvid uses its own technology and its games usually run on services such as Facebook. Additionally, a new Borderlands compilation may be coming soon as a rating in South Africa appeared earlier this week.

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

Source link

Charlie Mackesy won even more hearts with his Instagram message on a napkin to his 1.8million followers from the Oscars – more specifically, from inside the toilet where he was hiding prior to his category being announced. 

Now the winner of the award for best animated short film – for his heartwarming tale The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse – has told the crowd at Latitude Festival that he was too petrified by the cameras and crowds of people to stay in the auditorium in the minutes leading up to the announcement. 

The BBC reports Mackesy telling the audience: 

“I didn’t think I could even go on stage. I was quite daunted by it.” 

And Mackesy added of receiving his Oscar: 

“Sometimes I don’t even like to look at the statue, I’ve just got it at home wrapped in a t-shirt. It hasn’t sunk in and I don’t think it ever will.”

The film, starring the voices of Idris Elba, Tom Hollander and Gabriel Byrne, was adapted from Mackesy’s book of the same name and tells the story of four animals who help a lost boy find his way home, and the author shared how he had been inspired to bring the story in his head to life.

“I wanted it to feel like the characters had walked off the page. I would lie in bed staring at the ceiling and I started to see the characters moving across it.

Every frame of the 35-minute film was hand drawn, with Mackesy collaborating with 130 animators during lockdown – spending thousands of hours working together on Zoom calls. 

The film also won a BAFTA for best British short animation, but Mackesy said his greatest gratification was the correspondence he continues to receive from fans.

“I get emails every single day. On a daily basis someone makes me weep. That is the greatest award for me. They might have watched the film over a cup of tea with their mum or there’s a father and son who had a hug after watching it. The small things in life are the big things.

“At the top of each page in the script I wrote why we were making the film – to create something that makes people feel a bit less alone and more themselves.”

Of a possible sequel to the hit book and film, Mackesy said he had some ideas featuring the same characters, plus “some other creatures on this planet who are struggling.”

Source link

Charlie Mackesy won even more hearts with

XYZ Films will represent documentary “London Recruits” for North American sales, it was revealed at the ongoing Durban FilmMart.

Directed by Gordon Main, the film sheds light on a pivotal moment in South Africa’s history. In 1970, the struggle against the apartheid government in South Africa developed a new secret weapon. Oliver Tambo hatched a plan to infiltrate young British activists into the country, posing as tourists. Their mission, in the face of brutal lockdown by the racist regime, was to help inspire ordinary South Africans to join a liberation movement that would never give up till freedom was won.

To mark the partnership, Ronnie Kasrils, now 86, the former underground African National Congress (ANC) freedom fighter at the heart of the story, participated in detonating a bucket “leaflet bomb” outside the market hotel. These were the devices deployed in 1970 by amateur secret agents that Kasrils recruited in London on orders from Tambo. The devices brought messages of hope from the banned ANC to the South African population at large.

The film is produced by Jacintha de Nobrega (“Deep End”), Robyn Slovo (“Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy,” “McMafia”), Geoff Arbourne (“Forever Pure,” “African Apocalypse”), Colin Charles (“The Surveyor”),
James Barrett (“A Change in the Weather”) and Felix Gill (“78/52″).

XYZ Films’ Todd Brown said: “XYZ couldn’t be more thrilled to be working alongside Gordon and Geoff to bring “London Recruits” to audiences. This is truly one of those so unbelievable it has to be true stories, a real-life espionage tale told with urgency, insight and style. Quite simply, it’s a remarkable story told impeccably well, and we can’t wait for audiences to experience it.”

Main added: “If you were looking for the perfect company to represent this film – XYZ would be at the top of your list. From our very first conversations with them, we could tell that they just ‘got’ the movie. Sealing the relationship here in Durban, where we shot so much of it, is a fitting tribute to the talent here on the ground in KwaZulu Natal who helped turn our story into a great film.”

de Nobrega said: “We are delighted that Todd and the cutting edge team at XYZ Films share our enthusiasm for this documentary’s creative and commercial potential. XYZ has been committed to working in South Africa for many years, so landing this deal at DFM in Durban feels like a natural next step. Together, we look forward to unveiling this extraordinary film to audiences worldwide, sparking thought-provoking conversations and leaving an indelible mark on the cinematic landscape.”

Arbourne said: “The positioning of XYZ Films in the global market is truly impressive, and it will undoubtedly take the project to new heights.”

Source link

XYZ Films will represent documentary “London Recruits”

Jamie Lynn Spears said reuniting with her Pacific Coast Academy squad for Zoey 102 was a “surreal” experience. During an interview with Entertainment Tonight, published online Thursday, the actress opened up about how the upcoming movie materialized to begin with, saying it was a “pinch-me moment a lot of times.” “It’s something we’ve worked on […]

Source link

Jamie Lynn Spears said reuniting with her


What is it about the ’80s that it delivers on all the campy, juicy drama?


V.C. Andrews’ Twilight’s Child was a particularly soaptastic edition in the Cutler Saga with a wedding, two funerals, and the return of not one but two hellions from Dawn’s past.


All Jimmy and Dawn were trying to do was live their lives happily with sweet Christie, but family, am I right?


Alas, our girl Dawn is finally holding her own, though, dysfunctional AF family and all.


She started from the bottom, and now she’s here.


Credit where it’s due, Twilight’s Child, unlike V.C. Andrews’ Heaven Saga or The Landry Series, actually did things like remember to bring up those long abandoned siblings and pull on dangling strings that would typically leave us hanging.


We were up to our eyeballs in side kids during this film, weren’t we? It was a genuine shock that they did, in fact, revisit Fern, and boy, was that regrettable in the long run.


But they even threw Gavin, who, like the redheaded stepchild, I forgot existed.


Dawn’s family tree isn’t even a tree. It’s like a tangle of weeds that deceptively looks like a pretty flower but gives you shingles. It’s a hot mess, basically.


It’s just a mess of so many things, and all of that came to fruition during this chapter of the series where no one would let Dawn breathe for a second before she got hit, pun not intended, with something else.


The early days of her adjusting to running a hotel were entertaining. The poor girl was out of her depth with that bit, but Ms. Boston reassured her that she was better off than Queen B. Lillian was when she first started.


It left the opening, one of many through the film, at insight into Lillian’s own convoluted and complex past, but unlike with V.C. Andrews’ Web of Dreams in the Heaven Casteel Saga, we’re not getting that deep dive, a prequel featuring Lillian’s life story.


Boo, hiss, and sorrows to that.


Dawn should’ve been in her bag and at the peak of her life. She successfully got baby Christie back, and inquiring minds would love to know how she got a little bouncing baby girl back from whatever family had taken her.


And sweet (not) brother-boyfriend, Jimmy-cakes dropped on his knee and proposed to Dawn before he left for more Army business. She finessed her way into being a Longchamp one way or another, baby.


All was well.


Dawn and Jimmy’s wedding was shockingly endearing if you set aside that no-predator Philip sweet-talked his way into being Jimmy’s Best Man, most likely so he could pretend it was him standing at the end of the aisle.


Also, scrumptious Bronson had to walk her down the aisle since her “Daddy”- Brother was too busy hurling himself to his death.


I mean, ASIDE from that, the wedding was sweet, and I wasn’t even mad at the powder blue suits and ruffles because, dammit, it was the ’70s, and the guys had the nerve to pull those ridiculous things off.


How unfortunate was it that Dawn was the only one who seemed to give a damn about Randolph?


The guy was not doing well since Lillian died, which tracks since he wasn’t functioning without her. Lillian had a single brain cell between the two of them.


Jason Cermak is done so dirty in these films.


Randolph’s wig was blown back for none of the fun reasons.


It deserved its own recognition, though.


Then he just died without ever seeing a professional about his weird Oedipal stuff or whatever other mental and emotional deficiencies were happening up there.


It was cackle worthy that they squeezed in that little funeral, and then we were right back to Dawn and Jimmy finally getting to jump each other’s bones after waiting literally all their lives to do it.


Given the circumstances, Jimmy’s plan to wait until they were married was quite sweet.


It still felt like he was getting over the last bit of his weirdness over them being raised as siblings but no longer siblings, but maybe I’m projecting because I needed SOMEBODY to be in their feelings about this more.


But I was happy for our girl. Dawn had been craving Jimmy’s long champ for a minute, and she finally got to take it for a spin.


Once a girl could get past the fact that all of Dawn’s sexual experience was because of her inappropriate relationship with Michael and that her boasting about her sexual skills was due to Michael’s teachings, if you will, I was vibing with them.


Unlike the campy ridiculousness of Dawn and Michael’s, their love scene was endearingly sweet, intimate, and romantic. It was special.


Jimmy routinely delivers as one of the strongest romantic leads of the franchise. He’s just that dude.


He built our girl her dream house on the property to get them out of that freaking hotel, which was beautiful. He didn’t disregard her feelings when she said Lillian and her religious nut sister were haunting her.


And he was lowkey speaking facts when he said that Dawn was looking for a new villain in her story.


To be fair, there always is one for her, but she’s been in constant survival mode in that regard, and Jimmy wasn’t wrong for pointing that out.


Jimmy puts up with all that kooky family nonsense and the constant disrespect because of where he comes from, assists with running the hotel, and happily raises another man’s kid as his own.


Jimmy deserved to be sitting in that tacky masquerading as an elegant golden throne at the film’s end. Jimmy was a King.


His only downfall was how clueless he was regarding Fern.


The return of Fern was one for the ages. It’s funny how you could go from being happy to see her to being put off by all her mischievous, young teen antics.


Fern was such an uncouth little hellion that it’s no wonder her adoptive parents were exasperated with her. She faked abuse to stay with Dawn and Jimmy and then spent most of her time there messing with Dawn and almost putting a wedge between her and Jimmy.


She was a full-blown troublemaker. Hilariously enough, she was everything that Lillian and others used to accuse Dawn and Jimmy of being.


Clearly, Fern will spend a significant of time in their lives being a challenge, but it seemed like once Jimmy asserted himself with her, and she realized that despite her antics, they still saw her as family, she simmered down some.


For a minute, it felt like it would be a The Good Son situation or something with her and Christie.


Speaking of Christie, how could someone so sweet share genes with Michael?


The return of Michael Sutton was one of those unexpected things they didn’t necessarily need.


But a girl will never turn her nose up at seeing Joey McIntyre grace the screen, even if he’s playing such an asshole. Michael seemed genuine when he saw Christie for the first time, so we know he’s not a total cad.


But then he was using her to blackmail Dawn, and he was back to being on the crap list. The dude needs to get sober, get his life together, and maybe track down all the other kids he probably has.


Dawn pulling a Lillian with him to get out of the blackmail was an epic moment, though. Say what you will about Lillian, but she was a savvy woman and a survivor through and through.


The parallels between her and Dawn were strong during this one as we saw so much of Lillian in Dawn with how she took charge. She took the best of Lillian and implemented it, showing that she could be a better version of herself.


We saw it in so many little ways, and there was some truth in her taking her experiences and learning from them, getting the best out of those situations.


Her navigation of Michael was great, but then so was how she handled Philip. It was a tense few moments when he came barging into her apartment, trying to assault her again.


Philip’s inability to keep little Phil in his pants is a problem that no one wants to address, and it’s disturbing. Poor Betty Ann didn’t know what she was getting herself into with her blown-out, Aquanet hair.


Goodness, the ’80s costumes, hair, and makeup were GLORIOUS. It really added to the 80s primetime soap goodness.


Philip is having twins with this woman and is still obsessed with Dawn. But Ms. Dawn “Cut a Bitchass” Cutler literally left her mark with that warning she gave him with that shard of glass.


Messing up that pretty face of his seemed adequate enough, so maybe now he’ll get a grip, and hopefully, we won’t have to learn that he’ll turn his lust to little Christie or something because you can’t put anything past these Cutler men.


Ultimately, Randolph was too soft and sweet to be part of that family. Granddaddy Cutler was a piece of work too, and by “piece of work,” naturally means P.O.S.


It was apparent he assaulted Laura Jean, even if Dawn couldn’t piece that together without Bronson’s help.


Laura Jean got some strong redemption and more presence during this film, and it was all the best for it. You could understand her complicated feelings towards Dawn.


And honestly, scrumptious Bronson was such a fantastic addition to all of this that he doesn’t even feel like he belonged here.


He was handsome, level-headed, genuinely loved Laura Jean, and had her and everyone’s best interest at heart. He was a patriarch, and the Cutler lacked that.


His attempt at smoothing things over between Dawn and her mother was admirable, and it’s hard to believe that he was Clara Jean’s real father. She may have been less of an entitled brat if he got the opportunity to raise her.


Unlike Laura Jean, Clara Jean still didn’t have time to redeem herself or have any depth.


She was downright villainous when she assaulted Dawn and caused her to miscarry. By the time she fell off a cliff, it was a relief that it was the end of her.


Although, sadly, the ocean had to deal with that type of toxicity, aren’t we supposed to be saving the sea, not punishing it?


The reality check that she wasn’t a Cutler was beyond satisfying.


We didn’t get enough of Tricia in this, but it was great to see her.


And Dawn’s trip to the Meadows was anti-climactic, but at least Charlotte is happy, and they can turn that place around so it isn’t a dungeon of hell anymore.


What’s the over-under that someone spiked that old bat’s sugar with rat poisoning? May she rest peacefully in hell, and God help the Devel for having to deal with her.


Dawn dealt with so much adulting during this film, and Brec Bassinger transitioned to this version of her so well.


We have one more chapter of this mini-series ahead of us, and we’ll have you covered for the final stretch.


Over to you, V.C. Andrews Fanatics.


Did you love Twilight Child? What was your favorite part? Sound off below!


Midnight Whispers, the fourth and final installment of the Dawn miniseries, airs July 29 at 8/7c on Lifetime.

Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. She is an insomniac who spends late nights and early mornings binge-watching way too many shows and binge-drinking way too much tea. Her eclectic taste makes her an unpredictable viewer with an appreciation for complex characters, diverse representation, dynamic duos, compelling stories, and guilty pleasures. You’ll definitely find her obsessively live-tweeting, waxing poetic, and chatting up fellow Fanatics and readers. Follow her on Twitter.

Source link

What is it about the '80s that

Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” entered their opening weekend with impossibly lofty expectations. In addition to being highly anticipated works from A-list auteurs, the two films were burdened with salvaging a disappointing summer box office after films like “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” and “Elemental” failed to catch on as cultural phenomena. Strong early tracking and endless “Barbenheimer” memes about seeing the wildly divergent films as a double feature turned this into the biggest movie weekend of the summer.

While the box office numbers are still rolling in, moviegoers who saw the films are walking away satisfied. CineScore has revealed that both films received “A” grades from fans after opening on Friday.

CinemaScore grades are widely interpreted as a barometer of how well a film lined up with its audience’s expectations. It’s not uncommon for poorly reviewed films to receive excellent grades, as the poll contributors are people who were already interested enough to pay to see the movie. Conversely, acclaimed films can receive negative CinemaScore grades for making bold choices that subverted audience expectations.

While “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” are two of the bolder studio films being released in 2023, their marketing campaigns never promised a conventional moviegoing experience. Trailers and posters for “Barbie” teased an absurdist, tongue-in-cheek take on the Mattel toy line. Critics were quick to declare that the finished product delivered on that promise.

“Gerwig and [Noah] Baumbach find both humor and nuance in everything from mini-fridges to the Matchbox Twenty hit ‘Push,’ the male urge to explain ‘The Godfather’ to the Supreme Court, the limits of modern feminism to neon-bright Rollerblades,” IndieWire’s Kate Erbland wrote in her review. “Barbie isn’t just everything, ‘Barbie’ is everything.”

And while the prevalence of Cillian Murphy’s face in the “Oppenheimer” marketing materials was occasionally mocked, Universal made no attempt to hide that it was releasing a cerebral Christopher Nolan biopic.

“’Oppenheimer,’ offers an indelible portrait of the age when people began wielding power they couldn’t necessarily control, and few movies have so disturbingly crystallized the horror of opening Pandora’s box,” IndieWire’s David Ehrlich wrote in his review of the film. “Even fewer have better detailed anxiety of living in a world where it can never be closed again.”

Source link

Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer”

Just hours before Paramore would be taking the stage Saturday night (July 22), the band canceled a concert at San Francisco’s Chase Center due to illness. The show has already been rescheduled.

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

“Due to sickness within the touring party, we will be rescheduling our show tonight at Chase Center in San Francisco to Monday, August 7, 2023,” a statement posted on Paramore’s Twitter account said.

“Previously purchased tickets are valid for the rescheduled date. If you cannot attend the rescheduled date and would like a refund, instructions will be sent to all ticket purchasers and refunds will be offered for the next 7 days,” read the post.

The note, which was also shared on Chase Center’s social media accounts, concluded with “We look forward you all soon at the next Paramore show.”

Paramore’s next concert is scheduled for Monday, July 24 at Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena.

The band is currently on its This Is Why Tour in support of its studio album of the same name, and set to wrap the trek in August. It was recently announced that Paramore is heading to Europe as a supporting act on Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, beginning on May 9, 2024.

See the full announcement about Saturday night’s concert below and keep up-to-date on all of Paramore’s tour dates here.

Source link

Just hours before Paramore would be taking

The road to becoming an artist, specifically a filmmaker, is that all-important first step. That first step in James D. Watkins’ short film, The Genius & The Darkness, is the germination of an idea presented in drawings and music. The film conceives of a cataclysmic clash that may have occurred between the “Genius” Nikola Telsa and his “Dark” counterpart, Aleister Crowley.

Dreaming of a confrontation between the two, filmmaker Watkins first guides us through a history of the two figures contrasting their histories and accomplishments. He then paints a picture through archival images and drawings by Watkins and sets the stage with classical music. Though the two most likely never met, they were alive at the same time in England.

“…a cataclysmic clash that may have occurred between the ‘Genius’ Nikola Telsa and this ‘Dark’ counterpart, Aleister Crowley.”

The Genius & The Darkness is very low budget in its execution. The sound and Watkins’ voiceover don’t precisely match, but the film captures the filmmaker’s fascination with Tesla and Crowley. The overall short feels like a proof of concept of a much bigger story and is often reminiscent of Walt Disney’s Night on Bald Mountain segment from Fantasia.

In a brief conversation I had with Watkins, he remarked on the idea “that these men actually existed in different time periods sparked my imagination to pit them against each other because Britain considered Aleister Crowley, a dark genius who could assist them with unknown magical powers and of course, Nikola Tesla, only wanted to bring his light unto the world. I conjured an imaginary conceptual idea of a time when these two men faced each other with the world’s fate in the balance.” The Genius & The Darkness reflects that idea well.

For more information about The Genius & The Darkness, visit the Phoenix Productions official website.

Source link

The road to becoming an artist, specifically

Image Credit: Joe Schildhorn/BFA.com/Shutterstock

Liev Schrieber and Taylor Niesen looked to be enjoying their newlywed status as they were spotted out in the Hamptons on Saturday. The Asteroid City star, 55, held hands with his pregnant wife, 31, during a sunny outing in the tony New York getaway, as seen in photos here via DailyMail. Liev kept it casual in a white oxford and matching pants, while Taylor was a summer vision in a floral dress and white sandals.

Liev Schreiber and his wife were seen in the Hamptons in July 2023. (Joe Schildhorn/BFA.com/Shutterstock)

The couple exchanged vows in an intimate ceremony over the Fourth of July weekend, according to a new report from DailyMail. The ceremony was very intimate and took place at Liev’s mansion in the Hamptons, with only four guests present. While the pair didn’t officially announce that they got married, Liev did post a photo of their dogs dressed as a bride and groom in an adorable Instagram post. “Scout got married to his longtime love Alexis (Chunkera). We wish you both every happiness in the world!” he wrote.

It was first reported that the gorgeous pair, who began dating back in 2017, were expecting their first child together in April, according to Page Six. While the baby will be the third for the Ray Donovan star, it will be the former Miss South Dakota’s first child.

Liev and Taylor got secretly hitched in July 2023. (Joe Schildhorn/BFA.com/Shutterstock)

Meanwhile, Liev’s ex, Naomi Watts, with whom he shares two sons, got herself hitched to actor Billy Crudup just a month ago! The stunning actress confirmed her marriage to the handsome American actor, 54, with a sweet wedding snap of the couple shared to her Instagram on Saturday, June 10. Standing on the steps of a courthouse with her arms wrapped around the husband, Naomi looked so in love, as she captioned the photo, “Hitched! ?️?♥️.”

And Liev showed that the two are still co-parenting champs, as the actor posted, “Congratulations!!! Gorgeous!!!” The former couple, who split in 2016, share Sasha, 15, and Kai, 14.

Source link

Image Credit: Joe Schildhorn/BFA.com/Shutterstock Liev Schrieber and Taylor Niesen looked

It’s time for your daily dose of Quordle hints, plus the answers for both the main game and the Daily Sequence spin off. 

Quordle is the only one of the many Wordle clones that I’m still playing now, around 18 months after the daily-word-game craze hit the internet, and with good reason: it’s good fun, but also difficult.

What’s more, its makers (now the online dictionary Merriam-Webster) are also keeping it fresh in the form of a new variant called the Daily Sequence, which sees you complete four puzzles consecutively, rather than concurrently. 

But Quordle is tough, so if you already find yourself searching for Wordle hints, you’ll probably need some for this game too. 

I’m a Quordle and Wordle fanatic who’s been playing since December 2021, so I can definitely help you solve Quordle today and improve your game for tomorrow. Read on for my Quordle hints to game #545 and the answers to the main game and Daily Sequence. 

SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don’t read on if you don’t want to know the answers.

Your Quordle expert

Your Quordle expert

Marc McLaren

Marc is TechRadar’s UK Editor in Chief and has been playing Wordle and Quordle for more than a year. He’s authored dozens of articles on the game for TechRadar and its sister site Tom’s Guide, including a detailed analysis of the most common letters in every position. His Wordle streak recently reached the 500 mark and he’ll be inconsolable if he loses it. Yes, he takes it all too seriously. 

Quordle today (game #545) – hint #1 – Vowels

How many different vowels are in Quordle today?

• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 4*.

* Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too). 

Quordle today (game #545) – hint #2 – total vowels

What is the total number of vowels in Quordle today?

• The total number of vowels across today’s Quordle answers is 5.

Quordle today (game #545) – hint #3 – repeated letters

Do any of today’s Quordle answers contain repeated letters?

• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 1.

Quordle today (game #545) – hint #4 – total letters

How many different letters are used in Quordle today?

• The total number of different letters used in Quordle today is 14.

Quordle today (game #545) – hint #5 – uncommon letters

Do the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?

• No. None of Q, Z, X or J appear among today’s Quordle answers.

Quordle today (game #545) – hint #6 – starting letters (1)

Do any of today’s Quordle puzzles start with the same letter?

• The number of today’s Quordle answers starting with the same letter is 0.

If you just want to know the answers at this stage, simply scroll down. If you’re not ready yet then here’s one more clue to make things a lot easier:

Quordle today (game #545) – hint #7 – starting letters (2)

What letters do today’s Quordle answers start with?

• E

• G

• S

• V

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SEE THEM.

Quordle today (game #545) – the answers

Quordle answers for game 545 on a yellow background

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today’s Quordle, game #545, are…

How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know.


Daily Sequence today (game #545) – the answers

Quordle Daily Sequence answers for game 545 on a yellow background

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today’s Quordle Daily Sequence, game #545, are…


Quordle answers: The past 20

  • Quordle #544, Saturday 22 July: BEFIT, JIFFY, ARENA, TOUCH
  • Quordle #543, Friday 21 July: ROUND, TEPID, LIVER, IRATE
  • Quordle #542, Thursday 20 July: ENTER, TRULY, USUAL, CIVIL
  • Quordle #541, Wednesday 19 July: WORST, KAYAK, HENCE, ZEBRA
  • Quordle #540, Tuesday 18 July: DEBUT, HOARD, SILLY, UPPER
  • Quordle #539, Monday 17 July: LUPUS, ALIVE, SALLY, ABLED
  • Quordle #538, Sunday 16 July: STEAM, SALTY, SLOOP, TRUSS
  • Quordle #537, Saturday 15 July: CYCLE, FALSE, FRILL, HEAVY
  • Quordle #536, Friday 14 July: LIBEL, CABLE, WREAK, SCOPE
  • Quordle #535, Thursday 13 July: BASTE, QUERY, SNAIL, PEARL
  • Quordle #534, Wednesday 12 July: VOICE, MANGA, FROTH, BLOAT
  • Quordle #533, Tuesday 11 July: MODEL, AISLE, LIMBO, TULLE
  • Quordle #532, Monday 10 July: FILET, DULLY, IRATE, NOSEY
  • Quordle #531, Sunday 9 July: AXION, OFFER, DREAD, SADLY
  • Quordle #530, Saturday 8 July: BAGEL, SPITE, MAYBE, RADIO
  • Quordle #529, Friday 7 July: CLOUT, SMEAR, GAILY, ANGRY
  • Quordle #528, Thursday 6 July: HUNCH, LEFTY, ABBEY, RECUR
  • Quordle #527, Wednesday 5 July: HILLY, ALERT, SHEET, VODKA
  • Quordle #526, Tuesday 4 July: GUMMY, SQUAT, SUSHI, GAUDY
  • Quordle #525, Monday 3 July: DRUID, ENACT, APART, HEFTY

Quordle FAQs: Everything you need to know

What is Quordle?

Where Wordle challenges you to guess a new five-letter word each day, Quordle presents you with four puzzles to solve. And rather than complete them in turn, you do so simultaneously. You get nine guesses, rather than the six for Wordle, but the rules are otherwise very similar. 

It’s played online via the Quordle website and you can also get to it via the Merriam-Webster site, after the dictionary purchased Quordle last year. 

As with Wordle, the answers are the same for every player each day, meaning that you’re competing against the rest of the world. And also as with Wordle, the puzzle resets at midnight so you have a fresh challenge each day.

The website also includes a practice mode – which I definitely recommend using before attempting the game proper! – and there are daily stats including a streak count. You also get Quordle Achievements – specific badges for winning a game in a certain number of turns, playing lots of times, or guessing particularly hard words.

Oh, and it’s difficult. Really difficult.

What are the Quordle rules?

The rules of Quordle are almost identical to those of Wordle.

1. Letters that are in the answer and in the right place turn green.

2. Letters that are in the answer but in the wrong place turn yellow. 

3. Letters that are not in the answer turn gray…

4. …BUT the word you guess appears in all quadrants of the puzzle at the same time, so an A could turn green in one square, yellow in another and gray in the final two. 

5. Answers are never plural.

6. Letters can appear more than once. So if your guess includes two of one letter, they may both turn yellow, both turn green, or one could be yellow and the other green.

7. Each guess must be a valid word in Quordle’s dictionary. You can’t guess ABCDE, for instance.

8. You do not have to include correct letters in subsequent guesses and there is no equivalent of Wordle’s Hard mode.

9. You have nine guesses to find the Quordle answers.

10. You must complete the daily Quordle before midnight in your timezone.

What is a good Quordle strategy?

Quordle needs to be approached in a different way to Wordle. With four puzzles to solve in nine guesses, you can’t blindly throw letters at it and expect to win – you’ll stand a far better chance if you think strategically.

That’s the case in Wordle too, of course, but it’s even more important in Quordle.

There are two key things to remember. 

1. Use several starting words

Firstly, you won’t want just a single starting word, but almost certainly two or three starting words. 

The first of these should probably be one of the best Wordle starting words, because the same things that make them work well will apply here too. But after that, you should select another word or possibly two that use up lots more of the most common consonants and that include any remaining vowels.

For instance, I currently use STARE > DOILY > PUNCH. Between them, these three words use 15 of the 26 letters in the alphabet including all five vowels, Y, and nine of the most common consonants (S, T, R, D, L, P, N, C and H). There are plenty of other options – you might want to get an M, B, F or G in there instead of the H, maybe – but something like that should do the trick.

If all goes well, that will give you a good lead on what one or sometimes two of the answers might be. If not, well good luck!

2. Narrow things down

Secondly, if you’re faced with a word where the answer might easily be one of several options – for instance -ATCH, where it could be MATCH, BATCH, LATCH, CATCH, WATCH, HATCH or PATCH – you’ll definitely want to guess a word that would narrow down those options. 

In Wordle, you can instead try several of those in succession and hope one is right, assuming you have enough guesses left. It’s risky, but will sometimes work. Plus, it’s the only option in Hard mode. But in Quordle, this will almost certainly result in a failure – you simply don’t have enough guesses.

In the scenario above, CLAMP would be a great guess, as it could point the way to four of the seven words in one go.

Source link

It's time for your daily dose of

SAG-AFTRA’s concerns surrounding artificial intelligence in entertainment are not just about what studios want to do with that technology today, but what they want to carve out the right to do years down the line.

Speaking with TheWrap shortly after a San Diego Comic-Con panel focused on AI, the union’s lead negotiator and second-in-command Duncan Crabtree-Ireland elaborated on the guild’s concerns about the technology, saying that “you can’t know what they’re gonna do.”

“They don’t even know what they’re going to do with something five, 10, 15 years from now. So how can you possibly consent to that?” Crabtree-Ireland said.

To illustrate his point, Crabtree-Ireland used as an example a proposal made during contract negotiations with studios.

When the strike was announced July 13, it was Crabtree-Ireland who said at the press conference that the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) wanted the right to scan the likenesses of background actors and retain ownership of those likenesses — including using AI to repurpose them for other films without further compensation — in perpetuity.

But, Crabtree-Ireland said, the studios also proposed something similar for principle performers.

“Another proposal we haven’t talked that much about, but which is equally egregious,” he said, “is a proposal that they can get consent at the time of initial employment for franchise projects.”

“Let’s say someone was going to be in a Marvel movie, let’s say this was their first time ever being a principal performer,” he continued. “They get hired [as a] one-day, three-day player. And they’re required to be scanned as part of that. And then if you want this job, you’d have to agree that you’re giving consent to the use of your image likeness and your digital replica for all future purposes for any Marvel Universe anything.”

He described that scenario as a “dilemma” specific to AI and actors going forward.

“What are they going to do? They can either turn down their big chance to be in a Marvel franchise movie, or they can give this unlimited consent that these companies can just abuse for however long they want to,” he said, adding that that was a proposal that the AMPTP “never backed off of” while negotiating. “It’s obviously something we would never agree to.”

AMPTP has consistently contested SAG-AFTRA’s characterization of the differences between the two groups before talks broke down, most recently in a lengthy rebuttal made public Friday.

In response to TheWrap’s request for comment, AMPTP said, “We stand by our rebuttal.”

For all of TheWrap’s strike coverage, click here. And for all our San Diego Comic-Con coverage, go here.

Source link

SAG-AFTRA’s concerns surrounding artificial intelligence in entertainment

William Stanford Davis, who has been a screen actor for more than three decades, made a powerful statement in support of the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike.

Wanting to show why the unions are holding out for a new contract in order to get better wages and residuals in an era of streaming content, the Abbott Elementary star held up an abysmal residual paycheck he received on his Instagram.

‘I’ve been a screen actor for 35 years. I’ve been in the guild about 32 years and I’ll let this speak for itself,’ Davis said in the clip.

He showed the check close to the camera so his audience could see that he earned just $0.05 from an undisclosed rerun of a past TV show he appeared on.

‘You see that? Do you believe that?’ Davis continued, before calling out that the postage and the paper cost more than his residual check.

Solidarity: William Stanford Davis, who has been a screen actor for more than three decades, made a powerful statement in support of the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike; seen in the ABC sitcom Abbott Elementary

Davis, who plays custodian Mr. Johnson on the ABC sitcom for its two-season run to date, continued to make his point to those who would listen.

‘That’s what they think of us as actors,’ he said, in a reference to those, like him, receiving mere pennies for their hard work.

He continued, ‘This is why we’re on strike for better wages, for better residuals [and] for a piece of the subscription and to not give in to AI.’

Davis added, ‘I stand in solidarity with the writers and we will strike until we get what it is we need to make a living as actors.’ 

Davis went on to caption his post: ‘There ain’t nothing funny about a .03¢ residual check! What are we supposed to do with that?  I stand strong with our union as we fight for what’s ours and for the success of the future generations. #sagaftra #wgastrong #strike #solidarity.’

Abbott Elementary premiered as a midseason entry in the 2021–22 television season for ABC in December 2021, and was met with critical acclaim.

The first season of the mockumentary sitcom went on to get nominated for seven Primetime Emmy Awards, which resulted in three wins.

Now two seasons in, the show got word that it had been renewed for a third season this past January. 

Wanting to show why the unions are holding out for a new contract in order to get better wages and residuals in an era of streaming content, the Abbott Elementary star held up an abysmal residual paycheck he received on his Instagram

Wanting to show why the unions are holding out for a new contract in order to get better wages and residuals in an era of streaming content, the Abbott Elementary star held up an abysmal residual paycheck he received on his Instagram 

He showed the check close to the camera so his audience could see that he earned just $0.05 from an undisclosed rerun of a past TV show he appeared on

He showed the check close to the camera so his audience could see that he earned just $0.05 from an undisclosed rerun of a past TV show he appeared on 

'You see that? Do you believe that?' Davis continued, before calling out that the postage and the paper cost more than his residual check

‘You see that? Do you believe that?’ Davis continued, before calling out that the postage and the paper cost more than his residual check 

The Writers Guild of America (WGA), which represents writers in film, television, radio, and online media went on strike in early May, demanding better wages and residuals.

Fran Drescher, the president of the SAG-AFTRA union, announced its strike earlier in July when the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) did not agree to any of their terms during contract negotiations.

‘I wish we would be talking to the other side,’ the former Nanny star told CBS Mornings. ‘We said we’d start talking to them immediately, but they’re punishing us. They don’t want to talk to us, so, oh well, you know, they complained [the strike] is going to shut down the business but they don’t come to the table.’

She went on to describe the oppositions tactics as ‘stonewalling. That’s what we are up against.’

The guild — which represents unionized TV and film actors in the United States — is seeking fair compensation in terms of salaries and residual amounts as well as specific guidelines regarding other issues, including the use of artificial intelligence of performers’ likenesses, according to US Weekly.

Many actors have since joined the picket lines in both Los Angeles and New York City in a  show their support for the strike, while others are also sharing their residuals, like Davis, to hammer home the point of why they are striking.

Source link

William Stanford Davis, who has been a

12 Actors Who Were Not Paid Enough For Their Iconic Roles

Source link

12 Actors Who Were Not Paid Enough

Brie Larson is now amongst the MCU’s elite actors, being part of an exclusive club that features names like Robert Downey Jr.

Nearly five years after starring in her first MCU solo movie, Captain Marvel, Larson is set to take on the leading role in this year’s The Marvels after a couple of smaller cameo roles in other Phase 4 projects.

Complete with a brand-new costume and coming in with her usual round of top-notch superpowers, Larson will be one of the MCU’s biggest names in 2023 as she stars in one of the Multiverse Saga’s most important new outings.

Brie Larson Joins Exclusive MCU Credit Club

Marvel Studios released a brand-new poster for The Marvels along with the sequel’s second full trailer before its release on November 10, featuring Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, Iman Vellani, and Samuel L. Jackson.

Marvel Studios

On the poster, Larson’s name is actually the only one billed before the film’s title – a very exclusive credit only given to six other actors in MCU history.

The Marvels
Marvel Studios

The other actors who have received this honor can be seen below:

1.) Robert Downey Jr.

Robert Downey Jr.
Marvel Studios

After kicking off the MCU with a bang in Iron Man, Robert Downey Jr. became the franchise’s leading personality, with his name being the first credit listed for both 2010’s Iron Man 2 and 2013’s Iron Man 3.

He also got that same status for the MCU’s team-up movies, earning top billing for 2012’s The Avengers and 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron.

2.) Chris Evans

Chris Evans
Marvel Studios

Following his first two efforts as Steve Rogers/Captain America in Captain America: The First Avenger and The Avengers, 2014 put Chris Evans on a new level with a leading credit for Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

3.) Paul Rudd

Paul Rudd
Marvel Studios

Ant-Man star Paul Rudd became one of the MCU’s biggest stars right from the get-go, taking a leading credit on 2015’s Ant-Man before earning the same status on 2018’s Ant-Man and the Wasp.

4.) Benedict Cumberbatch

Benedict Cumberbatch
Marvel Studios

Stephen Strange star Benedict Cumberbatch came into the MCU full speed ahead, being listed ahead of the movie’s title for both 2016’s Doctor Strange and 2022’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

5.) Chris Hemsworth

Chris Hemsworth
Marvel Studios

While it took Chris Hemsworth seven years to get this credit, the Thor star earned lead billing on both 2017’s Thor: Ragnarok and 2022’s Thor: Love and Thunder.

6.) Scarlett Johansson

Scarlett Johansson
Marvel Studios

Scarlett Johansson didn’t get this credit until her eighth and final MCU movie, Black Widow, where the Natasha Romanoff star also served as an executive producer for her first Marvel Studios solo outing.

Brie Larson’s Major Role in the MCU

The Marvels will push Brie Larson into new levels of superstardom for the MCU, setting Captain Marvel up as one of the more important characters moving further into the Multiverse Saga.

Specifically, The Marvels is already rumored to feature major ties to 2026’s Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, teasing that she’ll be one of the Avengers’ biggest names when the team assembles once again for the team-up outing.

And with the leading actress already worried about leaking spoilers for this upcoming sequel, plenty of anticipation is building with regard to how The Marvels will change the MCU landscape moving forward.

The Marvels is set to release in theaters on November 10.

Source link

Summary

  • DC Studios announces new animated movies: Watchmen and Crisis on Infinite Earths adaptations are coming in 2024, giving fans a chance to experience these beloved stories in a new format.
  • The Watchmen movie released in 2009 and HBO’s series adaptation in 2019 have reignited interest in the characters, leading to this animated film. Details about the plot and cast are yet to be revealed.
  • Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths will also be released as an animated movie in 2024, bringing together a wide array of DC characters in one epic crossover event, similar to the comic book arc from 1985. The CW’s Arrowverse attempted a live-action adaptation in 2019.

DC Studios is getting to new animated movies. While many changes are being made in the official canon of the franchise that has James Gunn and Peter Safran as the main leaders, the company is taking a pause from releasing movies on the big screen after Blue Beetle and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, at least until Superman: Legacy arrives in 2025. But that won’t stop them from making new animated titles, and two major projects have been announced.

During DC Studios’ panel at San Diego Comic Con, it was confirmed that the Watchmen are coming back with an animated film, while a Crisis on Infinite Earths adaptation is also heading to the animated format. The comic book series created by Alan Moore, Dave Gibbons and John Higgins is one of the most acclaimed stories within the genre and was already adapted for both the small and the big screen.

Back in 2009, Zack Snyder presented his version of the Watchmen to the world in a movie that’s being way more appreciated now, and paved the way for the director to create the Snyderverse, based on the most popular characters from the DC universe.

Ten years later, HBO brought the characters back to life in a series adaptation of the story, that only run for one season but had a huge impact into the superhero genre. According to the information revealed during the panel and published on DC’s official Twitter page, the new Watchmen movie will arrive in 2024, but no details about the plot or the cast were shared, except of course for clarifying that it would be an R-Rated project, which is not surprising given the content of the story.

Related: Patrick Wilson Thinks Zack Snyder’s Watchmen Paved the Way for Avengers


The Justice League is Coming Back with the Crisis on Infinite Earths Animated Movie

DC Comics

It might take a long time for fans to be able to see a new Justice League getting together in live-action, but at least they’ll get to enjoy the superhero team working together in a new animated adventure. The popular comic book arc Crisis on Infinite Earths is getting an animated movie adaptation, as it was revealed during DC Studios panel at San Diego Comic Con.

Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths will also be release in 2024, and no details were shared about this project either, but comic book readers are already very familiar with this popular story. Published in 1985, Crisis on Infinite Earths has become a major event within the DC Comics mythology, maybe even the biggest one, since it was the first-ever-made crossover between almost every character within the company.

The CW’s Arrowverse adapted this plot back in 2019, bringing many characters from other DC franchises back to join their main heroes ni a fight to save the many realities that made up the whole multiverse, and although it wasn’t as successful as previous crossovers such as Invasion! or Crisis on Earth X, it was definitely a good attempt to bring such a meaningful story to the screen.

Source link

Summary DC Studios announces new animated

You would think that Honkai: Star Rail’s 1.2 update would stop at just our story in the Xianzhou Luofu slowly coming to a close, some events, and a fresh restore to our Stellar Jades funds. But while the company works on the game, leakers have already been working at picking apart the beta and trying to figure out who comes next after Imbibitor Lunae and Fu Xuan’s patch.

Five-Star Characters Speculated to Come Out After Honkai: Star Rail’s 1.3 Update

Hoyoverse released the splash art for 1.3’s Character Banners, Dan Heng’s Imbibitor Lunae Form, and Fu Xuan of the Divination Commission. Not to mention celebrated their next story update in 1.2 with banners featuring Blade and Kafka, but as soon as the patch started rolling out, whispers behind the corner started going around about the next slated Five-Stars. So who should we expect to see?

The most obvious one will be Jingliu, a character that has already been revealed in the story and will probably run in the second part of whichever patch she’s in just to generate hype. She’ll be a pretty cool character though, already confirmed to be an Ice Destruction character based on leaks way back and not to mention her story debuts. As for our other character rumored to be running in her path will actually be Topaz, a woman you may not know by name but you just might recognize her based on her Light Cone. In Trend of the Universal Market, we get our first official glimpse of Topaz, you would think that because she is on the Preservation Light Cone, she’d be on that Path. But upon the mass exodus of leaks that occurred when the game was released that revealed about 20 additional characters aside from those already in Honkai: Star Rail, Topaz was speculated to be a Fire Element with the Path of The Hunt. 

You’d think that those characters would be the only ones we’d expect but not so. All hail to the mighty two that took us all by surprise, the Five-Star Characters revealed only in what appears to be Light Cone art, Huohuo and Argentin. If you don’t recall who these two are, these characters were dropped from literally nowhere to the internet, not even included in the mass exodus mentioned above. But what we know of them is that Huohou is a young girl who is of the Abundance Path with the Wind Element and Argentin, the beautiful red-haired knight who is a Pathfinder of Erudition with the Physical Element. I honestly would be so happy to see these two crop up again so soon, but I think we’re more likely to see the next few Four-Stars than these two.

Related: Dan Heng’s Five-Star Form Revealed in Honkai: Star Rail Drip Marketing

Four-Star Characters Speculated to Come Out After Honkai: Star Rail’s 1.3 Update

Image and Art By Owned by Hoyoverse

It wouldn’t be right to talk about new characters without even bothering to address the Four-Star potentials that we could be seeing in the future, starting with the most likely to appear first. Xueyi is a character we’ve already seen appear in the story and is theorized to also be of the Path Destruction while wielding the element Quantum, only furthering our goal to eventually have a Mono-Quantum team. While she is labeled as an NPC at this point and time, beta testers have accidentally come across her splash art in previous runs so we may just see her prop up again as a playable character.

The other two characters have already been revealed in Light Cones you may own, one of which is called Subscribe for More! (The Hunt) that features a character called Guinaifen and the other is called Return to Darkness (The Hunt) which belongs to a character named Hanya. These characters have only been previewed in Light Cones aside from Hanya whose model was leaked in the mass exodus. Based on some of the stories in the Light Cones though, I’m not quite ready for the angst this is sure to bring for our Hanya girl who looks to be cradling the body of Xueyi in her Light Cone.

Not much is known about their kits or at least confirmed, so while their Light Cones belong to characters that have the Path of The Hunt, this may not be their final kit. In fact, because all of these characters’ revelations come from leakers or rumors speculated online, they should be taken with a grain of salt. They are subject to change until they are officially released within the game or confirmed by Hoyoverse upon their reveal. 

Related: All Upcoming Banners in Honkai Star Rail Listed (June 2023)

A lot can change in a couple of months, so I really wouldn’t count on many of these coming true aside from Jingliu whose gameplay has already been leaked and floating around on the internet, and Xueyi whose splash art was found in the beta testers’ files a while back. For more information regarding some of these characters you’ve seen in this article, check out our first reveal when it came to Huo Huo and Argentin, as well as Xueyi when her Splash Art was found out.

About the Author

Jordan Lemons

Jordan is a college student jumping into the world of gaming journalism. Some of her favorite games would include but are most certainly not limited to Genshin Impact, Final Fantasy, Ace Attorney, and Danganronpa.

Source link

You would think that Honkai: Star Rail’s

The “Star Trek” Universe unveiled several first looks of its Paramount+ TV series at San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday, including an extended clip from the fifth and final season of “Star Trek: Discovery,” a trailer and premiere date for the fourth season of “Star Trek: Lower Decks,” and a trailer for the upcoming musical episode of “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds,” currently streaming its second season.

The panel ended with a screening of the “Strange New Worlds” episode featuring the stars of the animated “Lower Decks” — which will be available on Paramount+ early, starting at 4 p.m. PT / 7 p.m. ET on Saturday.

All the preview videos are below.

In the “Discovery” clip, Capt. Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) encounters three new characters introduced for Season 5. First, she comes upon two mercenary scavengers, Moll (Eve Harlow) and L’ak (Elias Toufexis), who possess an artifact that Burnham is also seeking. When they escape, Burnham engages in an unconventional pursuit; she’s joined by another Starfleet captain, Rayner (Callum Keith Rennie), along with the crew of her ship, the U.S.S. Discovery — joined by Federation operative Kovich, played by director David Cronenberg since Season 3 of the series.

In the final season of “Discovery,” which premieres in early 2024, Burnham and the Discovery crew are seeking “an ancient power whose very existence has been deliberately hidden for centuries,” according to an official release. The rest of the cast includes Doug Jones, Anthony Rapp, Mary Wiseman, Wilson Cruz, David Ajala and Blu del Barrio. Executive producers Alex Kurtzman and Michelle Paradise serve as co-showrunners; Heather Kadin, Aaron Baiers, Olatunde Osunsanmi, Frank Siracusa, John Weber, Rod Roddenberry and Trevor Roth also executive produce the series.

Along with releasing the trailer for Season 4 for “Lower Decks,” Paramount+ announced the season will premiere with the first two episodes on Sept. 7. The trailer showcases the unknown force that has been attacking starships across the galaxy, as well as the how the prospect of promotion for the show’s junior officers on the U.S.S. Cerritos leads to all kinds of madcap shenanigans.

The voice cast includes Tawny Newsome, Jack Quaid, Noël Wells, Eugene Cordero, Dawnn Lewis, Jerry O’Connell, Fred Tatasciore and Gillian Vigman. Mike McMahon is showrunner and executive producer; Kurtzman, Roddenberry, Roth, Baiers and Katie Krentz are executive producers.

Along with the “Strange New Worlds”/“Lower Decks” crossover episode, Paramount+ also confirmed that the ninth episode of “Strange New Worlds” this season will be a musical, with 10 original songs by Kay Hanley (“Letters to Cleo”) and Tom Polce (“Letters to Cleo,” “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend”). That episode, titled, “Subspace Rhapsody,” will debut on Paramount+ on Aug. 3, followed by the season finale on Aug. 10.

The cast includes Anson Mount, Rebecca Romijn, Ethan Peck, Jess Bush, Christina Chong, Celia Rose Gooding, Melissa Navia, Babs Olusanmokun, with recurring guest stars Paul Wesley (as James T. Kirk) and Carol Kane. Akiva Goldsman and Henry Alonso Myers are co-showrunners and executive producers, and Kurtzman, Kadin, Baiers, Roddenberry, Roth, Siracusa, Weber and Jenny Lumet are executive producers.

Source link

The “Star Trek” Universe unveiled several first

Photos of the stolen statue, provided by Vermont police

Today, in Crimes You Absolutely Should Not Do (But Which We, If Questioned Under Oath, Would Have To Admit We Would Kind Of Want To Do) News: Someone has apparently stolen one of the abstract art pieces from the set of Tim Burton’s currently in-the-works Beetlejuice 2.

That’s right: A Delia Deetz original is apparently floating around in the (non-dead-people) underworld, as Caledonian Record reports that Vermont police are asking the public for help in locating a 150-pound statue apparently taken from the set of the movie. And good luck to them: We’re pretty sure anybody going out of their way to steal a sculpture that is very obviously a sculpture from Beetlejuice probably isn’t looking to fence the thing, since said fence would probably have a lot of Beetlejuice-adjacent questions they would want addressed before shelling out. No, this has likelygone to the real Juice heads, for what we can only assume will be some scrupulously accurate cosplay photoshoots.

The Sculptures- Beetlejuice HD

It’s not clear if the sculpture—which, per photos released by police, resembles one of the ones that comes to life and menaces the Deetzes and their friends during the climax of the 1988 original—is the same piece from that first movie, or a recreation for the long-in-the-works sequel. (By the way, did you know that Catherine O’Hara, Delia herself, married production designer Bo Welch after they met on this movie? Tim Burton apparently told him to ask her out, and the rest is history. Isn’t that neat?) Anyway, the sculpture is apparently one of two pieces that have been stolen from the set so far, the other being a lamp post with a “distinctive pumpkin decoration” that was bundled into a truck in the early morning some time back on July 14.

Principal photography on Beetlejuice 2 began back in May, although filming is currently shut down due to the SAG-AFTRA strike. Although much of the filming on the new movie is being done in the U.K., production also returned to East Corinth, Vermont, which was prominently featured in the first movie, to shoot exterior footage. The new film stars O’Hara, Wynona Rider, and Michael Keaton, plus newcomers Jenna Ortega, Justin Theroux, Monica Bellucci, and Willem Dafoe.

Source link

Photos of the stolen statue, provided by

Matty Healy, the 1975 frontman, went viral after making an appearance at the Good Vibes Festival in Malaysia. The singer took a moment from the band’s performance to protest the local anti-LGBTQ laws and kissed a male bandmate on stage.

Following the protest, organizers of the music festival released a statement announcing the event had been canceled.

“We deeply regret to announce that the remaining schedule of Good Vibes Festival 2023, planned for today and tomorrow has been cancelled following the controversial conduct and remarks made by UK artist Matty Healy from the band The 1975,” read the statement from the festival.

Organizers were forced to cancel the festival under the directive of the Ministry of Communications and Digital. “The Ministry has underlined its unwavering stance against any parties that challenge, ridicule, or contravene Malaysian laws,” the statement continued.

The festival said that they would update attendees regarding a refund “as soon as possible.”

Homosexuality is illegal in Malaysia and people can be punished with up to 20 years in prison.

The 1975 was headlining the festival that took place in the capital Kuala Lumpur on Friday night. During their time on stage, Healy delivered a speech saying, “​​I made a mistake. When we were booking shows, I wasn’t looking into it. I don’t see the f***ing point, right? I do not see the point of inviting the 1975 to a country and then telling us who we can have sex with.”

Healy continued, “I’m sorry if that offends you, and you’re religious, and it’s part of your f***ing government… I don’t care anymore. If you push, I’m gonna push back. I’m not in the f***ing mood.”

The singer said that they had considered canceling their appearance at the festival but didn’t want to disappoint fans.

“It’s ridiculous,f***ing ridiculous, to tell people what they can do with that and that,” he added. “If you want to invite me here to do a show, you can f**k off. I’ll take your money. You can ban me, but I’ve done this before, and it doesn’t feel good.”

Healy was then joined by bassist Ross MacDonald and shared a kiss.

Source link

Matty Healy, the 1975 frontman, went viral

As Gilmore Girls fans know, Amy Sherman-Palladino’s 2000s masterpiece isn’t just a show. It’s a lifestyle. It’s a religion. It’s an essential fall/winter rewatch. And it’s my go-to comfort show when I’m feeling blue. In recently revisiting Season 2, Episode 16, “There’s the Rub,” I remembered the longtime personal fave is woefully underrated. Unlike a majority of the series’ greatest installments, it doesn’t feature a Friday Night Dinner, Richard (Edward Hermann) is MIA, we only catch glimpses of Luke (Scott Patterson), and Rory (Alexis Bledel) and Lorelai (Lauren Graham) spend a majority of the 45 minutes apart. After a top-notch cold open, Emily (Kelly Bishop) tricks Lorelai into spending a “relaxing” spa weekend together, while Paris (Liza Weil) and Jess (Milo Ventimiglia) crash Rory’s big night alone. Shaking up the typical format gives us a compelling trio debating Bukowski and Jane Austen over burgers and fries, plus deeper insight into Lorelai and Emily’s complex dynamic. The fun, fresh, unexpectedly emotional episode, takes us out of town, shows rarely seen sides of characters, and makes Dean (Jared Padalecki) mad. What more could you want?

Photo: Everett Collection

Source link

By Nicole Gallucci As Gilmore Girls fans know, Amy Sherman-Palladino’s

New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu is calling it: If Donald Trump keeps polling below 40% in the state, he will not be the presidential candidate next year. While being interviewed on Fox News’ “Cavuto Live” on Saturday, Sununu said bluntly, “This can’t be our candidate, because it ain’t gonna win in November ’24.”

Show host Neil Cavuto kicked things off by asking Sununu about Trump’s polling numbers in New Hampshire, where he is currently poised to take 37% of the vote, a five-point drop from the numbers shared in April 2023. Sununu said, “When you have an incumbent president sitting under 40%, that’s a huge opportunity for everybody else.”

Sununu added that it’s likely the state’s Republican Party will “have to coalesce one or two other candidates around that ‘Other’ category” and “that 60% of the voters right now that are not with Trump here in New Hampshire, I think that number will grow even more.”

The governor also chalked up a portion of Trump’s 37% to “sympathy, because of the political attacks” against the former president.

While he admitted that he agrees with those voters about “politicization coming out of the Department of Justice” in an apparent reference to the indictments against Trump, Sununu also painted a stark picture for his fellow conservatives.

If a candidate wants to move ahead of Trump in the state’s race, Sununu said that they will have to be willing to speak badly about the former president. Several of the GOP candidates running against Trump, including former allies Nikki Haley and Mike Pence, as well as Florida Gov. Rick DeSantis, have appeared wary of speaking against their lead rival.

Sununu explained, “All of these candidates have to start hitting this guy.” As Cavuto began to speak over him, Sununu added, “You can’t run against somebody, be 20 points down, but not be willing to talk about him.”

While Cavuto credited Haley with being “pretty critical,” Sununu urged those running against Trump to speak up even more. He said, “Either you’re willing to swing, you’re willing to give the punch and take the punch and show leadership, or or you’re kowtowing.”

Sununu added that no one will be able to take Trump’s voter base away from him and laughed, “I don’t understand the politics of it, because you’re not going to get a Trump voter. Right? They’re with Trump. If the base is with Trump, the base is with Trump. He’s still going to be in the race.”

Ultimately, Sununu said that Republicans who hope to secure the nomination over Trump will need to “find your own path.” He concluded, “You gotta go through him. You can’t go around him. They tried that in ’16, they tried to avoid the controversy. Leadership takes it head-on.”

Watch the entire interview, including Gov. Sununu’s insistence that the candidates who choose to go after Trump risk “nothing” by doing so, in the video above.

Source link

New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu is calling

‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Season 2 to Feature Musical Episode: Watch the Dance-Filled Teaser Trailer | Entertainment Tonight
































Source link

KVEA is clearly doing something right. The Telemundo-owned Los Angeles station, part of a duopoly with sister NBC outlet KNBC, swept this year’s key newscast categories at the 75th Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards. The Spanish language station dominated the evening, winning the Emmys for evening (7 p.m. to 12 a.m.), daytime (11 a.m. to 7 p.m.) and morning (4 a.m. to 11 a.m.) newscasts.

KVEA had won the daytime newscast Emmy last year as well (while KTLA won evening, and KNBC won morning, in 2022).

Overall, KVEA earned eight L.A. Area Emmy awards this year, tied with local public broadcaster KCET. (That was also up from KCET’s haul of six last year.) Given the tie with KVEA, that still preserves KCET’s streak of this being the seventh year in a row that KCET won the most.

The KCBS/KCAL duopoly was next in line, with four wins, while ABC-owned KABC and cabler Spectrum SportsNet LA were next with three.

KCET had received the most L.A. area Emmy nominations this year, with 24. That was followed by KVEA, with 20, and then cable news outlet Spectrum News 1 with 14.

The 2023 Los Angeles Area Emmy Governors Award was presented to Los Angeles Lakers broadcast analyst Stu Lantz, by former Lakers basketball player Robert Horry. The award is presented annually to “an individual, company or organization that has made a substantial contribution to television broadcasting in the greater Los Angeles area.”

Eligibility for this year’s L.A. Area Emmy Awards was between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2022. The Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards honor locally produced programs in the categories of crime and social issues, culture and history, the arts, human interest, sports, the environment, and live and breaking news coverage.

The 75th Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards were presented Saturday evening, at the Four Seasons Hotel Beverly Wilshire in Beverly Hills, hosted by journalist Michaela Pereira. This year’s awards ceremony was produced by Bob Bain and Bob Bain Productions. Go here for a full list of this year’s nominees; below are this year’s winners:

Regularly Scheduled Daily Evening Newscast: 7:00pm-12:00am

Noticias Telemundo 52 a las 11pm • KVEA

Regularly Scheduled Daily Daytime Newscast: 11:00am-7:00pm

Noticias Telemundo 52 a las 6pm • KVEA

Regularly Scheduled Daily Morning Newscast: 4:00am-11:00am

Noticias Telemundo 52 a las 6am • KVEA


L.A. Local Color

Owning the Block (Broken Bread) • KCET

Roy Choi, Executive Producer, Host; Juan Devis, Executive Producer; Emily Mraz, Executive Producer; Natasha Phan, Executive Producer; Antonio Diaz, Director; Chris Low, Director of Photography; Luis Alfonso De la Parra, Associate Producer; Clara Bottoms, Producer; Tanayi Seabrook, Producer; Gia Lappe, Associate Producer


Independent Programming

Belle Vie • KCET

Marcus Mizelle, Director, Director of Photography, Producer


Education/Information

Nuestra Tierra y Su Futuro • KMEX


Crime/Social Issues

Antonio Salazar-Hobson (LA Stories with Giselle Fernandez) • Spectrum News 1


Arts

Duchamp Comes to Pasadena (Artbound) • KCET

Angela Boisvert, Executive Producer; Juan Devis, Executive Producer; Anne Edgar, Executive Producer; David Grabias, Director, Executive Producer; Nic Cha Kim, Producer; Elizabeth Newman, Producer; Hunter Drohojowska-Philp, Co-Producer; Luis Alfonso De la Parra, Associate Producer; Marley Lister, Associate Producer; Kathy Kasaba, Supervising Producer


Culture/History

Food as Resistance (Broken Bread) • KCET

Roy Choi, Executive Producer, Host; Juan Devis, Executive Producer; Emily Mraz, Executive Producer; Natasha Phan, Executive Producer; Antonio Diaz, Director; Chris Low, Director of Photography; Luis Alfonso De la Parra, Associate Producer; Edgar Sardarian, Editor; Jesus Silva, Editor


Informational Series (more than 50% remote)

60 Años A Tu Lado • KMEX

Salvador C. Garcia, Executive Producer, Writer; Lucy Anguiano, Executive Producer; Maydie Encinas-Escobar, Director, Executive Producer; Luis Ortiz Cortez, Editor, Producer; Marco A Flores, Executive Producer; Arturo Quezada, Camera; Octavio Valdez, On-Camera Talent; Beatriz Gomez, Executive Producer; Oswaldo Borraez, Host; Diana Alvarado, On-Camera Talent; Alejandra Santamaria, Executive Producer; Andrea González, Host; Yarel Ramos, On-Camera Talent


Informational Series (more than 50% studio)

I Was There When…. • NBCLA


Entertainment

How German Exiles Shaped Hollywood (Lost LA) • KCET

Matt Bass, Director, Director of Photography; Juan Devis, Executive Producer; Matthew Crotty, Executive Producer; Nathan Masters, Executive Producer, Host; Hugh McHarg, Co-Executive Producer; Catherine Quinlan, Co-Executive Producer; Angela Boisvert, Producer; Bill Dotson, Co-Producer; Matt Litwiller, Editor; Kathy Kasaba, Supervising Producer; Lindsee Diaz, Associate Producer


Music Composition

The Migrant Kitchen: Russian Food • KCET

Jose Parody, Composer


News Series

Pizarron 52 • KVEA


Sports Special

Camino a Catar • KVEA


Sports Series – Programming (Post-Produced)

Backstage: Lakers “Showtime Reunion” • Spectrum SportsNet


Sports Series – Programming (Live Broadcast)

Access SportsNet Dodgers • Spectrum SportsNet LA


Live Sports Coverage

Los Angeles Dodgers at San Francisco Giants • Spectrum SportsNet LA


Sports Feature

Vin Scully’s Final Homestand (Backstage: Dodgers) • Spectrum SportsNet LA

Brad Feig, Producer; Jose Guzman, Editor


Sports Tease

Lakers Opening Night • Spectrum SportsNet

Kareem Arnold, Editor, Producer


Live Special Events – Programming

Rams Los Ángeles Celebra a sus Campeones • KVEA


Live Special Events – News

L.A. Pride Parade • ABC7


Feature Segment

Parteras” The Art of Giving Birth” (Acceso Total) • KVEA

Amaya Pinto, Executive Producer; Elva Saray, On-Camera Talent; Mario Marval, Editor; Alejandro Chipana, Camera; Luis Miron, Associate Producer


Information Segment

Gentrification in Chinatown (Broken Bread) • KCET

Roy Choi, Executive Producer, Host; Juan Devis, Executive Producer; Emily Mraz, Executive Producer; Natasha Phan, Executive Producer; Chris Low, Director of Photography; Luis Alfonso De la Parra, Associate Producer; Ella Hatamian, Editor; Clara Bottoms, Producer


Live Coverage of an Unscheduled News Event

Wild Pursuit • ABC7


Entertainment News Story

The Mozart of Hip Hop (CBS2 News at 6am) • CBS2/KCAL9

Suzanne Marques, Reporter


Business/Consumer News Story

Who’s Hogging All the Parking? (NBC4 News at 4pm & 11pm) • NBC4

Josh Davis, Producer; Joel Grover, Reporter; Scott Weber, Camera, Editor


Crime/Social Issues News Story

LWOP Leadership (KCAL9 News at 8pm) • CBS2/KCAL9

Suzie Suh, Producer, Reporter, Writer


Art/Cultural/Historical News Story

Las Rosies (Noticias Telemundo 52 A las 6pm) • KVEA

Sandra O’Neill, Co-Producer, Reporter, Writer; Andres Fernando Pruna, Camera, Co-Producer, Editor


Environment News Story

Can Fungus Reverse Climate Change? (Your Morning on Spectrum News 1) • Spectrum News 1

Rick Adams, Camera, Editor, Producer, Reporter, Writer


Health/Science News Story

Teaching The Blind To See (CBS2 News at 5pm) • CBS2/KCAL9

Gerri Shaftel Constant, Producer, Writer; Daniel Caston, Camera


Human Interest News Story

Cher Calvin Takes the Leap: Female Skydivers Soar (KTLA5 News at 5pm) • KTLA5

Cher Calvin, Reporter; Ernesto Huerta-Juarez, Camera; Angel C. Kim, Producer; Kimberly Cornell, Executive Producer


Investigative News Story

Food For The Homeless Thrown Out (CBS2 News at 11pm) • CBS2/KCAL9

David Goldstein, Reporter


Sports News Story

Vin Scully Obit (Fox11 10 O’clock News) • KTTV-TV

Joe Finkle, Producer, Writer; Jake Frahm, Editor


Short Promo – Sports

ABC7 & Rams “This Is Our City” • ABC7

Chris Gordon, Senior Producer


Short Promo – News/Topical

The Migrant Kitchen • KCET

Antonio Diaz, Executive Producer


Public Service Announcement

Distracted Dining • LA36

Kevin Pearcy, Executive Producer; Yury Polissky, Director, Editor, Writer


WINS BY OUTLET

KCET 8
KVEA 8
KCBS2/KCAL9 4
KABC7 3
Spectrum SportsNet LA 3
KMEX 2
Spectrum News 1 2
Spectrum SportsNet 2
KNBC/NBCLA 2
KTTV-TV 1
LA36 1
KTLA5 1

Source link

KVEA is clearly doing something right. The

Prince William is ready to return to New York City in September, and he’ll have a full schedule when he lands in the Empire State.

“Prince William will be attending the Earthshot Prize [Summit] and several other engagements and meetings while he is in New York for just over two days,” a source exclusively tells Us Weekly.

The Earthshot Prize Innovation Summit will be held on September 19 during New York Climate Week. “William’s schedule will be very full and he is very much looking forward to his trip across the pond,” the insider shares.

The Prince of Wales, 41, hasn’t been to New York City for an official visit since 2014. He was scheduled to return during last year’s Innovation Summit, which was also held in the Big Apple during September. However, he cancelled his appearance in the wake of Queen Elizabeth II‘s death at age 96. She died due to natural causes just over a week before the event.

“Protecting the environment was a cause close to my grandmother’s heart and I know she would’ve been delighted to hear about this event and the support you’re all giving our earth shot finalists, the next generation of environmental pioneers,” William said in a video message played at last year’s Summit. “Together in this room are the people and organizations who will help us to achieve the Earthshot mission: to repair, restore and rejuvenate our planet within this current decade.”

William founded the Earthshot Prize with The Royal Foundation in 2020 to award those who find, develop or scale groundbreaking solutions to climate change. The organization’s goal is to award solutions that work fast — ideally creating a stable climate by 2030.

At the September Summit, the first in line for the British throne will help reveal this year’s 15 finalists for the big prize and introduce their groundbreaking climate solutions. William and Mike Bloomberg (global advisor to Earthshot winners and the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Climate Ambition and Solutions) are both expected to address the guests during the special presentation.

The 15 finalists announced in September will anxiously wait for two months to learn which of them will be named the five Earthshot Prize Award winners. The third annual awards ceremony is set to be held in Singapore on November 7. The five winners will be awarded £1 million each to further their work in preventing climate change.

William attended last year’s Earthshot Prize Awards in Boston with wife Princess Kate. Prior to hitting the green carpet together, they met with Mayor Wu and took in a Boston Celtics game.

Reporting by Travis Cronin

Source link

Prince William is ready to return to

In June, “The Walking Dead” creator Robert Kirkman’s Skybound Entertainment recently scored two highly coveted comic book licenses from Hasbro, “The Transformers” and “G.I. Joe,” with both planned for release this fall as part of the new “Energon Universe.”

Kirkman won’t have any input into future movies based on “G.I. Joe,” but given the difficulty that franchise has had on the big screen lately, we couldn’t help but ask Kirkman for his take now that he’s got a toehold on the universe.

“There’s certainly good aspects to the, the ‘Snake Eyes’ movie, and the other two ‘GI Joe’ movies, I think that maybe didn’t perform in the box office as much as Hasbro and Paramount would have liked,” Kirkman said during the Q&A portion of the “Transformers & G.I. Joe Return in The Energon Universe” panel at San Diego Comic-Con, hosted by Comicbook.com’s James Viscardi.

“I think that everything that seems to me that works is going back to the core aspect of things and paying tribute to what made things popular in the first place,” Kirkman added. “I think that’s what we’re trying to do with the Energon Universe- to harken back to the original cartoon stories, the original Larry Hama comics, not to try to reinvent the wheel too much, not to play fast and loose with the continuity or the character traits with characters.”

Kirkman addressed a common Hollywood problem where a comic IP in a movie is either changed or dumbed down to make the character accessible to general audiences.

“You don’t just willy nilly like give characters names that are familiar and then turn them into completely different characters,” Kirkman said.

Kirkman stressed the importance of going back to the what came before and honoring it.

“Actually do something that the fanbase will latch onto and will respect will be excited about. So I think just really getting back to the core and honoring everything that came before is all you need to do.” Kirkman added.

Kirkman also shouted out the original 1987 animated “GI Joe” film saying, “I would do the Statue of Liberty sequence from the ‘GI JOE’ movie.”

The new Energon Universe expands in December with Duke #1, a limited series from Joshua Williamson (DC’s “Superman,” “Dark Ride”) and Tom Reilly (“The Thing”), that tells the story you’ve never read before – the origins of GI Joe and Cobra in a world grappling with the arrival of the Autobots and Decepticons. When Conrad S. Hauser (codename DUKE) investigates the mysteries behind The Transformers, the answers will lead to the birth of forces for good and evil that the world never imagined.

Duke will be the first of four GI Joe limited series coming from Skybound, setting the stage for a fresh new take on GI Joe.

This will be followed by the launch of Cobra Commander #1 in January 2024, from Joshua Williamson and Andrea Milana (“Impact Winter: Rook”). In a world where Cobra doesn’t exist, one man’s sinister plans to utilize the mysterious alien substance known as Energon will send shockwaves across the globe.

For all our San Diego Comic-Con coverage, go here.

Source link

In June, “The Walking Dead” creator Robert

It’s the beginning of the end for Star Trek: Discovery.

Season 5 doesn’t debut until early 2024 (an exact release date hasn’t been shared just yet), but fans have been treated to a sneak peek at the final installment, which was released during San Diego Comic-Con.

In the five-minute clip, which you can watch above, Captain Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) pursues Moll (Eve Harlow) and L’ak (Elias Toufexis) by holding onto their starship while it travels at warp speed.

Star Trek: Discovery, which launched in 2017, is a legacy show for Paramount+. It helped announce then-upstart streamer CBS All Access as its first commissioned original series. It also launched the Star Trek franchise on the streamer, which has grown to five current series. With Picard currently airing its final season, Star Trek: Discovery will be the final CBS all Access series to end its run on Paramount+.

The fifth and final season will find Captain Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and the crew of the USS Discovery uncovering a mystery that will send them on an epic adventure across the galaxy to find an ancient power whose very existence has been deliberately hidden for centuries. But there are others on the hunt as well — dangerous foes who are desperate to claim the prize for themselves and will stop at nothing to get it.

Star Trek: Discovery is produced by CBS Studios in association with Secret Hideout and Roddenberry Entertainment. Alex Kurtzman, Michelle Paradise, Heather Kadin, Aaron Baiers, Olatunde Osunsanmi, Frank Siracusa, John Weber, Rod Roddenberry and Trevor Roth serve as executive producers. Alex Kurtzman and Michelle Paradise serve as co-showrunners.

Source link

It’s the beginning of the end for

Ever since announcing her fourth pregnancy—her first with husband Travis Barker—at a Blink-182 concert in June, Kourtney Kardashian’s Instagram feed has been an ode to her pregnancy style. From sheer bodysuits and string bikinis to cutout one-pieces and cropped miniskirt sets, the 44-year-old reality star’s wardrobe could best be described as baby bump-forward. 

However, a few of Kardashian’s sexiest maternity looks have so far been kept off the grid—a grave disservice to fans that she is working to correct. On July 21, the Poosh mogul dropped a ton of photos from her entire pregnancy journey, which she captioned, “lost and found.” The dump was filled with previously unseen looks, though Kardashian made sure to include the sheer body suit and leather pant combo from her initial pregnancy announcement. 

Of the new looks, I’m particularly partial to the skintight, semi-sheer jumpsuit at the top of the slideshow as well as the denim-on-denim ensemble featured in slide seven, which Kardashian left unbuttoned to frame her bump. And though the reality star previously shared a photo of a black leather trench coat and sheer dress ensemble, her latest post featured an even more risqué version of the look.

In slide three, Kardashian posed for the camera in a completely sheer lace mini dress over simple black underwear. Of course, she topped off the look with the same leather coat, this time keeping the jacket unbuttoned and adding a pair of calf-length leather boots. Honestly, she couldn’t have slayed harder if her name was Buffy. 

Instagram content

This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.

Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker are expecting a “little drummer boy,” making this baby Kardashian’s third son. Along with sons Mason, 13, and Reign, 8, Kardashian also shares an 11-year-old daughter, Penelope, with ex Scott Disick. Meanwhile, Travis Barker shares his son Landon, 19, daughter Alabama, 17, and stepdaughter Atiana, 24, with ex-wife Shanna Moakler. 

Source link

Ever since announcing her fourth pregnancy—her first

Last Updated: July 23, 2023, 10:17 IST

Disha Patani Gives A Shout-Out To Tiger Shroff

Disha Patani and Tiger Shroff who were rumoured to be dating for a few years parted ways last year.

Disha Patani and Tiger Shroff continue to remain good friends, despite their break-up. The duo were rumoured to be dating for a long time. Recently, the former took to her social media handle to give a big shout-out to Tiger for his latest stint with music. The actor recently dropped his version of Edward Maya’s Stereo Love as Stereo Love Again. Taking to her Instagram story, Disha wrote, “Is there anything you can’t do Tiger Shroff. Love your voice and your look.” For Zahrah, she wrote, “Super hot and sexy.”

The music video, directed by the talented Manish Shunty, is an absolute treat to the eyes as well as the ears as we can see Tiger and Zahrah in sizzling avatars, igniting the screen with their scorching chemistry. With “Love Stereo Again,” Tanishk Bagchi puts a modern-day Indian spin on the timeless Edward Maya classic, penned by the talented Shraddha Pandit (Hindi) and international songwriters Eduard Marian, Eldar Mansurov, and Corneva Victoria.

Tiger Shroff on being a part of the song had shared, “Being a part of ‘Love Stereo Again’ has been an exhilarating journey. To contribute to such an iconic song is an absolute privilege. From recording the track to filming the music video, every moment was a blast. This party anthem is truly one of a kind, and I’m eagerly looking forward to seeing everyone groove to its beats. Get ready to feel the love and dance your heart out!”

Back in 2020, Tiger made his singing debut with Unbelievable. Then in 2021, he released a couple of singles that included Casanova and Vande Mataram, and in 2022, he released Poori Gal Baat.

Last month, Disha made headlines, when she was spotted with her rumoured ex-boyfriend Tiger Shroff. They were rumoured to be dating for a few years before parting ways last year. They were seen arriving together for this event in Delhi. This year when, Disha celebrated her birthday, Tiger took to his Instagram stories to share a picture of them against the background of a crowd cheering for them. He wrote, “Only the best times ahead. Keep spreading your wings and love and laughter always. Happy birthday.” He also tagged her and dropped a red heart emoji, while the song O Saathi played in the backdrop.

Meanwhile, on the work front, Disha Patani will soon be seen in Project K with Deepika Padukone, Amitabh Bachchan and Prabhas. Tiger on the other hand has Bade Miyan Chote Miyan with Akshay Kumar.

Source link

Last Updated: July 23, 2023, 10:17 ISTDisha

Jamie Foxx opened up about an unspecified medical emergency for the first time since the health complication landed him in the hospital in April.

The “Ray” actor posted a heartfelt and candid update to Instagram on Friday night to shed some light on his absence from the spotlight.

“I just didn’t want you to see me like that, man,” he said in the more than three-minute-long video. “I wanted you to see me laughing, having a good time, partying, cracking a joke, doing a movie, television show. I didn’t want you to see me with tubes running out of me and trying to figure out if I was going to make it through.”

The 55-year-old entertainer’s “medical complication” was first shared by his daughter Corinne Foxx, who posted a family statement to Instagram on April 12.

“We know how beloved he is and appreciate your prayers,” the statement said. “The family asks for privacy during this time.”

During the video, Foxx also thanked his family for keeping information on the medical emergency “airtight,” and from the public. Although little information has been shared, his friends and fellow entertainers like Nick Cannon and Kevin Hart have assured fans of Foxx’s health.

Celebrities also took to social media to show their support following his hospitalization. Kerry Washington posted to Instagram, writing, “Sending you all the love and prayers my movie huzbin,” while “Jamie Foxx Show” co-star Garcelle Beauvais shared an appreciation post that said, “I want & need you to get better soon.”

Kelly Osborne, who also has faced life-threatening health complications, supported Foxx by co-hosting “Beat Shazam” alongside Cannon in place of the “Day Shift” actor and his daughter Corinne while he was in recovery.

“He is one of the most talented incredible human beings in the industry and it is such an honor to be asked to keep Corinne’s seat warm for her while everything is going on,” Osborne said on “Today.”

Foxx turned some heads earlier this month when he was spotted on a boat for a joy ride on the Chicago River. TMZ shared a video of him July 9 waving to excited fans for the first time in public since his hospitalization.

In the recently shared Instagram video, Foxx reassured his fans that he is officially coming back and returning to work. In fact, the “Spider-Man: No Way Home” actor recently landed a gig to co-host the “We Are Family” game show by Fox Entertainment alongside his daughter Corinne.

“It’s been tough but now I got my legs under me,” he said through tears.

The video comes out just as Netflix released his movie “The Cloned Tyrone,” co-starring John Boyega and Teyonah Parris. The series follows an unlikely trio who are thrust into the center of a neighborhood conspiracy.

As he closed out the video, he joked about the rumors of him having a clone on the loose, teasing his latest role. “Well, check this out,” he said before preparing to rip off a mask and pausing to smile at his own trick. With his return to Hollywood, there are plenty more jokes to come.

“I just wanted to jump on the internet and let you know I’m on my way back,” he said.

Source link

Jamie Foxx opened up about an

Marvel Comics just released a new trailer for Ms. Marvel’s big debut as a mutant in her upcoming new comic series, Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant.

Recently, Marvel made waves on the page by killing off the beloved Kamala Khan in the stupidest way possible—or at least, that’s what most of the internet thinks.

While disguising herself as Mary Jane, one of Spider-Man’s villains stabbed Ms. Marvel, anti-climatically killing her. But, as is the norm for comics, she didn’t stay that way for long.

The character is already set to return to the fray, but with a huge twist: she’s now also a mutant, on top of her original Inhuman heritage.

What makes the whole situation worth the attention, however, is that Marvel hired Ms. Marvel star Iman Vellani to write a new comic series for her own character alongside writer Sabir Pirzada.

Ms. Marvel the Mutant Gets New Trailer

Straight out of San Diego Comic-Con 2023, Marvel Comics showed fans a fresh trailer for Kamala Khan’s big X-Gene debut in Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant, a comic series co-written by Iman Vellani (who portrays the MCU version of the hero) herself.

The video teased that thanks to mutant Krakoan resurrection technology, “Kamala Khan has been reborn anew as Marvel’s newest mutant and the world’s new X-Man.”

Marvel

In the promo, Ms. Marvel can be seen retaining her old stretchy powers and fighting alongside key X-Men characters, including Beast, Wolverine, Colossus, Storm, Cyclops, and more.

Ms. Marvel, Kamala Khan, mutant, X-Men
Marvel

The series will be co-written by both Iman Vellani and Sabir Pirzada, and Carlos Gomez and Adam Gorham will lead the artwork.

The whole trailer can be seen below:

Is This a Sign of Things To Come For Kamala Khan

This whole publicity stunt is almost certainly the product of corporate synergy, so Ms. Marvel aligns better with her MCU counterpart, who was revealed to be a mutant at the end of her Disney+ series.

Understandably, many are rolling their eyes at the changes. Though, Iman Vellani’s involvement seems to have steered the drastic alterations to the character from being an outright failure to something people are actually interested in seeing play out.

So, needless to say, her involvement was a smart choice from Marvel.

Now the big question is: will this storyline be the biggest indication of what fans should expect from the X-Men when they properly arrive in the MCU? And will Kamala Khan be among the team’s starting Marvel Studios roster?

Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant #1 hits store shelves starting this August.

Source link

My Adventures with Superman has made some exciting changes to the most familiar faces in the classic comic book story, including Lois Lane. 

As for the Man of Steel himself, he may still be tall, dark, and handsome, but the details of his origin have made some major shifts. 

Some fans may have been jarred by how quickly the young Clark Kent became accustomed to his otherworldly powers, and his implied biological connection to the Kryptonian ship that brought him to Earth offers a fresh take on the Man of Steel. 

These changes to Superman’s background aren’t the only origin-altering adjustments being made to the DC story as Clark’s love interest, Lois, also appears to be quite different than what most fans are used to. 

1.) A More Culturally-Inclusive Lois Lane 

Warner Bros.

My Adventures with Superman decided it was time to change Lois Lane’s heritage and indicate that she is of East Asian descent in the show. Additionally, Lois is voiced by South Korean voice actress Alice Lee, which is also a first for the iconic DC character. 

Margot Kidder as Lois Lane
Margot Kidder

Before this animated series began, Lois Lane was always portrayed as Caucasian in any Superman media. Perhaps the most iconic on-screen Lois Lane created this precedent, as the late actress Margot Kidder set the standard for how great Lois can be as a character in the fan-favorite Christopher Reeve Superman movies (if they still exist). 

2.) Lois Lane Has a Different Job 

Lois Lane and Superman
Warner Bros.

In My Adventures with Superman, Lois Lane is still chasing the biggest news story she can find. Her biggest responsibility at work, though, is getting everyone’s coffee. 

Lois is doing everything she can to break into the reporting game and prove her worth at The Daily Planet, but the paper’s editor, Perry White, is intercepting every good scoop she gets and redirecting it to his top news squad. 

Margot Kidder as Lois Lane
Margot Kidder

The name Lois Lane is almost synonymous with The Daily Planet as she’s always been portrayed as the newspaper’s best reporter. In My Adventures with Superman, though, Lois is just a lowly intern with little-to-no credibility. 

The show is already alluding to Lois advancing in the workplace since Clark is now bringing her coffee. If she’s going to get her spot in the Planet‘s columns, though, the new Lois Lane is going to have to start from the very bottom. 

3.) Lois Lane: Bold, Assertive, & Expressive 

Lois Lane
Warner Bros.

Lois Lane is typically portrayed as a professional, no-nonsense reporter that has no time for games. She rarely loses her cool, mainly because she understands that she can’t afford to. 

That wisdom and poise must come with age because Lois in My Adventures with Superman is much goofier and more energetic as she runs right into chaos to get a good scoop, even if it means going directly against her boss’s wishes. 

Margot Kidder as Lois Lane
Margot Kidder

Most fans are used to a much more laid-back Lois Lane that reports from the sidelines and moonlights as Superman’s damsel in distress. In My Adventures with Superman, however, Lois is on the scene and helping citizens steer clear of danger just as much as she’s trying to get a good story from them. 

4.) Lois Falls for Clark, Not Superman 

Clark Kent holding Lois Lane
Warner Bros.

Even Lois Lane’s relationship with Superman is flipped on its head in the new animated series, which may be the biggest change of all. Lois seems to have eyes for her new coworker, Clark Kent, and is more worried about him than she is about chasing the Man of Steel around the city. 

Lois Lane and Superman
Margot Kidder, Christopher Reeve

Traditionally, Lois falls in love with Superman while Clark is in love with Lois, creating a unique love triangle between the two characters. My Adventures with Superman has forgone this dynamic as Clark and Lois seem to be falling in love with each other while Lois seems more curious about Superman’s origin than his dinner plans.

While the love triangle between Superman, Clark, and Lois makes for some great storytelling, the Kryptonian Son still has all the pieces of a hopeless romantic that can bring the same flame that fans expect from Superman and Lois. 

This change is another great example of how My Adventures with Superman is offering fans plenty of new details to love about the Man of Steel while still enjoying his familiar tales. 

New episodes of My Adventures with Superman air every Friday on Adult Swim and are available for streaming the following day on Max. 

Source link

Whether you’re editing the next big blockbuster or a funny segment for your budding YouTube channel, DaVinci Resolve is a piece of software you must have on your system. It doesn’t matter if you’re working in Avid Media Composer, Adobe Premiere Pro, or Final Cut Pro X. Having Resolve as part of your toolkit expands your capabilities tenfold. Also, its free version is almost as powerful as full-priced NLEs.

DaVinci Resolve 18.5 has been in beta since April of 2023, and now it’s been officially released. For those who haven’t been riding the beta train, here are all of the upcoming updates you need to know about. We’ve even included some of our favorite YT videos featuring techniques, updates, and tips for Resolve.


The Cut Page

When the Cut page was added to Resolve, it was definitely a head-scratcher. But it all made sense once the iPad version of DaVinci Resolve was released. It was a truncated editing UI designed for quick edits on a tablet.

With 18.5, the Cut page gets more love, so editing is more efficient. Here are a few of our favorite updates from the release notes.

  • Multiple timeline display and action improvements.
  • Support for subtitles in the cut timeline.
  • Automatically detect and create captions from timeline audio.
  • Perform DaVinci Neural Engine scene cuts in the cut timeline.
  • Ability to create split edits by rolling or trimming audio.
  • Cut page track numbering unified with other pages.
  • Export current frame as still from media, cut and edit viewers.
  • New motion graphic effects templates and transitions in cut and edit.

The Edit Page

But with the new Cut page evolving how we edit, that doesn’t mean the traditional Edit page is getting left in the dust. This update sees the addition of some AI tools powered by the DaVinci Neural Engine. Here are some of our favorites for the Edit page.

  • DaVinci Neural Engine-based subtitles from audio in Studio.
  • DaVinci Neural Engine powered text-based editing in Studio.
  • Ability to add and delete keyframes using keyboard shortcuts.
  • Export the current frame as still from media, cut, and edit viewers.
  • Ability to stabilize multiple selected clips from the timeline.
  • Retime curve now invokes the speed curve by default.
  • Option to copy grades from flattened multicams to multicam angles..
  • Ability to manually relink missing VFX Connect clips.
  • Ability to select all clips under playhead in cut, edit, and Fairlight.
  • Improved text wrapping for caption previews in the subtitle inspector.
  • The timecode display window now shows timecode entry previews.
  • The Export Edit Index action is now part of the edit index options.

For those of us like me who work with multicam footage, seeing these updates really helps my editing anxiety. It’s also exciting to see the AI-powered subtitle tools and text-based editing workflow finally get a full release!

Media, Color, Resolve FX

The release notes are massive, with over 150 updates to DaVinci Resolve. Check out the full release if you’d like to get the full rundown.

But we’ve parsed through the massive list of updates to give you some of our favorites that we plan on using on a day-to-day basis.

  • Support for AI-based audio classification in Studio.
  • AI-based Resolve FX Relight to add virtual lighting in Studio.
  • Import and export timelines using the OpenTimelineIO format.
  • New 2x Enhanced Super Scale algorithm.
  • Introduction of the USD toolset for managing USD assets.
  • Support for USD Hydra-based renderers, including Storm.
  • Support for a native AI-based depth map tool in Studio.
  • GPU accelerated Clean Plate and Anaglyph.
  • Up to 3x faster renders when using the Fusion splitter tool.
  • Per-timeline Resolve Color Management.
  • Support for matte finesse post-filter controls in Magic Mask.
  • Ability to manage missing LUTs from the LUT manager.
  • Generated LUTs now include spatial Resolve FX DCTL effects.
  • Up to 2x faster spatial noise reduction in Apple silicon.
  • Support for Leica L Log color management.
  • Color space and gamma options are now organized by vendor.
  • Ability to swap in and out colorspaces in Resolve FX Color Transform.
  • Up to 2x faster Beauty, Water Color, and Stylize on Nvidia systems.
  • Up to 1.5x faster Lens Blur and Aperture Diffraction on Nvidia systems.
  • Support for Blackmagic Cloud Presentations.
  • Sign in and upload videos directly to TikTok from DaVinci Resolve.
  • New vertical resolution timelines and projects default to full frame with crop.
  • Support for rendering animated GIF clips.

Editor’s Thoughts

Not only am I the Tech Editor at NFS, but I’m also an editor, editor. For 20 years, I edited theater and stage productions, making heavy use of Multicam tools found in FCPX. Moving to Resolve was a dream, as I had better color controls. I desperately needed these as each show I worked on ran for about two hours.

With DaVinci Resolve 18.5, I’m not only seeing a push towards making the suite social media friendly but also powerful enough to throw down on any high-end production. AI-supported text-based editing is a dream for documentary filmmakers. The FX Relight tool could save scenes you messed up during production. And with the new 2x Enhanced Super Scale algorithm, no one will know I still shoot on HD.

This is why DaVinci Resolve 18.5 should belong in every editor’s toolkit. There will be times this suite can support your existing workflow or even replace it entirely. Sticking to one brand isn’t always best for every project. In my career, I’ve jumped from Avid to FCP. But now, I hop between Adobe and Resolve, depending on my needs.

Whatever your needs are, having such a powerful software suite at your fingertips, all for the price of free 99, feels like a no-brainer.

Source link

Whether you're editing the next big blockbuster

Nathalie Emmanuel is the latest star to join the voice cast of the immersive animated series “Ghosts of Ruin.”

The announcement that the “Game of Thrones” and “Fast and Furious” franchise costar would bring her voice talents to the new series was made during the “Ghosts of Ruin” Hall H presentation at San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday.

“Literally, I’m emailing the agents right now in this panel,” executive producer Michael Ramey quipped, underscoring just how “real time” the news had developed. (In an interview following the panel, Ramey and fellow EP Katie Stippec told Variety that they were backstage hitting “refresh, refresh, refresh.”)

In May, Variety exclusively announced that Rosario Dawson and Tony Revolori had joined the cast of the animated series, which follows a group of gamers as they compete in the first-ever neural reality battle royale game, named “Ruin.” However, a malicious virus appears and transforms their utopia into hell.

Emmanuel will voice Dr. Angela Tucci, who Stippec teases is “a very monumental, pivotal character in the run of the show.”

“I’ve wanted her on the show from the very beginning, because I’m a big fan of hers,” said showrunner Michael Ryan. “She’s amazing. And I think the part she’s playing is so perfect. I can’t wait to record her.”

Ryan also offered a little more detail on who Emmanuel will voice. “She’s pretty much running the neural reality,” he teased. “Everything I’ve watched Nathalie in, her acting is so strong and her sense of presence and strength really comes through and I really think that’s going to be perfect.

Also starring in the show are K-Pop star AleXa, Karen Strassman, and John Bentley — all of whom were present on the Hall H panel — as well as Josh Keaton, Justin Long, Cherise Boothe, Harron Atkins, Michael Longfellow and JB Blanc.

The Hall H panel meant creator and executive producer P. J. Accetterro’s first trip to San Diego Comic-Con was especially memorable, especially the experience of announcing Emmanuel’s addition live from the stage.

“Nathalie’s amazing. I can’t believe how good our cast is. It’s stacked,” Accetterro said. “Not only the talent but what they bring to the table and the characters because they have elevated all their takes to the next level.

Moderated by Coy Jandreau, the conversation also featured Hans Zimmer’s Bleeding Fingers Music’s Giovoni Rios, Hendric Beunk and Russell Emanuel and mirrored the project’s community-focused interactive nature, with attendees getting a chance to weigh in on what dialogue Dawson’s Prism — described as a standoffish pro gamer with one goal: to be the world’s undisputed champion — will deliver in an upcoming episode. Attendees watched three versions of her character’s quippy dialogue and overwhelmingly voted for option C, which landed the biggest burn against her ex-lover.

“Ghosts of Ruin” will debut this fall via the Gala Film website, the film and TV division of Web3 company Gala. Though no streaming service is attached to the project yet, Battle Island plans to shop the project to other platforms for a wider release.

Source link

Nathalie Emmanuel is the latest star to

Ahead of the release of the sixth and final episode of Secret Invasion on Disney Plus, Marvel is bringing the first three episodes of the series to Hulu. The episodes, which star Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury as he attempts to fend off an invasion of Earth by a faction of shapeshifting Skrulls, is now available to stream on Disney’s other US streaming service until August 17th. Any viewers wanting to watch the final three episodes will have to watch them on Disney Plus, where the season’s final episode will be released on July 26th.

Cross-promoting Secret Invasion on Hulu (which is majority owned by Disney alongside Comcast’s NBCUniversal) is also interesting in the context of Disney’s plans to bring the streaming services closer together later this year. In a May earnings report, CEO Bob Iger announced plans for a “one-app experience” with Hulu’s library being offered within Disney Plus. Although Hulu will continue to be offered as a standalone option, the move looks set to blur the line between the streaming services.

Meanwhile, Iger has also been upfront about his desire for the company to spend less on producing Marvel (and Star Wars) content, after Iger said an influx of Marvel TV shows “diluted focus and attention” from its films. “You pull back not just to focus, but it was also as part of our cost containment initiative,” Iger said in an interview with CNBC. “Spending less on what we make, and making less.” But regardless of Iger’s ambitions, now that both the WGA writers union and SAG-AFTRA actors union are on strike, Disney will have little choice but to produce less until a deal is reached.

Secret Invasion will be available on Hulu until August 17th, around a month before this year’s Emmy Awards are due to take place on September 18th (though it may be postponed due to the strikes). The Marvel series released too late to be nominated for this year’s awards, despite critics pointing out that it appears to have been produced with awards in mind. In its review, MSNBC noted that Secret Invasion’s cast is packed with award-winners (Samuel L. Jackson, Olivia Colman, Ben Mendelsohn, and Julia-Louis Dreyfuss) but called the show a “crude attempt at Emmy bait” that is “far too focused on ticking award voters’ boxes and not focused enough on the actual story.”

Disclosure: Comcast is an investor in Vox Media, The Verge’s parent company.

Source link

Ahead of the release of the sixth

Christopher Nolan is sharing his admiration for the James Bond franchise and why it would be an “amazing privilege” to direct a film of 007.

While speaking with host Josh Horowitz on a recent episode of the Happy Sad Confused podcast, the Oppenheimer director admitted that he would gladly accept the opportunity if presented at the “right moment.”

“The influence of those movies on my filmography is embarrassingly apparent. And so there’s no attempt to shy away from that. I love the films,” Nolan said. “You know, it would be an amazing privilege to do one.”

But the filmmaker noted that when you take on a character or project like the iconic British spy franchise, “you’re working within a particular set of constraints” and must approach it with the “right attitude.”

“It has to be the right moment in your creative life where you can express what you want to express and really burrow into something within the appropriate constraints because you would never want to take on something like that and do it wrong,” he added.

Taking on a legendary character wouldn’t be anything new for the Oscar-nominated director, as he brought Christian Bale’s Batman to life in the Dark Knight trilogy. But if he took on James Bond, Nolan explained that he would need to be allotted some creative freedom throughout the project.

“You wouldn’t want to take on a film not fully committed to what you bring to the table creatively. So as a writer, casting, everything, it’s a full package,” he said. “You’d have to be really needed, you’d have to be really wanted in terms of bringing the totality of what you bring to a character. Otherwise, I’m very happy to be first in line to see whatever they do.”

Nolan previously revealed in a 2017 interview with Playboy that he has kept in contact with “producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson over the years” and would “definitely” be down to take on a film in the hit franchise.

“I deeply love the character, and I’m always excited to see what they do with it,” he said at the time. “Maybe one day that would work out. You’d have to be needed, if you know what I mean. It has to need reinvention; it has to need you. And they’re getting along very well.”

Source link

Christopher Nolan is sharing his admiration for

Malaysia’s Good Vibes Festival came to an abrupt, unexpected, and decidedly un-good-vibes-ish halt this weekend, after organizers shut the last two days of the festival down, apparently in response to an incident involving Matty Healy and Ross MacDonald of The 1975. Healy—who was vocally angry about being booked at the festival, after he and his bandmates were informed that homosexuality is illegal in Malaysia—gave a speech to the audience in which he said “Unfortunately, you don’t get a set of loads of uplifting songs because I’m fucking furious,” before kissing MacDonald on stage. The set was canceled shortly afterwards, with Consequence reporting that organizers also opted to cancel the entire rest of the festival—slated to run through Saturday and Sunday, with headlining performances from The Strokes and The Kid Laroi.

Festival organizers issued a statement this weekend, saying, “Prior to the festival, The 1975 management team reassured us that Healy and the band would adhere to local performance guidelines. Regrettably, Healy did not honor these assurances, despite our trust in their commitment. Healy’s actions took us by complete surprise, and we halted the show as promptly as feasible following the incident.” They also announced that they had been issued a directive to shut down from the country’s Ministry Of Communications And Digital.

Malaysia is one of the most restrictive countries on the planet in terms of LGBTQ+ rights; same-sex sexual acts can be punished with up to 20 years in prison, plus canings, fines, or deportations. Addressing the crowd on Friday, Healy stated that he and the band had “made a mistake” by agreeing to play the festival, saying, in a long-ish rant,

When we were booking shows, I wasn’t looking into it. I don’t see the fucking point, right? I do not see the point of inviting The 1975 to a country and then telling us who we can have sex with. I’m sorry if that offends you, and you’re religious, and it’s part of your fucking government… I don’t care anymore. If you push, I’m gonna push back. I’m not in the fucking mood.

Unfortunately, you don’t get a set of loads of uplifting songs because I’m fucking furious. And that’s not fair on you, because you’re not representative of your government. Cause you are young people, and I’m sure a lot of you are gay and progressive. It’s ridiculous, fucking ridiculous, to tell people what they can do with that and that. If you want to invite me here to do a show, you can fuck off. I’ll take your money. You can ban me, but I’ve done this before, and it doesn’t feel good.

Healy is receiving criticism for his actions on social media; several people have accused him of adopting a “white savior” complex, and potentially inciting reprisals from conservative elements in the country’s government that will land on LGBTQ+ people living in Malaysia, rather than members of the band—who reportedly vacated the country not long after the show.

Source link

Malaysia’s Good Vibes Festival came to an

Once you have something people want, you’ll have the leverage to negotiate your involvement in the project.

Step 2: What’s your budget?

Have you ever had to shop for a gift for a close friend? Isn’t your first step deciding your gift budget?

It’s basically the same for your movie. You need to have a realistic idea of what your budget is, and be able to back it up. You might say something like this:

   “I can get it in the can for 100k, but if I had 300k I could get a named actor that would increase sales.”

A detail like this shows the specific impact of your budget.

Once you have got a terrific idea for a film, you will need a fantastic script. Assume you have secured the rights to the script or idea, ie: the property, you will need to create a budget and schedule.

Your budget needs to be realistic. I was speaking to a good friend and colleague this week who said the film needed ‘about 5mil’. I asked how they got that fancy number and was told that some director said you needed that much. Here in the UK the average budget is 800k – 1.4m. And the academy award winning The Favourite had a budget of about 3.4mil.

Research your budget. Find a number. Be consistent. Constantly revise your plan according to current market developments.

Raindance offers an excellent evening course: Budgeting and Scheduling. For ultra low budget training: the weekend Lo-To-No Budget Filmmaking.

Step 3: Creating the film business plan

Investors are risk adverse. They will want to see what it is about your project’s plan that will de-risk their investment in your film.

The film business plan is a comprehensive document that outlines the details of you film. Describe who is involved, how much money you need and how you are going to spend the money. You will likely draw comparisons between your film and others. Importantly, you will need to lay out your recoupment strategy. Also important is your film festival strategy.

For some professional help, check out the Creating a Business Plan evening class.

Step 4: Film funding guide

a. Favours
At Raindance, we start with seeing what budget items can be secured by favours.  Perhaps your business plan has a section of things you could get for free from friends or family or business colleagues.

Step 5. Finding investors

There is no magic formula to finding movie investors. Start with people you know. Ask if they know anyone who is interested inh funding movies. Acquaint yourself with the tax advantages available, be is Sec 501(c)(3) in America or EIS in the UK. Both of these schemes offer attractive tax discounts to investors, thereby reducing the risk.

Attending networking events is a great place to meet prospective investors. Learn how to network confidently, and increase your circle of influence. Attend non-film related events and talk to people about your projects. it’s amazing who you meet in these circumstances.

There is no secret to getting funding for your movie. It’s just a numbers game. Some people will want to work with you. Some people will say it’s not for them. And some people won’t return your calls. You will know if someone is interested in your project because they will tell you.

Fade Out

What if you follow all of these steps and invest a huge amount of time and effort without any results? Could you be a victim of misfortune? It is possible. Or, is your project simply undeveloped. Stephen Spielberg famously said ‘all good ideas start out as bad ideas, thats why it takes so long’.

Don’t be afraid to go back to the drawing board. As my dear friend at MasterCard says: ‘Fail Fast – Move on”. And keep moving.

Did you know?

  • Raindance members save 20% on filmmaking courses?
    You can join online >HERE< and access freebies and discounts immediately
  • Our open courses are FREE for our HND, top-up BA and postgraduate/MA/ students
  • You can book a free 1-1 consultation about our full-time degree filmmaking courses HERE
  • The Raindance Guarantee: If any filmmaking course fails to meet your expectations, let us know at the break and we will make a full, 100% no-questions-asked refund
  • We don’t teach ‘filmmaking’ at Raindance. At Raindance we make filmmakers.

Source link

Once you have something people want, you’ll

Some of the top skeet shooters in the country have come to the Okanagan to compete in the Western Canadian Skeet Championships.

The high calibre competition is being hosted at the Central Okanagan Shotgun Sports Club for three full days and competitors from Alberta, Saskatchewan and across B.C. are vying for the top spot.

Bob LaRue, the president of the Central Okanagan Shotgun Sports Club, started the competition more than a decade ago and is still competing himself.

“I initiated it 12 years ago to get the three provinces coordinating with each other, playing and having fun,” LaRue said.

One of the 14 competitors is Elizabeth Hoeppner, who is hoping she will have a straight shot to the podium.

“I love that it’s an individual sport. You shoot for yourself and you shoot for the top,” Hoeppner said.

Story continues below advertisement

“I also like that men and women compete equally on the field, with the same targets and it’s just great that way.”

The competition started Friday and goes through to Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The public is welcome to watch the competitions.

Source link

Descrease article font size Increase article font size Some