Category: Worldwide

Because 2020 hasn’t been strange enough, Hugh Jackman appears in a new ad for R.M. Williams, which features the Wolverine actor wearing literally nothing but the British company’s boots.

In the cheeky spot shared to Jackman’s Twitter account, an ad exec tries to explain to a very naked Jackman that he took the company’s instructions to “only wear R.M. Williams” a bit too literally. Unfortunately, Jackman isn’t concerned at all that he’s giving away quite the show as he marvels at the boots while completely missing the point of the meeting. You’re either going to thank God for video blurring or curse him because the spot doesn’t leave a whole lot to the imagination.

You can watch the full video below:

Never one to miss a beat thanks to his ongoing “feud” with Jackman, Ryan Reynolds was quick to hop in the comments with a terrifying realization: “Is that the chair from my office?”

Making headlines for being in the buff seems to be a recurring trend for Jackman. When X-Men: Days of Future Past made its Disney+ debut, the actor celebrated a milestone for the streaming service. It was the first film to air uncensored, which means the nude shot of Jackman’s chiseled, time-traveling butt is clear to see. Jackman commemorated the moment on Instagram with a self-deprecating joke about the ravages of time.

“Days Of Future Past becomes the first movie to air on Disney+ uncensored,” Jackman wrote. “That was my future but let’s be honest… it’s more like my past.”

The actor also included a clip of the infamous nude scene, but with some cleverly placed emoji. You can see the full post below:

(Via Hugh Jackman on Twitter)

Lady Gaga released her dance floor-ready album Chromatica back in May and while the instrumentals may seem carefree, Gaga has revealed much of the music is a response to her a dark period of her life. Now, in an effort to be transparent about her creative process, Lady Gaga has described the personal message behind the album on a giant billboard in LA.

On the large canvas, Gaga penned a heartfelt letter to her fans:

“I wrote this album when I was sad. I wrote this album when I was mad. I wrote poems about fear, and I asked my poems to sing. I heard sines from above I’ve never heard before — to keep going, to keep breathing, to know each lyrics was a step forward, each melody was a gift. Chromatica was a dream I had that became real. My art always teaches me something.

Chromatica taught me to dance my way through the pain. That the pain could get better, that music was my faith. Music is my religion. People are my God. I am here to serve the world and inspire as many people as possible to rejoice no matter what their circumstances are. We all deserve happiness. We are all valuable. Sometimes it just requires patience and fortitude to recognize our own strength. That is Chromatica.”

The sincere billboard is the latest insight Gaga has offered into her mental health. Recently, the singer opened up about continuing to struggle with fame, saying she’s oftentimes “triggered” when people approach her in public: “If I’m at the grocery store and somebody comes up very close to me and puts a cellphone right in my face and starts taking pictures, just total panic, full-body pain. I’m braced because I’m so afraid,” she said. “It’s like I’m an object, I’m not a person.”

See the full billboard above.

Chromatica is out now via Interscope. Get it here.

We’re willing to call it — if you ask any American to name five of the healthiest fast food options, Subway is definitely landing in that top five. Well, Ireland begs to differ. The Irish Supreme Court has officially ruled that the bread served at Subway cannot be legally defined as “bread.” According to the Irish Independent, every bread variety at Subway contains too much sugar to be legally defined as a staple food, which means it’s subject to Ireland’s Value-Added Tax Act of 1972.

According to the Guardian, the ruling followed an appeal by Subway franchisee Bookfinders LTD who attempted to dodge the VAT by arguing that despite Subway’s bread sugar content being five times higher than the qualifying limit under the tax, because it is labeled “bread” it should be considered a staple food, which would exempt it from the VAT.

Unfortunately for Bookfinders, the court wasn’t buying that the bread was bread to begin with, offering this hilarious legalize-tinged ruling:

“The Argument depends on the acceptance of the prior contention that the Subway heated sandwich contains ‘bread’ as defined, and therefore can be said to be food for the purposes of the Second Schedule rather than confectionary. Since that argument has been rejected, this subsidiary argument must fail.”

So if Subway sandwich bread isn’t bread, then what the hell is it? Well according to the Irish Court, it should be considered a confectionary, which is defined as a food “rich in sugar and carbohydrates.” Basically, cake.

Following her breakout year and her sweep at this year’s Grammys, Billie Eilish and her brother/producer Finneas were awarded the opportunity to record the theme song to the upcoming James Bond film “No Time To Die,” which stands as Daniel Craig’s last time portraying the iconic character. The track was released back in February but as the film nears its premiere, Eilish and the Bond franchise have shared a gloomy video to the theme song.

The black-and-white visual shows Eilish crooning the song’s brooding lyrics in a dark room. Eilish is juxtaposed with snippets from the upcoming film, which depicts tense moments between Craig and love interest Léa Seydoux.

About the opportunity to write the Bond theme song, Eilish said: “It feels crazy to be a part of this in every way. To be able to score the theme song to a film that is part of such a legendary series is a huge honor.” Adding to the sentiment, Finneas said that “writing the theme song for a Bond film is something we’ve been dreaming about doing our entire lives. There is no more iconic pairing of music and cinema than the likes of Goldfinger and Live And Let Die. We feel so so lucky to play a small role in such a legendary franchise, long live 007.”

The track was praised by the film’s director Cary Joji Fukunaga, who said he’s a “huge fan” of the musicians: “There are chosen few who record a Bond theme. I am a huge fan of Billie and Finneas. Their creative integrity and talent are second to none.”

Watch Eilish’s “No Time To Die” video above.

No Time To Die hits theaters 11/12.

The Los Angeles Lakers fell behind early in Game 1 of the 2020 NBA Finals before turning on the jets and never looking back. Los Angeles put forth a complete and dominant performance from about halfway through the first quarter until they took their foot off the gas late, winning 116-98 in a game that somehow did not feel as close as the final score indicated.

With the result of the game looking inevitable for a long stretch, the Lakers were feeling themselves a bit. The team’s bench did what you expect a good bench to do — celebrate things in an extremely over-the-top way — although this came much to the chagrin to their most prominent player.

According to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, a pair of incidents rubbed James the wrong way. The first came when Dwight Howard celebrated an outlet pass to James that prompted a timeout by the Heat, while Anthony Davis told his loved ones in attendance to cheer. The second occurred after a dunk by Davis prompted another timeout and the Lakers saw their lead reach its largest of the night, at that point 32 points, and players celebrated once again.

Per Haynes, James let the first one slide, but spoke up after the second.

“Hey, hey! Stop it! Stay locked in!” James screamed. “This sh*t ain’t over, man.”

It’s unclear whether James was referring to the game — which was effectively over save for the clock hitting 0:00 — or the series as a whole. He did, however, speak to the media after the game about a time in his career when a teammate celebrating a bit too early in the Finals led to something that “burns me to this day.”

“The best teacher in life is experience,” James responded. “I’ve experienced moments in my career where you have all the momentum in the world and you felt like you had the game under control, and one play here or one play there could change the course of a series or change the course of a game. One in particular that always rings home for me is Game 2 of the 2011 Finals in Miami vs. Dallas. [Dwyane Wade] hits a three right by their bench. I believe it put us up either 13 or 17. From that moment on, Dallas went on a hell of a run and finished it off with a Dirk Nowitzki left-hand layup to steal that game. That sh*t burns me to this day. I always talk about the best teacher in life is experience, and I’ve experienced a lot. That’s what prompts me to be who I am today, is being able to have those experiences.”

Dallas famously went on to win that series in six games, rallying back after losing Game 1 to lift the Larry O’Brien trophy over Miami. James very obviously wants to make sure history does not repeat itself, and this time, he’s the one toppling the Heat.

Lisa Bonet sure knows how to pick them, there’s no sarcasm in that statement. As you’re no doubt aware, she’s currently married to Jason Momoa and was previously married to Lenny Kravitz (father to Zoe), so she’s one lucky woman. And we’re not simply talking about looks here (although that’s certainly a bonus), because Momoa’s a seriously thoughtful chap (who recently stunned her on video by restoring her first car). Rather, the two Mr. Bonets genuinely appear to get along with Lenny recently posting a birthday photo of himself with Jason and the following caption: “One family. One love.”

In the October issue of Men’s Health, Kravitz also doesn’t try to hide his adoration for Jason. But first, you must observe this cover: “Lenny In Lockdown.”

Lenny turned 56 over the summer, and he’s rocking eight-pack abs. It’s nuts, and he’s chalking much of it up to this secret: “Your state of mind — that’s so important.” And in this profile, he appears to be relatively serene while the pandemic rages, all after he blew out of Paris for his home in the Bahamas. And there he’s been, working out and eating clean ever since. He’s always been of the “I don’t do gyms” variety, but he’s proving it in photos where his backyard is his gym, and a curved tree trunk is his weight bench. Stop the madness.

Seriously though, do visit the Men’s Health piece to feel the full effect. Officially, he’s promoting his upcoming memoir, Let Love Rule, but there’s so much happening here. There’s a video of him doing crunches, and this excerpt about how much he adores Jason Momoa is what the kids refer to as “couple goals”:

“People can’t believe how tight Jason and I are, or how tight I still am with Zoë’s mom, how we all relate,” Kravitz says with a shrug. “We just do it because that’s what you do. You let love rule, right? I mean, obviously, after a breakup, it’s work — it takes some work and time, healing and reflection, et cetera. But as far as Jason and I? Literally the moment we met, we were like, ‘Oh, yeah. I love this dude.’”

Like most of us, Lenny probably can’t wait to attend gatherings again, mostly so he can stand around looking effortlessly fabulous next to Momoa. And yes, the man who Gwyneth Paltrow actually refers to as “Leonard” would like to tour as well. In the meantime, though, he was gracious enough to invite the Men’s Health crew into his seclusion compound, where he showed off his refrigerator full of fruit and veggies that he’d largely picked from his own lands. He also leans against a car to tell everyone goodbye before sprinting off on an evening run. You can’t even get mad at it all, so, like, let. love. rule.

(Via Men’s Health

After months of protests, memes, and calls for justice in the case of Louisville police shooting and killing local EMT Breonna Taylor in her sleep, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron announced that only one of the officers involved would be charged — and then only for “endangering” Taylor’s neighbors by shooting from outside her apartment. Although many believe justice for Taylor was not served, the 26-year-old has become a rallying point in the movements for police reform and/or abolition.

To ensure that Taylor won’t be forgotten, fellow Louisvillian Bryson Tiller secured a pair of massive billboards paying homage to her, with one reading, “We love you, Breonna Taylor” and the other noting, “You’ve brought the city of Louisville together like I’ve never seen before and we will never forget you…” Both bear the #JusticeForBreonnaTaylor and #SayHerName hashtags.

Meanwhile, one of the grand jurors who deliberated on the charges has since filed a motion to release the transcripts of the deliberations, claiming that jurors were never even given the option to indict officers Myles Cosgrove and Jonathan Mattingly for murder, while Brett Hankison was indicted on three counts of wanton endangerment of the first degree. The transcripts will be released and jurors will be allowed to speak freely about the case, according to The New York Times.

Tiller is also gearing up to release his third studio album, Anniversary, this Friday, sharing an early virtual listening session link with fans last night.

Gorillaz have built up some major clout in the music industry over the years thanks to their boundary-pushing-but-still-accessible ways. Consequently, they’ve been able to line up a lot of stellar guests for their collaborative Song Machine series. They’ve teamed up with legends and newer artists on the songs they’ve released so far, and they got one of each on their latest: They are joined by Elton John and 6lack for “The Pink Phantom.”

Ahead of the song’s release, John said of it, “The @Gorillaz track I worked on is out tomorrow! I’ve always been a Gorillaz fan so when Damon reached out and asked me to get involved it was a no-brainer. The way the song turned out is just great – I can’t wait for you to hear it.”

Meanwhile, Gorillaz recently announced their first ever livestream performances, which will take place towards the end of the year. They didn’t indicate if they would be joined by any of their Song Machine guests, although that seems likely, so perhaps John (or his animated version) or 6lack will make an appearance.

Watch the “The Pink Phantom” video above.

Song Machine: Season One — Strange Timez is out 10/23 via Parlophone. Pre-order it here.

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

Not a day goes by where Rihanna fans fail to press the singer to release her highly anticipated ninth studio album. Rihanna, however, is infamously tight-lipped about the upcoming project, urging fans to be patient because it’s “going to be worth the wait.” But now, amid the continued pause on live music and touring, Rihanna is wary that a tour won’t even be possible for this album cycle.

In a recent interview with the Associated Press, Rihanna opened up about her current creative process, saying she’s trying to make up for not being able to tour: “I want to go on tour but I can’t, so I’m stuck with music that I love, and now I’m trying to figure out how I can even create visuals to that. That’s a challenge as well. But I love challenges so, you know, I’m gonna get it done.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Rihanna discussed which direction she took with the upcoming release, saying she’s asking herself some tough questions in order to figure out her sound: “What do I feel personally? What do I want to put out, and as an artist, how do I want to play it with my art? How do I want to interpret that?” she asks. “How do I want to reimagine it because it’s been so structured before,” Rihanna said, adding: “You do pop, you did this genre, you do that, you do radio, but now it’s just like, what makes me happy? I just want to have fun with music. Everything is so heavy. The world that we live in is a lot. It’s overwhelming every single day. And with the music, I’m using that as my outlet.”

Game of Thrones featured cameos from many musicians (and one New York Met pitcher) over its seven-season run, including Ed Sheeran, the bearded dudes in Mastodon, Coldplay’s Will Champion, Of Monsters and Men, and Sigur Rós. Indie favorites The National, who performed “The Rains of Castamere” for the HBO series, visited the Thrones set in Belfast, Ireland, and even climbed the Wall. But they weren’t invited to appear on the show itself — and singer Matt Berninger is (jokingly) “pissed.”

In a career-spanning interview with Stereogum, Berninger explained how The National got the “Rains of Castamere” honors. “Alec Bemis, who was [Bryce Dessner’s] friend in school, is also really close friends with Dan Weiss, who was one of the creators of Game of Thrones, and Dan Weiss has been a huge fan of the National, I think, from literally the first record… The National’s been to the top of the Wall.” They also visited Castle Black, where The National of people, Jon Snow, resided with the Night’s Watch. When the interviewer pointed out that other musicians, like Sheeran (who wishes that his character had been “brutally murdered”), were on the show, Berninger came to a realization:

“You’re right. I’m pissed. I’m fucking pissed! I’m pissed I never got to be in it. I mean, we were literally there and we all have beards and shit… They were doing a big scene. It was on the other side of the Wall, at the entrance to the cave, where all the giants and everybody are collecting. It was mostly Jon Snow — he was there kind of by himself standing there, and they were going to CG in some giants or something… We spent all day in the freezing cold watching Kit Harington stand in front of that gate for a while.”

That’s the magic of television, baby. It’s not all singing about bathrooms.

Berninger’s solo album, Serpentine Prison, is out on October 16.