Category: Worldwide

Sarah Cooper’s viral videos impersonating Donald Trump may finally get the audience she’s apparently eluded all along: the current president of the United States. Donald Trump will apparently seek out Cooper’s videos now that they were brought up to him during an interview on Fox News on Sunday where he was encouraged to check them out.

Cooper’s Trump impersonation has made her a viral star in recent months, snagging an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live and helping her secure both a Netflix special and the chance to turn her book into a CBS sitcom. But the videos, while hugely popular on social media sites like TikTok and Twitter, had apparently not crossed the feeds of Trump.

That changed on Sunday when the president was asked directly about Cooper in an interview on Fox News. Yahoo snagged video of a preview of that interview, which included an exchange between Trump and Steve Hilton. In it, Trump says he hasn’t seen the videos, but is encouraged to watch them even if they are not necessarily meant to show the president in a positive light.

Here’s how the exchange went down, as told by CNN:

“I have not, no,” Trump said, blank-faced. “I’d like to see them. Are they good or bad?”

Hilton told Trump he thought the president would find them very entertaining.

“OK, good! I’d like to see them,” Trump said. “If you’re saying they’re positive, I’d like to look. If they’re not positive….”

Hilton acknowledged that Cooper “doesn’t mean it to be positive.”

“I see,” Trump said. “Well, I’ll have to check it out.”

This certainly makes sense, as Trump’s social media presence is a tight circle of people expressing their support for him online. It’s a far cry from the other parts of the internet, where Cooper’s “How to Medical” video have garnered more than 20 million views. Cooper also appeared at the all-virtual Democratic National Convention last week, an event Trump claimed to watch but later incorrectly said the Democrats wiped the phrase “under God” from the pledge of allegiance when it was, in fact, not.

Many people have speculated online about whether Trump has seen her videos and, of course, what he thinks of them. According to the interview, he has not. But he definitely knows about them now.

Lil Mosey was finding success at every turn in his blossoming career thanks to his Gold-certified album Certified Hitmaker and his hit single, “Blueberry Faygo.” Unfortunately, Mosey ran into trouble with the law recently as the rapper was reportedly arrested last week for carrying a concealed weapon.

According to a report from TMZ, police officers pulled over his 2016 Cadillac after it was spotted driving without plates. After noticing a holster was in the driver’s seat, officers conducted a search within the vehicle and discovered three loaded 9mm semi-automatic pistols.

One of the pistols police officers discovered was in the possession of a juvenile who was reportedly in the vehicle with Mosey along with Mosey’s bodyguard. Another pistol was found in the glove box while the third one was found in the center console. In addition to the guns, officers also found four credit cards in the bodyguard’s backpack that were not registered to any of the occupants in the vehicle.

No one in the vehicle claimed to be responsible for the weapons found in the glove box and center console, and as a result, the three occupants in the vehicle were arrested and booked on felony concealed weapons charges. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office is reportedly reviewing the case prior to Mosey’s court date, which is reportedly next month.

Mosey’s arrest arrives after the rapper connect with Lil Baby for their “Back At It.”

[via TMZ]

DCFandome gave comic book folks plenty to get excited about while they endure a year without a proper Comic-Con, and the biggest news of the night was a first look at a trailer for Robert Pattinson’s turn as Bruce Wayne in The Batman. The dark look at a movie that’s less than a quarter filmed didn’t offer much narratively, but it did show some pretty brutal violence from the caped crusader and a bit of what Pattinson will sound like while in the costume.

There’s a lot to break down from the look we’re given, despite Pattinson’s reticence to speak about the movie and what’s included in it. But one thing fans immediately fixated on was a still that leaked early on Saturday, was quickly scrubbed from the internet and then indeed popped up in the trailer that was shown off to end the DCFandome event.

We get a look at this potential, well, look twice during the trailer. First, a pair of eyes watching a press conference from the shadows at the 1:05 mark. Later, there’s a scene where Pattinson arrives back at what’s almost certainly the Batcave and takes off his helmet to reveal a very dark look.

Many, including our own Kimberly Ricci, noted that it looked a lot like The Crow, the 1994 revenge film starring Brandon Lee. In the movie, Lee’s character is killed along with his fiancé, though he comes back from the dead to exact some very dark vengeance while sporting a visage that’s very similar to what Pattinson wears at times during the trailer.

Seven was another movie that people pointed out as seemingly referenced in the trailer as well.

As the trailer spread online, “The Crow” started to trend on Twitter, as many made the comparison between Pattinson’s look and the jolt of nostalgia it gave. As many pointed out, the use of a haunting Nirvana tune could also be another hint that the movie will rely on the aesthetic from The Crow, as it also had a haunting and very good soundtrack.

Others pointed out it’s not the first Batman movie to take some hints from makeup in The Crow, though the last time fans pointed it out it was for the bad guy, not Bruce Wayne.

We’ll have to rely a lot more on influence and intuition to learn more about what’s in store for this version of The Bat as production on the film remains on hold due to COVID-19, but Saturday certainly gave fans a lot to think over. And in this case, maybe a 90s classic to re-watch in anticipation of the next Batman movie’s release.

DCFandome gave comic book folks plenty to get excited about while they endure a year without a proper Comic-Con, and the biggest news of the night was a first look at a trailer for Robert Pattinson’s turn as Bruce Wayne in The Batman. The dark look at a movie that’s less than a quarter filmed didn’t offer much narratively, but it did show some pretty brutal violence from the caped crusader and a bit of what Pattinson will sound like while in the costume.

There’s a lot to break down from the look we’re given, despite Pattinson’s reticence to speak about the movie and what’s included in it. But one thing fans immediately fixated on was a still that leaked early on Saturday, was quickly scrubbed from the internet and then indeed popped up in the trailer that was shown off to end the DCFandome event.

We get a look at this potential, well, look twice during the trailer. First, a pair of eyes watching a press conference from the shadows at the 1:05 mark. Later, there’s a scene where Pattinson arrives back at what’s almost certainly the Batcave and takes off his helmet to reveal a very dark look.

Many, including our own Kimberly Ricci, noted that it looked a lot like The Crow, the 1994 revenge film starring Brandon Lee. In the movie, Lee’s character is killed along with his fiancé, though he comes back from the dead to exact some very dark vengeance while sporting a visage that’s very similar to what Pattinson wears at times during the trailer.

Seven was another movie that people pointed out as seemingly referenced in the trailer as well.

As the trailer spread online, “The Crow” started to trend on Twitter, as many made the comparison between Pattinson’s look and the jolt of nostalgia it gave. As many pointed out, the use of a haunting Nirvana tune could also be another hint that the movie will rely on the aesthetic from The Crow, as it also had a haunting and very good soundtrack.

Others pointed out it’s not the first Batman movie to take some hints from makeup in The Crow, though the last time fans pointed it out it was for the bad guy, not Bruce Wayne.

We’ll have to rely a lot more on influence and intuition to learn more about what’s in store for this version of The Bat as production on the film remains on hold due to COVID-19, but Saturday certainly gave fans a lot to think over. And in this case, maybe a 90s classic to re-watch in anticipation of the next Batman movie’s release.

We have written about the father of Macaulay and Kieran Culkin before, when Macaulay was on the WTF Podcast with Marc Maron several years ago. According to Macaulay, their father, Kit, was “a bad abusive man,” with whom Macaulay severed all contact after his parent’s divorce. Macaulay remains estranged from him to this day.

I am weirdly fascinated with Macaulay Culkin’s father, Kit, and so clearly is Marc Maron, who had Kieran on his WTF Podcast this week. At the outset, Maron said to Kieran, “I know you and your siblings don’t like to talk about your old man, but… ” and then proceeded to talk about Kieran’s father for the next 20 minutes. Kieran, however, was game, and said at one point that it was fun to talk about his father with someone for the first time in years.

Kieren didn’t get into his father’s abuse as Macaulay had, but Kieran echoed something that Macaulay had told Maron about his experiences with his father: “I’m going around the country locked in a room with a man who didn’t like me,” Macaulay had said. Meanwhile, Kieran also didn’t like to be trapped in hotel rooms with his father, but for different reasons. “He’s the kind of guy who doesn’t really bathe,” Kieran told Maron. “One of those guys who, if you try to tell him he stinks, says, ‘I smell human.’ It sounds like I’m exaggerating, but he wouldn’t bathe but maybe once a year, he would take a bath. That is true. He just didn’t bathe.”

Kieran recalls a story, in fact, when his father took a bath while he and his siblings were at school, and “my sister Cody, she was a teenager, she walked in, smelled the air, and said, ‘Eww. Did Dad take a bath?’ And I remember seeing layers of dirt film on the side of the tub. He was just an offensive man.”

Ironically, their father was a failed actor, although Maron wondered if the fact that he didn’t bathe might have contributed to his inability to land a role. “He would have been really good as a homeless guy,” Kieran said. “My mom said, when she met him, she asked him what he did, and when he said he was an actor, she immediately looked at his teeth and thought he must be lying. He had teeth growing in sideways and they were yellow and falling out. He was also afraid of the dentist.”

Kit Culkin sounds like a real character. There are photos of him in his 70s floating around the Internet, which seem to echo Kieran’s description. Kieran, like Macaulay, remains estranged from their father, although Kieran did say that he came and saw him at a Broadway play about six years ago. It was the first time he’d seen his father in 16 or 17 years. “Holy sh*t, you really let yourself get old,” was the first thing that Kieran said to his father.

“I did, Kieran. I did,” he replied with a dead serious tone. Kieran hasn’t spoken to his father since, although Kit Culkin will get a chance to see his son at the Emmy Awards on television early next month, where he’ll be up for Best Supporting Actor in a drama.

Source: WTF with Marc Maron

We have written about the father of Macaulay and Kieran Culkin before, when Macaulay was on the WTF Podcast with Marc Maron several years ago. According to Macaulay, their father, Kit, was “a bad abusive man,” with whom Macaulay severed all contact after his parent’s divorce. Macaulay remains estranged from him to this day.

I am weirdly fascinated with Macaulay Culkin’s father, Kit, and so clearly is Marc Maron, who had Kieran on his WTF Podcast this week. At the outset, Maron said to Kieran, “I know you and your siblings don’t like to talk about your old man, but… ” and then proceeded to talk about Kieran’s father for the next 20 minutes. Kieran, however, was game, and said at one point that it was fun to talk about his father with someone for the first time in years.

Kieren didn’t get into his father’s abuse as Macaulay had, but Kieran echoed something that Macaulay had told Maron about his experiences with his father: “I’m going around the country locked in a room with a man who didn’t like me,” Macaulay had said. Meanwhile, Kieran also didn’t like to be trapped in hotel rooms with his father, but for different reasons. “He’s the kind of guy who doesn’t really bathe,” Kieran told Maron. “One of those guys who, if you try to tell him he stinks, says, ‘I smell human.’ It sounds like I’m exaggerating, but he wouldn’t bathe but maybe once a year, he would take a bath. That is true. He just didn’t bathe.”

Kieran recalls a story, in fact, when his father took a bath while he and his siblings were at school, and “my sister Cody, she was a teenager, she walked in, smelled the air, and said, ‘Eww. Did Dad take a bath?’ And I remember seeing layers of dirt film on the side of the tub. He was just an offensive man.”

Ironically, their father was a failed actor, although Maron wondered if the fact that he didn’t bathe might have contributed to his inability to land a role. “He would have been really good as a homeless guy,” Kieran said. “My mom said, when she met him, she asked him what he did, and when he said he was an actor, she immediately looked at his teeth and thought he must be lying. He had teeth growing in sideways and they were yellow and falling out. He was also afraid of the dentist.”

Kit Culkin sounds like a real character. There are photos of him in his 70s floating around the Internet, which seem to echo Kieran’s description. Kieran, like Macaulay, remains estranged from their father, although Kieran did say that he came and saw him at a Broadway play about six years ago. It was the first time he’d seen his father in 16 or 17 years. “Holy sh*t, you really let yourself get old,” was the first thing that Kieran said to his father.

“I did, Kieran. I did,” he replied with a dead serious tone. Kieran hasn’t spoken to his father since, although Kit Culkin will get a chance to see his son at the Emmy Awards on television early next month, where he’ll be up for Best Supporting Actor in a drama.

Source: WTF with Marc Maron

After a successful battle between 2 Chainz and Rick Ross, Verzuz has unveiled the contestants for their next battle. Bringing viewers a heavy dose of 2000s R&B, Brandy and Monica will go head-to-head in the next edition of the online music battle. The contest is a wish come true for fans as they’ve spent the last few months requesting a matchup between Brandy and Monica on the platform.

When asked about a possible battle between the two singers, Brandy revealed that it was her belief that Monica turned down the matchup. “I heard that she doesn’t wanna do it,” Brandy said. “The last thing I heard is she pretty much turned it down, she didn’t want to be a part of that, but I understand.” Thankfully, the R&B talents were able to work it out.

The battle between Brandy and Monica will serve as the first R&B battle since John Legend and Alicia Keys went head-to-head on Juneteenth. The upcoming battle is also the third edition of Verzuz to take place on Apple Music, in addition to Instagram, as Swizz Beatz and Timbaland inked a deal with the streaming platform to make the competitions more available to fans at a higher quality.

While most of their classic records live in 2000s section of R&B the two singers have remained fairly active over the past few years, with Brandy sharing her most recent album B7 arriving last month while Monica’s most recent album, Code Red arrived in 2015.

Tune in 8/6 at 5pm PST/ 8pm EST to watch Brandy and Monica’s battle.

After a successful battle between 2 Chainz and Rick Ross, Verzuz has unveiled the contestants for their next battle. Bringing viewers a heavy dose of 2000s R&B, Brandy and Monica will go head-to-head in the next edition of the online music battle. The contest is a wish come true for fans as they’ve spent the last few months requesting a matchup between Brandy and Monica on the platform.

When asked about a possible battle between the two singers, Brandy revealed that it was her belief that Monica turned down the matchup. “I heard that she doesn’t wanna do it,” Brandy said. “The last thing I heard is she pretty much turned it down, she didn’t want to be a part of that, but I understand.” Thankfully, the R&B talents were able to work it out.

The battle between Brandy and Monica will serve as the first R&B battle since John Legend and Alicia Keys went head-to-head on Juneteenth. The upcoming battle is also the third edition of Verzuz to take place on Apple Music, in addition to Instagram, as Swizz Beatz and Timbaland inked a deal with the streaming platform to make the competitions more available to fans at a higher quality.

While most of their classic records live in 2000s section of R&B the two singers have remained fairly active over the past few years, with Brandy sharing her most recent album B7 arriving last month while Monica’s most recent album, Code Red arrived in 2015.

Tune in 8/6 at 5pm PST/ 8pm EST to watch Brandy and Monica’s battle.

It’s been so long since The Office aired, and the Andy and Erin relationship was such a big part of the show in the final seasons that it’s easy to forget that the two actually didn’t end up together in the end. Erin, in fact, ended the series dating Pete in what was essentially Jim and Pam redux. Andy and Erin had broken up when Andy abandoned Erin for three months to go sailing with his younger brother.

It’s probably for the best, because Andy and Erin were not a good match, at least according to Ellie Kemper, who played Erin on the long-running The Office. “I never thought [Andy and Erin were a good match],” Ellie Kemper told Brian Baumgartner on The Oral History of ‘The Office’ podcast. “I felt like Andy was a bit too childish. He wasn’t ready to take care of Erin. Erin was ready to take care of Andy, but I felt that it was uneven in that respect.”

Baumgartner, however, revealed one match that could have been on the series. “Do you know that I pitched Kevin and Erin getting together?” Baumgartner told Kemper on the podcast.

“Brian,” Kemper said, gasping. “I think that would be a pretty reasonable relationship.” Kemper is dead wrong about that, but Baumgartner continued. “I went up to the writers’ room, and I said, ‘If Kevin could mature just a little, there was something about their energy that I thought was right. Their energies matched in a weird way.’”

I don’t think that’s right, but Kemper seemed to agree. “That actually makes perfect sense to me. I love that pitch.”

“Sadly,” Baumgartner added, “we never got to witness the great love story that Kevin and Erin could have been.”

Source: An Oral History of The Office

We’re back! For the first time since March, we get to speak about actual box-office figures this weekend instead of Netflix charts (although, for the record, Netflix originals Project Power and the kid-friendly The Sleepover led the way on the streamer). There have obviously been a lot of concerns about how comfortable moviegoers would be about returning to theaters. However, an Atom Tickets survey recently revealed that 40 percent of moviegoers are ready to return to theaters now, while 74 percent of moviegoers will be prepared to return within a month.

This weekend was the first real test of moviegoers’ comfort, as AMC, Regal, Cinemark and Marcus Corp all reopened their theaters. For the first time, there was a major new product: Russell Crowe’s Unhinged, which has trailed around Tenet all summer, insisting on being the trial balloon that opened two weeks ahead of the Christopher Nolan film. It was a big gamble for Solstice Studios, which is behind Unhinged, but it looks like it will pay off. The film earned $4 million this weekend ($5 million including Canada), and Solstice is predicting a running total of $8 million by Thursday. The film has also opened internationally, where it has already put up $8 million.

The budget for the film is $33 million, and there’s a chance — with the way that it’s playing so far — that Solstice actually earns its money back from its investment, even in a pandemic. The $4.2 million it has earned in America also comes with a very big caveat: It’s not playing in the nation’s two largest markets, Los Angeles and New York City, where theaters have not reopened yet. It’s playing best in Dallas, Houston, Chicago, Atlanta and Orlando, which is good news for theaters, although it may not be great news for public health. What is also interesting is that its grosses are not coming entirely from the younger demographic: A whopping 71 percent of moviegoers on the first day were over the age of 25, with 56% being male. Another caveat is this: A lot of those grosses came from drive-in theaters, since Unhinged seems to be ideally suited to that format.

Reviews for the film have been mixed (48 percent on Rotten Tomatoes), although critics are including another factor in their reviews: Is it worth risking one’s health to see? Most reviewers are coming down on the negative side of that, but it is clear that there are plenty anxious moviegoers waiting for any reason to return to theaters, and Russell Crowe playing a villain is apparently reason enough.

Don’t expect to see a normal top ten, or even top five at the box office anytime soon. There were a few other new films available in theaters this weekend, although they didn’t generate much interest. Roadside Attractions Words on Bathrooms Walls, with AnnaSophia Robb and Walton Goggins, only mustered $420,000 in 925 theater, of $454 per theater. In 108 theaters, IFC’s Tesla starring Ethan Hawke only earned $42,000, good for only $389 per theater. Tesla, however, is also available on VOD. That’s less than Dave Franco’s The Rental, which earned $108,000 in 105 theaters, despite being available at drive-in theaters and on VOD for weeks.

RZA’s Cut Throat City also took a chance on opening weekend, but it came up mostly empty, earning $240,000 in 395 theaters ($608 per). Meanwhile, The Spongebob Movie: Sponge on the Run is only screening in theaters in Canada, but it’s not doing a ton of business there in 326 theaters. It earned about $500,000 this weekend to bring its 10-day total in Canada to $10 million.

There is, however, spectacular box-office news in … China. There, the coronavirus is under control, and business in theaters has returned to normal. To wit: The Huayi Brothers’ The Eight Hundred earned a whopping $107 million in its first weekend. Historically, China has always come in second behind the United States in terms of total box office, but I could easily see China surpassing North America this year.

Next weekend, movie theaters will get a bigger test, sort of. Disney is releasing The New Mutants, the last of the X-Men universe movies from 20th Century Fox, which Disney now owns. The movie has been delayed countless times, and this feels like a dump job. However, we might be surprised to see how many people eager to return to the movies will turn out to see it anyway.

Source: Atom, Deadline, Exhibitor Relations