Month: June 2021

The day after The New York Times‘ Ben Smith reported that Fox News’ Tucker Carlson is secretly “a great source” for unflattering stories about Donald Trump, a reasonable person would expect Tucker to, you know, say something to deny (because let’s get real, he won’t confirm this) the story. He did not do so, which is actually in line with his generally evasive tactics as displayed in Smith’s own article (he asked Tucker the still-pressing question of whether he’d been vaccinated, and the Fox News host deflected with a question about Smith’s sex life).

What did Tucker talk about instead? He took aim at CNN host Don Lemon following a Washington Post magazine profile interview, in which Lemon promotes his book, This Is the Fire: What I Say to My Friends About Racism. In all fairness, the publication did clarify that Lemon lives in Sag Harbor, N.Y., but Tucker took that ball and ran with it, declaring the following while claiming that Lemon actually doesn’t care about diversity. Carlson detailed how Lemon’s home is worth “$4.3 million” and lives in a community that “is just 3% African-American.” He then added, “When he didn’t tell The Washington Post is that in his free time he runs away from diversity.”

That wasn’t all. Carlson zeroed in on a photo that was apparently taken inside Lemon’s kitchen and accused the CNN host of having a “white supremacist QAnon cookie jar.”

Things got weird, fast. “You might not always see it, but like Russian spies, white supremacists come in the dark of night, in the most surprising form,” Carlson warned. “They’re shapeshifters. Now, we’re not calling anyone a white supremacist here, but you have to ask yourself… what is this symbol of hate posing as a cookie jar, doing in Don Lemon’s kitchen?”

Carlson continued: “Do you see that? That right there, ladies and gentlemen, is a white supremacist, QAnon, cookie jar.” He didn’t explain why he felt that this cookie jar was connected to the QAnon conspiracy but went on to call it “a blackface cookie jar” and declared that “it’s time to reflect.” And Don Lemon has yet to comment on the subject.

(Via Fox News & Washington Post)

There was a lot of hope for Marvel’s Avengers when it was first announced. The popular franchise getting its own video game made all the sense in the world. The movies were huge, the comics have always been popular, and there’s nothing bigger these days than superheroes. So why not have a game where everyone can play as all their favorite heroes?

Unfortunately, the game has been mishandled from the start. From the way the characters look, to how every single hero has their own individual battle pass, the game has been crippled by an inability to stay out of its own way. This is unfortunate because the heroes themselves play exactly how someone wants them to play. The details around it just make the game not as enjoyable as we would like, but the game is receiving constant support at least.

Unfortunately, one of the most recent patches put the game in another heap of trouble with its player base. With the most recent patch, a glitch was introduced that will flash a “string of text” across the player’s screen. That text is the player’s IP Address. When playing alone in your home that isn’t really a problem, but for the people that want to stream this game that’s a huge issue, because it’s doxxing yourself to anyone that wants to cause problems. Nobody in their right mind would willingly show their IP address on stream so the game is essentially unstreamable.

Glitches happen to games sometimes. No matter how much QA a game goes through there are just going to be bugs that appear when software is introduced to thousands of people simultaneously. That said, “IP Address appearing on-screen” seems like a pretty major one that should have been caught before pushing this patch live.

On one side, this glitch could be argued as “harmless” because it only impacts people that want to stream the game. However, with how prevalent streaming games are these days, it makes no sense to make a game that can’t be streamed. Streams are free advertising for a game and something that pretty much all developers have embraced at this point. If someone likes a game so much they want to show it off to anyone who will watch then why not make that process as easy as possible?

Unfortunately for the developers of Marvel’s Avengers this is another mishap in a long line of them. With the Wakanda update on the way for Black Panther, Crystal Dynamics was hoping to get a big win and some positive talk around its game but now everyone’s talking about another unforced error. The Avenger’s franchise deserves better.

Here’s what I need you to do: Find a person who has not seen any of the Fast & Furious movies — anyone: your parents, your neighbor, a stranger at the grocery store — and try to explain the timeline of the franchise to them. Not the order of the films. The actual chronology of it all. Because once you get through the first two films and you have the pleasure of saying phrases like “Ludacris officiating a jet ski race,” things start to unravel real fast. It’ll go something like this…

See, the third movie, Tokyo Drift, which features none of the cast of the first two movies except for a brief Vin Diesel cameo at the end, actually takes place between the sixth and seventh movie, and in the sixth movie, in a mid-credits scene, we learn that Han — a character who died in the third movie but was back for the fourth through sixth — was actually killed by Jason Statham as revenge for things that happened in the sixth movie, and then Statham is the bad guy in the seventh movie, but by the eighth he’s a good guy and then he gets a spin-off with The Rock. And also another character dies in the fourth movie and is not in the fifth but is back as a villain in the sixth but it turned out she had amnesia and…

It’s madness. You’ll look like some sort of maniac. It’s a movie franchise that started out with street racers stealing DVD players and now features those same street racers as top-level off-book government operatives who stop a cyber-terrorist — Academy Award winner Charlize Theron! With braids! — from stealing a nuclear submarine. The Rock punches a torpedo at one point. Ludacris is now the world’s greatest computer hacker. It’s really quite wonderful.

And here’s another fun twist: That whole shift, the chronological two-step and the move from small-time crime to high-level operations, is explained in a 20-minute short film that was written and directed by Vin Diesel in 2009, just before he rejoined the franchise. It’s called Los Bandoleros. It takes place at some unspecified time between the first and fourth movie. It introduces Han and loosely explains how he and Dominic Toretto know each other. It’s floating around online. I am not making up any of this.

The plot of Los Bandoleros, in brief: Dominic Toretto has fled to the Dominican Republic after Brian lets him go at the end of the first movie. There is a massive fuel shortage on the island. Everyone is very upset about it. Most of this is explained in a voiceover by Tego Calderon’s character, also named Tego, who opens the film in prison. Nothing is going too great. And so, the people turn to the one man who can help them…

Is it kind of perfect that Dominic Toretto is re-introduced into the franchise while cranking away on a car and explaining the inner workings of the engine to small children in his deep gravel-coated voice? Yes, of course. But there’s no time to get too far into any of this, because things are happening very quickly now. In short order, Dom:

• Agrees to help
• Calls in reinforcements
• Has a large cookout where someone says grace first
• Breaks Tego out of prison
• Does that thing people do in crime movies where he and an associate enter a restaurant through the kitchen and glide through the staff in slow-motion
• Meets with a politician who tells him that problem is deeper than he realizes
• Utters this objectively perfect line of dialogue: “You know at the end of the day, people are gonna get what they need. You can’t move forward without fuel… and no one wants to be left behind.”

Which is all great. Some real classic Fast & Furious stuff in here, just playing a medley of the hits for the fans. And we could talk about this, too, but there’s no time for that either. Remember the bullet point about reinforcements? Well…

There he is. Han Lue. The character who was introduced and killed in Tokyo Drift, brought back for three movies, killed again, disappeared for two movies, and is back a second time — alive, without time-shifting tricks — in the ninth movie. This is actually his first appearance, chronologically. (Although, if we want to be technical here, and why wouldn’t we, director Justin Lin says Sung Kang’s version of Han also appeared in the 2004 non-Fast & Furious film Better Luck Tomorrow, so there’s that.) He explains how they know each other, kind of, saying they did some work together in Mexico and that Dom calls him in for “the fun stuff” and that Dom’s exploits as a street racer were known far and wide before that. He’s the one who helps Dom break Tego out of prison. And he’s not the only familiar face that shows up. Because, while Dom is at a club in a VIP section with his arms around two beautiful women, in walks…

Correct. Letty is back, too. And Dom immediately leaves the two girls to kiss her. And they rekindle their romance by frolicking on a beach. Even though he bailed on her with no notice at the end of the first movie and appeared to be moving on just fine. This all makes much more sense when you remember that Vin Diesel wrote and directed this little film.

And I love it. I love all of it so much. I love that it answers so many questions raised by the opening of the fourth movie. (“Why are they stealing fuel trucks in the Dominican Republic?” “Why is Han from Tokyo Drift with them?” “How does Han know Vin?” “How and why is Letty there?” “What was Dom up to for the five years between the first and fourth movies?”) I love how everything that happens here sets off the rest of the franchise which, again, now has them saving the world on behalf of a secretive government official. I love that Vin Diesel took it upon himself to write and direct a short film that ties all of it together rather than attempt to explain it all in the actual mega-budget movies that make up the franchise. I love that Letty tracks him across the country out of love and then he bails on her again after the police start poking around, which leads to her alleged death and amnesia and gets Brian O’Conner back in the fold.

But mostly, I love explaining all of this to people who don’t already know it. That’s all I’m doing here. This was mostly just for me. And now you know it all, too. Please include all of it in that explanation of the timeline I asked you to back in the first paragraph. People will look at you like you lost your entire mind. It’s a blast.

Flashback to the days of Middle School. You’re awkward, your mom still buys your wardrobe, puberty is making you weird and disgusting, you’re experimenting with hairstyles and it isn’t working… it’s a dark time that most people work very hard to forget. But there is one thing from that era that still follows you around, a shameful secret that you’re hiding from your new, “adult” friends, maybe even an intimate partner. An indulgence you’ve been caught red-handed (literally) trying to hide.

We’re talking about your love for all things Flamin’ Hot. Trust us, you’re not alone. Whether you’re about the Cheetos, Chester’s Fries, Munches, Ruffles, Doritos, or Lays, we see you — scrubbing your fingers so your pre-dinner snack binge doesn’t get discovered. We won’t tell, promise!

But with Flamin’ Hot products being banned in the UK because they contain Yellow 6 and Red 40 — both made from petroleum and linked to hyperactivity in children — it’s safe to say that if you’re indulging in Flamin’ Hot anything, you want to get the good stuff. To help you navigate that, I bought up as many Flamin’ Hot products I could find to tell you which of them are worth eating which aren’t. Like a very sophisticated science experiment.

To make it easy to separate the good from the absolute trash, we’ve ranked each chip on spice level (1-5), flavor, and whether it’s worth ingesting all the chemicals for. Let’s get to it!

15. Ruffles Flamin’ Hot BBQ By Jayson Tatum

Spicy Level: 1

The Chip

It turns out that Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum knows as much about spicy snacks as I do about basketball, which is to say, “nothing at all.” These just aren’t in the least bit spicy, they taste like a less smokey iteration of normal BBQ chips. I don’t blame Tatum for this, Frito Lay probably hit him up for this partnership and he just mashed two flavors that he likes together and called it a day.

Still, it’s a shame to have your face on what is easily the worst Flamin’ Hot product currently on the market. Which is sad, especially when Ruffles Baked Flamin’ Hot exists.

Is it worth it?

Not even a little bit. Jayson Tatum’s mom wouldn’t even buy these.

14. Ruffles Flamin’ Hot Baked

Spicy Level 1

The Chip

Awful. This flavor had to be made because someone who only eats Baked chips wrote an angry email to Frito Lay about how there aren’t enough Flamin’ Hot Baked options. If you’re a person so concerned about your health that you’re buying baked chips, maybe Flamin’ Hot isn’t for you to begin with? Unless you like the taste of cardboard, which is Ruffles Baked Flamin’ Hot tastes like.

And smells like! There is a certain staleness to the way Ruffles Flamin’ Hot Baked smells — it’s weird. Anyway, there isn’t a single appealing thing about this chip.

Is it worth it?

If you like slightly spicy cardboard, sure.

13. Lays Flamin’ Hot

Spicy Level 3

The Chip

This one hit me the hardest, I love Lays, it’s my go-to potato chip brand, so I fully expected Flamin’ Hot Lays to deliver. They smell great, with a greasy spiced scent that fools you into thinking you’re in for a delicious treat, but when you bite down it’s just… gross for lack of a better word. They’re light and crispy, but have this off-putting rancid taste to them, as if the Flamin’ Hot chemicals have somehow rotted the potato.

In terms of spice, they create some heat that lingers on the tongue, but not in a pleasing way — you’re going to want to wash this down with something that’ll burn the potato flavor off your tastebuds, like a cold can of soda. Or turpentine.

Is it worth it?

Lays makes a dozen great potato chip flavors, get any of those over this.

12. Doritos Flamin’ Hot Nacho

Spicy Level 2

The Chip

I might get some heat for this one because I imagine Doritos Flamin’ Hot Nacho has its fans — Doritos heads are the most unhinged chip fans out there (I made this up, it’s people who only eat Takis, they’ll kill you) — but these… aren’t good. Like Lays, Doritos makes a lot of different flavors, and some of them even lean in that spicy territory, but the Flamin’ Hot just sucks out all of the flavor from this one. I can only describe this flavor as “red,” they taste the way they look.

On the nose, you get the nice comforting smell of tortilla, but the chew on this chip is just a little too thick for being this one note in the flavor department leaving you with a whole lot of nothing to chew.

Is it worth it?

No. This is one of Doritos worst flavors. If you bought a bag of this and need something to do with it, I suggest breaking up the chips in a mortar and pestle (or blender) and using the dust as part of a fried chicken batter.

11. Funyuns Flamin’ Hot

Spicy Level 2

The Chip

These aren’t that spicy but the Flamin’ Hot flavoring somehow strips away that all of that onion flavoring that makes Funyuns so unique. The chips have a nice light and airy quality to them with a pleasing crispy mouthfeel, but with the lack of heat and the subdued onion flavor, I just don’t see much worthwhile in this iteration of either brand.

Is it worth it?

If you like Funyuns, these won’t deliver what you’re after. If you like spicy chips, Flamin Hot Funyuns aren’t that either.

10. Ruffles Flamin’ Hot Cheddar

Spicy Level 3

The Chip

Now we’re finally getting into the good stuff. When I opened Ruffles Flamin’ Hot Cheddar I fully expected to hate them, as this bag of chips had that familiar fart-y smell that so many chip brands suffer from. But as soon as I bit into this chip I was onboard, the cheddar cheese dust pairs nicely with the Flamin’ Hot flavor, offering you something similar to the OG Flamin’ Hot Cheetos in a more dippable and less embarrassing form factor

Ruffles Flamin’ Hot Cheddar provides a nice spicy kick that lingers in the back of your throat. It’s hot enough that you’re going to want to enjoy this chip with a drink of something as the heat will quickly build up, causing you to either eat more chips, which will make it worse, or stop eating them altogether. Nobody wants that.

Is it worth it?

Definitely, if you like Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, the Flamin’ Hot Cheddar Ruffles taste similar in a less embarrassing form factor that’s better for dipping.

9. Chester’s Flamin’ Hot Fries

Spicy Level 4

The Chip

I was excited to try these because I’ve been told by many a food writer and fan that Chester’s Flamin Hot Fries were the best iteration of the Flamin’ Hot brand, and, prior to setting out to do this article, I had never tried them. I wouldn’t call them “the best,” but I see where people are coming from as these provide a spicier kick than your average Flamin’ Hot product that tingles on the palate with a sort of mouthwatering quality.

Alas… I’m just not convinced about this form factor — which is halfway between a chip and a corn puff. They’re a little too soft for my linking and dissolve in the mouth in a mushy way.

Is it worth it?

Maybe. They deliver on the spice, and while I don’t like its potato chip meets corn puff mouthfeel, you just might!

8. Doritos Flamin’ Hot Nacho Limon

Spicy Level 4

The Chip

Hopefully, some Dorito heads stayed around after I trashed the OG Flamin’ Hot Nacho chips. This is a massive improvement over the non-Limon version, despite its sickly sour smell. The Limon’ Doritos have a heavily citrus-forward flavor with a strong tingling spice that coats your tongue almost immediately.

The lime flavor keeps the Flamin’ Hot from being too dry, meaning you won’t need something to wash these down.

Is it worth it?

This is Doritos’ best Flamin’ Hot product, so if you’re a Dorito head who wants the best of both worlds, Flamin’ Hot Nacho Limon is for you.

7. Fritos Flamin’ Hot Original

Spicy Level 2

The Chip

These aren’t very spicy at all, but they add a nice little kick to Fritos original corn chip. All in all, I like these a lot and if you already like Fritos I’m willing to bet you will too. The subtle heat pairs nicely with Fritos’ corn chip which is encrusted with black pepper, and the flavors don’t stick around on the tongue in an unappetizing way.

This is going to be a great flavor to dip into something, and they don’t even leave your fingers stained red!

Is it worth it?

It doesn’t really deliver on the Flamin’ Hot spice, but it’s overall a good chip flavor.

6. Cheetos Flamin’ Hot Original

Spicy Level 3

The Chip

The flavor that started it all, it shouldn’t surprise anybody that the Cheetos Flamin’ Hot Original ranked highly on this list. It’s a solid mix of cheddar and spice, with a crispy and crunchy mouthfeel that’ll keep you coming back for more. While it’s lacking in the heat department, it’s in every way an improvement over Cheetos standard flavor.

Is it worth it?

The fact that there are over 10 Flamin’ Hot products stocked on the shelves at all times is a testament to how good Flamin’ Hot Cheetos are.

5. Cheetos Flamin’ Hot Puffs

Spicy Level 3

The Chip

Flamin’ Hot Cheetos might be the standard but the Puffs are a substantial improvement over the original. While the Puffs are also pretty tame in the spice department, they pack a lot of flavor throughout. You’re greeted with a spicy kick and a sharp cheddar bite, with a corn puff flavor that tames things down and provides a nice soft mouthfeel that quickly becomes addicting.

They’re also incredibly satisfying — you can have six or seven puffs and satiate your Flamin’ Hot cravings easily.

Is it worth it?

If you love Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, give the Puffs a try. They’re better!

4. Munchies Flamin’ Hot

Spicy Level 2

The Chip

Munchies are really close to being my personal favorite Flamin’ Hot product. Featuring a mix of Flamin’ Hot Doritos, Cheetos, Sun Chips, and Rold Gold pretzels, Flamin’ Hot Munchies is kind of like a trashy version of spicy Chex or Trail Mix. You get a little bit of everything, and while the heat is seriously lacking in this variety, that mix of wheat, tortilla, pretzel, and corn puff tastes so good together. I don’t generally like pretzels in mixes, but the Flamin’ hot pairs great, this may be one of the best use of pretzels in a mix in the whole snack universe, bested only by yogurt-covered pretzels.

Even though the Munchies contain Flamin’ Hot Doritos, the flavors all work harmoniously here.

Is it worth it?

Yes! Grab a handful and toss it in your mouth for a seriously addicting snack. Lacks heat though, so if spice is what you’re after, look elsewhere.

3. Cheetos Extra Flamin’ Hot

Spicy Level 5

The Chip

Currently, the spiciest Flamin’ Hot product on the market, Cheetos Extra Flamin’ Hot is truly a spicier improvement over the original. This tastes and looks almost identical to the original so I’m not exactly sure where the extra kick of spice is coming from, but it’s definitely here. At first taste, you’ll be greeted by only a subtle heat but it’ll quickly start to compound onto itself with the more chips you eat, causing you to salivate and only crave more.

Is it worth it?

Definitely, Cheetos Extra Flamin’ Hot provides the same flavor you love from the OG but seriously kicks up the spice level.

2. Takis Fuego

Spicy Level 4

The Chip

*RECORD SCRATCH*

Yeah yeah yeah, we know, “Takis aren’t Flamin’ Hot.”

But if you grew up crushing spicy snacks in your youth, your allegiances either fell with Takis or Hot Cheetos. If you were a Takis lover, you were probably wondering where these would land. Until recently, I was a Takis guy. But recently, I’ve semi-converted.

The spice here is noticeably different than what you’ll find on the Flamin’ Hot products, hitting you instantly and creating a nice burn on the tongue before you even chew your way through this rolled tortilla chip. The way the chili pepper powder embeds itself into the folds of the tortilla is snack food perfection, ensuring that every bite brings the fire with notes of zesty lime that dance on the palate.

This is so so close. But when compared to our number one choice, Takis goes a little overboard on that lime flavor. It sticks in the mouth in a way that says “Yeah, you’re eating junk food, what did you expect?”

I’d still take these in a heartbeat over the OG Flamin’ Hot Cheetos though, or you know, just get both.

Is it worth it?

“Hot Cheetos and Takis, Hot Cheetos and Takis, I can’t get enough of these Hot Cheetos and Takis.”

1. Cheetos Flamin’ Hot Limon

Spicy Level 4

The Chip

Cheetos Flamin’ Hot Limon was definitely a response to the rising popularity of Fuego Takis. Overall, I think the balance of heat and lime works better here, the lime flavoring isn’t quite as sour, though that may be because it’s being balanced by powdered cheddar. But Cheetos Flamin’ Hot Limon isn’t just better than Takis Fuego, it’s better than every genuine Flamin’ Hot product on the market. On the nose, the Limon flavor has a zesty spiced aroma that far surpasses the smell offered by every other flavor in the Flamin’ Hot line — it’s actually appetizing, which can’t be said for most of these chips.

On the palate, the zesty lime zing of Flamin’ Hot Limon adds a lot of dimension and depth to the otherwise one-note flavor. A citrus heat is the dominant flavor, with Cheetos cheddar flavor taking a barely-there backseat, and to great effect! For whatever reason, these are slightly spicier than the OG Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, with a lingering flavor that sits at the back of the throat and burns the lips.

Is it worth it?

This is the best Flamin’ Hot product ever and just edges out Takis. The lime flavor adds depth and a nice refreshing sensation to Flamin’ Hot’s one-note spicy flavor but doesn’t blast you with lime, like our number two pick.

Earlier this week, Tame Impala returned with a mysterious new video teasing an advanced imaginary drug named Rushium, which promised to help users “experience time, every time.” The surreal advertisement seemed to point to something exciting in the works, and it now looks like that something is actually a handful of rescheduled The Slow Rush North American tour dates.

Tame Impala made his 2021 tour announcement with the help of the fake pharmaceutical company AionWell. Press materials for the updated tour state that the musician’s Rushium drug is meant to help with “Acute Time Metagrobolization in Cells (ATMiC) within patients from 16 to 95 years of age,” adding that “much of the research into this condition is cutting edge and still being performed.”

Tame Impala’s official The Slow Rush 2021 North American tour kicks off in Tennessee in September at the Bonnaroo music festival and comes to a close in November in Dallas, Texas. Press materials state that this tour is only “Phase I” of the “Rushiam trials,” suggesting that more tour dates could be announced in the near future.

Check out Tame Impala’s 2021 The Slow Rush tour dates below.

09/04 — Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo Festival
09/07 — Chicago, IL @ United Center
09/10 — George, WA @ The Gorge
09/12 — Portland, OR @ Moda Center
09/15 — San Francisco, CA @ Chase Center
09/17 — Las Vegas, NV @ Life Is Beautiful Festival
09/18 — Glendale, AZ @ Gila River Arena
09/20 — Denver, CO @Ball Arena
09/23 — Washington, DC @ Capital One Arena
09/25 — Dover, DE @Firefly Festival
09/28 — Atlanta, GA @ State Farm Arena
10/31 — San Francisco, CA @ Outside Lands Festival
11/02 — Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl
11/03 — Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl
11/07 — Austin, TX @ Frank Erwin Center
11/09 — Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center
date TBD — Toronto, ON @ Scotiabank Arena

The Slow Rush is out now via Modular. Get it here.

At this point, anyone even remotely famous should probably just refrain from using Clubhouse altogether. The voice chat app has caused its fair share of trouble since its inception, from getting Mulatto dragged for supposed colorism, to sparking a shouting match between Meek Mill and one of his chat’s participants, to turning Nicki Minaj fans against Tiffany Haddish for criticizing the rapper’s perceived rudeness. The latest star to find themselves in hot water as a result of a Clubhouse chat is Miami rap vet Trick Daddy, who recently stirred up the most dangerous hornet’s nest — or, more appropriately, the Beyhive.

When Trick offered up his “unpopular opinion” about Beyonce’s relation to R&B music, it didn’t take long for a screen recording to go viral on Twitter, turning Trick Daddy — and the vicious responses against him — into a trending topic. “Beyoncé ain’t trying to give back to music and Beyoncé don’t write music,” he said. “Beyoncé can’t sing.” He explained his reasoning for making such a bold statement, comparing Beyonce to her husband Jay-Z. ““Beyoncé is to R&B what Jay-Z is to New York. New York lost Biggie and they needed a hero.” His commentary was echoed by others in the chat, but since he’s the most famous name attached, it was him who caught the wrath on Twitter.

For what it’s worth, opinions are a dime a dozen across social media and maybe he just isn’t feeling the way Beyonce sings. With that being said, Trick Daddy doesn’t seem like the kind of guy to lend too much credence to online outbursts. Unfortunately for him, the Hive always finds a way to give their online bullying a little extra punch; in this case, it looks like they’re trying to tank the ratings on his restaurant on Google.

Good luck to Trick Daddy. See you on the other side.

David Cross‘ portrayal of therapist-turned-struggling-actor Tobias Fünke became one of Arrested Development‘s most iconic characters, which is a pretty impressive considering the show was stacked top-to-bottom with talent whose comedic moments will live forever in GIF form. But before the show became a cult sensation, it was just another aspiring comedy on Fox, and during a time when the network was churning through them. (Case in point: Arrested Development itself was canceled after a shortened third season.)

While stopping by the latest episode of the Smartless podcast, Cross told hosts Jason Batemen, Will Arnett, and Sean Hayes that he almost took a pass on Arrested Development completely, but once he was talked into a short guest stint, he was hooked. According to Cross, he had just packed his entire life into a U-Haul and drove from Los Angeles to New York where he planned to stay and not get involved in another TV show for a while. That didn’t last long. Via Mediaite:

“I was kind of settled and I just didn’t want to go back and do a show that could potentially run for years and years and years.” The actor then told the show’s producers that he’d only sign on “if it was part time for like six episodes,” which they agreed to.

“I said I’ll do it under these conditions and then during shooting the pilot,” added Cross, “I called my then-girlfriend and was like, ‘This show is amazing. This cast is amazing. I have to do it. I’m so sorry. I have to stay and do this.’”

It’s interesting that Cross chose to stay because he famously had to fight Fox to keep his mustache who were adamant that facial hair breaks the “golden rules of comedy.” Obviously, the network was wrong, and Cross’ performance ended up being one of the show’s highlights.

(Via Mediaite)

Entering this summer there was plenty of concern about whether USA Basketball would be able to field the caliber of men’s roster for the Olympics they are accustomed to as the team looks to win a fourth straight gold medal. With the condensed NBA season clearly wearing down players and leading to a number of injured stars this postseason, there were many who expected top stars to pass on the opportunity to play in Tokyo.

That has been the case for some, most notably LeBron James, but the reported commitments from stars continue to roll in. Entering Tuesday, eight players had committed to Team USA, headlined by Kevin Durant and James Harden, the latter of whom was a particularly big surprise given he’s currently battling a hamstring injury. Three more commitment reports rolled in on Tuesday, with Shams Charania and Adrian Wojnarowski bringing word that Khris Middleton, Kevin Love, and Chris Paul all plan on joining USA Basketball’s 12-man roster in Tokyo.

Those three bring the roster to 11 players, meaning there is one more roster spot available, should this indeed be the roster:

Damian Lillard
Draymond Green
Jayson Tatum
Bradley Beal
Devin Booker
Kevin Durant
James Harden
Bam Adebayo
Kevin Love
Khris Middleton
Chris Paul

One would think the final roster spot would go to a big with just three on the roster in Adebayo, Green, and Love, but it’s possible Gregg Popovich will be happy to add another superstar wing and try to dominate in Tokyo playing mostly small ball. Zion Williamson remains a strong possibility if they can get his commitment, particularly given the rest of the center options left in the player pool (Brook Lopez, Myles Turner, Christian Wood, Mitchell Robinson, DeAndre Jordan, Dwight Howard, Andre Drummond, Montrezl Harrell, JaVale McGee, and Mason Plumlee).

In any case, concerns that stars wouldn’t join the USA Basketball men’s roster have been fully alleviated and with this roster plus whoever is the last addition, Team USA will again be the favorite to take home gold.

With a baseball cap and six-string in hand, Oscar-winning actress Brie Larson paid homage to 21st-century Dorothy Parker — Olivia Rodrigo. “[Thank you] for giving the world your words,” Larson said in the middle of performing a stripped-down cover of Rodgrio’s song about the pain of comparison, “Jealousy, Jealousy.”

“I know their beauty’s not my lack / But it feels like the weight is on my back,” Larson sings. It’s a far cry from her former role as the glossed-up rocker Envy Adams in 2010’s Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World, but it might be a hint of more music to come from Larson. Just last week, Billboard reported that her rendition of Metric’s “Black Sheep” cracked the charts 16 years after it came out, thanks to the newly-released Scott Pilgrim soundtrack.

“Jealousy, Jealousy” appears on Rodrigo’s blockbuster debut album, Sour. The 17-year-old singer-songwriter from Los Angeles recorded the album during the COVID-19 lockdowns. On the strength of its lead single, the emotional power ballad “Driver’s License,” Sour broke Spotify’s record for the most streams in an opening week for an album by a female artist.

For good measure, here’s Rodrigo’s lyric video for “Jealousy, Jealousy” so you can sing along and compare the two renditions:

2021’s The Suicide Squad isn’t entirely disconnected from 2016’s Suicide Squad (Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn, Joel Kinnaman’s Rick Flag, and Jai Courtney’s Captain Boomerang are back, as is Viola Davis’ Amanda Waller), but it’s different enough that writer and director James Gunn has to introduce the new members of the crew.

Much of the new trailer for the DC film is centered on one of those new members, Bloodsport (Idris Elba), who’s in prison for putting “Superman in the ICU with a kryptonite bullet.” He’s coerced into joining the Suicide Squad for a mission that’s “more important than you can possibly imagine” after Amanda threatens his daughter. From there, we meet the other members of the team, including the disgusting looking Weasel (not a werewolf) who’s harmless… except for the 27 kids he’s murdered. The trailer also reveals the mission: “Destroy every trace of something known only as Project Starfish.” It’s a freaking kaiju up in this sh*t.

Here’s the official plot summary from Warner Bros:

Welcome to hell — a.k.a. Belle Reve, the prison with the highest mortality rate in the US of A. Where the worst Super-Villains are kept and where they will do anything to get out—even join the super-secret, super-shady Task Force X. Today’s do-or-die assignment? Assemble a collection of cons, including Bloodsport, Peacemaker, Captain Boomerang, Ratcatcher 2, Savant, King Shark, Blackguard, Javelin, and everyone’s favorite psycho, Harley Quinn. Then arm them heavily and drop them (literally) on the remote, enemy-infused island of Corto Maltese. Trekking through a jungle teeming with militant adversaries and guerrilla forces at every turn, the Squad is on a search-and-destroy mission with only Colonel Rick Flag on the ground to make them behave… and Amanda Waller’s government techies in their ears, tracking their every movement. And as always, one wrong move and they’re dead (whether at the hands of their opponents, a teammate, or Waller herself). If anyone’s laying down bets, the smart money is against them — all of them.

That’s a long way of saying “war-caper movie with sh*tty supervillains.” The Suicide Squad opens in theaters and on HBO Max on August 6.