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Ahead of the release of the Fast X trailer, Empire published an interview with the film’s director, Louis Leterrier, who replaced Justin Lin after The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift filmmaker stepped down less than a week after shooting began.

“I’m more practical than other directors, and I brought it back to earth,” Leterrier said. “We went for real stunts, which we’re enhancing with visual effects. We shot in LA, London, Rio, Portugal. We blew up Hummers flying around Rome. There’ll be some iconic imagery in this one. You will see: as long as Dom Toretto is behind the wheel of a car, there’s nothing he cannot do.” Words to live by, right there.

Leterrier also teased Jason Momoa’s “very sadistic and androgynous” villain character, Dante. “[He’s] 1,000 percent Momoa,” he said, as if Momoa could be anything less than 1,000 percent himself. He even rides a motorcycle.

“When you have fought so hard to keep your faith and protect your family, and literally change the world, which is the case of Dom Toretto, there is a price to pay,” the director warned. “[Dom’s] enemies are coming after him.” Well, maybe not ALL of his enemies.

Fast X opens on May 19. The trailer comes out tomorrow, Friday, the 10th.

Jessie Ware’s critically acclaimed fourth studio album What’s Your Pleasure? was a major release of 2020, and she later gave it its own deluxe edition. Now the singer is ready to follow it up; today, she announced her new LP That! Feels Good! arriving this spring, and the luxurious lead single “Pearls” is out now.

Ware describes it as a track inspired by divas. She said of the catchy and glamorous song in a statement:

“‘Pearls’ is a record that doesn’t take itself too seriously but demands you to have a dance. It’s inspired by divas like Donna Summer, Evelyn Champagne King, Teena Marie and Chaka Khan and I guess attempts to show — in lightness — all the hats I try to wear (usually at the same time). It’s the second song you will hear from my collaboration with Stuart Price and Coffee — with the wonderful addition of Sarah Hudson — and hopefully gives you a taste of the fun we have working together.”

She continued, “That! Feels Good! stems from over 10 years of understanding who I am, and who I enjoy being as an artist and the thrill of performance.”

Listen to “Pearls” above.

That! Feels Good! is out 4/28. Pre-order it here.

You languished practically unnoticed on Lifetime throughout its first season run, and few would have suspected that this dark little show would ever be binged by the masses. However, the first season streamed on Netflix over a holiday season, and the rest was Stalker Joe history with Netflix grabbing the reins and greenlighting more mayhem. For three seasons, the show retained momentum, given its soap operatic treatment of Joe killing (mostly) insufferable people who got in the way of him growing close to his real targets. You turned out to be a dangerously addictive series, full of absurdist humor when Joe’s taste for bad behavior went off the rails.

A favorite moment of mine happens to be the below Season 1 moment, which shows the fallout after Joe killed Peach Salinger (Guinevere Beck’s good friend). In addition to being an obstacle, Peach committed the grave offense of being related to J.D. and still not really giving a sh*t about first-edition books. Joe only disguised himself with a baseball cap, and no one even noticed him committing a Central Park murder in broad daylight. (There are a lot of layers there!) The kicker: Joe’s face in this scene as he sprinted away from her lifeless body while his inner monologue went wild.

Little gems like this quickly boosted You into an ultimate guilty pleasure, emphasis on the “guilty.” Here’s the thing: we’re not supposed to enjoy watching Joe stalk his love interests. The full effect is that one should fully realize how unsettling it is to watch a stalker pleasure himself on the street while staring into his obsession’s apartment. Still, this show is as much of a trainwreck-bingewatch as, say, Pam & Tommy, which managed to entertain despite involving a world of hurt caused by the theft and sale of a private home video. Likewise, You was genuinely funny, and it dragged Joe hard rather than (as some might interpret without watching) glorifying him.

Also, feelings are weird. When You took off, part of the audience became obsessive, too. Even Penn Badgley was freaked out about people tweeting that he’s their Daddy and that, as Joe, his sexiness reached a “whole new level.” That was messed up, but I got into the appeal of the show itself. You never forgave Joe, even as he got away with murder after murder. Yet as Season 3 closed, I remembered that I’ve unscientifically witnessed how Seasons 3-4 can be the make-or-break time for a show’s central conceit. Sadly, You does not gracefully nail the transition into Season 4.

There’s more, though. I was alternatively prepared for Season 4 to be, you know, too much, and I’m about to hint at real talk but only because it’s relevant to why I’m so surprised that this season didn’t meet the bar of the others. [Deep breath] Let’s just say that a lot of women have experienced at least part of what Beck went through in Season 1, and man, it is not a real-life guilty pleasure. Yet still, the first three seasons of this show worked because this is not a show about Joe, per se, but about how easy it is for anyone to be able to stalk others in the Internet age. In fact, this show is somewhat educational in that regard. Paranoia-inducing as well? Perhaps, but deservedly so.

You more than achieved its goals, and the show lit society’s collective obsessive tendencies on fire in a satisfying way. As well, it’s actually a testament to You‘s sleight of hand that it’s been so entertaining despite carting along a ton of triggers. Leading up to Season 4, I imagined that the show could go bigger and better, as one does. Joe could be a lone wolf again, and up the ante with his revolting and disturbing behavior laced with pitch-black humor. As it turns out, any worry about being triggered was for naught, and I’d have preferred the triggers compared to what actually materialized.

There’s a monster in Season 4, oh yes, but unfortunately, his name is Ennui.

The gimmick this season is that the “tables turn” on Joe. Sure, he’s still got some targets, including the one that got away, Marianne (Tati Gabrielle), and there’s something about his mysterious neighbor, Kate (Charlotte Ritchie). He’s now a London-based “professor” named Jonathan Moore, who is surrounded by a crop of wealthy a-holes (one played by Lukas Gage) linked to the university crowd for some reason. Joe soon learns that someone knows who he really is, and they’re stalking him. It’s supposed to feel fresh and novel, but the thing is, this show has kind-of gone there already with Love. When she showed up in Season 2, Joe figured her as a mark, but she proved to be equally as capable of homicide and raging jealousy (even more so, since she wasn’t as methodical about bloodshed) as Joe.

Joe ended up killing Love in the Season 3 finale and saving himself. Now, there’s really not much left for him to accomplish other than existing and flying under the radar. He’s yearning for Marianne but listless with no outlet, and the show suffers for it. And I’m actually flummoxed at how You has hit a wall. Joe went from being Grade A, smarty-pants-who-does-idiot-things stalker to finding “Love” literally turn on him. He also endured suburban hell with a Mr. And Ms. Smith vibe, and that worked. Yet Joe in the wind is, strangely, not fun. He’s essentially a sentient bearded lump.

It’s a nice beard, mind you, but that’s the sole highlight of this season.

The show thusly falls into a languid sense of treading water while stretching out like the longest serial novel that one could imagine but as a binge. And tellingly, binging was not how much 19th-century British literature, which litters this season, was intended. Nope, those puppies arrived chapter by chapter. People awaited developments, but with the first half of You Season 4, we receive a glob of episodes that basically stares at Joe facing the greatest antagonist that he’s ever known: boredom. There’s apparently no way to make that exciting. Further, Joe gleans little insight from the experience of being stalked, which would at least make a point. Nor does he do much about the situation.

Joe Goldberg is now a caged animal whose stripes now seem less vivid behind bars. There’s nothing else to his personality but his bad acts, and there’s no more joy to be found here, like when we could watch him getting stuck in a shower after a woman came home too early. It’s sad, really, because the best part of this show was watching Joe Goldberg sh*t his pants. Penn Badgley is adept at going from controlled to panicked in the blink of an eye, but now, there’s no chance for him to do so. He can’t do much about his stalker because, hey, he’s not really Jonathan Moore and can’t raise authorities’ flags. So he waits. And we watch him wait. And You turns into a completely different show.

(This brings me to a diversion while thinking about shows that do successfully achieve longevity: for all the criticism lobbed at The Walking Dead franchise, it has generally kept its conceits, gimmicks, and momentum going in a convincing way. We can talk about that more when those spinoffs arrive, so I’ll drop the subject for now.)

Back to You: I’m gonna level with you here. You‘s fourth season contains 10 episodes. Five arrive this week. I’ve watched 8 so far, and unless something drastically changes in those final two rounds, I will remain bummed out by this season. Even that luscious beard can’t save Season 4, although it does remind me of John Stamos’ Dr. Nicky. You are missed, my dude.

Netfilx’s ‘You’ starts streaming Season 4 on February 9.

In Rian Johnson’s new crime show, Poker Face, Natasha Lyonne plays Charlie, a Columbo-type who possesses the unique ability to tell when everyone is lying. Using her skills and signature raspy voice that makes everyone want to talk to her, Charlie solves weekly crimes and is often visited by fun guest stars. The series is a fun departure from the binge-it-all-at-once model that has become much too common as of late. And now, the show has its own prime-time ad just in time for the big game.

For her snazzy Super Bowl ad, Charlie is seen being asked about various ads and their lies: the friends from the beer commercials aren’t really friends, and, worst of all, the M&M spokescandies being fired was all an elaborate hoax. Who could have possibly thought that?!

But then the ad gets a little meta and shows a commercial for Poker Face, to the star of Poker Face. Don’t you just love Super Bowl ad season? Anything is possible!

Of course, Charlie insists that everyone should watch the show because that’s quite literally the purpose of the ad, but hopefully, this will mean more viewers and therefore more seasons of Poker Face. It’s not like Rian Johnson is busy right now, anyway.

Poker Face airs Thursdays on Peacock. Check out the Super Bowl spot above.

The Brooklyn Nets have unquestionably been the most active team at the trade deadline, having shipped Kyrie Irving to Dallas and then, stunningly late Wednesday night, sent Kevin Durant to Phoenix.

In that Durant trade, the Nets brought back Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, and Jae Crowder, as they suddenly found themselves with a glut of wings and 14 hours to find trades to balance out the roster and continue restocking their cupboard of draft picks. While Bridges is expected to stay in Brooklyn barring something unforeseen being offered for his services, Crowder was very much on the market and Johnson apparently could be had for the right price.

Three hours before the deadline hit, the Nets found Crowder a new home in Milwaukee, as the Bucks have pursued him for much of the year. The price tag for the veteran forward is a boatload of second round picks — five to be exact — as Milwaukee brings in a player they hope can be a PJ Tucker-like addition at the deadline.

Jordan Nwora and a pair of those second rounders will be routed to Indiana to help facilitate the deal financially.

The Pacers will also acquire Serge Ibaka and George Hill from the Bucks, as it appears Milwaukee is setting up a second move by clearing more roster and cap space.

We haven’t seen Crowder play at all this season, as he was allowed to stay home amid a trade request after being told he’d go from being a starter to the bench behind Johnson. His top-end value will be determined by which Crowder show up from behind the three-point line, as he’s had seasons where he’s been a near-40 percent shooter from deep, but was at just under 35 percent a year ago. Still, he’s a floor spacer and willing shooter, which the Bucks need, as well as a strong wing defender, allowing Mike Budenholzer to have some more lineup flexibility and not be quite as reliant on the likes of Grayson Allen for big minutes come playoff time.

Fans of The Weeknd already had their eyes trained on HBO in anticipation of his The Idol series, but the multifaceted artist is double-dipping with HBO in 2023. One week ago, he announced that The Weeknd: Live At SoFi Stadium will premiere on HBO and HBO Max on February 25.

This morning, February 9, The Weeknd shared the extravagant trailer for the concert special:

The one-minute clip begins with the spookier aspects of The Weeknd’s After Hours Til Dawn Tour at the forefront. As it unfolds, we see The Weeknd in his performative element and launching into his Dawn FM track “Sacrifice.”

According to Variety, The Weeknd: Live At SoFi Stadium was directed by Micah Bickham, and the Weeknd served as one of several executive producers. The special boasts a 95-minute run time and “was recorded in Los Angeles at the concluding dates of the Weeknd’s 2022 After Hours Til Dawn Tour North American stadium tour.”

In early September, The Weeknd’s SoFi tour stop abruptly ended when he lost his voice:

The Weeknd resumed the After Hours Til Dawn Tour later that month and made up his SoFi dates on November 26-27. He didn’t waste any time announcing an international second leg:

The After Hours Til Dawn Tour will resume later this year. See the dates here, and watch The Weeknd’s North American recap below.

John Travolta has been doing a lot of stuff lately, though unfortunately, none of that stuff involves him signing on to star in a much-needed Face/Off sequel. But still, he keeps busy!

Travolta’s latest endeavor is a Super Bowl ad for T-Mobile’s home internet, which might seem a little off-brand, but just wait until you see how they pulled this one together! Travolta reprises his iconic Grease character Danny by singing that all too familiar song about beachy summer hookups, “Tell Me More.” Though this time, he is joined by two very unlikely greasers: Zach Braff and Donald Faison, who are singing about the internet instead of his summer romance with Sandy. Sorry, Sandy.

The trio sings a version of the song that incorporates phrases like “5G” and “internet speed” into that classic ’70s pop number, because it is an ad, after all. Do we think that Travolta is secretly a huge fan of Scrubs, or did he just think the two were some really interactive background dancers? Either way, they all seemed to have a good time playing pretend neighbors who need Wifi!

Travolta last acknowledged his Grease character Danny Zuko when paying tribute to his co-star Olivia Newton-John, who passed away last summer. While he doesn’t do any singing as of late, he clearly can still hit those high notes pretty well! Check out the mini-musical ad above.

(Via Entertainment Weekly)

Following news that Disney+ lost a significant amount of subscribers, which precipitated layoffs at Disney, newly-restored CEO Bob Iger has seemingly dropped another bombshell: Hulu could be up for sale. The House of Mouse owns two-thirds of the streaming service, and there has been speculation that it could ultimately buy Comcast out of the remaining shares. However, Iger told CNBC on Thursday morning that is “not necessarily the case.”

Via Deadline:

“Everything is on the table right now, so I am not going to speculate whether we are a buyer or a seller of it. But I obviously have suggested that I’m concerned about undifferentiated general entertainment, particularly in the competitive landscape that we are operating in, and we are going to look at it very objectively and expansively.”

When asked by host David Farber if Disney is open to Comcast buying its stakes in Hulu, Iger responded, “We will be open minded.”

Iger’s remarks arrive at a time when streaming platforms are aggressively re-evaluating their content strategy. Netflix went through a similar patch of belt-tightening in 2022 after a rough quarter, and HBO Max has been axing content left and right as Warner Bros. Discovery tries to navigate a massive amount of debt.

Interestingly, Iger noted back in September 2022 that things in the streaming world were about to get tight even with satellite and linear TV rapidly approaching a cliff. “I don’t think all streamers are created equal,” Iger said at the time. “I don’t think they’ll all make it.” During the same interview he predicted Disney+, Netflix, Amazon, Apple TV would most likely be safe. Hulu, however, was notably not on that list.

(Via Deadline)

Vladimir Putin’s a busy guy, apparently. Of late, he’s been a warmonger extraordinaire, and although his former political allies appear to be jumping ship, the (alleged) women in his life continue to support him. That includes a recent breaking-of-the-silence by his alleged long-term girlfriend, former Olympic rhythmic gymnast Alina Kabayeva, who was sanctioned last year by the U.S., which also reportedly froze some of her assets. Alina recently spoke out in favor of Russian State media to continue supporting Putin’s war on Ukraine. Although she reportedly left Russia for Switzerland (due to this war, perhaps?), she and Vlad reportedly have at least three children together.

Putin is also married (and has been since 1983) to Lyudmila Aleksandrovna Ocheretnaya, although that hasn’t stopped this news from surfacing. And as one can see from the photo here, Alina actually made Vlad smile in public at one point. However, a new report from The Guardian reveals that another alleged lover of Putin may be hiding some of his assets, and she (Svetlana Krivonogikh) has now been sanctioned by the U.K. Svetlana is reportedly also the mother of one of Putin’s children, but here’s what The Guardian reported of the sanctions:

The foreign secretary, James Cleverly, announced a new round of sanctions against Kremlin-connected individuals and military entities involved in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. They included a drone manufacturer, a helicopter parts firm, and an aviation software company.

But what appears to be the most pointed and personal measure concerned Krivonogikh, a Russian national who worked as a cleaner in the 1990s before meeting Putin in St Petersburg. The Russian investigative website Proekt claims Putin is the father of Krivonogikh’s daughter Luiza.

Svetlana’s newfound wealth surfaced in the 2021 Pandora Papers leak, which indicated that she possesses vast offshore resources and purchased a luxury Monaco apartment as of 2003, which is also the year that her child was born. She, like Alina, is active in urging Russian State media to “promote” Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. As the Daily Mail previously revealed, Svetlana is 47 years old and underwent a rags-to-riches story when she crossed paths with Putin, who’s now 69 and still giving Leo a run for his money.

Thus far, there has been no comment from the Kremlin on his alleged relationship with Svetlana or the U.K. sanctions against her.

(Via The Guardian & Daily Mail)

The Grammys on Sunday night were full of excitement and milestones — with Beyonce breaking the record for the most Grammy awards and Kim Petras being the first openly trans woman to receive a Grammy. It looks like the fun isn’t over, because The Recording Academy set up a tribute for the Beach Boys last night, February 8, for a special that will air later this year.

Performers included Weezer, St. Vincent, Beck, Fall Out Boy, Lady A, Norah Jones, John Legend, Pentatonix, Little Big Town, Michael McDonald, Charlie Puth, and more. Aside from having to live up to the classic Beach Boys songs, they also had to do it all in front of the surviving Beach Boys themselves who were watching in the audience.

Beck played “Sloop John B,” and joined Jim James from My Morning Jacket to cover “Good Vibrations.” Meanwhile, Weezer engaged in a cover of “California Girls,” a song that likely influenced their 2016 LP the White Album, which contained songs like “L.A. Girlz” and “California Kids.” There’s also footage of John Legend and Brandi Carlile teaming up to tackle the Pet Sounds gem “God Only Knows.” Legend also performed “Sail On, Sailor” on his own. There were plenty more performances that weren’t captured but will arrive eventually in the special.

Watch Beck play “Sloop John B” above, and watch videos of the other performances below.