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Prince Andrew

Taylor Swift Claps Back at Damon Albarn

–Taylor Swift is NOT happy that Blur/Gorillaz’s Damon Albarn said in a new interview that she doesn’t write her own songs. (When the interviewer tried to correct him, he said, “That doesn’t count. I know what co-writing is. Co-writing is very different to writing. I’m not hating on anybody, I’m just saying there’s a big difference between a songwriter and a songwriter who co-writes. Doesn’t mean that the outcome can’t be really great.”) Swift tweeted in response, “I was such a big fan of yours until I saw this. I write ALL of my own songs. Your hot take is completely false and SO damaging. You don’t have to like my songs but it’s really fucked up to try and discredit my writing. WOW. PS I wrote this tweet all by myself in case you were wondering.”

–Jack Antonoff added: “I’ve never met damon albarn and he’s never been to my studio but apparently he knows more than the rest of us about all those songs taylor writes and brings in. if you were there … cool … go off. if not … maybe …. shut the f–k up?”

-Likely feeling the heat from Swifties, Albarn quickly jumped onto Twitter to try to diffuse the situation, posting “I totally agree with you. i had a conversation about songwriting and sadly it was reduced to clickbait. I apologise unreservedly and unconditionally. The last thing I would want to do is discredit your songwriting.” I mean, it was a Q&A so I don’t really see how things were taken out of context but sure, man.

-Also, lots of people are pointing out how many co-writers he had on his last album, and also that Billie Eilish (who he praised in the interview) co-writes with her brother. Why bother going after one of the world’s biggest female singers in the first place, let alone when you don’t have a leg to stand on?

–Garrett Hedlund is having a rough few days. Sources confirmed to People the rumours that have been floating around for a while that he’d split from baby mama Emma Roberts, and on Saturday he was arrested in Tennessee for public intoxication.

–Evan Rachel Wood details more alleged abuse by Marilyn Manson in her HBO documentary Phoenix Rising, which debuted at Sundance. She accuses him of violently dragging her through a hotel, says he threatened to “fuck up my whole family from the bottom up, starting with my dad,” and says she was “essentially raped on camera” during the filming of Manson’s 2007 video “Heart-Shaped Glasses.”

–Kristen Stewart says she and fiancée Dylan Meyer celebrated their engagement before things started locking down again. “We were kind of moving about the world a little more freely at the time. We did have an engagement party, which was nice and lucky and obviously not something we could have done now so I’m thankful for that.”

–Kanye West and Julia Fox rocked some Canadian tuxedos in Paris.

-After Emilio Estevez bowed out of the Mighty Ducks series amid rumours that he disagreed with its covid protocols, Josh Duhamel has stepped in for season two.

–Eric Clapton continues to try to drive any remaining fans away, claiming people vaccinated against covid are under ‘mass formation hypnosis.’

–Adele apologized to some fans with Facetime calls after she abruptly postponed her Vegas residency.

-The Wire creator David Simon reveals that he almost had to choose a completely different theme song because Tom Waits could not figure out how to use a VCR.

–Brad Pitt has teamed up with music producer Damien Quintard to relaunch the historic Miraval Studios in France, where Pink Floyd, Sting, The Cure and AC/DC recorded their albums.

-Did every TV writer decide this was the season that their characters were going to have heart attacks after a Peloton ride?

–Prince Andrew having 72 teddy bears is the least disturbing rumor about him to surface lately.

-This is a fun piece about which celebrities are actually reading the books they claim to be reading.

–Will Arnett, Ken Jeong, Annie Murphy, Conan O’Brien, Sharon Stone, Marshawn Lynch and more improv their way through crime scenes in the official trailer for Netflix’s Murderville. Improv can be hard to watch but this trailer intrigues me.

 

W’s Great Performances Covers

-A slew of stars posed for W’s Great Performances issues, and some covers were way zanier than others.

–Jake Gyllenhaal is seemingly trolling Swifties in his photoshoot for W Magazine, where he sports a pair of red heart sunglasses that are almost identical to the ones Taylor Swift wore in her “22” music video. I love this level of pettiness.

-In his W profile, Adam Driver says he doesn’t attend wrap parties. “I haven’t been to a wrap party since Girls. I just want to get the character out of my system and go home.” What a bummer for the crew.

-Love is dead. Jason Momoa and Lisa Bonet have announced their split.

-On the other side of the coin, Megan Fox and Machine Gun Kelly got engaged. (I’m so curious about who was filming this. There are multiple angles in the video!) Also, is there a proposal uniform? His buddy Travis Barker wore a similar shirt. (This is my fave tweet about it.)

-Welp. The Queen has stripped Prince Andrew of his military affiliations and he will “no longer use the style ‘His Royal Highness’ in any official capacity.” The palace added in their brief statement that he will be defending himself in the sexual abuse case “as a private citizen.”

–Kanye West was allegedly involved in a battery incident in Los Angeles. He was named as a suspect in a battery report (rumoured to involve him hitting a fan) taken by the LAPD’s Newton Division early on Thursday morning. TMZ has video of him yelling at someone, though its not clear who. He was not arrested and a rep has yet to comment.

-Before all that hubbub, he was with Julia Fox, Madonna and Floyd Mayweather at Delilah nightclub last night. There’s a really cringey video of them all listening to music.

-Meanwhile, Julia Fox addressed criticism about their relationship, denying that they’re only spending time together for attention.

–Bob Saget‘s widow is expressing her gratitude for John Mayer and Jeff Ross, who picked up his car from LAX for her.

–David Beckham packed wife Victoria Beckham‘s lunch with a note that said, “Enjoy lunch ***hole… Come home happier.” She posted it with the caption, “Even when I’m grumpy he looks after me.”

–Halle Berry penned a tribute to Sidney Poitier: “I was a child who, like my parents’ interracial relationship, never quite fit in. In those years, it was rare to see Blacks in leading roles, much less have our narratives celebrated or even acknowledged.”

-I keep trying to avoid the Drake/hot sauce story but the memes are hilarious.

-Ohhhh, Nicole Kidman *should* host the Oscars.

-This is a great interview with Matilda Lawler, the 13-year-old who’s crushing it on Station Eleven.

-There’s been a lot of speculation about who will play fan favourite Nikolai in the second season of Shadow and Bone — and Patrick Gibson of The OA has landed the role. Other new cast members include Anna Leong Brophy as Tamar, Lewis Tan as Tolya, and The Witcher’s Jack Wolfe as Wylan. Everyone looks pretty much how I pictured them when reading the books (though the guy who plays Wylan looks like a child, but IMDB assures me he’s 26).

-The reviews for How I Met Your Father with Hilary Duff are very not good.

-A Degrassi revival series has been ordered by HBO Max.

–Jean-Marc Vallée finished writing a film about Yoko Ono and John Lennon before his sudden death last month.

–Gugu Mbatha-Raw moves into a haunted house in the trailer for The Girl Before.

Ben Affleck Chats with Matt Damon for EW

Ben-Affleck-Matt-Damon-EW

-In his Entertainment Weekly cover story, Ben Affleck is interviewed by Matt Damon and says that he doesn’t regret Gigli because that’s where he met Jennifer Lopez. “I thought my job was to be a cipher. I can see now how people looked at me and thought of this person as some callow frat guy who’s cavalier, or has too much. It engendered a lot of negative feelings in people about me….But if the reaction to Gigli hadn’t happened, I probably wouldn’t have ultimately decided, ‘I don’t really have any other avenue but to direct movies,’ which has turned out to be the real love of my professional life. So in those ways, it’s a gift. And I did get to meet Jennifer, the relationship with whom has been really meaningful to me in my life.” (Also, the video in the middle of the story is cute because there’s a lot about how his 16-year-old daughter is constantly mocking him.)

–Jamie Lynn Spears is on a promo tour for her forthcoming memoir, and got teary when asked about her rift with sister Britney, saying she’s “always been my sister’s biggest supporter.”

-Oh god. Pete Davidson is reportedly being considered to host the 2022 Oscars.

-The SAG Award nominations were announced this morning and they were WILD. Kristen Stewart (thought to be the frontrunner) was shut out, as was Rachel Zegler, while Jessica Chastain, Nicole Kidman, and Jennifer Hudson somehow squeaked in. Selena Gomez was not nominated for Only Murders in the Building but costars Steve Martin and Martin Short were. The inclusion of the cast of Yellowstone in the TV ensemble category was unexpected, as were Squid Games and House of Gucci’s multiple nods.

–Amy Schumer and Shirley Maclaine will join the cast of the second season of Only Murders in the Building.

–Prince Andrew will face a civil trial in America over sexual abuse claims after a US judge dismissed his lawyer’s attempt to have the lawsuit thrown out.

–Reese Witherspoon published an Instagram post about habits she wants to embrace to improve her daily life, and Ina Garten was like ‘Nah, imma drink more.’

–Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen not only released a statement on the death of Bob Saget, but they also allowed their names to be added to the FH cast statement. This is the first time I can remember them speaking in public in at least a decade, and I wish it wasn’t for such a terrible thing.

–Kellie Martin is reprising her role in a sequel to Life Goes On for NBC. Her gut-wrenching storyline with Chad Lowe in the original show is still burned in my memory.

-I’m so glad to see this thoughtful review of To Paradise. I’m trying to get through that book but man, I’m struggling. I felt like a failure for giving up her previously super buzzy book (A Little Life) but now I’m on the DNF train. The New Yorker profile of Hanya Yanagihara is fascinating, though.

-Netflix is moving ahead with not one but two sequels to Red Notice, featuring Dwayne Johnson, Gal Gadot, and Ryan Reynolds.

-I’m finally caught up on Station Eleven and I wish I hadn’t resisted it so long because of its post-apocalyptic/pandemic content, because I find it so hopeful and kind. Episode 9 was especially exceptional.

-One TV show at a time is about all I can handle these days, but this review of the reality show Finding Magic Mike makes me really want to watch it.

-The creators of The Americans have a new series for FX called The Patient, starring Domhnall Gleeson as a serial killer and Steve Carell as his prisoner.

-An adult film shoot goes horribly wrong in the terrifying trailer for Ti West‘s new horror film X, which stars Mia Goth, Jenna Ortega, and Kid Cudi.

–Zoë Kravitz stars as an agoraphobic tech worker who discovers a recording of a violent crime in the trailer for Steven Soderbergh’s KIMI, coming to HBO Max in Feb.