Category: News

The internet never misses an opportunity to troll Drake. The table was set this time when FC Barcelona announced it would wear kits with Drake’s OVO owl on the front for Sunday’s (October 16) El Clásico match against Real Madrid. The gesture was to commemorate Drake becoming the first-ever artist to surpass 50 billion Spotify streams. It also revived the “Drake Curse” discourse.

For the uninitiated, the “Drake Curse” is roughly defined by the failure of the teams supported by Drake. Barça fans were immediately spooked when the club unveiled its OVO jersey, and their worst fear came true. Real Madrid toppled their LaLiga rivals 3-1, behind goals from Karim Benzema, Rodrygo, and Federico Valverde.

Online chirping almost certainly doesn’t bother Drake one iota, but he may be hurting a little bit over how much money he lost after betting Arsenal and Barça to win. The Gunners handled their business, beating Leeds United 1-0 behind a Bukayo Saka goal, but Barcelona couldn’t get it done.

In Drake’s defense, nobody has been able to beat Los Blancos lately. Madrid is riding a 16-match unbeaten streak across all competitions. Their last loss, ironically, came in a friendly match with Barcelona on July 23 in Las Vegas.

While tackling the more serious topic of transgender rights during Sunday night’s episode of Last Week Tonight, John Oliver couldn’t help but slip into a few jabs at his own network. During his deep dive into the importance of providing gender-affirming care, Oliver fired off a quick barb at House of the Dragon, HBO’s current tentpole title and ratings juggernaut.

Via The Hollywood Reporter:

Oliver showed video of an interview with a young transgender girl expressing her irritation that she could not use the girls bathroom at school, which had installed security guards outside the bathroom. “Oh, I hate that!” she said.

“That is brutal,” Oliver said. “It’s so dark it is genuinely hard to watch — which would also, coincidentally, be a pretty accurate tagline for House of the Dragon,” he quipped of HBO’s Game of Thrones spinoff.

Later in the segment, Oliver peppered in a jab at the wonky HBO Max app while discussing puberty blockers. “Think of it like a pause button — that thing you can’t do easily on the HBO Max app.”

Naturally, this isn’t the first time that Oliver has called out his place of employment. Following the Batgirl debacle, the late night host tore into the newly-merged Warner Bros. Discovery and its new practice of axing content for a tax write-off.

“Hi there, new business daddy!” Oliver said just a few days after the DC Comics movie was shelved. “Seems like you’re doing a really great job. I do get the vague sense that you’re burning down my network for the insurance money, but I’m sure that will all pass.”

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)

This year, Broken Social Scene is celebrating 20 years of their iconic 2002 album You Forgot It In People with an anniversary tour. They wrapped up a two-night stand at New York City’s Webster Hall last night (October 16) and fans got a super unexpected surprise: Meryl Streep and Tracey Ullman joined the Canadian indie rockers on stage to sing “Anthems For A Seventeen Year-Old Girl” (the band’s second most-streamed song on Spotify with about 33 million plays, a close second to “Sweetest Kill”).

Fan-shot video shows Ullman and Streep sharing a microphone as they sing the song’s classic repeated outro (“Park that car, drop that phone, sleep on the floor, dream about me”). This was clearly an exciting moment for Streep, as she spent it filming with her phone and seemed blown away once the song was over.

This was actually the final night of the tour, so what a way for Broken Social Scene to wrap it up. After the show, the band shared a message in an Instagram Story, writing, “Tour has ended. Thank you to everyone involved. To all the people who came out. All the cities, venues, staff, promoters. To the crew. To the YFIP of past/present. Old school/new school.”

Watch Streep and Ullman join Broken Social Scene on “Anthems For A Seventeen Year-Old Girl” above.

The New England Patriots gave team owner Robert Kraft a 38-15 drudging of the Cleveland Browns as a pseudo wedding gift over the weekend, but Elton John, Ed Sheeran and Meek Mill likely have them beat.

According to People, Kraft, 81, married Dana Blumberg, 47, at New York City’s Hall des Lumières on Friday (October 14).

“Most of the people didn’t know it was a wedding celebration,” an unnamed source told the publication. “We thought it was a party and then when we went upstairs — and [a] screen opened and Robert and Dana came out. She was in a wedding dress, and Elton John announced them as ‘husband and wife.’ Then Meek Mill wrote a song for them, which he sang with Ed Sheeran as backup.”

The TikTok account “@2cool2blog” posted a snippet of the performance, which No Jumper reposted to Twitter. In the 90-second clip, Meek tells the crowd, “I wrote this from the heart on the way here,” while Sheeran strums an acoustic guitar. “I’ve been observing Dana and Robert for the last three, four years and watching the way y’all vibe out, so I thought I could do this off top.”

“Dana, since you a good eye doctor, make sure you keep a good eye on my friend,” the Philadelphia rapper included in his freestyle. “I used to pray for times like this, just to rhyme like this / I never thought I’d be at Robert Kraft’s wedding tryna shine like this.”

While Meek and Kraft are friends, Meek’s true NFL allegiance will always be with his hometown Eagles. On last night’s (October 16) Sunday Night Football broadcast, Meek was shown hyping up the Philly crowd with “Dreams And Nightmares (Intro)” pregame.

The platinum-certified artist also received Eagles cornerback Darius Slay’s interception ball and enjoyed Philadelphia’s 26-17 win over the Dallas Cowboys alongside Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie, 76ers All-Star Joel Embiid, and Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin.

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

America’s Ass wants to visit one of America’s greatest cities. In the most recent episode of Atlanta, Paper Boi (played by the great Brian Tyree Henry) attempts to go incognito at a mall to avoid the Crank Dat Killer, a serial killer who targets anyone who recorded a mid-2000s video set to “Crank That” by Soulja Boy, but he’s immediately recognized. “Only famous people trying to blend in come dressed like that,” he’s told by a pretzel shop employee. “You’re the only n*gga in here with a hat and no logo on it. You know how hard it is to find a hat without a logo on it?” She then points to a random white guy in a nondescript hat (it’s not Rob Lowe). “See?” she says. “That’s Chris Evans.”

It’s not the real Chris Evans, but it could have been.

In an interview with Variety about the episode, Atlanta writer (and Donald’s brother) Stephen Glover said, “We didn’t try to get Chris Evans. We just think he’s funny. The writers’ room has several running jokes about Chris Evans, but we’ve never tried to get him.” The Captain America actor responded on Twitter, writing, “Why not???”

Atlanta reached its quota of famous white people as themselves last season, I guess.

(Via Variety)

Sylvester Stallone practically goes to Mars in Tulsa King, a Taylor Sheridan-created series that puts the man who played Rocky Balboa into the heartland. He’s drinking out of tiny cups in Oklahoma while the camera also pans past the famed Golden Driller statue, and it’s not as though he’s Doctor Manhattan in HBO’s Watchmen, but you catch my drift. Stallone plays the “original gangster,” as this trailer puts it, and we get to see him pull a “nice little place you got here”-type of barge-in within the most unlikely of settings.

His character, known in the mafia world as “The General,” decides to wreak havoc in a marijuana dispensary while suggesting that they’re in need of protection from gangs and the law. It’s great fun, given that The General’s been in prison for 25 years and is a bit of a time capsule. Hopefully, Stallone enjoyed these sorts of scenes (even while enduring blazing hell this past summer), and he’s tossing out all kinds of 1980s-style one liners, as a 1980s action star tends to do. Good stuff so far. From the Paramount+ synopsis:

TULSA KING follows New York mafia capo Dwight “The General” Manfredi, just after he is released from prison after 25 years and unceremoniously exiled by his boss to set up shop in Tulsa, Okla. Realizing that his mob family may not have his best interests in mind, Dwight slowly builds a “crew” from a group of unlikely characters, to help him establish a new criminal empire in a place that to him might as well be another planet.

Tulsa King premieres on November 13 and also stars Vincent Piazza, Andrea Savage, Martin Starr, Max Casella, and Garrett Hedlund.

For years now, BTS fans have been wondering about the group’s fate when it comes to the military service that South Korean men are mandated to serve. There has been talk of the band members getting an alternative to military service, still performing during their service, and even not doing it at all.

Earlier this month, it was reported that the group’s fate would be decided by December, but ARMY didn’t have to wait that long to learn how it’s going down: In a statement shared today (October 17), Big Hit Music said “the members of BTS are currently moving forward with plans to fulfill their military service” and that the band will reconvene “around 2025.”

The statement continued, “Group member Jin will initiate the process as soon as his schedule for his solo release is concluded at the end of October. He will then follow the enlistment procedure of the Korean government. Other members of the group plan to carry out their military service based on their own individual plans.”

It concludes, “‘Yet To Come (The Most Beautiful Moment)’ is more than a track from their latest album, it is a promise, there’s much more yet to come in the years ahead from BTS.”

In terms of career momentum, this isn’t the best time for BTS to go on a break: They got their first US No. 1 single, “Dynamite” in 2020 and have maintained a high level of global success since then.

Find the full Big Hit statement below.

“BIGHIT MUSIC CONFIRMS BTS TO FULFILL MANDATORY MILITARY SERVICE

BIGHIT MUSIC is proud to announce today that the members of BTS are currently moving forward with plans to fulfill their military service. After the phenomenal concert to support Busan’s bid for the World Expo 2030, and as each individual embarks on solo endeavors, it’s the perfect time and the members of BTS are honored to serve.

Since the creation of BTS over ten years ago, the band has risen to international success, broken records, and catapulted K-Pop into the global stratosphere. BIGHIT MUSIC has focused to the milestone moment when it would be possible to respect the needs of the country and for these healthy young men to serve with their countrymen, and that’s now. Group member Jin will initiate the process as soon as his schedule for his solo release is concluded at the end of October. He will then follow the enlistment procedure of the Korean government. Other members of the group plan to carry out their military service based on their own individual plans. Both the company and the members of BTS are looking forward to reconvening as a group again around 2025 following their service commitment.

With the release of their first anthology album earlier this year it opened the path to allow the members to take some time to explore individual projects. As part of the HYBE family, we support and encourage our artists and are beyond proud that they will each now have time to explore their unique interests and do their duty by being of service to the country they call home.

‘Yet To Come (The Most Beautiful Moment)’ is more than a track from their latest album, it is a promise, there’s much more yet to come in the years ahead from BTS.”

Some conservative-minded folks have yearned for an alternative to supposedly free-speech-hating mainstream social media platforms like Twitter, and they got one with Parler. It hasn’t been without controversy, though, as the 2021 storming of the US Capitol was said to have been coordinated on the platform. Subsequently, it was banned from Google Play and Apple’s App Store (but has since returned to Apple).

Now, the platform is one again in the news: Kanye West, who has recently been restricted on Twitter and Instagram, has agreed to buy Parler.

In a press release shared today (October 17), Parler calls itself “the world’s pioneering uncancelable free speech platform” and says that West and Parler parent company Parlement Technologies “intend to enter into a definitive purchase agreement and expect to close during the fourth quarter of 2022.” It also notes, “The terms of the proposed transaction would include ongoing technical support from Parlement and the use of private cloud services via Parlement’s private cloud and data center infrastructure,” adding, “The proposed acquisition will assure Parler a future role in creating an uncancelable ecosystem where all voices are welcome.”

West said in the press release, “In a world where conservative opinions are considered to be controversial, we have to make sure we have the right to freely express ourselves.”

Parlement Technologies CEO George Farmer also said, “This deal will change the world, and change the way the world thinks about free speech. Ye is making a groundbreaking move into the free speech media space and will never have to fear being removed from social media again. Once again, Ye proves that he is one step ahead of the legacy media narrative. Parlement will be honored to help him achieve his goals.”

Farmer, by the way, is married to Candace Owens, with whom Ye has been spending time recently: They wore matching “White Lives Matter” shirts at Paris Fashion Week and West later turned up at the premiere of Owens’ film The Greatest Lie Ever Sold: George Floyd And The Rise Of BLM.

West created a Parler account today (found here) and has yet to post anything on the site.

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

The penultimate episode of the Game of Thrones prequel’s first season kept people guessing about the whereabouts of the show’s worst character (even beating out Ser Criston due to the power differential) thus far, Aegon Targaryen. Heck, even though Larys and his foot fetish dealt secrets for a carnal trade, at least he’s not literally committing rape like the new king. And of course, even Aegon knew that he wasn’t suited to rule (and King Viserys knew this but f*cked up with his deathbed moans due to milk of poppy) and only committed to the gig once he heard the crowd’s approval.

Then came some comeuppance that wasn’t quite as satisfying as what Daemon did to Vaemond, although there was still plenty to celebrate. Aegon was formally anointed, bestowed with the crown, and held the Blackfyre dagger over his head; and then all hell broke loose. Princess Rhaenys (who had been imprisoned during the Green Council as they maneuvered to install Aegon over the articulated heir, Rhaenyra) burst into the Dragon Pit coronation ceremony atop her dragon, Meleys. Rhaenys (all armored up) said nothing, and there was a stare-down with both Alicent and Aegon waiting to be incinerated by the roaring dragon.

This didn’t happen. Rhaenys simply scared the hell out of the Greens and flew the hell out of there. It was a badass move, and no one can deny this.

For some reason, though, Rhaenys declined to order “dracarys,” which actually could have ended the civil war. Daemon would have done that, right? For sure, and he’d have loved to do it. If you were willing her to “say it,” you’re not alone.

As such, social media was divided with some people thrilled to see Rhaenys taking an intimidating stand for Team Black…

…and those who lamented that she didn’t torch Team Green into a pile of ashes.

Yet if Rhaenys would have set Aegon ablaze, then the show might be over? Surely, people would have still tuned in to watch Daemon happily collect dragon eggs for three more seasons.

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

Multiple times per week, our TV and film experts will list the most important ten streaming selections for you to pop into your queues. We’re not strictly operating upon reviews or accrued streaming clicks (although yes, we’ve scoured the streaming site charts) but, instead, upon those selections that are really worth noticing amid the churning sea of content. There’s a lot out there, after all, and your time is valuable.

10: TIE. Hellraiser (Hulu movie)

Never open mysteriously ancient (or anciently mysterious) boxes. That’s one of the major lessons from this franchise, which now receives a gender-bending spin with the Hell Priest played by Jamie Clayton as directed by David Bruckner. The Cenobites are back, so get ready for all manner of gory death while reflecting upon exactly how inconceivable it would be for anyone to dress as the iconic Pinhead for Halloween. That spirit is what this week’s entire list is about, and maybe you’ll receive some better costume ideas along the way (or simply go as your Chef of choice from The Bear).

10: TIE. Shantaram (Apple TV+ series)

“Chaos ruled the day” is what Charlie Hunnam told us about filming the adaptation of the Gregory David Roberts book. That tome was a semi-autobiographical story about a bank robber and addict who fled an Australian prison and traveled to a new life in India. He picks up with Shubham Sarif’s charismatic Prabhu character, and the rest is history. Much like the spirit of FX’s Justified, Hunnam’s Lin will be hard pressed to get out of Bombay alive, and although Lin aims to stay out of trouble and keep to himself, an enigmatic woman might change that goal.

9. Friend of the Family (Peacock series)

Jake Lacy will freak the hell out of you in this inspired-by-true-events story about Robert Berchtold, a pedophile and kidnapper who weasels his way into the neighboring Broberg family and grooms to his little black heart’s content. Anna Paquin and Colin Hanks also co-star, and although the story is empathetic to the parents of the abused child, it’s clear that a lot of factors contributed to the family’s weakened defenses. This allowed a predator to descend, and consider yourself heavily trigger warned when it comes to this disturbing miniseries.

8. Werewolf by Night (Marvel special on Disney+)

The MCU feels oddly disjointed these days with shows flying everywhere, and it’s hard to keep up when something feels like it’s missing, structurally, after the first few Disney+ series. Maybe the multiverse wasn’t such a great idea? Well, at least there are different tones afoot these days. In the wake of Moon Knight, the MCU isn’t afraid to get dark and truly weird, and Gael García Bernal stars in what’s essentially a little Halloween treat for fans. He portrays Jack Russell, an on-his-face monster hunter who’s got another agenda while attending a monster hunter convention.

7. Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power (Amazon Prime series)

The season finale of this epic fantasy extravaganza will lead to a second season, no doubt about it. Jeff Bezos loves his baby and has funneled so much money into the fabled Second Age of Middle-earth, which is not only gorgeous but renders a different set of stories than fans got to see in the Peter Jackson films. Trolls freaked while calling this a “woke” take, but young Galadriel ain’t listening.

6. Interview With The Vampire (AMC series streaming on AMC+)

On very rare occasions, a reboot can be better than the original, and that’s what happened with this series that’s actually better than the 1990s movie starring Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, and Kirsten Dunst. Jacob Anderson (best known as Grey Worm from Game of Thrones) brings us a historically relevant update on Louis while Sam Reid swaggers in as Lestat de Lioncourt. Their relationship is now decloseted, and Bailey Bass delivers a more emotionally tragic Claudia that we’ve known before now. Anne Rice fans have to love what’s happening at AMC these days since we’ll soon see Alexandra Daddario starring as a witchy heir in The Mayfair Witches.

5. Dahmer — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story (Netflix series) and Conversations With A Killer: The Jeffrey Dahmer Tapes (Netflix docuseries)

People cannot give up their obsession with serial killers, and these two gruesome-twin offerings involve both a Ryan Murphy series (which is somehow now the second most-watched Netflix series of all time, after about a month since release) starring Evan Peters. He’s too convincing in this role, and even though the show’s a dramatization about the prolific cannibal, it’s no less disturbing to watch because plenty of the show’s events did happen. In addition, Joe Berlinger (who previously directed Zac Efron as a dramatized Ted Bundy) takes the documentary approach to Bundy’s prosecution. Lock those windows and doors, people.

4. Halloween Ends (Universal movie streaming on Peacock)

Mike Myers is back, and this should be the last time that this happens, right? The ending of this franchise is solid although not too stunning as Jamie Lee Curtis takes Laurie Strode for one last whirl as she tries to shut down her horrible brother and his homicidal urges. David Gordon Green will soon move on to The Exorcist franchise for Blumhouse, so he’s here to tie up loose ends in what’s essentially a meat-and-potatoes branch of the horror genre.

3. The Watcher (Netflix series)

Ryan Murphy is (already) back to deal out a star-studded (led by Naomi Watts and Bobby Cannivale) cast revolving around the Broaddus family. The quartet moves into a fabulous home and then starts receiving horrible letters from some person calling themselves “The Watcher,” who claims to be tasked with watching over that plot of real estate. Speaking of which, Jennifer Coolidge portrays the realtor who may or may not have known about this issue before the sale, and the cast is rounded out by the likes of Margo Martindale, Richard Kind, and Mia Farrow.

2. Luckiest Girl Alive (Netflix movie)

This movie should have carried a trigger warning, given that it deals in traumatic subject matter involving rape and a mass shooting. Mila Kunis stars as the ax-tongued protagonist who’s trying to pull her sh*t together as based upon Jessica Knoll’s bestselling novel. Scoot McNairy portrays her high-school teacher who is thankfully as wholesome as can be, and Finn Whitlock picks up the role of handsome and wealthy fiancé. The film’s somewhat difficult to stomach, although that hasn’t stopped the viewership numbers from skyrocketing.

1. House of the Dragon (HBO series on HBO Max)

We haven’t yet recovered from last week’s events, including a shocking change of appearance and a gasp-inducing beheading that takes us into the penultimate episode of this first season. As well, the crown prince of drama participated in last week’s best and funniest exchange, and although we know that the House of Targaryen will not last forever, HBO sure is entertaining us with the ill-fated ride. RIP King Viserys I, you undoubtedly didn’t want to see what was coming to Westeros anyway.