Category: News

Henry Cavill is as hot of a ticket as you’d expect. In fact, he may have broken the record for announcing a new franchise after enduring the Superman dustup, which happened after he departed The Witcher. Let’s back up and recap.

Following the Black Adam release, we learned that Cavill had surprisingly decided to hang up his leather pants as Geralt of Rivia in favor of returning as Clark Kent donning a cape. In a somewhat unexpected move, Netflix quickly announced that Liam Hemsworth would now lead The Witcher, and it seemed like Cavill would happily be “able to leap tall buildings in a single bound” for James Gunn as he reshapes the DCU/DCEU, but uh, that didn’t turn out to be happening.

We soon found out that Gunn had decided to roll with a younger version of Superman, at which point the public found out that Cavill was effectively done as the Man of Steel. Cavill swiftly acknowleged — it must be noted, with light text on a dark background that could be read as setting a somber mood — that “My turn to wear the cape has passed.” And this was kind-of heartbreaking, as though someone had pulled the rug out from underneath Cavill.

Well, do not feel sorry for Henry Cavill. He’s already recovered his groove, and he will (characteristically) nerd hard for a different franchise that has already been announced. No, this isn’t a James Bond casting thing, but it should please a voraciously devoted fanbase. Via Deadline, Henry will lead and heavily produce Amazon’s take on adapting the Warhammer 40,000 tabletop RPG universe:

Amazon Studios has made it official, confirming that it has secured global rights to the Warhammer 40,000 game from Games Workshop for Henry Cavill (Man of Steel) to star in and executive produce the Warhammer 40,000 franchise across all Amazon Studios productions. The agreement encompasses rights to the universe across TV series, film, and likely games and animation.

Warhammer 40,000 is set in the far future, where humanity stands at the edge of what might be its brightest future, or its darkest age. The threats to humankind’s empire are many — traitors driven by the fires of ambition, alien empires sworn to reclaim the stars, and the corruption of reality by malevolent gods.

Henry Cavill is diving face first into four decades worth of tabletop games, novels, and video games? This tracks.

And who knows, this may have been in the works for awhile and simply looks like an impeccably timed reveal. In February, Cavill Instagrammed his visit to Warhammer World, where he rubbed nerdy elbows with employees and gushed about feeling “giddy with excitement.” He further expressed how “wandering the halls of the exhibition centre was a dream come true.” He wasn’t done yet and raved about how “[t]he brilliance of the artistry is rather wonderfully matched,” and “I don’t often feel at home, but I did that day.”

It looks like Henry Cavill is finally home. Hopefully, The Rock is doing alright, too.

(Via Deadline)

One of the biggest pops from the audience during my opening night screening of Avatar: The Way of Water had nothing to do with Pandora. Instead, it happened before the movie even began: when the words “directed by Greta Gerwig,” all written in pink, appeared on screen. Folks, our first look at Barbie, the most important movie of 2023, is here, and it looks… unexpected.

There’s little footage from the film itself, outside of a few quick shots of Margot Robbie’s Barbie (working her magic) and Ryan Gosling’s beach blonde Ken, as well as Issa Rae and Simu Liu. Instead, the teaser is a parody of 2001: A Space Odyssey, with a little girl destroying her dolls in favor of Barbie, played by a giant Margot Robbie (this better not awaken anything in me). There’s also a dash of Jacques Demy, the director of French musicals The Young Girls of Rochefort and The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, in there.

“It was something that was exciting because it was terrifying,” Gerwig said about working on Barbie. “It felt like vertigo, starting to write it, like: ‘Where do you even begin, and what would be the story?’ And I think it was that feeling I had was knowing that it would be really interesting terror.” She was worried it would be a “career-ender,” but that’s why she wanted to do it. “Then you’re like,” the Oscar-nominated writer of Lady Bird and Little Women added, “I should probably do it.” And thank god (is there a god in the Barbie universe? Or is Barbie god? I hope this is answered in the movie) she did.

Barbie, which also stars Will Ferrell, America Ferrera, Kate McKinnon, Alexandra Shipp, Emma Mackey, and Michael Cera, opens on July 21, 2023, the same day as Oppenheimer.

With another year almost in the bag, it’s a natural time of reflection for a lot of us. What did we learn this year? How did we grow? What are we grateful for?

Some might be thinking about loss, grieving loved ones who have passed away. Some may have gone through big transitions this year and are reeling from the change. Some might look back with a realization that they want next year to be different, feeling resolved to take the steps necessary to build the life they envision.

In any year, there are moments we want to cherish and moments we don’t want to relive. It’s all part of the complex reality of being human—the ups and the downs, the good with the bad, the yin balancing the yang.

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But what we focus on matters. When we celebrate the good, we nurture a mindset of optimism that can spill over into all parts of our lives. It’s easy to point to everything that’s bad and become a cynic. But when we shift our focus to the good, we find hope and faith in humanity again and again. And that can make a world of difference.

Here’s a sampling of good to get you going:

1. Mom gets an unexpected expression of love from her sweet son with a speech delay.

@jaylabrenae5

It’s an even sweeter moment for me knowing I used to pray for the days my son could tell me he loved me due to him being speech delayed. I’m in awe right now😭❤️ #momlife #sahm #mommoments #sweetestboy #toddlertalk #beautifulmoments

“It’s an even sweeter moment for me knowing I used to pray for the days my son could tell me he loved me due to him being speech delayed,” wrote Jayla. “I’m in awe right now.😭❤️” We are right there with you, Mama.

2. Baby tries pho for the first time and his reaction is 100% relatable.

@brookestersandmommy

10/10 recommended by Hendrix 🤣 #babyboy #pho #firsttime #baby

Pho for the win. Every time. (And baby named Hendrix? Also 10/10.)

3. This Army vs. Navy drumline battle is just non-stop awesome.

Drumlines are fun, but drumline battles are epic. Read the full story and watch last year’s battle as well here.

4. Kevin Bacon and Old 97’s have gifted us with the Christmas song of the season.

Kevin Bacon has been entertaining us musically throughout the pandemic, even singing Beyoncé with a bunch of goats. ‘Here It Is Christmastime’ from “The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special” is just icing on our Kevin Bacon cake.

See the scene from the special and learn how the song came about here.

5. She looked worried searching for her family, but when she spotted them it was pure joy.

See on Instagram

That wee one’s face lit up like a Christmas tree. A sweet reminder that showing up matters. Read the full story here.

6. Liquor store employee sees a man without shoes and immediately gives him the Jordans off her feet.

Ta Leia Thomas is known in her community for her kindness, but this spontaneous sacrificial act is just the best. Read the full story here.

7. Baby gets glasses for the first time and her reaction is priceless.

@kaseysimpson6

#trend #foryoupage❤️❤️ #blind #littlesister #firsttimeseeing #blowthisup #blindnessawareness #tikkok

Anyone who wears glasses can understand that moment of WOW. I remember thinking, “Wait, people can actually see blades of grass?” when I got my first pair of glasses. Clear sight is something we simply can’t take for granted.

8. Throwback to this 3-year-old drumming prodigy who wipes his nose and drops his stick while barely missing a beat.

u201c3-year-old playing the drums.. ud83dude0au201d

— Buitengebieden (@Buitengebieden)
1670622488

The kid is Russian drum prodigy Lyonya Shilovsky and the video is from when, at age 3, he impressively led an entire orchestra in a part of Offenbach’s “Orpheus in the Underworld” called “Galop infernal”—better known as “the cancan”. (Shilovsky is now 13 and still playing percussion.)

9. A little girl asked L.A. County Animal Control for approval to keep a unicorn in her yard. They responded with an official unicorn license and more.

See on Instagram

Click the arrows to scroll all the way through. Absolutely delightful response to an adorable young citizen.

10. May we all be as joyful about the weather as Albert the camel is when seeing snow for the first time.

@ranchograndeojai

Snow camel walks with the goats #ranchograndeojai #ranchoojai #ojai ##ranch #camel #goats #snowdrop

Didn’t even know a camel could hippity hop like that. Yay, Albert.

Hope you found some smiles here! Come back next week for more! (And if you’d like to get these posts delivered to your inbox so you never miss them, join our free Upworthiest newsletter here.)

Unfortunately, when it comes to Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour, the headlines so far have been primarily about how badly Ticketmaster messed up the sales of them. What may have flown under the radar some is just how gigantic and historic the sales so far have been.

In a new report, Billboard estimates that the November 15 presale generated about $554 million in sales for Ticketmaster and Seat Geek. Furthermore, there are an additional 170,000 tickets left that weren’t sold during the presale, and those have an estimated cumulative face value of $37 million. That brings the estimated income of just Swift’s US The Eras Tour dates to $591 million.

That would make The Eras Tour the highest-grossing one of all time among female artists, easily passing Madonna’s 2008 and 2009 Sweet & Sticky Tour total of $407 million. It would also be No. 4 on the all-time tour chart, a rank that’s currently led by the $776.2 million Ed Sheeran earned with his Divide tour.

As for the ticketing mishap, Swift was not particularly pleased, as she wrote in response, “I’m not going to make excuses for anyone because we asked them, multiple times, if they could handle this kind of demand and we were assured they could. It’s truly amazing that 2.4 million people got tickets, but it really pisses me off that a lot of them feel like they went through several bear attacks to get them.”

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

When going to a The 1975 concert on their current At Their Very Best tour, it feels like anything can happen. Pretty much anything has, whether Matty Healy is eating raw meat, singing Maroon 5, or making out with fans. There’s actually some news on the latter front: At a recent show, after taking the proper precautions, Healy gave a fan their first kiss.

The fan, who goes by Carmen Mattson on TikTok, shared a video of the experience. They were at the front of the crowd at The 1975’s December 14 show in Minneapolis, holding a sign that says, “Be my first kiss, I’m 22.” From the stage between songs, Healy read the sign aloud, noting of the part about her age, “That’s important.” After considering the request for a couple seconds, Healy said, “Yeah, a hundred percent,” and made his way down to Mattson.

He quickly U-turned, though, to say into the mic, “You better not be f*cking 16,” after which Mattson offered to show her ID to prove her age. She handed that to a security guard and Healy grabbed it, bending it, biting it, and otherwise verifying its authenticity. He then approached the fan, grabbed her face, asked if she was ready and if this was really about to be her first kiss. He then went in, giving her a long closed-mouth kiss and a second shorter one before returning to the stage.

Check out videos of the moment above and below.

Some could argue that this was Harry Styles’ year. The pop star unveiled the massive LP Harry’s House, which topped the charts and was the first platinum album of 2022. In only three days, it broke the record for the biggest vinyl week. But the success and great moments didn’t stop there.

His ubiquitous hit “As It Was” became the longest running No. 1 single of the decade, and Texas State University began offering a course on the singer. Styles’ accomplishments even transcended the music world — he was in the much-discussed movie Don’t Worry Darling, and remember when there was the whole conversation about whether or not he spat on Chris Pine? He also won his first acting award.

His Love On Tour was no casual affair. People camped outside of venues for days hoping to get barricade, and he now has his own banner inside of New York’s famous Madison Square Garden to commemorate his legendary 15-night residency. At one show, a fan surprised him by throwing a chicken nugget on stage: “I don’t eat chicken, sorry. I don’t eat meat,” he said. Though he was also hurt by some skittles that were hurled at him, 2022 was definitely still a solid year for him.

Latto has shared another nasty song, appropriately titled “Another Nasty Song.” On her latest single, Latto revels in the joys of a really frisky sneaky link.

“You know that I’m a freak / you know I like it slow / I’m tryin’ to make a movie / I’m givin’ you the code / So let me put this p*ssy on you,” she rap-sings on the song’s seductive chorus.

As if the song couldn’t get more raunchy, Latto gets rather vivid on the song’s verses, rapping, “Pull up on my pimpin’, say my name while you in it / Type of p*ssy make him say my name while hе swimmin’ / Gangsta b*tch, I make him wear my chain whilе he drillin”

This past March, Latto released her sophomore album, 777, which featured hits like “Big Energy” and “Sunshine.” In a recent interview with Flaunt, she revealed that fans can expect even more hits in the near future on a potential deluxe edition of 777.

“They sleep online, so we gonna have to deluxe it, repackage it, and put it back in their face,” Latto said. “But fingers crossed, if everything goes as planned, there will be a highly anticipated feature on that.”

Check out “Another Nasty Song” above.

Although four men were charged with rapper XXXTentacion’s 2018 murder, one of their defense attorneys, Mauricio Padilla, might be calling a list of famous names as potential witnesses. Drake, Quavo, Offset, Tekashi 6ix9ine, Joe Budden, and more were included in the official court filing.

The move, according to Billboard, comes because of XXX’s apparent beef with Drake in 2017, after believing the Canadian rapper stole the style for his song “KMT.” Even more eerily, four months before X’s death, he posted “If anyone tries to kill me it was @champagnepapi,” to his IG story — before claiming he was hacked. It’s still unclear what the rest did.

“They are high-profile people. And it’s not easy for me to subpoena. I don’t have numbers, but it doesn’t mean I won’t be able to,” Padilla said. “Trying to subpoena Drake is not easy — you need a drone.”

“It is apparent from the deliberate, late disclosure of the defendant’s witnesses and comments made between the parties that [the] defendant intended to ‘surprise’ the state and create a trial by ambush,” the prosecutor Pascale Achille shared, according to the Miami Herald.

However, before Drake and other big rap names would be required to actually show up to testify in court, Padilla has to provide relevance to the witness list and claims — which hasn’t happened yet.

Rich The Kid is back and it appears he has everything he needs. On his latest single, “No More Friends,” Rich indulges in his luxuries. He plans to share his wealth with the people who have held it down for him since day one, reiterating that he doesn’t need anyone else in his circle.

“Told mama she raised a flexer / Told my b*tch she rich forever / Back then, I was broke, I was hustlin’ / Now me and the money, we cuddlin’,” he raps, later saying, “All my racks up / Want no more friends.”

In the song’s accompanying video, Rich is seen hanging out with his family and loved ones, who have held it down for him since day one. He is also seen walking through a lavish home and hopping in and out of high-end cars.

In a recent interview with SSENSE, Rich shared how he wants his music to live on.

“You’ve got to live your own life and do your own thing,” he said. “You can be whoever you want to be, just know your influence and know that what you say in your music affects your fans, these teens that are out there supporting you.”

Check out the video”No More Friends” above.

Before I even get to watch Avatar: The Way Of The Water, I feel like I have to review the very idea of Avatar: The Way Of The Water. It’s is a debate I’ve had multiple times this week, with people I respect and some of my best friends, who often say things like “I can’t wait to not see Avatar 2.,” “I can’t wait to watch Avatar 2 bomb,” “Who cares about another blue cat people movie” and things to that effect. Chances are you’ve heard sentiments along these lines this week, if not expressed them yourself.

On some level, I get it. Most of this sentiment likely stems from the idea that Avatar was corny and derivative, that 13 years is a long time to wait for a sequel, that maybe Avatar doesn’t need a sequel in the first place, and to be constantly forcefed hype for a movie you had otherwise mostly forgotten about is kind of obnoxious. I can’t entirely disagree on these points, and I’ve probably even expressed similar ones myself, once or many times between 2010 and 2016 or so.

So how is it that I find myself not resenting the prospect of Avatar 2, and even relishing it? Partly it’s the person of James Cameron himself, who is sort of everything Richard Branson, Elon Musk, and Michael Bay want to be rolled into one, a guy who has directed two of the three highest-grossing films of all time (back-to-back, if you don’t count the documentaries in between) and explores uncharted ocean trenches for fun. He moved to New Zealand full-time. He became a legitimate Titanic scholar. The man is a character. When a guy like that spends 13 years making a movie, how can you not at least be curious?

Yet even beyond James Cameron’s out-sized persona, the big reason more insidery movie types like me are maybe more interested in a second Avatar than some of my less moviegoing friends, and part of the reason Avatar seems like a more interesting movie in retrospect than a lot of us thought it was at the time, is that in the years since, we’ve witnessed the degradation of the movie as a product.

The individual movie is almost never the product anymore, almost always a bullet point in a five-year plan. When you go to see a Marvel movie (and it’s hard to deny Marvel as the biggest player in this), you don’t especially get the sense that what they’re trying to sell you is the movie. It feels like they’re trying to sell you on Marvel as a brand. Marvel as a content universe. That they want to turn you into a regular Marvelhead, so that you become a daily Marvel user and can’t live without whatever the next Marvel thing is. The movie is maybe one facet in that strategy, but their hopes for you as a consumer go above and beyond the latest movie they’re promoting and whether it makes you feel something or not.

As that strategy has proven successful for them (two Avengers movies making that list of top five-grossing movies of all time) almost every other mainstream commercial movie product has followed suit. It’s the same with DC, it’s the same with Star Wars, it’s the same with most streaming companies. The goal is not for you to buy the ticket to a movie and leave with your mind blown, it’s to get you hooked on the brand. The movie is no longer an experience you can buy, but part of a series of experiences that you can only rent.

The big studios and streamers like to pretend these goals are no different than when Steve Spielberg made Jaws, but they’re different. Almost every high-profile release these days feels like it’s trying to create its own version of Disney Adults. To not just leave satisfied viewers, but fanatical acolytes. Movies that used to try to appeal to basic human emotion now feel like massive-budget FOMO generators. Instead of asking the equivalent of “hey, you know that feeling we all have?” or even just showing you something really cool, it feels like what a lot of heavily promoted films are doing nowadays is asking “Hey, remember this thing? Remember that thing? Wasn’t it cool when this thing happened on that one show?”

It’s as if by obliquely referencing things from the same family of products, our natural completism as viewers will compel us to go out and pay for every other piece of content from that same brand in the hopes of never missing out on a joke or a reference again. Rather than bringing us in under one big “tentpole” (classic industry jargon for a big hit movie), it’s like they want to turn us out, into scavenger hunters. Classic blockbusters wanted you to “get it.” Modern franchise movies want you feeling invested but unsatisfied, in the position of having to pay for the next thing to get your fix.

Is Avatar not a franchise? A sequel? A Disney product, even? It is all of those things, but at the very least it feels like the product is the movie, and that makes it a welcome throwback. Supposedly Way Of The Water has to be the third or fourth highest-grossing movie of all time just to earn back its budget. That’s crazy! It feels like a wild bet rather than a sober investment strategy. I’d much rather root for that gambler.

It doesn’t feel like the goal of Way of the Water is to get me to spend $9.99 for Pandora+. It feels like James Cameron’s goal was to make this one insane movie that’s going to knock my dick in the dirt, and no one could tell him no because he has made people too much money in the past for them to risk looking stupid for not backing him this time around. Maybe other people are less inclined than I to root for the madman (especially one who is already rich beyond belief), but in my mind, it’s a lot more fun to root for a madman than for the machine.

Vince Mancini is on Twitter. You can read more of his reviews here.