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Ronny Chieng On Not Overreacting To Overreactions, ‘The Daily Show’ Job He Might Want, And Touring The US

Ronny Chieng
Lucas Goldman

When I spoke with Ronny Chieng last week he said that “the true job of comedians these days as professionals is to not overreact to other people overreacting,” and I think that’s pretty informative about the man and his operating system. At the time we were discussing the cultural importance people put on comedians and the way the internet can freak out over this or that. But it (and the following conversation) shows Chieng as someone who is aware of the moment and the hype but at ease amidst the noise.

Fresh off numerous high-profile film and TV projects (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, M3GAN, American Born Chinese) Chieng is about to embark on an epic tour of the US at the start of the new year with his Love To Hate It comedy tour (tickets available here). Might he have to find a way to mix in duties as the new host of The Daily Show? Who knows, but he doesn’t seem too concerned with whatever choice the suits at Comedy Central make after nearly a year of guest host tryouts. Chieng, one of the Daily Show‘s All-Star correspondents, is in that chair tonight, as it happens, but this isn’t an interview about what could be considered a very important audition. It’s about a guy who seems to love his job(s), who is humbly taking things as they come, and just trying to be funny and unique while finding affirmation about the non-awfulness of the American public as he meets and greets them on the road.

I’ve had a couple of people associated with The Daily Show tell me that you have said that “the Daily Show correspondent’s job is the best job in comedy.” Do you want the hosting job or do you want to stick with this job that gives you, I imagine, a lot of flexibility to do other things?

I think Jon Stewart set the standard of how much dedication you need for the job to do it properly. The machine of the show is so strong, meaning the support staff and the producers, the writers, the editors. The institution of the Daily Show is probably its greatest strength, because they know how to do that show so well. So you can make a show of news with jokes, and you can get by on that pretty well. You can have a good life, whatever, but if you want to really make that show great, you need a point of view and you need to be very dedicated to the show, anticipating where the culture is right now and commenting on it.

I’m happy with whatever they choose. I still think working at that show is the best job in comedy. I don’t want to speak for the other people working there, but correspondent is, I think for sure, the best job in comedy. You come on, you learn a lot. I think I’ve always said that it’s almost like the Harvard Business School of Comedy. Forget the fame. Even if you don’t become one follower more famous, you learn how to write comedy, you learn how to perform, you learn how to edit, how to produce, how to direct, how to do improv TV production. Every field piece is like an indie film and you have a lot of support. Producers and writers and editors and everyone helping you out, versus this new economy of one person does everything; you are your own cameraman and writer. But The Daily Show is very old school in terms of priding itself on having high production values. So in that sense, it’s the best job in comedy.

I think it’s equal parts ambition and dedication to do what Jon did. Do you feel like you have the want to put that much of yourself into it? Obviously, Jon did it for however long — 14 or 15 years. I interviewed Roy Wood Jr. a few months ago and he was like, “No one should do it for more than seven or eight years.” I think that’s right. I feel like Jon got toasted a little bit because I think he cared so much. Outside perspective, obviously.

I can’t speak for Jon. I think he himself said that he was feeling a little burnt out. I think that’s fair to say. I guess it is a show that you can get burnt out on. It’s every day.

Like you said, you could mail it in, but if you do want to do it right, you have to put so much into it. At this stage of your career, if they came to you and were like, “Do you want this job?” Do you feel like you could do that for the next six, seven years?

I’m lucky that I’ve been getting a lot of cool work outside of hosting a show. You’re right.

That would go away if you have the show.

It would have to be a choice. If they came to me and they asked me, it would be giving up (that work). Yeah, I’m not sure. I’m lucky to be in a position where I’m not just on the show, but outside the show, I’m doing the stuff that I like doing. It would be something I have to consider. I don’t know. It’s hard to answer.

I get that. Also, to your credit, there are ways to answer that question that are campaign-y, and you’re not obviously interested in campaigning.

I’m not American, so I don’t know how to campaign for stuff. I look up to all the other correspondents. All the correspondents I ever worked with I think are much better than me. It’s very un-American, but if you ask me from a pure skillset point of view, all these other correspondents were way better than me. When I first joined the show, I was like, “Man, if I could be 10% of any of the correspondents who’ve ever been on this show, if I could be 10% as good as them, I will be extremely happy with myself.” So that was my goal. So I look at the other correspondents in awe. I look at everyone in awe, everyone currently on the show.

How do you gauge improvement in terms of as a correspondent, as a comedian? In terms of your career, how do you look back and say, “I’m doing something right” or “I need to work on this?”

That’s a good question.

I’m assuming it’s not just from the volume of the crowd.

Absolutely. I think you can divorce art from fame, first of all, and you can definitely divorce skill from fame. So independent of fame, I think fame is a reasonable indicator, but you and I both know that just because something’s popular doesn’t mean it’s good and vice versa. Just because something’s not popular, doesn’t mean it’s not good. So in terms of judging my own, I think good comics have their own internal barometer of a joke that they write and they go, “This is just hack.” Then they know when they’re writing a joke where it’s like, “This is more satirical, this is more elevated. This is the voice I aspire to. These are the kind of jokes and this is the kind of material I aspire to write.”

Sometimes I get lucky. I have a bit that I really enjoy and I’m like, “Man, I hope all my bits could be like this.” I don’t think I’m there yet. I think it’s very much an internal barometer. Standup comedy and being a correspondent, almost two different skill sets. But standup comedy, there is an element of audience response to it. So you can tell when you’re saying something that is getting a good response, but it’s also because of your internal barometer. You know it’s not a hack-y joke, it’s kind of elevated, you’re saying something unique. I think that’s the measure of good comedy is when you’re saying something unique that’s hilarious.

So I think everything I do, if I push towards those two things, which is being unique and hilarious, I can feel myself get better. So that’s my metric, I think, for being good at comedy.

Are you hard on yourself, do you think? And has that intensified over the years or lessened?

I like to think I’m pretty hard on myself. I think all comics are, though. All the good comics I know. I can’t remember who told me this. I think Sam Morril said this. He was like, “All the good comics think they’re a hack. All the good comics hate their own routines.” They’re just like, “I made them laugh, but this is the same old stuff that I’ve been doing for months now. Where’s the new bit?” It’s almost like only the bad comics will walk on and be like, “I’m the freaking greatest of all time.” Obviously, that’s public persona and then how you feel internally. So publicly if your standup persona is the greatest of all time, then that’s different to how you feel inside. Do you believe your own act or are you just saying that just for comedic effect? So I think all comics are just trying to write better jokes, they feel like their own material isn’t the best. I think that’s a fairly common denominator among all the good comics I know.

Honestly, I think that extends to a lot of creative people.

I hope so. I think if you’re good, you would never be satisfied with where you’re at, right?

In the course of researching I read some of the past interviews and saw some of the stuff you’ve done and the spreads in Vogue; you’ve done some great stuff. Obviously even the poster for the new tour, it’s very nice with a nice suit. It looks like you’re using John Mulaney’s tailor. Do you feel a pressure to be a brand beyond just being, “I’m Ronny, here’s my comedy?”

Not really. I feel pressured to do good jokes and express myself in the way that I want to express myself. So I feel a lot of pressure about keeping my artistic expression, the integrity in it. I want to put out the poster that I want to put out. I don’t want other people to make a shitty poster for me. I think it’s important for Asian people in America to perform in show business with dignity and with class and at a high standard. So I put pressure on myself to do that, that’s why I like to put out my poster materials. I like everything to look slick. I like the show to be good. That’s why I go out every single night in New York City trying to work on this material, because I don’t want to show up and bomb. I want people to go away going, “Oh, that was a really good comedy show.” So I don’t feel pressure about the brand per se. I feel more pressure about my self-expression. You can argue those are two sides of the same coin, right?

No, I think they’re different.

Well, I appreciate that. I hope they’re different too, but I put pressure on the self-expression, not the brand.

I think the brand can chase self-expression, but to me that means it comes from a more authentic place than if you’re just chasing an ideal of what you’re supposed to be as a comedian in 2023, as opposed to being who you are and that’s the vision of who you are.

Yeah, I think so. I think on that note also, what I like to do is I like to go quality over quantity in terms of my output. Less is more, if that informs anything I’m saying. So it’s not that I hate social media or whatever, it’s more that I’d rather put out something good once in a while than having to churn out just average stuff every single day. That’s where I’m at.

That’s a good policy for everybody.

I hope so. Less is more. Quite frankly, I mean a lot of it is because I’m not talented enough to do something great every single day. So I wish I was better at it.

What is behind the title of the tour? Love To Hate It.

I just wanted something cool that was a little bit funny. I’m sure you know, it’s hard to think of titles for things. So I was brainstorming for a few weeks. It’s almost like part of me is like, “Why am I caring so much about something that doesn’t really matter?” It doesn’t need to describe anything.

It does sound cool though. It’s a good title.

It actually ended up being a good title because it actually does describe where I’m at. Sometimes you complain professionally as a standup comedian. In other words, you love to hate it. As a comic, we complain about stuff, but we do it because we love doing comedy.

Perhaps I dug too deep when I read the title. I thought it was some kind of reflection on culture and art because right now I feel like we’re in a moment where everybody just loves to hate everything.

Oh, that too. Thank you. Yeah, I’ll take that.

There you go. Take it.

No, it’s true. The great titles have more than one meaning, right?

You’ve been all over, you lived in Australia for 10 years. This tour is expansive. Going out and seeing the country, just telling jokes to people of many different political persuasions, does that make you a better comedian? A better person, in your opinion?

Yeah, definitely. You hit the nail on the head. I actually talk about it in the show a little bit, about knowing people with extreme political views in America and being friends with them. I get to travel around America. I talk about it a little bit. It does inform who I am because first of all, I am grateful to be here. I had to fight to be here, you know what I mean? So me, every day I’m in America is a choice. It’s a choice by me to be here and it’s also not something that came easy. So it was a challenge and a choice every day to want to work in America and have to prove myself, not just culturally, but literally immigration. I came here on a 01 Visa, which is an extraordinary ability visa. So I had to prove that I had extraordinary ability.

I came here with a lot of gratitude. So part of gratitude is also loving seeing a lot of different parts of America. I love traveling around America and seeing towns and cities that people shit on. I go there and I’m like, “Oh, this is great.” Everyone’s been always really nice to me on my tour. The fans have always been really nice to me for the most part. So I get to meet a lot of people. I meet, obviously different ethnicities, but different political backgrounds as well. They’ve always been cool. I like to think I’ve shown mutual respect back. It’s why I say in the show, I talk a little bit about how face-to-face, everyone in America seems fine. It’s just when you go on the internet, it seems as though we’re always on the borderline of Civil War. But face-to-face, there’s a lot of decency in America. There are more good people than bad people here.

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Celebrated Action Director John Woo Is Siding With Martin Scorsese On Superhero Movies: ‘I Like… Real Cinema’

John Woo
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When it comes to the recent debate over superhero movies being real cinema, legendary action director John Woo made it clear he sides with Martin Scorsese. While promoting his return to Hollywood filmmaking with the holiday-themed actioner, Silent Night, Woo gave a candid response when asked if he’s enjoyed any of the recent Marvel or DC Comics films that used to dominate the box office.

“I’ve never liked watching movies with big special effects, or anything based on comic books,” Woo told The New Yorker. “I prefer Martin Scorsese’s movies, that kind of cinema. I can’t wait to watch ‘Killers of the Flower Moon.’ I like old-fashioned movies, you know? Real cinema. There aren’t many movies like that lately.”

Clearly, Woo and Scorsese are on the same wavelength. The Goodfellas director kicked off a wave of film discourse after giving his opinion on Marvel films.

“I don’t see them. I tried, you know? But that’s not cinema,” Scorsese told Empire back in 2019. “Honestly, the closest I can think of them, as well made as they are, with actors doing the best they can under the circumstances, is theme parks. It isn’t the cinema of human beings trying to convey emotional, psychological experiences to another human being.”

If you’re curious what recent American action movies Woo has enjoyed, the iconic director had an immediate answer, and it’s a solid choice.

“I really love ‘Hell or High Water,’” Woo said. “Good performances, good action. It feels like a tragedy. Great cinematography, too. I tried to get its director of photography, Giles Nuttgens, to shoot ‘Silent Night,’ but he wasn’t available.”

(Via The New Yorker)

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Who Is The Top Artist Of 2023 On ‘Billboard?’

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Billboard unveiled their year-end chat lists for 2023, including noting who had the top album or the top rap song. For those who are wondering who claimed the top artist spot of 2023, it’s none other than Taylor Swift.

She is the first act to ever be the publication’s year-end artist three times in three different decades, with her previously taking the spots in 2009 and 2015.

Considering the pop star has had another massive year, it’s also not shocking that she is at the top. At the start of 2023, Swift kicked off the North American leg of her Eras Tour, before announcing global dates — which will run through next year. While it hasn’t yet been revealed how much the tour has earned, Forbes placed it at least generating $1.9 billion. (And that was just in May before her other stops were added.)

She also put out a concert film tied to the tour, through an exclusive deal with AMC.

Swift dropped the deluxe version of her Grammy-nominated album, Midnights, which included a collaboration with Ice Spice. She also released two new re-recordings, with Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) in July and 1989 (Taylor’s Version) in October.

As for her success on the Billboard charts, she logged 44 total songs within the Hot 100 in 2023. Swift’s 2019 song, “Cruel Summer,” added another No. 1 to her list of hits.

Meanwhile, finishing behind Swift on the list are, from Nos. 2 to 5, Morgan Wallen, SZA, Drake, and Luke Combs.

Check out the rest of the Billboard year-end charts here.

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How Much Are Tickets For The Rolling Stones’ ‘Hackney Diamonds Tour?’

rolling stones 2023
Mark Seliger

You can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but veteran rock stars can show the new age acts what star power is all about: Next year, The Rolling Stones will embark on their first US tour in nearly five years. With the backing of its official sponsor, AARP, the Hackney Diamonds Tour will help to market their latest album to fans.

The 16-city arena tour will stop in multiple major cities, including Houston, Texas, Atlanta, Georgia, Los Angeles, California, and more, so supporters are ready to scrape their dollars together for tickets. As the fan presale is slated to jump-start on Wednesday, November 29 at noon PT, everyone wants to know how much tickets for The Rolling Stones’ Hackney Diamonds Tour will cost.

As of today, the confirmed cost for tickets has not been unveiled. That information will be made available when the general ticket sale begins on Friday, December 1. So, for now, it’s a guessing game. According to Billboard, The Rolling Stones’ 2019 No Filter Tour grossed a whopping $415.6 million across 2,290,871 tickets. That’s an average of $181.42 a ticket on the lower end. But Mattopia reported that pit tickets for the same tour went for $852 per ticket.

Admission costs could mirror this range. If it worked for Bruce Springsteen, supporters will be willing to shell out the big bucks for The Rolling Stones.

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The ‘Frozen’ Director Has Explained The Surprising Lyric Change For The New Disney Ride

Frozen
Disney

The Frozen universe is expanding even more. We already have not one but two sequels on the way, with Frozen 3 expected to be “mind-blowing” and a fourth installment sometime after that. But there are always more things to change in an ever-expanding universe, even if it’s something as minuscule as lyrics.

In Hong Kong Disney’s latest Frozen attraction, the lyrics in “Let It Go” were changed, and director Jennifer Lee spoke to EW about the switch.

During a rendition of “Let It Go,” the lyrics change from “It’s time to see what I can do” to “It’s time to share what I can do” because we have to teach kids about sharing, right? Not really. Lee explained that the lyrics change was more about opening up the world to guests on the ride.

It might seem like changing the lyrics to a now-iconic and often over-played song would be hard, but Lee said it actually wasn’t. “It’s not like there’s an approval process where we’ve got all these rules we can’t break. We just sat down with the songwriters and talked about it,” Lee explained. “You’re just being so experimental with the music and lyrics, and Rob and Kristen just want to tell the story.”

Lee added that they always wanted flexibility with the franchise. “We never want anything with Frozen to be like, don’t touch it, because it’s not what Disney is about. People want to take those characters into their lives, and everyone has their own relationship with those characters. You want to push it, celebrate it, and make it more and more accessible.”

Maybe it’s time to change the lyrics to “Something Never Change.” Because……they do.

(Via EW)

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Here Are All The Chain Restaurants Open On Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Deals
Uproxx

There are a lot of reasons to want to eat out on Thanksgiving. Maybe you’re not going to a Thanksgiving dinner this year, maybe you can’t cook, maybe your entire family would rather go to a restaurant than cram into a cousin’s dining room and eat lukewarm food, or maybe you’re just looking to grab a small bite to eat hours before your set dinner time because your aunt’s new boyfriend doesn’t get out of work until 6 and works a whole hour away so this year Thanksgiving dinner won’t be until 7 pm which now in hindsight explains why she insisted on hosting this year and now we’re all waiting for a man we never met just to eat some damn turkey!

Thanks, Aunt Martha. Thanks a lot.

If you’re in a similar boat and find yourself hungry on Thanksgiving, rolling through a drive-thru or a sit-down chain restaurant might be the play. But before you walk out the door, be sure to hit this list to see if your favorite fast food or restaurant chain is actually open. For the most part, hours will be reduced at a lot of these establishments (though not all) so it’s good practice to call ahead of time but if a chain restaurant you love isn’t on this list, it’s safe to assume it’s completely closed.

Here are the places you’ll be able to grab a bite to eat at this Thanksgiving.

Boston Market Hours may be reduced but Boston Market will be open on Thanksgiving and is apparently a go-to for many who skip the holiday.

Bucca di Beppo Bucca di Beppo will be open on Thanksgiving and will be serving a special family-style Thanksgiving meal. The meal is available for dine-in, delivery, or pickup.

Buffalo Wild Wings A select number of BWW locations will be open on Thanksgiving, so call ahead and see if your local restaurant is one of them.

Burger King Holiday hours will vary but it’s safe to assume if you’re coming through early in the day, BK is still going to let you have it your way. I didn’t mean for that to rhyme, it’s just the way it came out.

Cracker Barrel Cracker Barrel locations will be open on Thanksgiving Day and operating under regular hours.

Denny’s Denny’s will be open but operating under reduced hours. Call your local Denny’s and find out when they’ll be closing.

Domino’s Domino’s is independently owned so some stores will be closed and some will be open. For a quick answer check the app.

Dunkin’ Looking to eat some Munchkins and sip on a Pumpkin Spice cold brew instead of dealing with Thanksgiving dinner? Dunkin’ locations will be open though hours will vary. Hit up the Dunkin’ drive-thru early in the day and you should be good.

Fogo de Chão Craving some steak instead of Thanksgiving Day fixings? All Fogo de Chão locations will be open from 11 AM to 9 PM.

Hooters Hooters will open late on Thanksgiving (4 PM) and remain open until the typical closing time.

IHOP Hours vary by location so call ahead of time.

Jack in the Box Jack in the Box is open on Thanksgiving. Hours may vary by location so call ahead or check that drive-thru line for activity.

Krispy Kreme All Krispy Kreme locations will be closing at 2 P.M. on Thanksgiving, so if you’re trying to bring a dozen to the dinner, go early!

Macaroni Grill Macaroni Grill will be open and serving a three-course Thanksgiving meal.

McDonald’s If you’re craving a Double Cheeseburger and fries you’re in luck because most McDonald’s restaurants nationwide will be open on Thanksgiving day, though hours will vary by location. If you’re rolling through early though, it’s safe to assume your nearest McDonald’s will be open.

Popeyes Thanksgiving turkey or a Popeyes Chicken Sandwich? Kind of an easy choice, luckily for you Popeyes will be open on Thanksgiving, though hours vary by location.

Red Lobster Red Lobster will be open but its better to arrive earlier than later as some hours will be reduced.

Sonic Drive-In Hours will vary by location, but some Sonic restaurants will be open on Thanksgiving.

Starbucks Most Starbucks stores will be open on Thanksgiving but hours will vary by location. If the drive-thru line is snaking, it’s safe to assume you’re looking at the nearest Starbucks that’s open.

Subway Subway is a bit of a toss-up. Since many restaurants are locally owned, some will be open, some will be closed. If there is a particular Subway you frequent, call ahead of time.

Taco Bell Taco Bell will be open but hours will vary depending on the restaurant. Use the app to see if your nearest Taco Bell is operating.

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Whataburger All Whataburger locations are open for 24 hours. This is the prime Thanksgiving spot.

White Castle — White Castle is open for limited hours so if you need to grab a quick bite to eat before Thanksgiving dinner roll up before 3 PM and eat as many sliders as your heart desires.

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What Is The Top Album Of 2023 On ‘Billboard?’

Morgan Wallen 2023 Billboard Music Awards
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For decades, the Billboard charts have been the dominant, objective measure of which music releases are commercially performing the best in the United States. Placing high up on those ranks is a big deal, and so is landing a nice spot on the year-end Billboard charts, which account for all chart activity for a given year. (More accurately, the tracking period this year is from November 19, 2022 to October 21, 2023, as Billboard notes.)

Well, the 2023 year-end charts are out now and there are a ton of superlative questions that now have answers, including:

What Is The Top Album Of 2023 On The Billboard Charts?

On the year-end Billboard 200 Albums chart, the No. 1 album is Morgan Wallen’s One Thing At A Time. The album spent a remarkable 16 weeks at No. 1 on the weekly Billboard 200. Furthermore, the album’s “Last Night” is the No. 1 song on the year-end Hot 100 chart, making Wallen the first artist to lead both year-end charts since Adele did it in 2011, with 21 and “Rolling In The Deep.”

Wallen actually has three albums that made it onto this year’s chart: Dangerous: The Double Album is No. 5 and If I Know Me is No. 34.

Just behind Wallen at No. 2 is Britney Spears (sorry, I mean Taylor Swift) with Midnights. Swift is also the only other artist besides Wallen to have two albums in the top 10, with 2019’s Lover at No. 9. Swift actually has a remarkable nine albums in the top 50 and ten albums on the chart overall: Aside from the aforementioned, they are Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) (No. 11), Folklore (No. 12), 1989 (No. 16), Red (Taylor’s Version) (No. 17), Reputation (No. 21), Evermore (No. 29), Fearless (Taylor’s Version) (No. 43), and Speak Now (No. 115).

Elsewhere in the top 10 of the chart are SZA’s SOS at No. 3, Drake and 21 Savage’s Her Loss at No. 4, Metro Boomin’s Heroes & Villains at No. 6, Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti at No. 7, Zach Bryan’s American Heartbreak at No. 8, and Travis Scott’s Utopia at No. 10.

Check out the other Billboard year-end charts here.

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

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Taylor Sheridan’s ‘6666’ Season 1: Here Are New Details To Know For The Upcoming Season (November 2023)

Taylor Sheridan
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Yellowstone surely helped Paramount+ take flight in a huge way. Yes, the original series is only streamable on Peacock for now, but Paramount+ is where the Yellowstone prequels (so far including 1883 and 1923) and vast array of other Taylor Sheridan shows reside in streaming form. Naturally, a well-stocked movie library doesn’t hurt matters, but thus far, the Sheridan shows are the cowboy kings to shine on the platform and even spread to marathons on Comedy Central (also a Paramount property).

As such, Sheridan’s fingerprints will cover even more territory with other Yellowstone offshoots. Those will include 1944 and 2024, along with one that doesn’t match up to a year: 6666. Hmm, or does it? I tend to think that futuristic cowboys might be a bit far-fetched for this franchise, but never say never. That might appeal more than the other theme that the title evokes (some Western exorcism story), but we are being ornery here.

Of course, there’s actually a much better (and real) meaning for this upcoming spinoff’s title. Let’s talk it out along with what else we know about 6666.

Plot

This show has been the subject of speculation since Yellowstone said goodbye to Jimmy (Jefferson White), who departed for the 6666 Ranch in Season 4. What happened next? A lot of drama related to whether or not Kevin Costner would return overshadowed Yellowstone, and a lot of audience focus moved to 1923. The presence of Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren together (again) on TV screens will do that, but 6666 still very much remained an in-development thing while viewers waited to see what else Sheridan had planned.

Of all of the Yellowstone shows, this spinoff seems most destined to be close to Sheridan’s heart and mind. Perhaps that’s because he can, if he so wishes, call the place home in real life. 6666 takes its name from the grounded-in-reality Four Sixes/6666 Ranch (which actually took its name for a head of cattle with the “6666” brand) that Sheridan recently ponied up millions to purchase. 1923 has already filmed some scenes on the expansive swath of land, and Sheridan has been holding his cowboy bootcamps there as well.

Can we expect this show to have a personal touch? Perhaps. Sheridan lives the cowboy life as much as it’s possible to do so for someone who seems to be juggling director duties for half a dozen shows and and screenwriting as well. So, one can probably expect this spinoff to be near and dear to his heart, but the characters will likely fit the Yellowstone mode of being slightly operatic while telling the story of their lives. In any event, it will be a relief for viewers to see Sheridan pick up that Season 4 Yellowstone connection to 6666 and ride home with it.

Here’s the official 6666 synopsis:

Founded when Comanches still ruled West Texas, no ranch in America is more steeped in the history of the West than the 6666. Still operating as it did two centuries before, and encompassing an entire county, the 6666 has inspired a new scripted series where the rule of law and the laws of nature merge in a place where the most dangerous thing one does is the next thing. The 6666 is synonymous with the merciless endeavor to raise the finest horses and livestock in the world, and ultimately where world-class cowboys are born and made.

Cast

A-listers have been flocking to Sheridan’s shows. He’s reeled in Nicole Kidman, Harrison Ford, Sylvester Stallone, Zoe Saldana, Helen Mirren, Jeremy Renner, Donald Sutherland, David Oyelowo, and (yes) Kevin Costner. Matthew McConaughey has officially joined a Yellowstone series, but the general assumption is that he might be leading 2024. What of the 6666 cast, though? In all likelihood, an ensemble cast will be the way to go, and it does seem likely that a few Yellowstone ranch hands, Walker (Ryan Bingham) and Jimmy (Jefferson White), are queued up to get their hands dirty while shooting at the Four Sixes.

Release Date

The writers’ and actors’ strikes slowed everything down (as Taylor Sheridan did acknowledge, but he is a writing machine and famously whipped out the Tulsa King pilot in less than 24 hours, so he can work at warp speed (and generally doesn’t rely on a team of writers) if he so desires. Or if he is so inspired! With that said, Paramount has not publicized an exact 6666 release date, but this spinoff seems to tailor made for an easy transition that it hopefully will not be long.

Trailer

No one is telling yet. In other words, no trailer exists yet, but here’s a reminder of what could be in store at the 6666 Ranch, where this Season 4 clip shows Ross letting Jimmy know the business.

Hold onto your hats and boots for more 6666 updates coming soon.

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A Legendary ‘Simpsons’ Director Shared His Drawing From The First Time Homer Choked Bart

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Homer Simpson’s horrible act of child abuse has been one of The Simpsons‘ most beloved running gags for literally decades. But for a few days last week, it sounded like Bart would no longer have to fear getting strangled by his dad (the macing, however…). That’s no longer the case. Producer James L. Brooks cleared up the confusion, telling People, “Nothing’s getting tamed. Nothing, nothing, nothing… He’ll continue to be strangled — you want to use that awful term for it. He’ll continue to be loved by his father in a specific way.”

Homer has been choking Bart since before The Simpsons even premiered. The first strangulation was in “Family Portrait,” a short that premiered during a 1988 episode of The Tracey Ullman Show. Legendary Simpsons director and animator David Silverman managed to dig up his drawing from way back.

“My first choking drawing — for Family Portrait (MG25) — aired 3/6/1988,” he wrote on X. “Probably drew it mid February 1988. And here’s my latest, drawn a couple weeks ago. It won’t be the last time I draw this…”

The Simpsons wouldn’t be The Simpsons without Homer strangling Bart… or Lisa strangling Bart… or Milhouse strangling Bart… or Sideshow Bob strangling Bart. Stick around until season 47, when Moleman gets to strangle Bart. Finally.

(Via @tubatron)

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What Is The Top Rap Song Of 2023 On ‘Billboard?’

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With just a couple of days to go until Thanksgiving, Billboard has released its year-end charts (the music industry, much like all those turkeys, pretty much dies with the holidays, so it is usually best not to count the last month of the year, which Mariah Carey rules with an iron fist anyway). Those charts tabulate all the sales and streams up til the second week of November (including, last year’s December stats), then tell us what we’ve listened to the most collectively (like Spotify Wrapped but for the US as a whole).

While country music, pop, and the rap-R&B of SZA dominated as a whole, the top hip-hop track of the year (at No. 5 overall) was Metro Boomin’s take on a mid-2000s classic. “Creepin’” featuring The Weeknd and 21 Savage covers Mario Winans’ 2004 hit “I Don’t Wanna Know,” which itself sampled the Fugees’ 1996 song “Ready or Not,” which in turn sampled Enya’s 1987 song “Boadicea.” Released on January 27 as a single from Metro’s then-latest album Heroes & Villains “Creepin’” peaked at No. 3 on the Hot 100 on February 6. It currently has over 1 billion streams on Spotify and 86 million cumulative views on YouTube across its visualizer, official music video, and audio stream (not including the seemingly dozens of bootleg streams).

Of course, if you don’t want to count that as the “top rap song” of 2023 since it only features a rap verse from 21 Savage, the next qualifying track also includes 21 Savage. “Rich Flex,” from Drake and 21’s joint album Her Loss also ranked near the top of the year-end list, coming in at No. 14. Sorry, Pusha T stans and Drake haters (same difference, right?) — it doesn’t look like The Boy has lost his touch just yet.

Other top tracks include “All My Life” by Lil Durk feat. J. Cole, “Just Wanna Rock” by Lil Uzi Vert, and “Fukumean” by Gunna. Also, Ice Spice really did prove to be the reigning princess of rap, appearing no fewer than four times on the list — the most of any female rapper.

You can check out the full list here.