Category: News

Roald Dahl wrote many beloved, macabre books for children. (And for adults as well. Check out the nightmarish short story “Skin” sometime.) He was also an open anti-Semite whose works often traded in racial stereotypes. His work has sometimes been altered. For instance, in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the Oompa Loompas were originally Black African pygmies. (Dahl himself changed that one.) But a new line of editions of his children’s books may have gone too far.

As per The Guardian, Puffin Books hired “sensitivity readers” to pore over Dahl’s books and ensure they “can continue to be enjoyed by all today.” They made hundreds of changes. The adjective “fat” was removed from several books. Augustus Gloop, the rotund child from Chocolate Factory, is now only described as “enormous.” The antiheroes of The Twits are no longer “ugly and beastly,” but simply “beastly.”

Many were minor, arguably arbitrary tweaks. Miss Trunchbill in Matilda, originally described as a “most formidable female,” is now a “most formidable woman.” The Oompa Loompas used to be “small men”; they’re now “small people.”

You can some more changes below.

While Dahl’s real-life bigotry is fairly well-known, his work continues to be read and adapted into movies and TV shows. Netflix forked over tens of thousands last year for his complete works. Willy Wonka is coming to the big screen for a third time, now as hot Timothée Chalamet. The 1971 film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory remains a stone cold classic.

Will these revisions protect young readers from retrograde mores? Or is it destroying a late artist’s work? (Again, Dahl was responsible for the Oompa Loompa change.) Whatever the case, the changes seemed to please few, with many marveling not only at the extent of the changes, but also at their poor quality.

Some suggested what publishers and readers alike could do instead.

(Via The Guardian)

Lil Wayne will be making an entryway into the virtual gaming world very soon. The New Orleans rapper has been revealed as a new playable character in NBA 2K23. 2k Games, the video game’s publisher, made the announcement late last week. The latest installment of the basketball simulator will be released on February 24.

The Young Money rapper will be available as a Crossover Card in “MyTEAM” mode for a limited time only. Players will be able to unlock the “A Milli” hitmaker after finishing the Lil Wayne Spotlight challenge. The Grammy award-winning rapper’s character captures him perfectly, complete with his locs and tattoos, and has been given an 89 overall rating.

2k Games has plans for more updates in the future including an array of apparel and extra content, the will be released before the end of the month.

With a career spanning nearly three decades, Lil Wayne has certainly earned all the recognition he gets. Aside from being apart of the new season of NBA 2K, the rapper was honored by the Recording Academy —along with Missy Elliot and Dr. Dre— with the Global Impact Award.

Last year, “Lollipop” arguable one of Weezy’s biggest hits, was certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

Additionally, the rapper has teamed up with Rolling Loud for the Welcome To Tha Carter Tour, which kicks off at the Fillmore in Minneapolis in April.

The Navy and the Barbs are equally as anxious for new music from their respective queens. It’s been almost five years since Nicki Minaj put out a full-length album, and over seven years for Rihanna. While we trust that the two will deliver quality this year, both stars are enjoying motherhood to their sons.

Nicki Minaj hasn’t posted to Twitter since November, and posted to Instagram today (February 18) for the first time since November to share the remix of Machel Montano and Destra’s “Shake The Place,” on which she delivers verses shouting out her Trinidad roots.

While making an appearance on the gram, she took time to shout out Rihanna and congratulate her for her second pregnancy, as well as her Super Bowl halftime performance.

Minaj sent her benedictions by way of a comment on Rihanna’s Instagram post, where she shared her British Vogue spread featuring her partner ASAP Rocky, and their son.

“A lil pretty boy already,” said Minaj. “Congratulations on the new bundle of, joy, Queen. Bodied the Super Bowl.”

Minaj and Rihanna have collaborated quite a few times in their careers, notably on “Fly” from Minaj’s Pink Friday album and “Raining Men” on Rihanna’s Loud album. Perhaps a new collab is in order for their respective new eras.

Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow’s “Industry Baby” has proven itself quite a success. The pair’s 2021 single is now the most streamed song in the 2020s, dethroning Drake and Future’s 2020 smash hit “Life is Good.” The track, which appeared on Lil Nas’s debut album, Montero, debuted at No.2 on the Billboard Hot 100 before finally reaching the top spot a few months later and earning the duo a Grammy nomination for Best Melodic Rap Performance.

.@LilNasX and @jackharlow’s “INDUSTRY BABY” is now the #1 most on-demand streamed song released in the 2020s in the US, surpassing @1future and @Drake’s “Life Is Good,” Chart Data reported.

Don’t worry, though, Drake’s commercial success isn’t ending anytime soon. Earlier this month, the Toronto rap star surpassed 75 billion streams on Spotify— he’s the first artist in the streaming platform’s history. The “Rich Flex” rapper also won big at the 2023 Grammys despite not submitting any music, earning himself four nominations, including one for best melodic rap performance, that he won for his guest appearance on Future’s No.1 hit, “Wait for U,” which also features vocals from Nigerian singer Tems. The chart-topping single appears on Future’s album, I Never Liked You.

In 2019, Drake was named one of the most streamed artists of the decade, alongside other commercial juggernauts like Eminem and Ed Sheeran. It seems like no matter what he does, Drake can’t stop winning.

Jack Harlow is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

The Dunk Contest is the main event of All-Star Saturday night in the NBA. Despite that, the event has underwhelmed recently, something that was particularly the case last year when Obi Toppin defeated Cole Anthony, Jalen Green, and Juan Toscano-Anderson. It’s struggled to bring in really big names, and players haven’t been able to execute the kinds of unforgettable dunks that fans remember from, say, Michael Jordan, or Vince Carter, or Spud Webb, or Dominique Wilkins, or [insert the name of a legendary dunker here].

So, with that out of the way, let’s watch the best Dunk Contest in recent memory. Back in 2016, Minnesota Timberwolves high-flyer Zach LaVine wanted to defend his title as the best dunker in the league. He had to get through a field that featured a pair of guys, Detroit’s Andre Drummond and Denver’s Will Barton, who didn’t exactly put forth unforgettable performances as they were eliminated in the first round.

And then, there was the third contestant: Orlando Magic forward Aaron Gordon. In what might have been the best performance by an eventual runner-up in the history of the event, Gordon pushed LaVine to the brink with some of the most impressive dunks we have seen in the Contest’s history — his dunk over the Magic’s mascot where he put the ball completely under his butt is, for me, the single best effort we’ve seen in the Dunk Contest in the last decade or so, and is right up there with some of the best we’ve ever seen in the event.

LaVine would go on to win in the final round with four dunks that earned a 50. Gordon, meanwhile, got three 50s and a 47 on his last dunk. We highly, highly recommend watching the video at the top of this post before tonight’s Contest, because, well, why not?

James Cameron is the king of the world again thanks to his belated first sequel to Avatar, a movie even he doubted would be a monster hit. He was wrong and, after a bit of tussle, the film recently passed another of his money-gobblers, Titanic, on the list of all-time highest grossing movies (not adjusted for inflation, of course). Speaking of, that story you might have heard about the cast and crew accidentally getting high on PCP-laced chowder? That’s “100 per cent true,” Cameron recently revealed.

During an appearance on the CBC show Q with Tom Power, Cameron — who has been wildly entertaining on the press circuit — confirmed the story, namely that on the final day of filming Titanic, almost everyone found themselves poisoned with phencyclidine, aka angel dust. What is it like inadvertently being on a mind-altering drug that can cause hallucinations and psychosis, while making what was then the most expensive film ever made?

“You haven’t lived until you’ve been high on PCP, which by the way, I do not recommend to anyone,” Cameron said.

At first, Cameron thought everyone had actually simply eaten contaminated shellfish, so they all went to a local hospital.

“There was an emergency room with no one in it and, like, a nurse, and 85 crew members walk in,” recalled the director. “We don’t know what’s going on. And basically, somebody had taken a pound of PCP and dumped it into the chowder.”

Despite what Cameron says, the story isn’t “100% true,” as per Snopes. Not everyone was affected, namely stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. The late Bill Paxton, however, was.

So who done it? “We have a pretty strong suspicion who it was, although it was never proven,” Cameron said:
“We believe the story is that it was somebody who had a beef with the caterers because the first thing we did was fire the caterers.… And, you know, sure enough, we had some leads on that. Of course, the operating theory was that I was such a psycho maniac that [the perpetrator was] trying to get back at me, but I reject that theory out of hand for obvious reasons.”

So the next time you’re watching Titanic — and it’s back in theaters, in 3D — see if you can spot any shots where people like they’re blitzed out of their minds on PCP. Also please don’t take PCP, as per Cameron’s recommendation.

You can watch Cameron’s Q with Tom Powers chat in the video below.

(Via CBC)

Not only did Janelle Monáe make her musical comeback this week with her new single, “Float,” but she made her debut in the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game last night (February 17).

Monáe was part of Dwyane Wade’s Celebrity All-Star team this year, among the likes of Simu Lu and Alex Toussaint. While Monáe is equally as much of a force in music as much as she is in film, it appears basketball isn’t one of her strong suits.

During the game, Monáe played defense on her counterpart despite her team having possession of the ball on offense. At one point, Wade was heard explaining to Monáe “When we down here, I need you to be ready to score,” according to Rolling Stone.

But all-in-all, it appears Monáe was in good spirits after the game, and even had a good laugh about the whole ordeal.

“I got cut from my team as a kid (it was traumatic!) and now I’m laughing,” said Monáe in a tweet after the game.

Before the game, a clip was shared of Monáe dancing to “Float” as a pre-game warm-up.

Janelle Monáe is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Watch any Philadelphia 76ers game and it doesn’t take long for your eyes to snag on Tyrese Maxey, the team’s smiling, zippy, consistently chatty guard. Now in his third season with Philadelphia, Maxey has made himself into the team’s go-to energy guy, dug in on the defensive end of the floor, and continues to be a captivating offensive player.

Dime caught up with Maxey in Salt Lake City over All-Star weekend to chat about his recent cameo in a new Starry commercial, what the definition of “energy guy” is to him, learning from vets like P.J. Tucker, and being the exuberant tether between James Harden and Joel Embiid.

How many takes did it take to do your amazing cameo in the new Starry commercial, where you’re so shocked to see Keke Palmer kissing the man made out of Starry soda?

Honestly? I’m going to be honest with you. That was really my reaction when they were showing me the actual video. I was like, what? But it took maybe two or three tries, cause I had to drop the ball too. But my face, that was all real.

That was authentic.

That was all authentic!

Did you like the whole commercial set up?

It was great, it was amazing. Starry’s different, man. The whole little set up was amazing. It felt like family.

I wanted to ask you about energy. You’re such an energetic player, you’re so enthusiastic on the court, it’s kind of your calling card. But how do you keep that up? Especially when you have the days where you’re not feeling so naturally up?

I’ll say this, the energy’s pretty authentic. I really do love playing basketball. I love being around the game. Being able to play basketball every single day, I have nothing to be upset about. I have a great organization behind me, great teammates, great coaching staff, and people that believe in me. So I try to put as much faith in them as they do in me.

I know Doc’s been asking you to dig in more on the defensive end, going after every possession, doing the little things. How do you work on that?

You just kind of put yourself out there, effort-wise. I feel like I’ve always — I give everything I have to the game. And it’s always trying to do little things to get better every single day. And that’s just one niche that will help now and in the long run as well.

Who are you working with, and what do you do with them to improve there?

I workout with Spencer Rivers, my player development guy, and then Sam Cassell. Those two are the main guys. Tyler Lashbrook watches a lot of film with me. We work on a lot of different things. Summer time is the time you get to work on your personal game, but during the season I have to work on — because I play so many different roles — being able to catch and shoot the ball when I’m out there with James [Harden] and Joel [Embiid], being able to play off of James, off of Joel. Then I gotta work on being the handler, cause I’m in a lot of those situations when James is on the floor. So I’ve got a lot of different roles to work on. But it’s been great, and I love it.

Modern NBA, you’ve gotta do a little bit of everything —

Yeah, you do.

— you’re obviously honing in really well in that sense. But are there adjustment periods where it feels like, maybe these skills are clicking, but the next thing isn’t quite there yet? How do you keep your brain straight, basically?

Yeah! Yeah, it’s a process, though. It’s really a process. It’s an everyday grind and you get one percent better every day at whatever you’re trying to get better at. And I’ll say this, the NBA is an ever-changing situation, and you have to be prepared for anything. I think I have a good mind, and coach Cal [John Calipari], he did a good job at Kentucky in preparing us for that. And I think it’s served me well so far.

Do you like the dynamic you’ve established with Joel and James? You’ve hit this great alchemy between the two of them.

Yeah, it’s like, I try to pump them up as much as possible, you know? They are kind of reserved guys sometimes, not in an older way, but they’ve been around for a long time. So I just try to bring in some fresh air to ‘em. And then the court I try to help them as much as possible. They lean on me a lot to produce in the game, and try to help score and help defending and help with the energy as well. I just go out there and do my best every single night.

I know this may be a harder thing to define, but what does it mean to you to be an energy guy, what’s your own stamp on that title?

Energy guys are different. My energy is just my attitude and my positivity towards the game. And then you have another energy guy like my teammate, Paul Reed —

BBall Paul.

BBall Paul! That’s an active energy guy. So the energy that I bring is just a positive attitude, someone who’s going to always be smiling. Always be happy to play the game, but is extremely competitive and likes to win. So that competitiveness and that happiness and that joy, it trickles down to others.

The Sixers are a pretty gritty team, do you find that every clashes with the happy, upbeat energy you bring?

No, it’s kind of perfect. Because, I’ll use myself as an example. I worked extremely hard to get where I am, and I think everybody in Philadelphia, especially the fans, they work extremely hard to get their tickets, or provide for their families, so that’s kind of how we correlate together. We see each other eye-to-eye when it comes to that aspect of life.

Going back to the defensive mechanics a bit, are there guys you look around the league and think you would hone your skill set to, or you like what they do?

I think the biggest thing is you try to find different ways to be impactful. And I think my way of being impactful is I pressure the ball really well because of my quickness and my speed, I can be disruptive, and then I can also communicate because I like to talk. So those things are what I can bring to the defensive table.

How have you worked on your defensive reads?

Having feel for the game. I think as a player I’ve been taking more chances at getting steals. We have Joel Embiid behind us, so sometimes we can take a little bit more chances, [laughs] he’s going to cover up for our mistakes. Him and P.J. Tucker. So that’s a good thing, having those two behind us.

I was going to ask about P.J., it was a short-lived experience but I miss having him in Toronto, he’s a great guy to have around.

He’s a great guy.

Have you learned a lot from a vet like him?

Yeah, you learn a lot from him man. He’s well-seasoned in the league. He knows what he’s talking about. He respects the game and when you have vets like that, who respect the game, who are successful — he’s been to the last three Conference Finals, maybe even four when he was with Houston, and you just got to respect that. He’s a winner. He’s going to dive on the floor for a loose ball, he’s going to guard whoever he needs to guard, he’s going to talk and communicate. And even when he’s not playing, he’s always going to be on the bench cheering you on and coaching you up. I have nothing but love and appreciation for P.J. Tucker.

Do you look at someone like that in terms of career longevity? How to adjust your skillset when you need to?

Like I said, it’s an ever-adapting, changing environment. So it’s like, if you don’t catch up to the game, the game will leave you behind. And I think, we’re talking about P.J. still, he’s found ways to stay relevant. On the defensive end, he shoots the corner three really well, great locker room guy, and he’s a winner. Guys want him on they team, especially a winning team, they really want a guy like P.J., when you have a guy like that it just builds your team’s resume and team camaraderie.

What are your plans for the rest of the weekend?

I’m going to do this, hang out here for a second. Then I’m going to go home and spend some time with my family, kind of decompress and get ready for the second half of the season. It’s going to be a big push.

Do you like the chaos of this weekend?

It’s cool! Yeah. You get all of the guys together, the brotherhood together. Everybody only sees us competing on the court but at the end of the day we’re all colleagues and we’re all pretty cool with each other. Competition is great and all but this is one big family.

Is “woke” killing comedy? Tucker Carlson seems to think so. But he’s not a comic. David Cross is. And the Mr. Show and Arrested Development alum isn’t buying the conservative culture war line that comedy is in danger because stand-ups take heat for “dumb” jokes about trans people, which has become a weirdly popular genre of comedy.

“All the comics bitch and moan about, you know, ‘they’re trying to cancel me for this joke I made.’ It’s most of the time, it’s a nothing joke and it doesn’t matter,” Cross said on a recent appearance on Salon Talks. And now you are positioning yourself as this bulls*it voice of ‘They’re not going to cancel me. You can’t silence me.’ For what? Your dumb joke that about trans people? Who gives a s*it? I mean, is it that important to you? Just move on and not hurt, you know, hundreds of thousands of people.”

Cross also talked about the time he realized he crossed a line and vowed not to do so again:

It was something where it was like the talking about the phrase the N-word or something. And this woman was Black. She explained why that upset her, and I explained why I thought it was I was kind of defending it and the idea behind it. And we talked for a while. And then ultimately, and this really doesn’t happen that often, but she, I saw her side to it after this conversation. Again, it was a, it was a longer conversation. We went back and forth and at the and I was like, okay. And it doesn’t it doesn’t hurt me. Doesn’t affect me in any way to not do that line? I do have a line where I’ll go, I don’t care. You’re being oversensitive and you’re seeing this thing in it that does not exist. I’ve made my intent clear. And that’s, that’s on you. So I do have my line. But this one didn’t come close to that. We had this long discussion. I was like, okay, I understand. I get it. I get it now. That’s, that doesn’t happen all the time, but it’s like. Now that I have that information and I can see your point of view, why would I continue to do it just to be some hero of free speech?

You can watch the exchange in the video below:

(Via Mediaite)

Thanks to Demi Lovato, spooky season is here a little earlier this year. The former Disney hitmaker recently unveiled a snippet of her new track “Still Alive” for the upcoming Scream VI soundtrack. The “Skyscraper” singer, with the help of a very familiar (and creepy) face, shared a video on her TikTok ahead of the song’s release.

The song — her first project since 2022’s Holy Fvck— is slated to be released on March 3, right before the film’s release on March 10.

Along with her new single, Demi will soon make an appearance on the small screen. The singer and actress are expected to guest star in the upcoming third season of Lil Dicky’s Dave series on FX.

The sixth installment of the gory series will be set in New York City, according to Variety. While Neve Campbell, arguably the film’s star and central focal point, has declined to participate in the latest requel, other Scream veterans like Courteney Cox and Jenna Ortega are expected to return. Melissa Barrera, Jasmin Savoy Brown, and Mason Gooding from the fifth Scream movie will join them.

Hayden Panettiere, who played Kirby Reed in Scream 4, is also expected to return.

Scream VI will be released in theaters on March 10. Watch the trailer below.