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You’ve probably heard this one before: a princess desires to run away from the castle to abandon her duties and live a royalty-free life amongst her friends. It’s nothing new! But in real life, it’s not as common as Disney would like you to believe, which is why the current frenzy regarding Kate Middleton’s whereabouts is a little alarming. This is the kind of drama your grandmother lives for, by the way.

Here are the cold hard facts: Kate Middleton was admitted to the hospital on January 17th for a “planned abdominal surgery.” While Kensington Palace rarely shares details regarding the health of the Royal Family, the statement confirmed that the Princess would remain in the hospital for 10-14 days, and she likely would not be seen out in public until after Easter, which falls on March 31st. The statement also said, “She hopes that the public will understand her desire to maintain as much normality for her children as possible; and her wish that her personal medical information remains private.” Some royal fans believed it was a little unusual for the announcement to come out so last minute for a planned surgery, however, no alarms were raised. Yet.

On January 29th, Middleton returned home, and again, things were business as usual. But the longer the people go without seeing their Princess, the weirder people get. There were some theories, but rumors began to pick up when Prince William withdrew from a memorial service for his own godfather, citing a “personal matter,” on February 27th.

Some harmless rumors began (“She’s just waiting for her bangs to grow out!”), but the story started to crack. King Charles was also admitted to the hospital for his own health struggles, though some believed that was a move of deceit. Kate’s team scrambled to put out a statement: “We were very clear from the outset that the Princess of Wales was out until after Easter and Kensington Palace would only be providing updates when something was significant,” her spokesperson said on February 29th. Keep in mind that this is a year after Middleton reportedly hired a “PR guru” to help with her royal ambitions, but said guru then declined the job. Or maybe that was her plan all along?!

To make matters even weirder, many fans pointed out that Kate had her own photo shoots just hours after giving birth to all three of her children, so the efforts to keep her hidden are unheard of, and her absence is noticeable. Still, the palace claims that she is recovering nicely.

On March 4th, Middleton was finally seen in a grainy paparazzi photo in the passenger seat of a car alongside her mom, though she was wearing sunglasses, and her mom sure looks fed up.

Then on March 10th, Mother’s Day in the UK, things took a turn: Kensington Palace released the first “official” photo of Middleton since her surgery, but eagle-eyed fans spotted a series of editing mistakes in the photo. Within hours, the Associated Press took down the image after stating that photo appeared manipulated. “At closer inspection it appears that the source has manipulated the image,” the AP said in its advisory. “No replacement photo will be sent.”

According to their official Twitter account, Princess Catherine edited the photo. Who among us hasn’t signed up for a free Adobe Cloud trial just to see what kind of stuff they have going on there? The only issue here is that one would assume the Royal family has a professional for this. Either way, the Palace apologized for the confusion, by adding even more confusion. Meanwhile, William is just chilling.

Of course, this doesn’t stop the theories that the images were really old or even reused from other photo shoots.

Finally, Middleton was “seen” on March 11th (the word is used lightly here) alongside William in a car, looking wistfully out the window as if she were in a Beyonce music video. At this point, we have not seen her full face.

So, what’s the verdict? A few theories have evolved, though most of them point to marriage troubles between Kate and William that are spilling out into the public eye. One thing is for certain, we will likely never know what really went down. At least until The Crown picks back up in 20 years to try and explain it.

(Via Vox, People)

Once Chris Jones and Justin Madubuike agreed to long-term deals to stay with the Chiefs and Ravens, the top star available at defensive tackle on the free agency market was Christian Wilkins.

Wilkins is coming off his most productive year as an interior pass rusher, recording nine sacks and 23 QB hits for the Dolphins to go along with a pair of fumble recoveries and 65 combined tackles. Given how much NFL teams have grown to value interior linemen who can apply pressure on quarterbacks up the middle, that kind of season going into a free agency year figured to be very lucrative for Wilkins.

Sure enough, around 90 minutes into free agency, Wilkins struck a monster deal with the Las Vegas Raiders that will pay him nearly $85 million in guaranteed money and up to $110 million over four years.

With Antonio Pierce now as the full-time head coach, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the Raiders would look to build out their defense even more going into next year. Spending big on Wilkins gives them a formidable defensive line that should be able to apply pressure on opposing quarterbacks from inside and out, as they already have one of the top edge rushers in the league in Maxx Crosby. A year ago, the Raiders only had 19 quarterback hits from their defensive tackles, four fewer than Wilkins had by himself in Miami. Adding him should considerably improve their pass rush as well as stabilize their front overall, and gives Pierce the kind of defensive line he’ll feel he can build a defense around.

Around this time last year, Weezer announced their joint Indie Rock Roadtrip alongside Future Islands, Joyce Manor, Modest Mouse, Momma, Spoon, and White Reaper. On Monday, March 11, Weezer had an even more exciting tour announcement.

The iconic Californian rockers will commemorate the 30th anniversary of their self-titled debut album (also known as the “Blue Album”) with Voyage To The Blue Planet Tour. The North American trek will feature Weezer performing Weezer “in full along with other fan favorites, rarities, and more,” as per the press release.” The Flaming Lips and Dinosaur Jr. will serve as supporting acts. All ticketing information is available here.

The press release additionally relayed, “Separate from their tour, the band also announces a special anniversary event on March 15 at the Lodge Room in Los Angeles with Dogstar as support. “This exciting full-circle moment mirrors the band’s March 1992 show at Raji’s, where they ended up opening for Dogstar in an unlikely turn of events.”

Weezer 2024 Tour Dates: Voyage To The Blue Planet Tour

09/04 — Saint Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center
09/06 — Rosemont, IL @ Allstate Arena
09/07 — Columbus, OH @ Nationwide Arena
09/08 — Toronto, ON, CA @ Scotiabank Arena
09/10 — Boston, MA @ TD Garden
09/11 — New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden
09/13 — Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center
09/14 — Washington, DC @ The Anthem
09/17 — Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena
09/18 — Greenville, SC @ Bon Secours Wellness Arena
09/20 — Orlando, FL @ Kia Center
09/21 — Hollywood, FL @ Hard Rock Live at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood
09/27 — Austin, TX @ Moody Center
09/28 — Houston, TX @ Toyota Center
09/29 — Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center
10/01 — Loveland, CO @ Blue FCU Arena
10/04 — Seattle, WA @ Climate Pledge Arena
10/05 — Vancouver, BC, CA @ Rogers Arena
10/06 — Portland, OR @ Moda Center
10/08 — Sacramento, CA @ Golden 1 Center
10/09 — San Francisco, CA @ Chase Center
10/11 — Inglewood, CA @ Intuit Dome

Weezer’s Voyage To The Blue Planet Tour Poster

The world lost Jimmy Buffett last September, when he died at 76 years old. He left behind a distinct legacy with songs like “Margaritaville” and “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere.” He had tremendous success as a businessman, too: Just months before he died, Buffett was included on the Forbes list of billionaires for the first time, thanks largely to his Margaritaville locations.

Now, some contemporaries and admirers are coming together to honor the legend’s memory: Today (March 11), Keep The Party Going: A Tribute To Jimmy Buffett was announced. The one-night concert will go down at the Hollywood Bowl on April 11 and feature performances from Paul McCartney, the Eagles, Jon Bon Jovi, Zac Brown, Jackson Browne, Brandi Carlile, Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, Sheryl Crow, Scotty Emerick, Jack Johnson, Caroline Jones, Mac McAnally, Jake Owen, Pitbull, Jake Shimabukuro, The Coral Reefer Band, and “more special guests.”

Tickets for the general public go on sale starting March 15 at 10 a.m. PT via Ticketmaster. American Express card members can also take advantage of an exclusive pre-sale, running from Wednesday, March 13 at 10 a.m. PT to March 15 at 10 p.m. PT. Some other pre-sales will also be available during this time. Find more information about tickets on the Ticketmaster website.

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

This past weekend saw the beginnings of most NCAA conference basketball postseasons, which means March Madness has begun. Drake, the walking meme and ardent Kentucky Wildcats fan whose love for the team apparently knows very few bounds, commemorated one of his most memorable team-related moments ten years on.

Back in October 2014, Drake launched a thousand memes, one truly horrendous airball, and even a cease-and-desist from the University itself when he attended UK’s Midnight Madness event to kick off the team’s 2014-15 campaign. In addition to starting the lint roller meme and prompting the near-universal ridicule that inspired him to get his jump shot form together, Drake joined the team in their film room, suited up like he was just another player hoping to get some playing time in John Calipari’s system.

Ten years later, though, all the players from that photo have moved on, with Devin Booker, Karl-Anthony Towns, Trey Lyles, and Tyler Ulis all joining the NBA in the years since. Coach Cal is still around, but when Drake headed to the film room to get pic, he did so all by his lonesome. “Oh hell nah all my brothers left me,” he captioned the photo. Of course, his “brothers” were happy to roast him a bit in the comments. Booker wrote, “Mann we left when u did.”

It’s all in good fun, of course, and you can bet that should they make it to the Big Dance, Drake’s bet on the team will be sizable, as always.

In January, Pitchfork was part of a confusing (and disheartening) merger at Condé Nast that more or less made it one with GQ. Even still, the annual Pitchfork Music Festival will forge on. In July 2023, the festival was held at Chicago’s Union Park and featured Bon Iver, Killer Mike, Perfume Genius, The Smile, Weyes Blood, and so many more.

On Monday morning, March 11, fans received hints as to what will be in store in 2024.

When Does The Pitchfork Music Festival 2024 Lineup Come Out?

It’s coming straight from the source. The festival confirmed on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter), “Our 2024 lineup drops this Wednesday [March 13] at 10 a.m. CT, with GA, PLUS, and VIP tickets on sale at the same time. Let’s gooo.” The post also instructed fans, “Join the text list at the link in bio for lineup clues tomorrow.”

On February 1, Pitchfork announced that Pitchfork Music Festival Chicago would be staged from July 19 to 21, 2024 at Union Park in Chicago. The 2024 ticket pre-sale went live on February 29 at 10 a.m. CST. At the time, Pitchfork advertised, “Secure your 3-Day GA tickets for the lowest price possible at the link in our bio. Payment plans start at just $40 down.”

As mentioned above, tickets will go on sale to the general public on Wednesday, March 13, beginning at 10 a.m. CST. All ticketing information can be found here.

The Chicago Bears are going to be one of the NFL’s most fascinating teams this offseason, as they hold the No. 1 pick in April’s NFL Draft and are expected to take Caleb Williams.

If they do that, they will also likely trade Justin Fields, sending the young quarterback to a new team where he can get a fresh start. The alternative is to trade the top pick and move back in the Draft, keeping Fields and looking to load up around him, but few expect that to happen as they would have to fully invest in Fields long-term and drafting Williams resets the clock on paying a quarterback big money.

The Bears also have some serious cap space to fill out their roster, although they ate into that some to keep young star corner Jaylon Johnson around long-term. Their first move of free agency provides an indicator of what they see as important going forward, trying to create some balance offensively to take pressure off their likely new rookie QB. On Monday, the Bears made one of the first moves of NFL free agency in terms of signing a player from an outside team, as they brought running back D’Andre Swift over from the Eagles on a three-year deal (with two of the years effectively guaranteed).

Swift had a breakout year in Philly, rushing for over 1,000 yards and being the most reliable back in the Eagles rotation. The Bears want that kind of reliability alongside Williams (or Fields, if they went that route) and Swift has also proven to be a productive receiver out of the backfield over his career in Philadelphia and Detroit.

While everyone on the internet has turned into an amateur sleuth regarding a peculiarly edited photograph, the real investigators are the ones trying to figure out if Messi the dog was actually at the Oscars over the weekend.

The star of Anatomy of a Fall has been making the rounds this awards season, though not everyone has been happy about it. It was reported that Messi would not appear at the Academy Awards, which naturally caused riots in the streets, but then Messi’s handler shared a photo of the two en route to Hollywood, it seemed that he really would be there. Or so we thought.

The Hollywood Reporter’s Chris Gardner posted a video of who he claimed to be a Messi lookalike practicing his role of “audience member” in rehearsal. It shows a group of audience members seemingly pre-taping a segment of Messi “clapping.”

But Messi’s owner/handler confirmed that it was the iconic pup, despite reports that he would not attend the ceremony.

Gardner did get one thing right, though: his “paws” were definitely actors.

This is just the tip of the iceberg for Messi, who is a controversial dog actor (all the best ones are). According to The Hollywood Reporter, “multiple companies” with nominated films complained to the Academy that allowing Messi to attend pre-Oscars events “gave Anatomy of a Fall an advantage during the voting window.” It didn’t seem to work that well, considering that Anatomy Of A Fall didn’t take home the big prize, though Justine Triet did revive the award for Best Original Screenplay.

Meanwhile, Kurt Russell’s dog has been basking in his dog nepotism moment. The two should share their tricks.

Just when the Coyote vs. Acme situation had seemingly reached its unfortunate conclusion, the film’s writer, Samy Burch, has offered a surprising update for the John Cena film. Despite increasing reports that Warner Bros. Discovery had deleted Coyote vs. Acme for a tax write-off, Burch offered a glimmer of hope that the Looney Tunes comedy could still see the light of day.

While walking the Oscars red carpet on Sunday evening, Burch said conversations about the film’s fate are still happening.

“As far as I know, it’s ongoing,” Burch told IndieWire. “I think we’re all pretty heartbroken about it. We hope it will somehow find its home and not end up stuck in a vault for the rest of time. That would be a great resolution.”

According to Burch, Warner Bros. is still screening the film for prospective buyers, which contradicts earlier reports that the studio had walked away from the process after rejecting offers from streamers.

“I know that they have been screening places and I think they still are,” Burch said. “I hope that I’m allowed to say that. I’m going completely rogue here. It’s just the best group of people. Dave Green, who directed it, I just love so much. Will Forte is amazing in the movie. I’ve seen the final cut of the completed film and I’m very proud of it.”

Burch’s update is all the more surprising given a recent public statement from Forte. In an emotional open letter to the cast and crew, Forte said he had heard the movie was getting “deleted” and he “f*cking hated” the situation. More importantly, he wanted everyone involved with Coyote vs. Acme to know that they made an “incredible” film and that their “years of hard work, dedication and love that you put into this movie shows in every frame.”

(Via IndieWire)

Shōgun has proven to be a viewership hit for FX, which is surely now in deliberations over a possible second season. Thus far, the series is a spectacular epic that adapts James Clavell’s most beloved novel from 1975. Granted, yes, it does depart from canon on John Blackthorne’s ridiculously large dong, but otherwise, audiences appear to be thrilled as 1600s feudal Japan materializes with as much authenticity as possible onscreen.

When will the Shōgun arrive on live TV and streaming?

“The Eightfold Fence” will surface first on Tuesday, March 12 via Hulu at 12:01am EST. The first FX broadcast will take place at 10:00pm EST. Here is a preview clip if you can’t live without visual hints (no judgment):

From there, six more episodes of Shōgun will roll out weekly on Tuesdays. And what happens next?

Executive producer Justin Marks has been upfront with how the first season ends in the same place, essentially, as the book. Yet there’s still plenty more of Clavell’s Asian Saga to be adapted, if FX decides that it wishes to go there. And if not, there’s always the possibility of a Blackthorne Cut. (I blame Zack Snyder for that “joke” popping into my head. Not everything needs to be bigger!)