Category: News

In a move that should surprise no one, Donald Trump is reportedly under Congressional scrutiny after an investigation revealed that he was charging insane prices to have the Secret Service stay on his properties while protecting him and/or his children. A letter sent to the current director of the Secret Service demands a full accounting of just how much Trump allegedly bilked the government for a tidy profit.

As reported by The Washington Post, the congressional investigation learned that Eric Trump was not telling the truth when he previously claimed that the former president’s properties let agents stay for free or “at cost.” Instead, the Secret Service was reportedly charged significantly higher amounts than the government allows, and it happened a lot:

The records show that in 40 cases the Trump Organization billed the Secret Service far higher amounts than the approved government rate — in one case charging agents $1,185 a night to stay at the Trump International Hotel in D.C. The new billing documents, according to a congressional committee’s review, show that U.S. taxpayers paid the president’s company at least $1.4 million for Secret Service agents’ stays at Trump properties for his and his family’s protection.

Considering the Secret Service is still protecting Trump per his status as a former president, Congress is now even more intently focused on figuring out just how much he’s charging the government. The oversight committee wants a full accounting because, surprise, this information is just the tip of the iceberg.

“Given the long-standing concerns surrounding the former President’s conflicts of interest and efforts to profit off the presidency, the committee has a strong interest in obtaining a complete accounting of federal government spending at Trump properties,” Rep. Carolyn Maloney wrote to Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle.

(Via Washington Post)

Rumors are flying that Rihanna has recorded some new music for the Black Panther sequel, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

Whispers of Rihanna’s long-awaited return to music have been swirling for weeks since announcing she would be performing for the 2023 Super Bowl Halftime show. The “Work” singer shared a picture holding a football via Instagram, and the NFL immediately followed up by sharing a tweet with the same photo, tagging Rihanna, Apple Music, and NFL On Fox’s Twitter account.

Now there is chatter that Ri’s return to music will start with her being featured on a few tracks for the upcoming Black Panther 2 sequel.

New York Times pop culture columnist Kyle Buchanan seemingly confirmed the news in a recent tweet, saying the singer has recorded the end credits to the film. He tweeted, “Rumors are flying, and I can add to them: I’ve been hearing for weeks that Rihanna is recording the end-credits song for BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER. How do you follow up a classic like ‘All the Stars’? By snagging Rihanna’s first big song in years.

Along with her possible appearance on Black Panther 2, the singer has announced the fourth installment of her Savage X Fenty fashion show in a clip on Instagram. The Emmy-award-winning show is set to return next month.

The Negroni Sbagliato has been around for a long while. But thanks to a TikTok interview with House of the Dragon stars Olivia Cooke and Emma D’Arcy, the drink has gone “viral.” And over the weekend, people have gone mad for the old-school Americano, I mean, Negroni variation.

Sidenote: I feel kind of bad for every bartender who’s going to be asked for a “Negroni Sbagliato with prosecco in it” because of this. That’s like asking a Southern Asian baker for “naan bread” or a server for a “cheeseburger with cheese on it” or a barista for “chai tea.”

Let’s get a little context on this before we dive in. Sbagliato means “mistake” in Italian so the drink is actually called “Negroni Mistake.” This is based on a legend that in the 1980s bartender Mirko Stocchetti at Bar Basso in Milan mistakenly made a Negroni by grabbing a prosecco bottle instead of a gin bottle. Personally, I think that story is total bullshit for a long list of reasons starting with the fact that open sparkling wine is never stored next to the open gin in bars, even in Italy. Secondly, this is an Americano variation, an Americano Spritz locally, that was likely just re-named to jump on a trend in the 1980s.

Long story short, I’d believe this story if he made his “mistake” while making an Americano. But not a Negroni.

In reality, you can trace the history of Campari cocktails through Milan’s Caffe Camparino. The earliest recorded Campari cocktail was the Milano Torino in the early 1860s. That’s a 1:1 mix of Campari and sweet vermouth over ice with an orange wedge or twist. That same decade, the same bartenders at Caffe Camparino added soda water to create a highball called the Americano for, you guessed it, American tourists visiting the city. Around 50 years later a rich dude named Pascal Olivier Count de Negroni showed up in Milan and wanted a more robust version of a Milano Torino so gin was added, creating the Negroni we know and love today. Shortly thereafter, the Negroni Spumante was born, which tops a classic Negroni with a pour of spumante prosecco (full sparkling) to make an already boozy drink even boozier. Around the 1920s the Spritz (bitters, soda water, and sparkling white wine) also became massively popular with the Campari spritz, Aperol spritz, and Americano spritz (amongst others) all making names for themselves that endure to this day.

What we’re basically talking about in this case is replacing the bubbly soda water in an Americano (not a Negroni) with bubbly white wine. It’s the same thing that happened for Tom Collins to become the French 75; replacing the bubbly soda water with bubby sparkling white wine. Spritz. Still, the “Negroni Sbagliato” name reigns supreme in the tradition of “print the legend” hype.

Anyway, this drink rules. Plus, it’s incredibly easy to make at home. So let’s dive in a make one!

Also Read: The Top Five Cocktail Recipes of the Last Six Months

• Our ‘Perfect Whisky And Coke’ Recipe Uses The Last Brand You’d Expect
• The Hemingway Daiquiri Is A Deeply Refreshing Summer Cocktail — Here’s The (Very Simple) Real Recipe
• The Godfather Is A Simple Scotch Cocktail To Power You Through Winter
• Recipe: The Amaretto Sour Is The Ideal Cocktail To Close Out January
• The Tom Collins Is A Classic Cocktail That’s Perfect For The Hotter Days Ahead

Negroni Sbagliato

Ingredients:

• 1.5 oz. Campari
• 1.5 oz. sweet vermouth
• 1.5 oz. prosecco
• Ice
• Orange wedge

The one thing you really need here is Campari. Beyond that, good sweet vermouth — Dolin, Noilly Prat, or Carpano Antica Formula all work. Lastly, there’s the prosecco. You want a prosecco that leans “spumante” or full fizzy instead of “frizzante” which is semi-fizzy. You need the bite of the bubble in there. I’m using Josh Cellars Prosecco as it’s available at a good price and has a nice bubbly bite next to soft orchard fruits and a light sweetness that helps cut through the bitterness of the Campari.

What You’ll Need:

• Rocks glass (pre-chilled)
• Barspoon
• Paring knife
• Jigger

Method:

• Prechill the glass in the freezer.
• Fill the glass with ice. Add the Campari and sweet vermouth. Stir.
• Top with prosecco so that it floats above the thicker Campari/Vermouth mixture (that way, as you sip, you’ll get the base cocktail through the prosecco on each sip).
• Adorn with an orange wedge. Serve.

Bottom Line:

Yup, delicious. The rigid bitterness of the botanical Campari really pops on the palate with a nice dose of sweet floral vibes from the vermouth. This feels about a million times lighter than a Negroni since it’s an Americano variation and that’s just a lot lighter.

The prosecco adds a nice effervescence and fruity nature that counters and calms down the heavier bitter notes. It’s also a textural softener that helps this drink almost float across the senses.

All the “history” and TikTok hype aside, this is a great drink that works year-round as something amazingly easy to make at home or order from a bar. Given how quickly these things blow up when stars call them out, you might want to stock up on Campari, sweet vermouth, and prosecco right now.

If America’s Funniest Home Videos (which is still on the air, by the way) ever did a special episode consisting of funniest concert videos, a clip from Harry Styles’ October 14 concert at Chicago’s United Center would surely make the cut.

A fan-shot video from the event shows Styles chit-chatting with the crowd about the cold weather. As he does, some sort of small blue object comes flying into the frame, colliding directly with Styles’ “peen” and bouncing off. Styles stopped mid-sentence, offered a pained “oh,” and doubled over for a few seconds, his hand on his thigh. Eventually, he declared, “Well, that’s unfortunate.” He then gave both of his legs a shake and carried on with the show.

Styles isn’t the first artist to get objects thrown at them during a show. In August, Lady Gaga was hit in the head by a doll of a Mexican pharmacy chain mascot, which has become a tradition at Mexican concerts since 2021. Meanwhile, in July, when Kid Cudi was on stage at the Rolling Loud festival, so many things were being thrown at him that he issued a warning to the crowd: “I will f*cking leave. If I get hit with one more f*cking thing — if I see one more f*cking thing on this f*cking stage, I’m leaving!” Sure enough, another object was thrown and Cudi left.

Perhaps one of the most talked about K-pop debuts of 2022 was HYBE and Source Music’s LE SSERAFIM, when they released their sophisticated pop song “Fearless” back in May. Five months later, the same can be said about them being one of the most highly anticipated comebacks of the year as well.

Returning as five, Chaewon, Yunjin, Sakura, Kazuha, and Eunchae prove that despite the changes and struggles they may have faced in order to reach the top since their debut, LE SSERAFIM is unbreakable. That’s why when the group released their newest single “ANTIFRAGLE” today (October 17) alongside their second EP of the same name, it signified a new chapter and beginning for the charismatic quintet.

“ANTIFRAGILE” is a celebration as the girls enter their reggaeton era (channeling their inner Bad Bunny and Rosalia quite a bit?) with some sass, singing and rapping on top of an upbeat backing track while shooting down subtle jabs on talk about their downfall — “So much talk behind my back / Rivals I never knew I had / They all pray for the day I’m falling / Onto their hands / I’mma jump in!” The music video, on the other hand, follows the theme of “what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger” as the group is seen going about their day and strutting the runway as meteorites hit Earth.

Though their song comes off strong and bold, member Yunjin expressed the amount of pressure she felt behind the scenes with this new release. “As this is our first comeback, we worked really really hard,” the Korean-American member said during the group’s media showcase earlier today. “I think I felt more pressure than our debut, actually. That’s how hard we worked on it.”

“ANTIFRAGILE” is the second track off of LE SSERAFIM’s second EP of the same title. The new release consists of five tracks including songs written by members Yunjin (“Impurities”, “No Celestial”, and “Good Parts (When The Quality Is Bad But I Am)”) and Sakura (“Good Parts (When The Quality Is Bad But I Am)”).

Check out the full track list for ANTIFRAGILE below.

1. “The Hydra”
2. “ANTIFRAGILE”
3. “Impurities”
4. “No Celestial”
5. “Good Parts (When The Quality Is Bad But I Am)”

(For You)r Consideration is a weekly column breaking down the rappers and singers doing it RIGHT on TikTok and the viral trends and top songs taking over your FYP.

Taking a break from our regularly scheduled program, here are seven music-filled TikToks you MUST watch this week.

1. For The Single Girls

TikToker @emess22 uses the intro to Drake’s 2021 “Papi’s Home” to announce her return from “lover girl” to a self-proclaimed “man hater.”

2. R&B’s Most Iconic Link Up

Take yourself back to 2008 and sing along with user @itsgwilltv to Usher and Beyoncé’s effortless collaboration on “Love in This Club, Pt. II.”

3. “Chickenhead’s” Unusual Remix

Project Pat’s 2001 “Chickenhead” has seen several waves of popularity on TikTok, and more recently, the southern hip-hop hit has been mixed with a fairytale-inspired beat, representing one user’s assortment of thoughts. The sound is the perfect background music to content displaying the chaos in our lives.

4. Another Ice Spice Hit

If two people have staying power on TikTok, it’s the Bronx’s Ice Spice and creator @icymahree. The TikToker responsible for several trends on the platform applies their famous manus-driven choreography to an Ice Spice snippet circling the app. Please keep your eyes peeled on this sound; with the rapper’s rise in popularity, it’ll most likely be the FYP’s next big thing.

5. Mocking Onika

It’s safe to say Nicki Minaj’s personality is infectious. From Throwback interviews to Instagram lives to her presence on Twitter, she’s always up for discussion. User @fletchie_who takes their standom a step further by cosplaying Minaj in the studio. The best part? She even spits a few bars almost identical to what we’d expect from the Female Weezy.

6. This Isn’t Good News

The tea going around TikTok, Twitter, and beyond is that Playboi Carti and Future are allegedly facing RICO charges, and user @su_saint has had enough. The two rappers are reportedly the next set of Atlanta rappers to be caught up in the city’s crackdown on gang-related violence. His reaction to the news is backed by Michael Jackson’s crooning on the R&B classic, “Heaven Can Wait.”

7. The Heart Wants What It Wants

User @denny2tymes reminds us that delusion is REAL. His video, backed by Mary J. Blige’s “I Can Love You,” proclaims that you can stalk someone who clearly doesn’t want you. This is a reminder that a little social media lurking is okay for all those going through a breakup.

(House of the Dragon spoilers will be found below.)

Practically from the moment that Aegon Targaryen II surfaced in House of the Dragon, viewers declared that they’d found the worst character (and people made Joffrey Baratheon comparisons) on the show. He taunted the other youths, arguably even inspiring Aemond’s villain origin story with a pig before Aemond had enough and claimed his own unit of a dragon and began to idolize Daemon, to the point where their comical resemblance became the best part of an already stellar episode.

Aegon is awful, though, not only because he treats women terribly (as do Ser Criston and Larys Strong) but because he’s a literal rapist. In addition, he jerked off in a window that looked awfully familiar to Game of Thrones fans, and he’s generally a sloth who’s fated to be a terrible king. That last part isn’t his fault, given that Aegon was aware that his father didn’t want him to rule, but Aegon sure got with the program once he received a whiff of adoration from the crowd at his coronation. This didn’t last too long, given that Rhaenys made her dragon-thunderous entrance, but Aegon is king, and we’ll see if he turns out to be as horrific as Joffrey or not.

Well, actor Tom Glynn-Carney (who took over after Ty Tennant portrayed a younger Aegon) is here to say that he’s aware of those comparison. In fact, they were part of the plan during production. Via Hollywood Reporter:

“Ryan and Miguel said if we could make any comparisons to [Thrones characters], that he’s the closest to Joffrey,” Glynn-Carney says. “However, he is not an out-and-out psychopath. He’s much more complex. His decisions are due to insecurities and confusion and rage. He’s just bitterly confused and mentally unwell.

“As much of a nightmare as Aegon is and how he plays against any form of rules and discipline, he’s pretty defenseless,” Glynn-Carney says. “He’s so reliant on alcohol that he’s a confused, tangled mess of a man who doesn’t yet know himself. He’s incapable of making decisions that aid him. His entire life, he’s relied on people around him to make sure he’s doing the right thing. But he makes awful decisions, and now those decisions are going to be made on a mass scale.”

Civil war has truly begun in Westeros with an interesting beginning for the Hightowers, given that Aegon cowered behind his mother when Rhaenys burst into the coronation ceremony atop her dragon, Meleys. Unfortunately for humanity (remember, Aemond does have Vhagar), Rhaenys chose not to torch Aegon then and there, although that had to be the way to go. We do, after all, need more seasons of this spinoff. Let’s hope, though, that Glynn-Carney isn’t inspired to quit acting after this role, unlike Jack Gleeson, who portrayed Joffrey.

HBO’s House of the Dragon airs on Sundays at 9:00pm EST.

(Via Hollywood Reporter)

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is on today’s (October 17) The Kelly Clarkson Show with his Black Adam co-stars, and the world’s best multitasker paused his superhero promotion to pay tribute to Loretta Lynn by performing the country legend’s song “Don’t Come Home A-Drinkin’” with Clarkson for her “Kellyoke” segment.

Lynn died aged 90 on October 4 at her Tennessee home.

“Our precious mom, Loretta Lynn, passed away peacefully this morning, October 4th, in her sleep at home at her beloved ranch in Hurricane Mills,” Lynn’s family said in a statement shared with Uproxx at the time, noting that the family would appreciate “privacy during this time, as they grieve.”

The 18-time Grammy nominee was buried in a private ceremony four days later, as reported by The Tennesseean, with plans for a public memorial in the works. Jack White was among musicians to publicly mourn her passing, reiterating his belief that Lynn “was the greatest female singer-songwriter of the 20th century.”

The Rock has previously showed off his musical chops in Moana and on Tech N9ne’s “Face Off.” Around the release of the latter last October, The Rock told Billboard that he was interested in pivoting from rap to country.

“My love for hip-hop goes back from day one, and I love traditional and outlaw country music,” he said. “I think there’s something down the road where I may collaborate with some artists in that genre as well. Some of those guys are my friends — like, for example, Jamey Johnson, Mickey Lamantia, Gethen Jenkins. There’s a real authenticity there, and, you know, maybe I could pick up my guitar.”

Watch his “Don’t Come Home A-Drinkin’” duet with Clarkson above.

The hip-hop success story of the year is inarguably Memphis rapper GloRilla, who exploded in popularity after the viral spread of her and Hitkidd’s hit single “F.N.F. (Let’s Go),” signing to Yo Gotti’s label CMG and subsequently becoming a hometown household name. She’s since collaborated with Cardi B, earning her first-ever Hot 100 top ten, won Breakthrough Artist at the 2022 BET Hip-Hop Awards, and announced her debut project, Anyways, Life’s Great… However, just because her life is great right now doesn’t mean it’s all smooth sailing, as fans learned thanks to a Twitter back-and-forth between Glo and “F.N.F” producer Hitkidd.

According to Hitkidd, CMG and Interscope are now claiming ownership over the breakout single after singing Glo, and he’s naturally upset that he wasn’t included in the negotiations. “So basically these folks are trying to take me to court over ‘FNF’ because they want to OWN the song,” he wrote. “BUT they want to own the song to put it on this EP which both parties knew. So tell me how you gone PUT ‘FNF’ in your contract without telling me, AFTER I told you & your MANAGER everyday that we was in LA with Saweetie, that labels are going to try to sign you because of FNF so watch out. I also told you to let me know when labels reach out so we can be on the same page, but you still went and signed my song without telling me.”

However, GloRilla hit back with her own side of the story (on Facebook, of all places), saying, “N**** done made so much money from FNF & I haven’t made not 1 red cent (other than shows ) but I’m stilll prospering cause guess what ??? I CAN RAP IN REAL LIFE & ain’t no mf 1 hit wonder !!!! I WROTE EVERY SINGLE LYRIC IN EVERY SINGLE SONG I EVER PUT OUT & even after all this I still got luv for hitkidd cause we came up together even doe he been going behind my back every since the song blew but dats another story for another day. I just hate da fact he had to bring da business to social media.”

She also posited, “N****s been salty every since ian sign to dey label to be a group for $0 smh,” adding, “One more thing before I log out. N**** you signed da song away the first week (without me knowing) for 50k because you didn’t know how big it was gone be! Should I keep going???”

It’s disappointing but it comes as no suprise that there is a dispute over ownership of the song. These days, where nearly any artist can have a viral breakout leading to a major-label contract, those labels want to maximize return on their investment by including the breakout hits in the deal. However, independent artists usually don’t have ironclad contracts in place for the songs, sometimes leading to rights issues such as this one or Armani White being unable to clear “Billie Eilish” due to both the sample and the mention of the popstar’s name in the title. (It also explains why the Saweetie remix was suddenly swapped out for one featuring JT of City Girls and Latto, since one was apparently masterminded by the song’s producer while the other was spearheaded by the label.)

Sometimes these things get worked out before it ever goes to court — most likely, Interscope wants to buy out Hitkidd’s ownership in hopes of staving off a future lawsuit in case the song becomes even more lucrative in the future — but ever since the blog era blew the doors off of the mainstream access afforded by streaming and social media, many artists have had to pay the price when those lawsuits do come around. For instance, Mac Miller was forced to pay Lord Finesse millions in royalties for an uncleared sample on an early mixtape.

The big difference now is that we see these disputes forming earlier in the process as artists and producers take their grievances to Twitter (and apparently Facebook) to vent their frustrations or seek sympathy from fans. Hopefully, this will be one of those cases that ends with a satisfactory result for all involved — but that’s more likely if everyone just logs off and handles this behind the scenes instead.

Pierce Brosnan likes to tell the story about how he turned down Tim Burton for the title role of Burton’s 1989 movie, Batman. It’s a self-deprecating story that basically ends with, “Well, who knew?” (Also, to be fair to Brosnan, if he becomes Batman, does he still make Goldeneye six years later?) But ever since, Brosnan says he’s been wondering if he’d ever wind up in one of these movies. And if so, out of all the superheroes out there, who would it be? It turns out it all came down to Fate.

Well, Doctor Fate, to be exact, aka Kent Nelson, who premiered in comics in 1940 and uses magic as his power. (And has one of the coolest superhero costumes going.) Brosnan, for his part, seems to be having the time of his life as Doctor Fate, zipping around, casting spells, but also always being the smartest person in the room because he can see the future. Brosnan, not surprisingly, is very good at playing the smartest person in the room.

In Black Adam, the title character (Dwayne Johnson) is resurrected after thousands of years and has a chip on his shoulder about some things. He’s not necessarily evil, but he’s also not a hero. He’s a pretty conflicted fellow. The Justice Society is called in to contain Black Adam, which doesn’t quite go as easily as planned. That team includes Doctor Fate, Hawkman (Aldis Hodge), Cyclone (Quintessa Swindell) and Atom Smasher (Noah Centineo).

Ahead, Brosnan tells us why he had so much fun finally playing a superhero. Also, how he honestly still can’t believe how popular Mamma Mia became and how kids only know him as Sam Carmichael. But, first, Brosnan wound up calling me earlier than expected and when I answered the phone I still had the Yacht Rocks channel playing in the background, a musical genre I found out Pierce Brosnan has never heard of before.

Sorry, I had to turn off the Yacht Rock station…

You had to turn off what?

Yacht rock…

Okay?

There’s yacht rock in Black Adam. Player’s “Baby Come Back.” That’s yacht rock.

Okay. All right. Very cool. There you go. You learn something every day.

You’ve never heard of yacht rock?

Sorry, buddy.

Oh, okay.

It’s not on my radar.

It’s like Doobie Brothers, stuff like that. Ambrosia. Music that you would want to look at the water while listening.

Okay, well there you have it.

Yes.

You saw the movie?

I did.

Oh good.

And I love Doctor Fate. I’m curious, how much did you knew about Doctor Fate before this came up?

I knew very little about Doctor Fate. I mean, I’d heard the name and I’d heard of the Justice Society and the Justice League, but I knew very little. And my agents just said, “You’ve been offered this role, Doctor Fate, in Black Adam.” I’d heard of Black Adam. I read the script. I loved the script. I loved the trajectory of Doctor Fate and what he stood for. And I don’t know, I think he and I found each other at the right time in life. And then Jaume Collet-Serra, I was aware of his work through Liam Neeson and the collaboration they made together. So I just said yes. I embraced it wholeheartedly. I often wondered if I was going to play in one of these movies. And if I were to play in one of these movies, who would I play? Doctor Strange was taken. Doctor Fate is a great balance to it all.

Well, Doctor Fate predates Doctor Strange by a good 20 years or so. So Doctor Fate’s been around a while.

Doctor Fate is, yes. I mean he’s as old as the hills really, in some respects. He’s years in the making. I think it was 1940 when he made his debut. And somewhat based on the Tut…of it all…it was Howard Carter who was the archeologist who went into the tomb and discovered the relics of a bygone era. Everything that happened to the men and women who came under a certain spell. So that was the genesis of Doctor Fate.

In the mid-’80s, I was reading a lot of Doctor Fate, who kind of had a comeback in All-Star Squadron. At the same time, Remington Steele was one of my favorite shows, so this all would make 10-year-old me very happy…

Well, that’s very kind of you. I’m happy that you are happy and I was very happy making the movie. It was a wonderful experience with everyone, with Dwayne and this monolithic man of entertainment, who has traversed so many fields of entertainment from the wrestling world. So to work with him was a joy and the cast, Aldis, Quintessa and Noah, they became good friends, and Sarah [Shahi] and Mo [Amer]. So we had our own little groove going out in Atlanta and just the joy of working together. Jaume Collet makes it very easy on the set. And we became a family. And so I’m very excited for all of them, and for us, for the world to see this film.

You mentioned earlier wondering if you’d ever do a superhero movie. Has this come close to happening before? There’s had to have been a conversation before at some point and over the last 15 years, right?

Well, I met with Tim Burton decades ago for Batman. That was as close as I ever got.

That’s surprising there’s been nothing since then.

Well, they’ve got me in the movie.

They did. You do look like you’re having the time of your life in this. I can tell you’re having a great time.

It was. It was really a wonderful experience. And the character, of course, you’ve seen the film so you know his story. And as an actor to be able to play a part like that, where you have a secret, then it makes it even more intriguing for hopefully the audience to say, “I wonder what’s going on.” And then when they put it all together they say, oh, that makes sense. But it was just the joy of working with Aldis and Quintessa and Noah every day and watching their work, seeing their creative skills up close.

Watching you play kind of an all-knowing character is great because I have a feeling you’re a little bit like that in real life. You seem to know what’s going on.

I know as much as the next man knows. I’ve lived a fair number of years now and I’ve been in this world of entertainment all my life and I can’t think of a more wonderful profession. And if you can get away with it, and you can make a living for your family, then what a great joy that is. It still exhilarates me, I still have a passion for it. And a desire to work and a want and a need. So there you have it. But thank you for saying so.

There’s going to be an entire generation who knows you as Doctor Fate.

To be Doctor Fate is nothing but a blessing to play the part. It’s such a joy. I’ve experienced it with Mamma Mia, there’s a whole generation of young folks that found me as Sam Carmichael in Mamma Mia. And when I say young people, 15.

Oh yeah. People love those movies. Are you surprised how much people love those movies?

Yes. I didn’t think it was going to be such a mega hit as it has become. Such a phenomenal success. And there are movies that sit on the shelf back to back, beautiful bookends of movies and cinematic storytelling. So to be part of any movie like that, to have a few of them in your back pocket, that’s pretty memorable and impressive. Whether it be Mrs. Doubtfire, Mamma Mia, James Bond and now Doctor Fate, that’s beyond words.

Well, I’ll add Dante’s Peak, The Thomas Crown Affair. You’re being modest. You are in a lot of movies people love.

I started life wanting to be a commercial artist. So I ended up being a commercial actor. I think you want to do entertainment, you want to do stuff that is uplifting and lighthearted. And every now and then you can go dark. But people need the lightness of light. They need to be entertained. They need to be transported and come away with fond memories of the nights and the company of their loves.

Because obviously there’s been different incarnations of Doctor Fate over the years. So I hope for the rest of your career, instead of James Bond, people keep asking you who should be the next Doctor Fate.

[Laughs] Oh, I’m sure it will go on. It always does like that. I’m happy to be here now. In the moment.

‘Black Adam’ opens in theaters on Friday, October 21st. You can contact Mike Ryan directly on Twitter.