Browsing Tag

Arrow

Brad Pitt Gets the Spotlight at Frank Ocean Concert

–Brad Pitt made a surprise appearance at Frank Ocean’s concert and I have SO MANY QUESTIONS. (Was this a statement? Art? Did he even know he was on screen? Somebody tell me!!)

-I didn’t understand Ayra‘s “that’s not you” line to her direwolf on GoT last night but now that I read the explanation I’m crying.

-Sorry, One Direction fans: Louis Tomlinson has shut down rumors of a romance with Harry Styles.

–Lena Dunham referred to Jack Antonoff’s sibling as her “sister-in-law” on Instagram, and then had to deny speculation that she got married.

-I really, really liked this thread responding to Christopher Nolan‘s Netflix comments.

-I guess this is Kevin Hart’s response to those cheating allegations?

-Girls Trip (which I liked A LOT) had the biggest opening weekend for a live-action comedy this year despite its R rating, and already earned back what it cost to make. Add the fact that Wonder Woman and Beauty and the Beast are the year’s top-grossing films so far, and the box office is looking downright rosy for women-led flicks.

-The “friend from work” line in Thor: Ragnarok (aka – the best line in the entire trailer) was actually pitched by a Make-a-Wish kid who was visiting the set the day they shot that scene.

-In news that came out of ComicCon, Michelle Pfeiffer is joining the Ant Man sequel, Patty Jenkins has weirdly not signed on to Wonder Woman 2 yet, Henry Cavill’s mustache is causing problems for Justice League, and Ben Affleck insists WB isn’t replacing him (“‘We want you to be the Batman’ they told me, and I believe them.”) Also, I would *love* to know which TV cast was yelling at each other before their TV Line interview.

-Speaking of TV casts behaving badly at the con, the Supergirl crew really stepped in it while doing a musical recap of their season, in which they mocked fans who ship Kara and Lena.  I still need to catch up on that show, but this seemed incredibly mean-spirited. Who cares if the writers will never have Supergirl hook up with a woman onscreen? Let people watch for whatever reason they like and/or hope for whatever outcome they want.  The fact that they were mocking a marginalized group that has really embraced that show made it even worse. The cast’s apologies were not great (gotta love the “I’m sorry but think about ME” tactic).  Jeremy Jordan‘s first note was especially victim-y, but at least he got it right on the second try.

-Everyone is talking about this adorable video of the little girl crying over the Justice League cast, but I like this video of Jason Momoa meeting the little kid who asked about Superman during the panel.

-So much trailer goodies dropped at ComicCon this weekend. On the TV side, we got trailers for the new seasons of Stranger Things, The Flash, Arrow, Supergirl, Doctor Who’s xmas special, Legends of Tomorrow, Westworld, Lucifer, Once Upon a Time, Preacher, and The Defenders.

-On the movie side, we got Justice League, Thor: Ragnaraok, Black Panther, and Spielberg‘s Ready Player One. (Also, this video of the Black Panther cast reacting to seeing the trailer for their first time is pretty swell.)

Jenna Dewan-Tatum Talks Marriage to Channing

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–Jenna Dewan-Tatum opens up about her marriage to Channing Tatum in her new Redbook interview, talking about trying to find time to be together despite their schedules and bristling at questions about how she keeps the relationship fresh (“I hate that question. I’m like, ‘No. Why is it for your man? I do things to keep it fresh for myself.'”)

–Charlize Theron would like Vin Diesel to stop telling everyone that she loved their onscreen kiss. “I just don’t get it. He’s literally going around saying that I had the best time of my life” she said before adding “I like a little more movement in my men.”

-A new Lorde album means new Lorde interviews, which are always a hoot. In her NYT profile, she talks about her love for Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream,” saying “There’s this sadness about it, where you feel young listening to it, but you feel impermanence at the same time…There’s something holy about it.”

-Speaking of Katy, Orlando Bloom insists he and Katy Perry are still friends but added “it’s between us” so maybe stop asking.

–Shia LaBeouf will spend a month alone in a Finland cabin for an art project. Do you think that sometimes James Franco reads this stuff and then needs a hug?

–Jaden Smith had to cut his hair for a new role — so he let dad Will do the honours.

-If you announce that a big guest star is returning for your season finale, and then said guest star vehemently denies in on Twitter, is it still happening? Welcome to the mess that is Arrow bts.

–Lea Michele admits that she watches old episodes of Glee alone. Of course she does.

–Tig Notaro has spoken out about that SNL skit featuring Louis C.K. that bears a striking resemblance to her own.

–Nelly Furtado split from her husband after eight years of marriage — and she managed to keep it under wraps for almost a year.

–Angelina Jolie reportedly made an offer on Cecil B. DeMille’s historic Hollywood home.

-In her new Women’s Health cover story, Vanessa Hudgens breaks down how she dropped 10 lbs in only a month. That seems like too much.

–Jude Law is Hollywood’s new go-to guy for “young” these days: young pope, young Dumbledore.

–Sylvester Stallone is suing Warner Bros for fraud and “dishonesty” surrounding the profits of Demolition Man. Major stars don’t just sue movie studios so this must have been a long and messy fight.

-Oscar winner Michel Gondry‘s directorial genius is now being used to sell yogurt.

-Aww crap, Charlie Murphy has died at 57.

-You can watch the first few minutes of the season premiere of Orange Is The New Black, which picks up right where season 4 left off.

-The Path has been renewed for season 3. I’m happy for Aaron Paul, but I don’t know a single soul who’s still watching that show.

-The trailer for Thor: Raganarok, which debuted on Monday, was viewed 127.6 million times in its first 24 hours, making it Disney’s most-viewed trailer ever.

–Kathryn Hahn tries to get several degrees closer to Kevin Bacon in the trailer for the new show I Love Dick.

-Watch John Boyega navigate the mean streets of Detroit in Kathryn Bigelow’s new crime drama set during the 1967 riots.

Worst TV of 2016

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From revivals of shows that should have stayed dead to returning favourites that suddenly sucked, it was an often bleak year for TV (especially in the one-hour drama realm). I sat down with my fellow TV junkie Nicole for our annual chat about what we watched and hated. (Check out our Best of TV list here.)

MOST DISAPPOINTING NEW SHOWS:

Jen: I already talked about Westworld in our Best of TV chat, but that’s my pick. I’d also add The Path. If you told me last year that I’d quickly abandon a show starring Aaron Paul, I wouldn’t have believed you.

Nicole: I think mine was Divorce. I watched a few episodes but it just wasn’t the least bit enjoyable. I’m too busy (and old!) for TV to be work. I also did not get the hype of The Night Of. It was like a longer Law & Order. I was so bored.

Jen: Yeah, I still think The Night Of had the best first episode of the year (it was so tense I was sweating). But then it eventually dissolved into a standard, boring procedural.

MOST DISAPPOINTING RETURNING SHOWS:

Jen: This felt like the year of decent shows with terrible series finales. I was ok with both The Good Wife and Gilmore Girls, but I hated the last 30 seconds of each.

Nicole: I liked Gilmore Girls but I totally agree with you on The Good Wife ending.

Jen: This might be the year I end up breaking up with my beloved superhero TV shows. That hurts, especially when it comes to Arrow because it was on my Best Of list in 2015. This time last year, they had just aired one of their best episodes ever (which featured a proposal followed by a brutal limo attack). But then the show fell off a cliff and never recovered. When it’s good, Arrow is a fun blend of soap opera and comic book. At the end of last season, they leaned too heavily into the former; then they tried to course-correct this season by leaning too heavily into the latter. So now it’s all about stunts, trick arrows and new costumed heroes to make the comic book fanboys happy, but if you like character development and interactions between your favourites, you’re screwed. And their treatment of the few female characters left has become abysmal: Felicity is now a pod person, Thea is marooned on her own Scandal-lite show, and Laurel just pops up randomly to bait canon worshippers.

Nicole: I have crazy superhero fatigue! Arrow is the only one I’m still watching and frankly, it’s hanging by a thread. I don’t really care about any of the new people on the team and that’s a problem.

Jen: I’m less invested in The Flash so I’m less disappointed in it, but damn can that show figure out another threat besides evil speedsters?  I’m also bummed that Iris’ new relationship with Barry (which I don’t buy for a second) has somehow made her less of a character. She’s now been reduced to a pep talk vending machine. The only highlight of this season is that everyone is FINALLY calling out Barry for being a selfish jerkwad.

Nicole: I find that I’m dropping shows because they’ve gotten just plain boring. I love a good procedural but Elementary is just yawns now. If Person of Interest hadn’t been ending they would have lost me. TV can be so good now that I think I need more of a challenge.

Jen: Speaking of boring, I’m pretending The X Files revival didn’t happen, with the exception of the “Mulder and Scully Meet the Were-Monster” episode. Every other one, though? Just didn’t exist!

Nicole: I had such high hopes for UnREAL after last year. Are you kidding me with showing a police shooting from the perspective of the white girl?!?! I think the characters were too unlikeable and not funny enough this season. I’m giving them two more episodes and then I’m out.

Jen: Yeah, I’m with you on UnREAL, which experienced such a brutal sophomore slump. It’s like they forgot that the magic of that show is watching Quinn and Rachel together, and kept them apart nearly all season. Speaking of dropping shows, I’m not sure if I’ve ever quit a series as fast as I quit The 100 after they killed Lexa like such a gross afterthought. The only silver lining: it led to a widespread #buryyourtropes conversation about TV’s treatment of gays and minorities that’s still reverberating.

SADDEST CANCELLATIONS:

Jen: The loss of Agent Carter sucked, especially since Hayley Atwell immediately jumped to a far inferior ABC show (Conviction) that was promptly cancelled.

Nicole: I can’t say I’m heartbroken about any cancellations this year, but I do hope Haley Atwell finds a place to land.

Jen: I’m also still mourning the cancellation of The Grinder. That show was so funny and I’m totally stumped about why it couldn’t find a larger audience.

DISHONOURABLE MENTIONS:

Shows that suffered bummer declines in 2106: The Fall, Mr Robot, Sleepy Hollow, The Affair, Poldark

Check out our Best TV of 2016 picks