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According To Mark Ronson, Ryan Gosling’s Smash Song ‘I’m Just Ken’ Was Nearly Cut From ‘Barbie’

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Tonight (March 10), the biggest hits in film will battle it out at the 2024 Oscars.

Most cinema enthusiasts predict Oppenheimer will sweep the ceremony. However, there’s one category that fans believe belongs to BarbieBest Original Song. At the forefront are Billie Eilish’sWhat Was I Made For?” and “I’m Just Ken” performed by “vocal powerhouseRyan Gosling. The latter earned Gosling his first-ever Billboard Hot 100 entry and Grammy nomination.

But, according to the track’s co-writer and producer, Mark Ronson, the smash hit almost didn’t make it into the movie. In an interview with The Sunday Times, Ronson revealed that the track was on the chopping block. “At that first screening, the song wasn’t working,” he said. “I panicked. The humor wasn’t translating, and Greta [Gerwig] had to fight. The studio asked her how much she really needed it, and she said, ‘With every inch of my body.’ And then there was a big swing.”

Ronson explained that the song conflicted with Gerwig’s vision for the movie. “Ken is ridiculous,” he said. “But Greta’s point was that nobody should ever be laughing at a character. We feel their pain, as crazy as that sounds about a guy wearing a white mink and two pairs of sunglasses. I never wanted to write a song for a cheap laugh. You want something to get under people’s skin.”

Ultimately, the track was tweaked, and the final cut was made, which the Ken collective couldn’t appreciate more. Gosling is set to perform the song onstage at the 2024 Oscars. Find more information here.

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

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Fletcher Cox Announced His Retirement As The Eagles Lose Another Key Figure

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The Philadelphia Eagles will enter the 2024 season needing to replace longtime stalwarts on the interior of both their offensive and defensive lines. On offense, they’ll be in search of a replacement for Jason Kelce, as the future Hall of Fame center called it a career last week in an emotional press conference.

On defense, they’ll have to replace Fletcher Cox, a former four-time All-Pro and 6-time Pro Bowler, who was the anchor in the middle of their defensive line for more than a decade. Cox announced his retirement on Sunday, posting a message to the Eagles organization, his teammates and coaches, and Eagles fans thanking them for everything since he was drafted to Philadelphia in 2012.

Cox was never the biggest in the middle of the line, but had the strength to hold up inside and tremendous quickness that made him a terrific pass rusher from the interior. For his career, he’ll retire with 519 tackles, 70 sacks, 16 forced fumbles, 14 fumble recoveries, and three touchdowns across his 12-year career. Last year, he had 33 tackles and five sacks (along with a forced fumble and a fumble recovery), and while the Eagles have steadily been adding to the interior of their defensive line around him in the draft in recent years, his presence will be difficult to replace.

Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter figure to take on even larger roles next year in Cox’s absence, and will need to prove themselves as consistent impact players if they’re going to replace one of the league’s best defensive tackles. Beyond that, Cox was able to get the line organized and brought a veteran savvy and leadership that will need to be filled in some way, which is easier said than done. While Philadelphia still has ample talent throughout their roster, losing Kelce and Cox in one offseason will be difficult to overcome both on the field and in the locker room, and the Eagles will need some new leaders to emerge from their roster to fill that void.

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Madonna Mistakenly Calls Out A Fan In A Wheelchair For Not Standing Up During ‘The Celebration Tour’ Latest Stop

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In Madonna’s words, she is “lucky” to be alive. Last year, the “Like A Prayer” singer faced a life-threatening medical illness, which left her in a coma for two days. This new look at life makes Madonna’s The Celebration Tour much more sentimental. However, yesterday (March 9), Madonna mistakenly misjudged a concertgoer’s medical condition as a form of disrespect.

During Madonna’s stop at Los Angeles’ Kia Forum, she called out a fan for not standing up. In a video shared by Pop Crave, Madonna went to speak with ticketholders in the VIP area. When she noticed that one ticketholder wasn’t on their feet, she demanded that they rise. The fan informed Madonna that they were in a wheelchair. Madonna then went on to apologize for the remarks.

“Oh, okay, politically incorrect; sorry about that,” she said. “I’m glad you’re here.” https://twitter.com/PopCrave/status/1766603640914006388

Users online slammed Madonna for her actions.

“But is it an offense to sit down during a show, though? Like, what if I feel tired,” wrote one user.

“Does it matter if they’re sitting or standing? They paid for the ticket and took the time to be there? Isn’t that enough,” asked another.

“Ok, you shouldn’t be calling people out for sitting down anyway. She’s not the queen of England. Some people are tired or have conditions where they need to sit. You want them to leave altogether,” wrote another.

“This is why I’ve never seen her live. Refuse to,” penned another.

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The Patriots Will Reportedly Trade Mac Jones To The Jaguars

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The New England Patriots are entering a new era with Jerod Mayo stepping into the head coaching role vacated with Bill Belichick leaving the team after more than two decades. While Mayo is a Belichick disciple and figures to keep some elements of the team-building structure and process the same, he will look to breathe a bit of new life into the team with some fresh ideas as they look to return to being a contender sooner than later.

The front office is also turning over, as Belichick held both titles of coach and GM, and while they haven’t officially filled that spot, Eliot Wolf is effectively leading the new regime. Wolf and Mayo’s first order of business this new league year is to take advantage of their ample cap room to upgrade the roster, and there’s nowhere that needs to be upgraded more than the quarterback position. The Patriots drafted Mac Jones in the first round in 2021 and after a solid rookie campaign, he fell off significantly, ultimately getting benched last year for Bailey Zappe (who didn’t fare all that much better).

With the Patriots picking third overall in April’s NFL Draft, the expectation long has been that they will select one of the top QBs from that spot to replace Jones. Making that even clearer was the news on Sunday that Mac Jones was going to be traded to Jacksonville when the league year officially begins this week, as the Pats will unload him for a sixth rounder.

The Jaguars already have Trevor Lawrence under center, but with his injury history it makes sense why they’d invest in a solid backup. Now, whether you think Jones can be that is another question, but he has at least at one point shown some ability at the NFL level. For Jones it’s a needed reset, as he looked like a broken man towards the end in New England, routinely making some of the worst decisions possible to lead to turnovers. For the Patriots, they clear the way for a new quarterback to step in, but have to build an infrastructure and system around him to ensure they can thrive and avoid doing this song and dance all over again in a few years.

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‘SNL’ Weekend Update Got In On The Katie Britt SOTU Rebuttal Dragging: ‘Some Of The Worst Acting I’ve Ever Seen’

On Thursday Joe Biden delivered a fiery State of the Union address that should all but end accusations that he’s a sleepy grandpa too creaky for another term. But he was almost upstaged by the ridiculous Republican rebuttal that aired afterwards. It was delivered from Katie Britt, a semi-obscure senator from Alabama, who became an instant sensation, but not in the way she’d hoped. Her hammy, performative speech was so over-the-top SNL coaxed Scarlett Johansson to play her during their latest Cold Open. Later that evening, Johnasson’s husband got in on the Britt dragging, too.

During Weekend Update, co-host Colin Jost brought up Britt’s speech, saying she “made some choices.” After playing a montage of some of her creepiest bits, Jost cracked, “Those were all scenes from the one-woman show A Britt Much. It’s the play critics are calling, ‘Is she OK?’” He added, “That was honestly some of the worst acting I’ve ever seen and I’ve seen me.” (He then brought up an image of him from the movie Tom & Jerry.)

There was a lot that happened in the world last week, some of it at the expense of the GOP. Not only were Republicans humiliated by Biden’s unexpectedly strong SOTU address, but Donald Trump didn’t help things when the “reverse mortgage applicant,” as Jost put it, criticized him, saying, “The words are not flowing smoothly out of his mouth.” Did they have a clip of Trump very much not speaking smoothly? Of course they did.

You can watch the latest SNL Weekend Update in the video above.

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Scarlett Johansson Crashed The ‘SNL’ Cold Open To Do A Devastatingly Spot-On Send-Up Of Creepy GOP Senator Katie Britt

Last week Joe Biden delivered an unexpectedly fiery State of the Union. Long depicted by the right (and the left) as a sleepy gramps, the president was instead sharp and shouty, aggressively pushing back against an increasingly hostile Republican party and their magnets understanding wannabe dictator of a leader. He even clapped back at Marjorie Taylor Greene. How did the GOP follow that up? By trying to make a star out of Alabama senator Katie Britt, who came off as at once hammy and creepy. For its most recent episode, you better believe SNL gave Britt prime real estate in the Cold Open. They even nabbed a very special guest to play her.

No less than Scarlett Johansson appeared in the back end of the night’s maiden sketch, putting on considerable airs and striking bizarre seductress facial expressions as she stood in an eerily bare kitchen to deliver the Republican response. It wasn’t that hard to get Johansson for the job; she’s married to one-half of the Weekend Update hosts. But she delivered and then some.

“I’ll be performing an original monologue called ‘This country is hell,’” Johansson’s Britt told the crowd. “You see, I’m not just a senator. I’m a wife, a mother, and the craziest bitch in the Target parking lot.”

The sketch sent up Britt’s over-the-top performative stylings, but it also made sure to point out that one of her claims was a straight-up lie. At one point during her SOTU response, Britt told a story about a woman she met in Texas who had been sex trafficked by cartels. The implication was that it was Biden’s fault, due to his border policies (which Republicans won’t let him change). As it turns out, the incident happened all the way back during the George W. Bush administration. SNL didn’t let that one slip by.

“First and foremost, I’m a mom, and like any mom, I’m going to do a pivot out of nowhere into a shockingly violent story about sex trafficking,” Johansson said. “Rest assured, every detail about it is real except the year, where it took place, and who was president when it happened.”

The sketch also dragged Britt’s choice of setting. “You know, my husband Wesley and I spend a lot of time in this kitchen — worrying,” she said. “Kitchens are where families have the hard conversations like the one we’ll have now about how mommy freaked out the entire country.”

The first half of the sketch depicted Biden’s amped-up State of the Union address, with Mikey Day, who tends to play him as aloof, changing gears. At one point he even mocked Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (Michael Longfellow) for spending most of the speech clenching his jaws and shaking his head.

You can watch the sketch in the video above.

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What’s Popular On Streaming Now

Shogun John Blackthorne Cosmo Jarvis
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Every single 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.

TIE: 10. Spaceman (Netflix film)

Adam Sandler’s Netflix partnership keeps yielding new permutations, and he’s really going for it, even if these results will not tickle fans’ funny bones in the traditional way. A talking spider-like creature is voiced by Paul Dano, and Sandler’s astronaut is a bit more dramatic (even melodramatic) than we’re used to from him. This doesn’t have the adrenaline boost of Uncut Gems, but it’s still worth seeing the Sandman shift into a different gear in this adaptation of Spaceman of Bohemia, the novel by Jaroslav Kalfař.

TIE: 10. Argylle (Apple TV+ film on VOD)

If only those Taylor Swift rumors of involvement had turned out to be true, this movie probably would have fared much better at the box office. Still, that is no disincentive for people to enjoy this film at home, in which fictional (?) author Elly Conway’s espionage begin coming to life. This admittedly messy film stars Bryce Dallas Howard, Dua Lipa, John Cena, Henry Cavill, and Sam Rockwell.

9. American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders (Netflix documentary)

The Duplass brothers executive produce this unshakable glimpse behind the murder of journalist Danny Casolaro, whose family refused to believe that he committed suicide in his hotel room. What resulted was an unyielding investigation into the “The Octopus” conspiracy (which Casolaro had been looking into prior to his death) by researcher Christian Hansen, who worked to unearth secrets that could untangle the inner workings of a hidden organization and its many misdeeds.

8. The Regime (HBO series streaming on Max)

HBO and Kate Winslet are old friends and current partners as she takes charge again of her old Mildred Pierce and Mare of Easttown stomping grounds. Winslet portrays the authoritarian leader of a crumbling European government, and given that she falls under the spell of a new and unlikely yet handsome confidant, Herbert Zubak (Matthias Schoenaerts), that slide into the ocean might soon be complete. Hugh Grant and Martha Plimpton co-star, and Winslet might be having too much fun with this messy role.

7. Avatar: The Last Airbender (Netflix series)

The masses have spoken, and Netflix duly answered by renewing this live-action adaptation for two more seasons to give the story a full run to completion. As a result, this show that was conceived with at least three seasons in mind can take Aang’s story much further and on a fast-tracked schedule to make sure that the younger cast doesn’t age out of their roles. This show isn’t as celebrated of a success as the recent One Piece, but it did clear the low bar set by the M. Night Shyamalan movie, which is a relief. Next challenge? Whatever the next iteration of Death Note brings.

6. The Tourist (BBC One/Stan series streaming on Netflix)

Finally, Jamie Dornan has strapped into an ongoing project that fully decimates his Fifty Shades era, and his character has hopped across a few ponds from the Australian Outback to Ireland, where he’s still attempting to make progress against those ultra-bad dudes who want to take his also-bad dude self off the map. The show continues to be a hit overseas and has firmly crossed over into the Netflix streaming audience in the U.S., which bodes well for its longevity, if Dornan’s character lasts that long.

5. The Gentlemen (Netflix series)

Guy Ritchie likes gentlemen and weed-kingpin stories, and he’s evoking both in this continuation of the film starring Matthew McConaughey. In this series, Theo James portrays Eddie, who’s the heir of that same weed empire, and the series doesn’t have Charlie Hunnam or Henry Cavill’s tongue, but it’s still great fun and will not disappoint fans of Ritchie’s stylized brand of crime caper.

4. The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live (AMC show streaming on AMC+)

Beware of the starved moaning coming from Rick Grimes, who never thought he’d have Michonne back in his arms again. Now, however, they’re both in CRM clutches, so that leaves a difficult situation ahead. Will they get back to Judith and R.J. without having trackers on their trail? Perhaps, but first, someone really needs to do something about Jadis’ hairdo. Thus far, we have learned the long-awaited meaning to “A”s and “B”s, and from there, a dual escape needs to happen, so that we can all start crossing fingers for them to cross paths with the rest of the original ensemble in the future. Maybe also get Rick a fancier hand, too, and have more Nat flashbacks.

3. Dune (WBD film on Max)

The second film and that gross popcorn bucket are crushing the box office, thank god. That’s what happens when Timothée Chalamet rides a sandworm and Austin Butler goes into full-on weirdo mode. Beyond those male attractions, Zendaya bumps up to a lead role, and Florence Pugh is set up for the same in the next film. The overall consensus is that this is a sci-fi masterpiece. Our own Mike Ryan absolutely loved this sequel from Denis Villeneuve, and the first film is available to stream before sequel-time.

2. Poor Things (Searchlight Pictures streaming on Hulu)

This film could dominate a hefty chunk of Oscars gold, and finally, it’s available to steam ahead of time as part of Hulu’s streaming package. Emma Stone portrays the young woman, Bella Baxter, who is resurrected in a Frankenstein way in the victorian era. The film is a little saucier than initially portrayed to be (surprise!), but audiences have gotten lost within Bella’s whirlwind ride around the globe, in which she achieves true liberation.

1. Shōgun (FX series streaming on Hulu)

Despite the restraint of this show in not adhering to canon with John Blackthorne’s dong, this series is scoring high enough viewership to qualify as an epic-home run (look, no dragons, ma). If you haven’t sat down yet to check out this James Clavell’s most famed novel, you’re still early enough to get caught up without feeling out like you’ve missed the initial party. There also seems to be plenty of interest for a second season, so it’s up to FX to see if they want to carry this story beyond the confines of this particular novel. This show proves that audiences are willing to dive into vast historical depths, and it also helps that viewers do not have to do any homework(!).

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Bowen Yang And Ariana Grande Paid A Copyright-Safe Homage To ‘Moulin Rouge’ In A Musical Sketch On ‘SNL’

You’ll have to wait until November to see Ariana Grande and Bowen Yang on-screen in Wicked. But you can still see their chemistry in action. Last night (March 9), the two showed off their musical talents in a theatrical sketch on Saturday Night Live. The sketch is modeled after a PBS special honoring Baz Luhrmann’s 2001 film, Moulin Rouge.

However the producers of the special weren’t sure which songs they could get the rights to, so Yang, who plays Ewan McGregor’s Moulin Rouge character, and Grande, who plays Nicole Kidman’s character, make their own mash-ups using portions of popular songs.

Some of the songs featured are TLC’s “Creep,” Elton John’s “Our Song,” and Taylor Swift’s “You Belong With Me.” But at the end of each mash-up is “Happy Birthday,” which is always a safe, royalty-free bet.

Toward the end of the sketch, Grande delivered the final note of “Defying Gravity” from Wicked, giving fans an early taste of what to expect from the movie-musical adaptation.

Grande was the musical guest of the night, and during her slots, she delivered cinematic performances of “We Can’t Be Friends (Wait For Your Love)” and “Imperfect For You” from her new album, Eternal Sunshine.

You can see the Moulin Rouge-themed sketch above.

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Ariana Grande And The ‘SNL’ Crew Seek To Unlearn Their People-Pleasing Ways In A Hilarious Sketch

In a painfully relatable Saturday Night Live sketch that aired last night (March 9), Heidi Gardner leads a support group comprised of recovering people-pleasers. The group of people pleasers addresses several problems they’re dealing with in their day-to-day lives.

One member of the group explains that he had agreed to go out to dinner with his boyfriend, despite having already eaten dinner earlier in the day. “I said ‘Sounds great. I’m so hungry. I’ll drive, unless you want to. Either way, no worries at all,” says the member, played by Bowen Yang.

Another group member, played by Molly Kearney, shows up to the group meeting with a bad haircut. Gardner’s character guesses that a barber had messed up Kearney’s character’s hair, however, the character was too polite to stop the barber. “But can I say something? In my defense, I gave him a huge tip.”

Later on in the sketch, a young lady named Sarafina, played by Ariana Grande, talks about how she doesn’t like her job, however, explains why she chooses to stay.

“I hate my job, so I need to quit, but they give me great health insurance and it’s so nice of them to pay me,” says Grande’s character.

Though Gardner can’t seem to disabuse the group members of their people-pleasing ways, they wrap their meeting with the people pleasers’ prayer of deference.

“God grant me the serenity to say no. But if you’re too busy with heaven, then no worries,” says the group in unison.

You can watch the full sketch above.

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Sean O’Malley Dominated Marlon Vera In A Successful Bantamweight Title Fight At UFC 299

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Sean O’Malley (18-1) dominated Marlon Vera (23-9-1) to retain his Bantamweight Championship at UFC 299 from the Kaseya Center in Miami.

O’Malley was active to open the fight, connecting on a spinning back kick and a nice slapping left kick to the ribs. O’Malley continued to go to work with snapping leg kicks, both inside and outside. O’Malley picked Vera apart with a nice straight left, switching his stance and refusing to stop his active movements with a slew of feigns. Vera charged forward with a quick combo, but it was O’Malley back again with his collection of body shots before heading back upstairs on the challenger.

In the second, Vera’s corner encouraged more activity, but it was O’Malley who continued to pick his opponent apart. O’Malley popped Vera late in the round with a huge knee, but it didn’t seem to hurt him. The champ followed that with a left and right that opened up a cut on Vera. A late right hand dropped Vera to a knee before the buzzer sounded.

Vera opened the third with a persistence that O’Malley wouldn’t just steamroll through him. Vera came out of the gate with his own combination of strikes, but eventually it was O’Malley who was finding his range. Understanding he was likely down two rounds to none, Vera opened up with heavy-handed shots, but it was O’Malley yet again counter striking and picking him apart. At the end of the round, Vera began to find his footing, striking O’Malley with a big right before the buzzer.

The fourth saw an invigorated Vera bring the aggressiveness to O’Malley. The champ picked up the pace, showing his expert footwork and yet again snapped jabs at Vera. The challenger jabbed O’Malley, looked for a flying knee, and brought the fight to the champ. Vera rushed O’Malley on occasion, but it was the champ evading and putting together combinations that kept him at bay.

In the final round, O’Malley hurt Vera a minute into the round, but refused to finish his opponent. O’Malley continued to pick and pop Vera, doing just enough to keep the clock moving toward a successful defense.

The bout was a return fight for O’Malley, who suffered a nerve injury in the first round against Vera and lost via TKO in 2020. That loss temporarily derailed his hype train. But eventually he got back on track and he reached the top of the mountain with a second-round knockout against Aljamain Sterling in 2023.

Since 2021, Vera had lost just one fight coming into Saturday night’s main event, with victories over Pedro Munhoz, Dominick Cruz, Rob Font, and Frankie Edgar.