Monthly Archives

July 2021

Scarlett Johansson Sues Disney

-This is HUGE: Scarlett Johansson filed a lawsuit today against Disney, claiming that the decision to stream Black Widow on Disney+ while also releasing it in theaters breached her contract and could cost her tens of millions of dollars. Her salary was largely based on the theatrical box office receipts and she gets bonuses whenever the tally reaches certain milestones. Estimates suggest she lost out on $50M in bonuses when Disney pushed it to streaming and refused to renegotiate.

-Disney fired back, saying that she has so far received $20M from the project and her lawsuit shows a “callous disregard” to the pandemic. Please. At this point when almost all theatres have reopened, its simultaneous debut on streaming had less to do about safety and more about adding Disney+ subscribers. She’s missing out on bonuses her male counterpoints have reaped because the distribution strategies have shifted while their compensation structures haven’t changed. It’s not just about a millionaire complaining; it’s about the old way of doing things being dead. Netflix already pays out talent up front, and after announcing their simultaneous streaming debuts, Warner Bros went back and amended contracts to pay actors more up front since the potential box office take was reduced.

-The Hawkeye series at Disney+, starring Jeremy Renner and Hailee Steinfeld, will debut on November 24. I became way more interested in this show once I realized that’s where Florence Pugh‘s Black Widow character is heading next.

-Broadway is the latest to require all workers to be vaccinated.

-Manifest is in top spot on the streaming chart for the third straight week, even though its future remains in limbo.

-With all the love that James Gunn‘s The Suicide Squad is getting from critics (it’s 97% fresh!), David Ayers made a post about his Suicide Squad: “The studio cut is not my movie… A handful of people have seen it. If someone says they have seen it, they haven’t.”

-The first posters for the House of Gucci trailer by Ridley Scott have arrived. Lady Gaga looks amazing; Jared Leto is ridiculous.

-It leads in nicely to this piece on Hollywood’s enduring love of fat suits.

Camila Cabello posted a video about waiting to fart until Shawn Mendes left the house. Ok then.

-Netflix renewed Sweet Tooth (a show I really liked but haven’t gotten around to ep 3 yet) for season 2.

Candace Cameron Bure has apologized for dancing sexily with a Bible in a TikTok clip, saying “So many of you thought I was trying to be seductive, which clearly means I’m not a very good actress because I was trying to be strong, not sexy. So I guess that didn’t work, but I deleted it.”

DaBaby just can’t seem to help himself.

Jason Sudeikis talked about how Foo Fighters song “My Hero” influenced Ted Lasso season 2.

Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard’s daughter is named Delta, which isn’t working out so well for her at this particular moment of humanity.

Jennifer Garner inked a partnership with Netflix that will see the actress star in and produce movies, including a sequel to Yes Day.

Joshua Jackson revealed that he bought his childhood home, and his daughter now sleeps in his old bedroom. “There was a mural of a dragon on the wall in that room that I couldn’t believe was still there, years later. The owner [who sold him the house] said, ‘I knew it meant a lot to somebody and that they were going to come back for it some day.'”

-Doctor Who’s Jodie Whittaker and Chris Chibnall are leaving the show in 2022.

Angelina Jolie earned a victory in her lengthy court battle against Brad Pitt over custody of their children, but it could lead to their current custody arrangement being overturned, with the proceedings starting over again.

-I love that Vulture has brought back the report card-style reviews for Gossip Girl. Ah, memories!

Oscar Isaac is haunted by his past in the trailer for The Card Counter, co-starring Tiffany Haddish.

Will Smith plays Richard Williams, the father of legendary tennis siblings, Venus and Serena Williams, in the new trailer for the Oscar-baity King Richard.

Bob Odenkirk “Out of the Woods” After Sudden Collapse

-This is scary: Bob Odenkirk was rushed to the hospital after collapsing on the set of Better Call Saul yesterday. It was a long day with no updates, but TMZ is finally reporting that he’s awake and his son tweeting “He’s going to be ok”. There’s been an outpouring of support today from actors, including Bryan Cranston, who asked everyone to send thoughts and prayers.

DaBaby has attempted to defend his comments, claiming that his interaction with his concert crowd was not a homophobic rant but “a call to action.” He lost his clothing deal with Boohoo, collaborator Dua Lipa said she’s “surprised and horrified,” and Elton John tweeted “This fuels stigma and discrimination and is the opposite of what our world needs to fight the AIDS epidemic.”

-Meanwhile, he just released a new song that references AIDS. So clearly not so apologetic after all.

-Ouch. Kelly Clarkson has been ordered to pay estranged husband Brandon Blackstock nearly $200,000 per month in support amid their divorce.

-I get itchy just watching this video of people following Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez through the streets of Capri, but they seem to be rolling with it.

Gwen Stefani apparently goes by Gwen Stefani Shelton now.

Kanye West posted a photo of his humble living arrangements while he works on an album: he’s living in a supply closet in a football stadium in Atlanta.

-Netflix just became the first major Hollywood studio to implement a blanket policy mandating vaccinations for the casts of all of their U.S. productions, as well as those who come into contact with them on set.

Emma Roberts acknowledged how her recent video quickly became an internet meme by posting
“Thank you gays and whoever else.” She understood the assignment.

Hopper Penn (Sean Penn’s son) has been cast in a short film from director Destry Spielberg (Steven Spielberg’s daughter) and writer Owen King (Stephen King’s son). When someone wondered why a short film would get coverage in Variety beyond their famous folks, Ben Stiller piped up “Just speaking from experience, and I don’t know any of them, I would bet they all have faced challenges. Different than those with no access to the industry. Show biz as we all know is pretty rough, and ultimately is a meritocracy.” (Luckily, the guy who he replied to quickly schooled him on how Hollywood is in no way a meritocracy.)

-New mom Mandy Moore opened up about the “isolating” first months of motherhood and dealing with postpartum.

LeVar Burton spoke with GQ about the experience hosting Jeopardy.

-The ladies of Mad Men had a reunion.

-Critics seem to be into James Gunn‘s The Suicide Squad.

Hugh Jackman, Rebecca Ferguson and Thandiwe Newton star in the trippy Reminiscence trailer.

Adam Driver Is a Sexy Centaur

Adam Driver‘s Burberry campaign is a LOT. In the video, he swims with a horse and eventually becomes a centaur. In the stills, he looks like he’s posing for the cover of a book that I would definitely read.

-Someone was brave enough to ask Matt Damon about Bennifer during his Stillwater press tour. “He deserves every happiness in the world. I’m glad for both of them.” That’s very nice while also effectively conveying a “don’t ask me again” undertone.

-When asked by another outlet about the latest photos, he said “All the pictures that have come out are the same ones that you see. I don’t know anything you don’t know.” Yeah, he’s done.

Lorde did Vogue’s 73 Questions, but at NYC’s Botanical Gardens instead of her house.

-There’s been rumours for a while that Lucy Lui and Bill Murray got into it on the Charlie’s Angels set (which resurfaced a few months ago when a PA from the movie tweeted that Murray rewrote a scene and told her “I don’t know what you’re complaining about. I gave you more lines. I mean… look who you’re in with here. You’re TV… and this is the big league”).  In a new podcast, she confirmed they clashed on set. “Some of the language was inexcusable and unacceptable, and I was not going to just sit there and take it. So, yes, I stood up for myself, and I don’t regret it. Because no matter how low on the totem pole you may be or wherever you came from, there’s no need to condescend or to put other people down. And I would not stand down, and nor should I have.”

-This is a good piece on how women and gay men are dominating hip hop right now, but getting little respect.

Mena Suvari wrote a memoir about her rough go of things in Hollywood as she was coming up, and features a lot of older men using her when she was she was just a teen.

Paris Hilton shows off her culinary skills, or lack thereof, in the trailer for her upcoming Netflix series. I’m not really sure what demo this is aimed at (does anyone even remember “that’s hot”?) but it looks fun enough.

Hilton also denied rumours that she’s pregnant.

-I had no idea Zach Braff directed episodes of Ted Lasso.

Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher appeared on Dax Shepard‘s podcast and they all said that they don’t wash their whole bodies when they shower. What? They also said they only bathe their children if there’s visible dirt on them. No really, what??

Britney Spears‘ mom Lynne spoke out about the singer’s ongoing conservatorship battle in new court documents, saying Jamie “is incapable of putting his daughter’s interests ahead of his own” and that Britney has “fear and hatred” towards him.

Britney, meanwhile, has posted more topless pics on Instagram. I still don’t understand anything that’s happening with her feed.

-An actor who was too old to be playing a teen is defending another actor who is too old to be playing a teen.

-I totally forgot that Comic-Con was happening and I barely heard anything about it. Here’s the biggest (though not really) reveals.

-The all-new trailer for Ghostbusters: Afterlife features the return of the original cast. I only have eyes for Carrie Coon, though.