Month: November 2022

Margot Robbie, America’s favorite Barbie, might be a household name now, but before her breakout role in The Wolf Of Wall Street, she was just a regular Australian soap opera star, trying to make it big in Hollywood. Her short-lived ABC drama Pan-Am had recently bitten the dust when she was asked to audition for a very high-profile role…opposite Leonardo DiCaprio.

But it was shocking that a relatively unknown actress snagged the role of Naomi Caridi, a real-life model and actress who married Jordan Belfort, the inspiration behind The Wolf Of Wall Street. The 2013 movie chronicled the rise and very steep fall of Jordan Belfort, the entrepreneur/criminal who scammed his way into a bunch of money. Robbie played his girlfriend-turned-wife-turned-ex-wife. In order to prep for her role, Robbie read Jordan Belfort‘s memoir to understand exactly what type of person she was dealing with.

“Obviously, the books helped a lot, because you really get an idea for the world,” the actress said at the time. “I also worked specifically, dialect-related, we worked with Tim Monich. He’s one of the best dialect coaches in the world. We had Tim on set with us all the time and worked prior to filming.” Robbie also listened to recordings of various Brooklyn accents in order to get the tone down.

Not only did the actual source material help, but Robbie took it s step further: she met with Caridi while rehearsing for the role. “I had the choice to meet [Naomi] or not, and I opted to meet her, and I’m really glad I did,” Robbie told IndieWire at the time. “It wasn’t necessarily integral to meet her to form my character because I wasn’t trying to portray her. And I tried to explain that to her — I was creating a character that was in the same situation that she was in, that lived the life that she was in, but I was by no means trying to be her or portray her at that time.”

Just think: if that one Wall Street guy had never manipulated the stock market, we probably would have never gotten a Harley Quinn spinoff. There is always a bright side!

(Via Cheatsheet)

Taylor Swift‘s Eras Tour is as highly anticipated as one might expect. By the time it kicks off in March of 2023, it’ll mark five years since her last time on the road, which was for the Reputation Stadium Tour. Plus, with openers like Paramore, Phoebe Bridgers, Haim, Muna, Gracie Abrams, Beabadoobee, and more — the tour is obviously an unmissable event.

Unfortunately, there is one pervasive issue. All over social media Swifties are expressing frustration over timing conflicts with weddings in particular, whether they’re just an attendee or the actual bride. One viral tweet reads: “i can’t believe people who have been planning their weddings for months are now debating moving the date because there’s a taylor swift concert that day…what the hell is the debate?? no wedding could be that important.”

One tearful woman on TikTok posted a video where she says she wants to see Swift but she’s playing on her exact wedding day. “I mean, come on,” she says. “What are the chances of that?” The caption reads: “Sooo do I cancel my wedding or..??” The top comment reads: “I’m so sorry your wedding is getting postponed.” Looks like Swifties already made up her mind for her!

Neil Gaiman fans really are living the “Dream” these days. Not only will Amazon’s Good Omens return in 2023, but we also received an official announcement for Netflix’s The Sandman Season 2. This is obviously a peachy-keen development on any level but even moreso due to Gaiman’s frank admissions that Netflix was cautiously considering algorithm-related matters before green lighting the return of a very expensive series despite it being “the top show in the world” for weeks.

Fortunately, the much-wanted goodness did arrive, and that means that we’ll see more of Dream/Morpheus, Desire, Death (with a slightly tweaked and breathtaking take on the character from Kirby Howell-Baptiste), and the rest of The Endless (also with Delirium!). This is a gift and even more so than the hot-dropped bonus episode that features one of my favorite The Sandman stories, “Calliope.”

No firm release date (or even month) or episode detailing exists as of yet, but let’s just say that Neil Gaiman must be thrilled to see the demise of woke-fail predictions from trolls. Fans of the DC/Vertigo comic responded in kind with memes and excitement.

And this one isn’t a timely reaction, but I still like it.

As well, the third installment of The Sandman on Audible is available for the taking. The twin productions have been a long time (i.e. decades) coming for fans, but sometimes, the old adage rings true: good things, those who wait, and so on.

The Sandman‘s full first season (with bonus episode) is currently streaming on Netflix.

Selena Gomez’s highly anticipated Apple TV+ documentary is poignantly titled Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me. Her reality during the press run leading up to it feels more like, Gomez, her mind, and pop culture’s collective eyes and ears glued to everything related to Gomez and what she may say next about her mind or overall health. But the 30-year-old actress and singer-songwriter is also talking about her reemergence in music.

Gomez was revealed this morning (November 3) as Rolling Stone‘s December cover star, simultaneous with the arrival of her powerful ballad “My Mind & Me.” In the accompanying cover story by Alex Morris, Gomez admitted that “she wasn’t sure I could” sign off on her documentary seeing the light of day a few weeks prior to the interview because of its unflinching nature and later contrastingly teased what fans can expect from her next album.

Morris wrote that Gomez “plans to have some writing sessions, round out the 24 songs she’s already written for her next album, which she says she may start recording by the end of the year.” Gomez added, “‘My Mind and Me’ is a little sad, but it’s also a really nice way of putting a button on the documentary part of life, and then it’ll just be fun stories of me living my life and going on dates and having conversations with myself. I feel like it’s going be an album that’s like, ‘Oh, she’s not in that place anymore; she’s actually just living life.’”

Gomez similarly told Variety at last night’s My Mind & Me premiere that new music will happen “hopefully next year” and responded to the possibility of a subsequent tour with “Maybe. … I should, right? I don’t know. Maybe!” She released her Spanish EP Revelación in March 2021, which was nominated at this year’s Grammys for Best Latin Pop Album. Rare, her last full-length studio album, came in January 2020 and debuted at No. 1.

Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me premieres on Apple TV+ on 11/4.

Rihanna fans are rightfully excited about the prospect of new music from the recently reclusive Rated R singer. In addition to contributing the touching ballad “Lift Me Up” to the upcoming Wakanda Forever soundtrack, her new flurry of activity also includes a Super Bowl Halftime Show, a rumored stadium tour, and maybe even a new album, which she appears to be rehearsing or recording (if Charlie Puth is to be believed). She’s also gearing up for Vol. 4 of her Savage X Fenty fashion show, but some fans have a bone to pick with that last one.

According to TMZ, it was reported that the show will feature an appearance from Johnny Depp in some capacity. This is, of course, after Depp most recently made headlines for his role in a highly-publicized and controversial domestic abuse lawsuit with ex-wife Amber Heard. Heard accused Depp of abuse, prompting him to sue her for defamation, alleging that she was the one who had abused him and that he’d lost work as a result of her allegations. Heard countersued, and in the end, both were awarded compensatory damages.

Of course, Rihanna was embroiled in an abuse scandal of her own not so long ago, so to some fans, her endorsement of Johnny Depp rings inappropriate.

And while some are painting it in a positive light, arguably it might have been better to skirt the issue altogether.

The RX is Uproxx Music’s stamp of approval for the best albums, songs, and music stories throughout the year. Inclusion in this category is the highest distinction we can bestow and signals the most important music being released throughout the year. The RX is the music you need, right now.

Spacey St. Louis superpimp Smino has returned after a four-year hiatus with Luv 4 Rent, the long-awaited follow-up to the fan-favorite Noir. And while its title suggests the often transitory nature of strong affection for people, places, and lifestyles, the album offers much more staying power, with strong exegeses of the theme, from the platonic to the romantic. There’s a lot to like, and plenty of reasons to revisit.

From his introduction in 2017 with the groovy, P-funk-influenced debut album Blkswn, Smino’s cut an impressively charismatic figure, equal parts Dungeon Family and St. Lunatics, as likely to indulge in a four-bar run of falsetto crooning as he is to deliver a tongue-twisting lyrical soliloquy full of witty wordplay and devilish double entendre. With five years, a new label deal, and a wealth of new industry connections under his belt, he employs these tools to great effect on his latest.

This tendency is highlighted best, ironically enough, not through any of the lyrics on the new album – although, don’t get it twisted, those are typically great – but in the interlude at the end of “Curtains,” which features the voice of (presumably) an older male relative of Smino’s, telling him why he’s so compelling a performer. “You engage with people,” he says. “You move them. You direct them. They hear you, and they move with you. But it’s like he’s got that aura about him that he can take people places.”

Indeed, Smino exudes a confidence that runs so contrary to anything in hip-hop today. He’s not trying to be a trendsetter. He’s not trying to be a follower either. He’s not even trying to be a contrarian or iconoclast, going against the grain as if to prove a point. He’s one of the very few artists who seems so utterly self-possessed that he genuinely does not care what’s going on in “the streets” at any given moment. He’s too busy exploring his own galaxy, expanding on his own capabilities, telling his own story, his own way.

That might not be entirely fair to say, though. Of course, he’s aware of what’s going on in hip-hop; he nods to his influences constantly throughout Luv 4 Rent, such as on “Ole Ass Kendrick,” when he employs a quirky vocal trick reminiscent of the Compton wunderkind’s earliest works. “No L’s” prominently features a sample of Monica’s 2003 single “Knock Knock” right down to the Missy Elliott ad-libs and repeated loop of The Masqueraders’ 1976 song “It’s a Terrible Thing to Waste Your Love.”

In a similar vein, “Pro Freak,” featuring TDE newcomer Doechii (in the midst of a standout year in her own right), taps into Southern Miami influences including 2 Live Crew’s “Hoochie Mama” and Trick Daddy’s “In Da Wind,” blended smoothly with his own Midwestern twang. When he needs to introspect, as he does on “Defibrillator,” he invokes his incarcerated uncle’s proud words from behind bars, not just to flex, but to send an encouraging wavelength out into the universe.

The guests on the album range from the A-list (J. Cole, Lil Uzi Vert) to close friends and longtime collaborators (Kal Banx, Phoelix) but the star of the show remains resolutely Smino himself. For all the allusions to his musical heroes and lascivious posturing, the album is about growth and self-love. Even the cover is committed to this concept; in an interview with Complex, Smino explained, “I always get my hair done on my [album] covers. I wanted to show that I’m doing my own [hair] on this cover because it’s supposed to represent self-care and self-love. I always had someone else taking care of my shit, or may have been putting my crown in the hands of other motherfuckers. But I can take care of my own crown too.” In that respect, Luv 4 Rent isn’t just about borrowing love and support from other sources, although that can be a temporary refuge. It’s about making a home in your own skin, and understanding that that’s where charity truly begins – and ends.

Luv 4 Rent is out now via Zero Fatigue/Motown. Get it here.

For just a moment on Wednesday night, it seemed as if Seth Meyers was almost — almost — at a loss for words over Donald Trump’s latest attempt to remain relevant, by weighing in on the brutal attack on Paul Pelosi. But the Late Night host quickly regained his footing and laid into the former president’s despicable and desperate attempts to appear in the know about, well, anything.

“Just this week,” Meyers explained, “Trump called into some random, right-wing podcast to repeat some absolutely deranged and completely debunked conspiracy theories about the horrific attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband, Paul Pelosi.”

Trump called into The Chris Stigall Show (no, we don’t know what that is either) to share what he hoped might sound like some inside intel on the assault on Pelosi. Claiming that there have been some “weird things going on in that house in the last couple of weeks,” the former president went on to falsely state that “the glass, it seems, was broken from the inside to the out… so it wasn’t a break-in, it was a breakout” and that Pelosi perhaps knew the man who gave him a skull fracture (or, based on Trump’s detective work, maybe he gave it to himself). “I’m not a fan of Nancy Pelosi, but what’s going on there is very sad,” Trump said.

Meyers was somewhat beside himself:

No big deal, everybody. Just the former President of the United States saying weird things have been going on in the Pelosi household for the last couple of weeks. Which I guess he knows because, what, he’s the f**king Watcher?

You know, it takes a real sack of sh*t to start gaming out a way you can make an 82-year old attempted murder victim the bad guy. Trump just makes sh*t up and spreads it through vague, mafia-style innuendo like he’s in a deleted scene from The Sopranos.

Taking a cue from Trump, Meyers also shared that there’s some weird things happening in the Trump household. “I hear his head is shrinking,” Meyers whispered, noting that “he hides it when he goes out in public by wearing a giant fake head on top of his real, tiny head. And I’m no fan of Trump, but it’s very sad. It’s very sad what’s happening.” But you didn’t hear it from Meyers.

You can watch the full clip above, beginning around the 3:50 mark.

Thanks to her headline-dominating Emmy win followed by the Season 2 premiere of Abbott Elementary, Quinta Brunson was been on a hot streak, and now, it’s even hotter. Brunson has been named The Hollywood Reporter‘s “Comedy Star of the Year” all thanks to her dedication to just making a “good TV show” that everyone can watch. However, Brunson will never forget the random act of kindness that started her comedy journey.

While talking to THR, Brunson revealed that in the midst of all the Emmy hoopla and Abbott Elementary kicking off new episodes, she actually got a chance to meet Paul Rudd who she’s credited with pushing her into comedy.

“I saw Paul recently in New York. We talked about it briefly, but it was at a comedy club, and I was drunk, so I don’t even remember what we said,” Brunson said. “I know he knew about it and had told Seth [Rogen] that he didn’t remember. I didn’t expect him to! It was just him being nice to someone, and that makes a difference. You never know who you’re going to affect, just being chill and talking to them about the craft when they have a genuine interest.”

If you don’t know the story, Brunson revealed over the summer that she had a chance meeting with the Ant-Man star in a very empty screening of Inglourious Basterds in Philly where Rudd was filming Dinner for Schmucks. Via USA Today:

Brunson mentioned that she was interested in getting into comedy. “And he was like, ‘If you want to do comedy and you love it and you can do it, then you should do it. There’s nothing that should stop you or get in your way, you should absolutely pursue it.’”

With that advice in hand Brunson felt empowered. “It changed my life,” she said, adding that she dropped the guy she was on a date with and planned to move to Los Angeles.

Emboldened by Rudd’s kind words (and ditching the dude was with), Brunson landed roles on A Black Lady Sketch Show and Miracle Workers before the massively popular Abbott Elementary for ABC.

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)

When JID released his emotional new album, The Forever Story, it was without the project’s emotional centerpiece, a track called “2007” which featured his father, J. Cole, and Dreamville president Ib Hamad. Ahead of releasing the album, he shared “2007” with his fans, which he said was supposed to be the album’s outro tying together its themes of family and personal growth. Unfortunately, due to sample clearance he issues, he was forced to leave it off The Forever Story despite its thematic resonance.

However, today, he returned with some good news: “2007 is Freee,” he wrote on Twitter. “I’m up early really replaying TFS the correct way.”

In addition to “2007,” the album also features the singles “Dance Now,” “Kody Blu 31,” “Money,” and “Crack Sandwich.” Meanwhile, he’ll continue to promote the album with the upcoming Luv Is 4ever Tour co-headlined by Smino, who just put out his own third album, Luv 4 Rent. JID also made his NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert debut this year, taking fans on a tour of Black music history. You can listen to “2007” as part of The Forever Story here and check out JID’s tour dates below.

01/22/2023 — Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre
01/24/2023 — Vancouver, BC @ PNE Forum
01/26/2023 — Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater
01/28/2023 — Oakland, CA @ The Fox
01/31/2023 — Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Palladium
02/02/2023 — San Diego, CA @ SOMA San Diego
02/03/2023 — Phoenix, AZ @ The Van Buren
02/08/2023 — Salt Lake City, UT @ The Complex
02/10/2023 — Denver, CO @ The Mission Ballroom
02/13/2023 — Dallas, TX @ South Side Ballroom
02/14/2023 — Austin, TX @ Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater
02/15/2023 — San Antonio, TX @ Aztec Theatre
02/16/2023 — Houston, TX @ Bayou Music Center
02/18/2023 — Atlanta, GA @ Coca-Cola Roxy
02/21/2023 — St. Petersburg, FL @ Jannus Live
02/22/2023 — Miami, FL @ Oasis Wynwood
02/24/2023 — Charlotte, NC @ The Fillmore Charlotte
02/26/2023 — Silver Spring, MD @ The Fillmore Silver Spring
03/01/2023 — Philadelphia, PA @ The Fillmore Philadelphia
03/03/2023 — New York, NY @ Terminal 5
03/07/2023 — Wallingford, CT @ Dome at Toyota Oakdale Theatre
03/09/2023 — Boston, MA @ House of Blues Boston
03/12/2023 — Montreal, QC @ MTELUS
03/15/2023 — Toronto, ON @ HISTORY
03/17/2023 — Detroit, MI @ The Fillmore Detroit
03/18/2023 — Grand Rapids, MI @ GLC Live at 20 Monroe
03/21/2023 — Chicago, IL @ Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom
03/23/2023 — Madison, WI @ The Sylvee
03/24/2023 — Minneapolis, MN @ The Fillmore Minneapolis
03/25/2023 — Kansas City, MO @ Arvest Bank Theatre at the Midland
03/28/2023 — Cincinnati, OH @ The Andrew J Brady Music Center
03/29/2023 — Nashville, TN @ Marathon Music Works

House of the Dragon fans were able to settle on a favorite scene from season one without it turning into a Red Wedding-style incident. But there’s a heated debate currently brewing on the show’s Reddit page: who is the most “dislikable” character?

The user who asked the question, “Spicey-Bacon,” is apparently not a fan of Ser Criston Cole, as the image attached to the post is of the knight’s face four times. (It was a one-night stand, dude. Get over it.) But the top vote-getter, so to speak, is Larys Strong, a.k.a. “the creepy foot dude, I hate that snitch already especially for killing his family.” Even the OP had to agree, writing, “Yeah he is an extra special kind of f*cked up.”

It really is a two-person race between Criston and Larys.

Props to [Criston Cole actor] Fabien Frankel – who seems like a decent guy in real life – for perfectly capturing incel energy. Dude’s only one rejection between “Every woman is an image of The Mother,” and “Spoiled c*nt.”

Larys Strong to me is the most dislikable character. Dude burned his own father and brother alive for some feet pics.

Spot on, crispy gives me such bad vibes – we all know that certain type of guy who immediately turns on you at the slightest rejection

“Hey wanna come over”

Hey sorry I have plans

“Fine you’re ugly anyway”

INFURIATING

Larys Strong. The dude is creepy af and just a complete snake in everyway. Him murdering his own father and brother(who were among my favorite side characters) should speak for itself. Especially since he and Harwin seemed to get along and everything. But he dosen’t give af about anyone. The dude also just has such a punchable face.

The only other contender: Otto Hightower for being the “single sneaky mf [who] planned and caused the whole end of targaryen dynasty, why he was just hell bent on getting the Iron Throne, Crispin was too dumb to even think about such sinister plots, all he cared for a rejection and personal vendettas against rhaneyra, and love for alicent,” a reply reads.

They make a good argument… but yeah, it’s Cristin. Even he agrees.

(Via Reddit)