Month: August 2022

Is Warner Brothers/Discovery going to discover that there are consequences to shelving projects that dozens and dozens of people worked on for months, even years just to save not even that much money? Probably not. In these times, it’s hard to be an optimist, but people involved are speaking out.

In Batgirl, which the studio shelved after it was already made, Aquino plays Alysia Yeoh, Barbara Gordon’s trans roommate. The character was introduced in the “Batgirl” comics in 2011, and the film marked the first time a trans character would appear in a DC film. Earlier this week, there were reports of secret Batgirl screenings on the Warner Brothers studio lot. A source told The Hollywood Reporter that the film would be locked in a vault after these “funeral screenings.” In an open letter shared on her personal Twitter account addressed to Discovery head David Zaslav, Aquino asked for the film to see the light of day.

“As much as I’ve tried my best to be strong these past few weeks, I’d find myself crying, for lack of a better term, from grief, and tonight was one of those nights. As much as Batgirl has been labeled a woke film, it simply came together that way because of writing that reflects the world we live in.” Aquino wrote. “I’ve found myself not being able to talk about this ordeal with anyone. I realized that no one, apart from those involved with the film, would truly understand what we’re feeling. And talking about it with my castmates, I feel, might be akin to rubbing salt on a still-open wound,” she continued.

Aquino shared that the film, which was a father-daughter story, was important to her because her father passed away shortly before she was cast in the film. She also thanked the cast and crew of Batgirl, including it star Leslie Grace, and closed the letter with a more direct message to Zaslav. “I do hope you get to read this letter. Consider releasing Batgirl. She’s always been an underdog and has nowhere to go but up.”

Even if you don’t agree with Joe Biden’s decision to offer a modest amount of student loan forgiveness to millions of Americans who need it — some of them desperately — “disgusting” probably isn’t the first word that comes to mind when describing the president’s benevolent financial act. After all, the government has been bailing far less deserving people and entities out of debt for years. But “disgusting” is exactly the word Judge Jeanine Pirro used to describe it, which probably isn’t all that shocking.

As Mediaite reports, Pirro and her co-hosts on The Five discussed the matter on Wednesday, with Judge Jeanine leading the proceedings:

This is a giveaway to a group of people the president needs to get elected. The sad part is there’s no talk of responsibility, no talk about contract law, the fact that you went in and you said you wanted to borrow money, you signed on the dotted line, you agreed to pay. You live in an economy, Joe Biden, that you’re bragging about — that’s so terrific that there’s no problem. If you want a job, you can get a job. And yet they’re saying, ‘Look, if you’re in a household of up to $250,000, you know, we’ll give you $10,000 [or] $20,000 if you can’t pay back your student loans.’

What about the senior citizens? What about the veterans? What about the people who really need it?

Pirro — who might be shocked to learn that there are also programs in place to help those very people she claims “need it” — failed to mention that the average American carries approximately $32,731 in student loan debt. And while that may not sound like a lot in the grand scheme of things, it generally takes an individual between 10 and 30 years to fully pay off that debt. For students whose careers depend on post-graduate studies, that number becomes significantly higher. Medical students often graduate trailing $200,000 to $300,000 of debt behind them. But Pirro would never understand the demands that can put on an individual or their family because, as she went on to note: she didn’t have to take out any student loans!

“My heart bleeds for the people who actually went out and paid for their loans, who went without things, whose families said, ‘I’m sorry, we can’t afford to pay for your loans,’” Pirro continued, despite not having the foggiest idea of what she was even talking about. “Look, my family paid for my education. I’m sure they had better things to do with their money. I didn’t have to take out a loan because they paid for it. But they worked hard for their money.” (Hopefully they’re pleased with their return on investment.)

Ultimately, Pirro concluded, “This is a giveaway and it’s disgusting.”

(Via Mediaite)

The MTV VMAs will air live from New Jersey this Sunday, August 28, and just ahead of the show, MTV has announced two more performers who’ll be taking the stage. Rap legends Eminem and Snoop, who recently collaborated on the Curtain Call 2 single “From The D 2 The LBC” after resolving a short-lived feud in 2021, will join previously announced performers like Anitta and J Balvin, Blackpink and Jack Harlow, and Bad Bunny.

Meanwhile, the VMAs are set to be hosted by MCs Jack Harlow, LL Cool J, and Nicki MInaj. Minaj is also listed as a performer and will be receiving a Video Vanguard Award.

The 2022 VMAs will be broadcast live from the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ at 8 pm ET on MTV, BET, The CW, CMT, Comedy Central, Paramount Network, BET Her, TV Land, Nickelodeon, Logo, MTV 2, and VH1. The top nominated artists are Jack Harlow, Kendrick Lamar, and Lil Nas X, who have seven nominations each. The nominees for Video of the Year include Doja Cat’s “Woman,” Drake’s “Way 2 Sexy,” Ed Sheeran’s “Shivers,” Harry Styles’ “As It Was,” Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow’s “Industry Baby,” Olivia Rodrigo’s “Brutal,” and Taylor Swift’s All Too Well.” The Artist of the Year nominees are Bad Bunny, Drake, Ed Sheeran, Harry Styles, Jack Harlow, Lil Nas X, and Lizzo.

The WNBA announced its rookie awards on Thursday afternoon, and unsurprisingly, Atlanta Dream star Rhyne Howard stands alone as the league’s top first-year player. Howard, the No. 1 pick in the 2022 WNBA Draft out of Kentucky, ran away with the league’s Rookie of the Year Award, securing 53 of a potential 56 votes.

Shakira Austin of the Washington Mystics received two of the remaining three votes for the award, while NaLyssa Smith of the Indiana Fever got the last one. All three of these players — who were the top-3 picks in April’s Draft — were members of the league’s All-Rookie team, along with Queen Egbo, who the Fever selected with the 10th pick in April, and Rebekah Gardner of the Chicago Sky, who debuted in the league this year after spending the start of her professional career overseas.

Howard winning the award and leading the All-Rookie team hardly comes as a surprise, as the former Wildcat standout was the only rookie to earn an All-Star nod this season. She was a 4-time Rookie of the Month selection and averaged 16.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.6 steals in 31.4 minutes per game for the Dream, which went 14-22 this season. Along with Tiffany Hayes, Howard had the distinction of being the team’s leading scorer.

All the best cast members get tattoos to commemorate their time with each other. The members of the Fellowship of the Ring did it, the Pretty Little Liars also matched up their ink, and Pete Davidson got several during his stint with fellow reality co-star (and significant other) Kim Kardashian! Basically, it’s a nice thing to do and has been increasingly common among co-stars and friends, which is why some of the ladies of Reservation Dogs decided to get some matching ink after the latest episode.

After the monumental female-led episode of Hulu/ FX’s hit series, the stars decided they needed to do something special to honor each other, so, naturally, they decided to get matching Navajo floral tattoos to represent their bond. This episode of the remarkable series followed Rita (Sarah Podemski) as she and her three friends attended a health conference and decided to turn it into a hilarious and also heartwarming girls’ trip.

Directly following the filming of the episode, Podemski and her co-stars, Jana Schmieding, Nathalie Standingcloud, and her sister Tamara Podemski decided to be permanently bonded by getting matching tattoos.

“We were all trying to figure out if we’d ever seen four Indigenous women on screen,” Podemski told Variety. “It had a huge impact on all four of us — it felt really historic. I don’t want to be dramatic about it, but it felt really special. It did not pass us by that that whole week that we were in rehearsal and when we were filming that it was a real special moment in television.”

The episode was also written and directed by Indigenous director Tazbah Rose Chavez, and showed the quartet on-screen living their best medical conference lives. Podemski is very aware of just how unique the series is, and it’s not lost on the cast and crew. “It’s always amazing just to see so many Native faces in our cast. We’ve all known each other for so long. I’ve been in this industry for almost 30 years, since I was a kid, and I’ve grown up with all these faces and worked with most of them, or admired their work,” the actress a href=”https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/reservation-dogs-episode-5-sarah-podemski-1235348796/”>explained, adding that the crew harbors a safe and welcoming environment so that they are able to shot episodes like this, where there are both amazing female-led performances, and also a scene of Rita steaming her vagina. That is range!!

“It feels very safe that this is all coming from an Indigenous perspective,” Podemski added. “We’re talking about our grief and our community’s grief and it could be something that in the wrong hands is very triggering, but every step of the way we have Native writers, directors, a full Native cast.”

New episodes of Reservations Dogs premiere on Wednesdays on Hulu.

(Via Variety)

After Barbie Ferreira saw her character’s presence notably whittled down in Euphoria Season 2 amidst reports of behind-the-scenes drama, the actress announced she would not be returning to the HBO series for Season 3. In an August 2022 Instagram post, Ferreira revealed that she was leaving Euphoria. In the brief message she provided no reason for the exit nor did she thank creator Sam Levinson for her time on the show, which has reignited rumors that the two didn’t get along on set.

“After four years of getting to embody the most special and enigmatic character Kat, I’m having to say a very teary-eyed goodbye,” Ferreira wrote (via Deadline). “I hope many of you could see yourself in her like I did and that she brought you joy to see her journey into the character she is today. I put all my care and love into her and I hope you guys could feel it. Love you Katherine Hernandez.”

During Euphoria‘s Season 2 run, Ferreira has denied that there’s tension between her and Levinson despite her character taking a noticeable backseat. However, a behind-the-scenes report from The Daily Beast claimed that Ferreira stormed off set during the troubled production:

Adding fuel to the fire is a persistent rumor about tensions between some cast members and Levinson—specifically Ferreira, who allegedly butted heads with Levinson over some elements of the direction of her character. The talks are said to have gone south, with Ferreira allegedly walking off set and Levinson cutting back her screen time. These strains were also referenced by the Euphoria leaker, who claimed that HBO wasn’t all that pleased with the direction the season had headed.

Of course, the only person who knows why Barbie Ferreira quit Euphoria is Barbie Ferreira. That said, her exit does arrive after a notoriously difficult production for a season that saw her character get pushed into the background. It’s hard to ignore the math on that one.

(Via Deadline & The Daily Beast)

This story was originally published on HistoryBuff and first appeared on 8.16.16

I’m pretty positive that Edgar Allan Poe had (has?) the power to travel through time. Hear me out on this one.

It’s not just the well-known circumstances of his life — orphaned at a young age, father of the mystery novel, master of cryptology, maestro of the macabre. Nor am I referring to the head-scratching details of the days leading up to his death: how he was found on the street near a voting poll wearing someone else’s clothes, and during his subsequent hospitalization, he was alleged to babble incoherently about an unidentified person named “Reynolds.”

And I won’t even get into the confounding reports of a nameless figure who, for seven decades, would show up to Poe’s gravesite in the early hours of his birthday with a glass of cognac and three roses.

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Tragic and curious, yes, but hardly evidence that the acclaimed horror writer could transcend the limits of space and time. No, my time travel theory concerns the author’s creative output, which you’ll soon see is so flukishly prophetic as to make my outlandish claim seem plausible — nay, probable!

The proof is in the pudding, and the pudding is a loosely linked map of flesh-eating floaters, crunched skull survivors, and primordial particles. OK, here we go…

Exhibit A: “The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket”

Published in 1838, Poe’s only completed novel details a mutiny on a whaling ship lost at sea. Out of supplies, the men revert to cannibalism, drawing straws to elect a sacrifice. A boy named Richard Parker draws the shortest straw and is subsequently eaten.

Now here’s where it gets weird(er): In 1884, 46 years after the novel’s publication, four men would be set adrift following the sinking of their yacht. Shipwrecked and without food, they too would go the survival cannibalism route, electing to kill and eat a 17-year-old cabin boy. The boy’s name: Richard Parker.

The extraordinary parallel went unnoticed for nearly a century, until a widely-circulated letter from a descendant of the real Parker outlined the similarities between the novel’s scene and the actual event. The letter was selected for publication in The Sunday Times after journalist Arthur Koestler put out a call for tales of “striking coincidence.” Striking indeed.

Exhibit B: “The Businessman”

In 1848, a railroad worker named Phineas Gage suffered a traumatic brain injury after taking an iron spike through the skull. Somehow he survived, though his personality would change drastically. These behavioral changes were closely studied, allowing the medical community to develop the first understanding of the role played by the frontal lobe on social cognition.

Except for Poe, who’d inexplicably understood the profound personality changes caused by frontal lobe syndrome nearly a decade earlier. In 1840, he penned a characteristically gruesome story called “The Businessman” about an unnamed narrator who suffers a traumatic head injury as a young boy, leading to a life of obsessive regularity and violent, sociopathic outbursts.

Poe’s grasp of frontal lobe syndrome is so precise that neurologist Eric Altshuler wrote, “There’s a dozen symptoms and he knows every single one… There’s everything in that story, we’ve hardly learned anything more.” Altshuler, who, to reiterate, is a medically-licensed neurologist and not at all a crackpot, went on to say, “It’s so exact that it’s just weird, it’s like he had a time machine.”

Exhibit C: “Eureka”

Still unconvinced? What if I told you that Poe predicted the origins of the universe 80 years before modern science would begin to formulate the Big Bang theory? Surely, an amateur stargazer with no formal training in cosmology could not accurately describe the machinery of the universe, rejecting widely-held inaccuracies while solving a theoretical paradox that had bewildered astronomers since Kepler. Except that’s exactly what happened.

The prophetic vision came in the form of “Eureka,” a 150-page prose poem critically panned for its complexity and regarded by many as the work of a madman. Written in the final year of Poe’s life, “Eureka” describes an expanding universe that began in “one instantaneous flash” derived from a single “primordial particle.”

Poe goes on to put forth the first legitimate solution to Olbers’ paradox — the question of why, given the vast number of stars in the universe, the night sky is dark — by explaining that light from the expanding universe had not yet reached our solar system. When Edward Robert Harrison published “Darkness at Night” in 1987, he credited “Eureka” as having anticipated his findings.

In an interview with Nautilus, Italian astronomer Alberto Cappi speaks of Poe’s prescience, admitting, “It’s surprising that Poe arrived at his dynamically evolving universe because there was no observational or theoretical evidence suggesting such a possibility. No astronomer in Poe’s day could imagine a non-static universe.”

But what if Poe wasn’t of a day at all, but of all the days?

What if his written prophecies — on the cannibalistic demise of Richard Parker, the symptoms of frontal lobe syndrome, and the Big Bang theory — were merely reportage from his journey through the extratemporal continuum?

Surely I sound like a tinfoil-capped loon, but maybe, maybe, there are many more prophecies scattered throughout the author’s work, a possibility made all the more likely by the fact that, as The New York Times notes, “Poe was so undervalued for so long, there is not a lot of Poe-related material around.”

I’ll leave you with this quote, taken from a letter that Poe wrote to James Russell Lowell in 1844, in which he apologizes for his absence and slothfulness:

“I live continually in a reverie of the future. I have no faith in human perfectibility. I think that human exertion will have no appreciable effect upon humanity. Man is now only more active — not more happy — nor more wise, than he was 6000 years ago. The result will never vary — and to suppose that it will, is to suppose that the foregone man has lived in vain — that the foregone time is but the rudiment of the future — that the myriads who have perished have not been upon equal footing with ourselves — nor are we with our posterity. I cannot agree to lose sight of man the individual, in man the mass… You speak of “an estimate of my life” — and, from what I have already said, you will see that I have none to give. I have been too deeply conscious of the mutability and evanescence of temporal things, to give any continuous effort to anything — to be consistent in anything. My life has been whim — impulse — passion — a longing for solitude — a scorn of all things present, in an earnest desire for the future.”

This story originally appeared on 03.02.22

Have you ever come across something online that instantly made you smile? That’s what happens when people see Locklan Samples pop up on their Instagram feed. The cute dimple-faced toddler has a rare condition known as uncombable hair syndrome, which results in locks that stick straight up no matter how you try to manipulate them. It also causes the hair to be extremely fragile, so frequent combing can cause it to break off. The syndrome is so rare that Locklan is just one out of 100 people known to have it.

Locklan’s parents spoke with People magazine about how they discovered he was living with this ultra rare condition. Katelyn Samples, Locklan’s mom, explained that when he was born he had a head full of jet black hair, but eventually it fell out and was replaced with peach fuzz. A newborn baby’s hair is often completely different than the hair they end up with by the time they’re toddlers. It’s not uncommon for their hair to fall out in one spot or another, but it’s also not unheard of for their whole head to end up bald while their second sprigs of hair grow in.

See on Instagram

Hair can grow back coarser, curlier or a completely different color. In Locklan’s case, his hair went from being jet black to platinum blonde peach fuzz, which eventually grew into hair that stood on end. Locklan’s parents said the color of his hair matched his brother’s hair, so it wasn’t a surprise, but the texture threw them for a loop.

When Katelyn posted pictures of Locklan on Instagram, a stranger messaged her asking if he had “uncombable hair syndrome.” This started Katelyn on a journey to find answers to what was going on with her infant’s hair, and if the condition was something she needed to be concerned about health-wise. Katelyn told People, it sent her into a “tailspin on Google.” Eventually, after climbing out of the Google rabbit hole, Katelyn called her son’s pediatrician to get answers. This turned out to be the first step toward an accurate diagnosis.

See on Instagram

Locklan’s pediatrician had not heard of the condition and referred them to Atlanta’s Emory Hospital to see a specialist. It was there they got the diagnosis. Katelyn explained to People, “We went to see her and she said she’d only seen this once in 19 years.” The doctor “didn’t think it was uncombable hair syndrome because of how rare it is, but they took samples and a pathologist looked at it under a special microscope,” and confirmed the diagnosis, she said.

He joins the very small club of people with the syndrome. Thankfully, this condition only affects the toddler’s hair and he is developing normally in all other aspects of his childhood. Katelyn revealed she hardly ever has to wash his hair unless it gets visibly dirty as it doesn’t collect oils at the scalp. Everywhere they go people are fascinated by Lock’s locks and ask to touch his soft tresses.

See on Instagram

The family documents their journey on their Instagram account, and have found a support group via Facebook, where Katelyn says “it’s cool to see how other kids’ hair has changed over the years—for some people it does not go away, and for others it becomes a little more manageable.” For now, Locklan enjoys the attention he gets from strangers, and he continues to bring a smile to people’s faces wherever he goes.

This article originally appeared on 06.22.22

There are some people who live under the illusion that everything they say is deeply interesting and have no problem wasting your time by rambling on and on without a sign of stopping. They’re the relative, neighbor or co-worker who can’t take a hint that the conversation is over.

Of all these people, the co-worker who can’t stop talking may be the most challenging because you see them every day in a professional setting that requires politeness.

There are many reasons that some people talk excessively. Therapist F. Diane Barth writes in Psychology Today that some people talk excessively because they don’t have the ability to process complex auditory signals, so they ramble on without recognizing the subtle cues others are sending.

It may also be a case of someone who thinks they’re the most interesting person in the conversation.

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For others, it’s a symptom of a disorder. Michelle C. Brooten-Brooks, a licensed marriage and family therapist, writes that excessive talking can also be a symptom of, among other things, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or anxiety.

“Anxiety can cause someone to speak excessively,” Brooten-Brooks writes at Very Well Health. “While many with social anxiety may avoid social interactions, some may inadvertently talk excessively when in social situations out of nervousness and anxiety.”

So what do we do when we’re stuck in a situation where someone just keeps talking? A Reddit user by the name of Spritti33 asked for some advice about how to “politely end a conversation with a person who won’t stop talking” and received some very practical and funny responses from members of the online forum.

A lot of folks pointed out that it’s not impolite to walk away from a person who is incessantly talking because they are being rude by disrespecting your time. Others shared how, in some cultures, there are ways of shutting down a conversation while allowing both parties to save face.

Here are 19 of the best responses to Spritti33’s question, “How does someone politely end a conversation with a person who won’t stop talking?”

1. 

“In Flanders we have a word for it, ‘bon,’ and then you say something ‘I have work to do,’ ‘It’s time to go home,’ ‘It’s time to get drinks.’ And people realize the other person wants to leave without being mean,” — ISuckAtRacingGames

2. 

“In Ireland we do like a little clap/slap our thigh/clap the person’s shoulder and say ‘Right! Shur look, I’ll let you go…’ as if we’re being polite and letting the other person off the hook, but actually, it’s like get me the fuck out of here haha!” —funky_mugs

3.

“If they keep talking over polite cues, I have found there really isn’t a polite way to exit the conversation,” — Binder_Grinder

4. 

“This is so true. People that do this don’t care whether you’re into the conversation or not, they’re talking simply because they want to. I’ve gotten better at just interjecting (even mid-sentence if I’ve already tried everything else) with, ‘I’m sorry, I have to go. (start walking away at this point) It was nice talking to you.’ Don’t give any excuses or reasons for leaving, just do it otherwise they’ll try to talk about your reasons.” — PSSaalamader

5. 

“As a teacher, I have learned how to interrupt people who do not leave any pauses when they’re speaking: start nodding and verbally agreeing with them, ‘Uh huh, uh huh, uh huh…’ You can’t interrupt these people, but you can start agreeing while they speak, then raise your voice and say, ‘Yeah, wow, excuse me but I must go,'” — Janicegirlbomb2

6. 

“Remember that it is them who is being impolite by talking incessantly about things of no interest to their audience,” — Orp4mmws99

7. 

“Source: am a therapist. What you do is recap their last story and in the same breath add a goodbye.

I.e. ‘Sounds like you guys found a bunch of great deals at the mall, that’s awesome! Thanks for meeting with me, you’ll have to tell me more next time we run into each other. It was great to catch up!'” — pikcles-for-fingers

8. 

“Just start coughing these days it’ll clear a whole room in seconds,” — Sinisterpigeon

9. 

“People who are like this expect folks to just walk away from them while they are talking because that’s the only way the conversation ends. It’s not rude to them, it’s normal. So, it’s entirely okay to say, ‘all right this has been great, see you later,’ and then just walk away smiling,” — Underlord_Fox

10. 

“If you can practice this, start to train one of your eyeballs to slowly drift off whilst the other eye remains locked on theirs. That should do the trick,” — The-Zesty-Man

11. 

“At 62, I just walk away. My bullshit filter has disappeared,” — Negative_Increase

12. 

“You gotta realize that everyone else they talk to just walks away. They’re used to that. They think a conversation is you just talk at someone til they walk away. It’s not weird to them,” — DelsmagicFishies

13. 

“I don’t know why some people are so afraid of this. It is not rude. You don’t need to lie. ‘We can speak more other time. Goodbye,’ is fine,” — Kooky-Housing3049

14. 

“On a more serious note, I typically do an ‘oh shit’ type of face like I’ve just remembered I had something important scheduled. I say ‘Sorry, what time is it? check the time Ah crap, I hate to cut you off but if I don’t head out now I’m going to be late for ____.’ Then I scurry away like I’m really in a rush. If you’re in a situation where you can’t straight up leave, I swap ‘gotta head out’ for ‘I told someone I’d call them at [time] and they’re waiting on my call’ and then make a fake phone call,” — teethfairie

15. 

“‘Wow, you have a lot of opinions about this subject…’ and then never stop angling the conversation back to how weird it is that they’re still talking,” — Ordsmed

16. 

“Had a friend who would put his hand gently on your shoulder and kindly say, ‘I love you , but I just don’t care, good (night/day),'” — Think-Passage-5522

17. 

“While not exactly polite, my Aunt Sophie had a great way of ending a conversation. When the monologue got too much she would nod her head like she was listening and then at the slightest pause she would go, ‘The end.’ And walk away.

She mostly did it with kids who didn’t realize they were yabbering on about Thundercats too long. (It was me, I was yabbering on about Thundercats too long.)” — theslackjaw727

18. 

​”Change your stance, instead of facing them head on turn 90° your body language will end the conversation quickly without being rude,” — Zedd2087

19. 

“Where possible, I’ve always found it best to tell these people up front that you have somewhere to be 15, 30, 45, etc minutes from now. If that’s not realistic, I’ve found that if you can usually find a gap to say you need to run if you focus on doing only this for 3-5 minutes,” — Pretend_Airline2811

Following the release of its second episode, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law continues to be a fourth-wall breaking legal sitcom that’s not afraid to poke fun at the MCU’s most taboo topics. (See: Captain America’s virginity) This time around, the show made a surprising reference to a sticky piece of Marvel lore: Edward Norton‘s time as the Hulk.

Granted, the MCU films have made reference to 2008’s The Incredible Hulk starting with Mark Ruffalo mentioning that he “broke Harlem” during his first appearance as Bruce Banner in 2012’s The Avengers, obviously, there’s never been a direct mention of the actor switch. As far as MCU canon is concerned, Ruffalo and Norton’s Banner/Hulk are the same person. However, She-Hulk found a clever way to take a jab at the whole thing.

During a scene where Tatiana Maslany’s Jennifer Walters reveals to Bruce that she’s representing Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth), a.k.a. The Abomination, Ruffalo’s green Avenger is totally cool with it because people change. “That fight was so many years ago,” Bruce says. “I’m a completely different person now. Literally.”

While Bruce is technically referring to the fact that he’s the “Smart Hulk” instead of the rage monster he used to be, the line was absolutely a crack about Norton, which Ruffalo has already confirmed to Entertainment Weekly:

“I think it’s really funny. It’s just the reality that we all are often dancing around, but it’s true,” he tells EW. “I actually joked with Ed about this. I was like, ‘It’s like our generation’s Hamlet. Everyone’s going to get a shot at it.’ And there’ll probably be another couple before it’s all over. People will be like, ‘Remember when the Hulk used to look like Mark Ruffalo? Now it looks like Timothée Chalamet.’”

As for Marvel fans on social media, they immediately clocked the Norton gag and here for it. You can see some of the reactions below:

New episodes of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law stream Thursday on Disney+.

(Via Entertainment Weekly)