GoneTrending

Movies, now more than ever! There was a lot of conversation over the weekend about how The Marvels underperformed at the box office, at least compared to other Marvel movies. But don’t let the fragile state of the MCU distract you from what we should be talking about: the number of good movies in theaters (and in one case, theaters and on streaming). Here are five worth checking out.

The Killer

David Fincher’s first film for Netflix was a biopic of Citizen Kane screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz. His second film for Netflix is a biopic about another Hollywood legend: himself. Sort of.

The Killer follows a detail-oriented assassin (played by Michal Fassbender) who has the worst possible thing happen to him: he loses control. Fincher has a (possibly overstated) reputation of being an obsessive filmmaker; he once did an estimated 200 takes for a single scene in Mank. In The Killer, he channels his own stick-to-the-plan tics into Fassbender’s unnamed hitman.

But Fincher is also self-aware enough to poke fun at his lead character, and by proxy, himself. The Killer is bleak, yes, and it has one of the gnarliest pummeling fight sequences you’ll see all year, but it’s also darkly funny. The only reason it’s not in the top-three of my personal Fincher rankings is because Zodiac, The Social Network, and Gone Girl are masterpieces. The Killer doesn’t quite get there, but it’s a solid number four.

Killers of the Flower Moon

Yes, it’s almost three and a half hours. Yes, there’s no intermission. Yes, you will probably have to pee. Blah blah blah. But should you miss Killers of the Flower Moon? Absolutely not. No living American filmmaker is a finer chronicler of masculinity than Francesca Scorsese’s dad, and Killers belongs among Goodfellas, The Irishman, and The Wolf of Wall Street. Yet, like Sharon Stone in Casino before her, it’s the one woman on the poster, the Oscar-worthy Lily Gladstone, who steals the show (er, movie) from her male co-stars.

Anatomy of a Fall

Anatomy of a Fall took home the Palme d’Or at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. Previous winners include The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, Pulp Fiction, and Parasite. Not too shabby. But did those films, or previous Palme d’Or champions Dancer in the Dark or All That Jazz, also win the Palm Dog Award, which celebrates “dog performances on the big screen”? Because Anatomy of a Fall did. Take THAT, Lars Von Trier. Justine Triet’s Anatomy of a Fall not only features an all-time great dog (and a brilliant human performance from Sandra Hüller), it’s also a thoughtful, riveting French legal drama about the way an accident — or was it a crime? — can expose the ugliest parts of ourselves to the public. You’ll never hear 50 Cent’s “P.I.M.P.” the same way again.

Priscilla

I have to admit that I haven’t found the time to see Priscilla yet, but the reviews for the film, especially actress Cailee Spaeny‘s lead performance as Priscilla Presley, are very good, and director Sofia Coppola has yet to make a bad movie. Even her “worst” film, 2020’s pandemic-released On the Rocks, has its moments. Plus, if it wasn’t for Priscilla, we would have never learned that tall king (of rock ‘n’ roll) Jacob Elordi learned about Elvis Presley from Lilo and Stitch. That alone makes it worth a watch.

The Holdovers

You know what the world needs more of? Movies to watch on cable on a lazy Sunday afternoon. The Holdovers fills that void. Working with Paul Giamatti for the first time since Sideways, Alexander Payne’s boarding-school throwback is about a curmudgeonly teacher (Giamatti, naturally) who looks after the students (including newcomer Dominic Sessa) who have nowhere to go during the holidays. The Holdovers is a bittersweet comedy that won’t surprise you (spoiler: it’s the student who teaches the educator a lesson), but it’s a prickly delight nonetheless. If you’re looking for something to watch with the family during Thanksgiving break or the holidays, make it The Holdovers.

The Philadelphia 76ers dropped a heartbreaker on the road in the opening game of the season to the Milwaukee Bucks and have not lost since.

At 8-1, they hold the NBA’s best record and have the most dominant tandem of the early season in Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid, who combined are averaging 61 points, 17.1 rebounds, 12.9 assists, 3.1 blocks, and 1.7 steals per game. Embiid’s performance comes as little surprise, as he’s picked up where he left off from an MVP campaign a year ago. Maxey, however, has taken a leap into superstardom while taking on an entirely new role as the leading man in the Sixers backcourt with the departure of James Harden.

The biggest concern for the Sixers with Harden’s departure was how the offense would run without him pulling the strings at point guard. There wasn’t an obvious answer on the roster to replace his playmaking, but they’ve managed to do that by way of Maxey’s improvement and a new scheme. Maxey’s uptick in scoring hasn’t come as a huge surprise, as he’s always shown an ability to get buckets, but the way he’s orchestrating the offense and keeping the Sixers flowing has been wildly impressive. Rarely does a young offensive player with his scoring ability also possess the understanding of how to keep the rest of the team involved and strike a balance between being aggressive looking for one’s own shot while also knowing when to move it along.

A change in offensive approach under Nick Nurse has also helped open things up as the Sixers have gone away from a pick-and-roll heavy offense to more motion, which helps keep the creative burden from landing solely on Maxey’s shoulders. While Embiid isn’t an elite passing big man, they leverage the attention he commands by using him more in handoff actions to create space for shooters. With more flow and a quicker pace, the Sixers are also able to attack defenses that are in rotation and not set, which allows Embiid to get more one-on-one opportunities without facing a wall of defenders between he and the rim.

While the Clippers struggle to adjust to the James Harden system in L.A., the Sixers are thriving without him. Maxey is the biggest reason for that, but so is an offensive approach that has picked up the pace (14th at 100.0 compared to 26th at 96.7 a year ago) and better leverages the skills of the full roster rather than just highlighting a two-man game between the stars.

Where do the Sixers land in this week’s DIME Power Rankings? Let’s find out…

1. Minnesota Timberwolves (7-2, Last week: 1)

The Wolves just keep winning and keep looking impressive. Anthony Edwards is a superstar, Karl-Anthony Towns is starting to wake up, and the defense is the best in the league. A 6-game winning streak will keep them in the top spot, and they just seem to be building confidence with every W.

2. Philadelphia 76ers (8-1, Last week: 4)

I wouldn’t argue with the Sixers in the top spot, as an 8-game winning streak is as good as it gets and Maxey and Embiid are the NBA’s best tandem right now. They’ve got some big games this week and we’ll see if they can keep it rolling.

3. Boston Celtics (8-2, Last week: 3)

Boston’s only loss this week came in a tight one against the Sixers and otherwise they are bludgeoning teams. Their defense has been terrific and the offense is absolutely rolling right now, with Jayson Tatum operating on an unbelievably high level. If he keeps this pace up, he’ll be firmly in the MVP race.

4. Denver Nuggets (8-2, Last week: 2)

It was a light week for Denver, as they split a pair of 3-point games against Golden State and Houston, but they’re going to face some challenges with Jamal Murray sidelined with a hammy. The bench unit was already thin and the burden shifts even further to Nikola Jokic, with Michael Porter Jr. stepping into the spotlight a bit more as well. Still, they’re in it every night thanks to the two-time MVP and if they can tread water for a few weeks til Murray gets back, they’ll be just fine.

5. Dallas Mavericks (8-2, Last week: 5)

Speaking of MVP candidates, Luka Doncic is off to a blistering start to the season averaging 32.6/8.6/8.5 on crazy efficiency and the Mavs offense is just about unstoppable. The defense can be a bit leaky, but they are just decent enough on that end to put the pressure on opponents to try and keep up in shootouts. So far, not many have proven capable.

6. Houston Rockets (6-3, Last week: 11)

Break up the Rockets! They’ve won six straight and look legitimately terrific. They most recently took down Denver in a tight one and they’re showing some very impressive poise in late game situations. Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks are off to great starts as veteran leaders, while Alperen Sengun and Jalen Green have taken steps forward, as the Rockets are starting to turn potential into actual results.

7. Miami Heat (6-4, Last week: 15)

The Heat are on a nice winning streak themselves thanks to one of the best stretches of play of Bam Adebayo’s career. He has become a more consistent presence on the offensive end to start this season, while still providing Miami with elite defense. That’s allowed them to keep winning even with Tyler Herro sidelined with an ankle injury, with some help from Jimmy Butler starting to find his rhythm as well.

8. Oklahoma City Thunder (6-4, Last week: 8)

The young Thunder are impressively competitive, with three of their four losses coming by single digits. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander continues to play spectacularly, Jalen Williams has taken steps forward, and Chet Holmgren has been an immediate positive impact player on both ends in his first 10 games as a pro. They are solid on both ends of the floor and certainly look the part of a team that will be a factor in the West playoff race all the way through the end of the season.

9. Indiana Pacers (6-4, Last week: 12)

The Pacers keep picking up wins behind a lethal offensive attack. The defense is an adventure and every game is a shootout, but they have the best offense in the league and can get away with it most nights. Tyrese Haliburton has become one of the best facilitators in the league and continues to shoot it at a high rate, as he trends towards another All-Star nod in the East.

10. Sacramento Kings (5-4, Last week: 28)

The Kings bounced back from their losing streak in a big way this week by winning all three of their games to leap back up the rankings. De’Aaron Fox’s return in a win over the Cavs was a welcome sight and if they can just crack the lid on the basket from three (33.4 percent on the year as a team), they will be a threat again in the West playoff race.

11. Milwaukee Bucks (6-4, Last week: 7)

There’s just nothing easy for the Bucks right now. It’s a credit to their talent level that they keep gutting out wins despite playing as sloppily as they have, but it’s also a bit concerning how hard everything looks for them. The defense has gotten better since going back to drop coverage with Brook Lopez but still has issues, and offensively they’re not bad but it just looks far more difficult for them to consistently create good looks than it should for a team with Dame and Giannis.

12. Atlanta Hawks (5-4, Last week: 9)

The Hawks split their two games this week against division foes and as such mostly hold pat in the rankings. The good news is Trae Young is starting to shake free of his early season rut, but the defense has some holes that need to be shored up. The next task for Atlanta is to figure out how to be more consistent, because the highs are high, but the lows are unfortunately too low.

13. Orlando Magic (5-4, Last week: 13)

The Magic will feel like they let one slip away with a loss to the Hawks in Mexico City, but they bounced back impressively to thump the Bucks back in Orlando. Their defense is legit, they just need a little bit more consistency in terms of offensive output to match it.

14. Los Angeles Lakers (5-5, Last week: 16)

The Lakers are now managing nagging injuries to LeBron and Anthony Davis, which is always concerning given how early it is in the season, but they’re getting very good play from D’Angelo Russell as a playmaker and have been able to tread water despite their stars being banged up. The question will be whether they can find their footing from three, as they are 29th in the NBA at 30.4 percent from deep so far this season.

15. New York Knicks (5-5, Last week: 17)

The Knicks were rolling up until Monday night when they got thumped by the Celtics. There’s no real shame in that, but it was a reminder of where they stand in the East’s hierarchy. If Julius Randle can get it figured out, this team would be an awful lot more dynamic, as the backcourt led by Jalen Brunson and R.J. Barrett are off to a good start but aren’t getting the requisite help. Mitchell Robinson also is doing yeoman’s work, averaging more offensive (5.8) than defensive (5.6) rebounds this season, which has helped keep their offense afloat despite a league-worst field goal percentage as a group.

16. Toronto Raptors (5-5, Last week: 22)

The Raptors likewise have been playing well aside from a lopsided loss to Boston. Scottie Barnes has been excellent this season, finally building on the two-way promise of his Rookie of the Year campaign, and overall the Raptors have shown some signs of life recently on offense after a woeful start to the year. There are still nights they can’t get out of first gear, but there’s a bit of optimism that they’re starting to take to Darko Rajakovic’s system. They don’t need to be wildly dynamic on that end if they keep it up defensively, but finding a bit more consistency and efficiency would be helpful.

17. Brooklyn Nets (5-5, Last week: 19)

Cam Thomas’ injury is a bummer as he was one of the best stories of the first couple of weeks, but Brooklyn has held steady in his (and Ben Simmons) absence. Brooklyn is doing a very good job of beating teams in the middle and bottom of the league, which is how you stay in the mix even when you’re overmatched when playing against the top teams.

18. Cleveland Cavaliers (4-6, Last week: 18)

Darius Garland is back, which hopefully can get the Cavs offense back on track after being stuck in the mud for much of the young season. They have been the definition of mid to start the year, with a 19th ranked offense and a 20th ranked defense despite a roster that should be better at both ends.

19. Golden State Warriors (6-5, Last week: 6)

The Warriors have lost three straight but all three have come by single digits. Still, the offense beyond Stephen Curry is a concern as he is the only Warrior with a 20-point game this season, which seems impossible but is somehow true. Andrew Wiggins has been dreadful to start the year and Klay Thompson has been pedestrian at best, and it goes without saying that if Golden State is going to be a contender, those two have to be much better.

20. Phoenix Suns (4-6, Last week: 23)

It turns out not having a point guard might be a bad thing. The Suns miss Devin Booker’s ability to create for others dearly on offense, as, even with Bradley Beal back on the court, they’re just not able to fire on all cylinders. Kevin Durant has been excellent as expected, but things just aren’t flowing particularly well for the Suns and they can’t string together wins right now.

21. New Orleans Pelicans (4-6, Last week: 10)

Things have taken a turn for the Pelicans after a strong start to the year. The offense looks disjointed without CJ McCollum, as they struggle to figure out how to keep things flowing beyond asking Zion Williamson or Brandon Ingram to create for themselves. As a team they’re not shooting the ball well, the defense isn’t very good, and everything just seems just a little off in New Orleans.

22. Chicago Bulls (4-7, Last week: 24)

The Bulls are a tough watch on offense. They’re 27th in the league in both shooting percentage and assists per game, as the ball sticks a lot and their stars have a propensity for seeking out difficult shots. None of this is particularly new for the Bulls, but so far this year they haven’t been able to pull out as many wins in close games and the result is a 4-7 record. Alex Caruso is playing incredible defense this year and that’s been the most enjoyable part of watching Bulls basketball so far this season.

23. Utah Jazz (3-7, Last week: 26)

The Jazz are a tire fire on defense. They have officially ducked below the Hornets on that end to have the league’s worst DRtg, and they do not have a good enough offense to make up for that most nights. Lauri Markkanen continues to be great and John Collins looks like the guy we saw a few years ago in Atlanta, but the backcourt is woefully inefficient and, again, they cannot stop anyone.

24. Los Angeles Clippers (3-6, Last week: 14)

The James Harden experiment is off to a very poor start in L.A., as they’ve lost 5 straight since the trade got finalized (the last four with Harden in the lineup). Lineups with Harden have a -25.8 net rating, which is hard to do, and no one seems comfortable on the floor right now. Things will get better with time, but I’m skeptical of just how much better they will get considering this is a team that’s supposed to be a title contender.

25. Charlotte Hornets (3-6, Last week: 25)

The Hornets have given up 124 or more points in six of their last seven games. That is exceedingly bad, especially for a Steve Clifford coached team, and I’m not sure where they go from here. On the bright side, Brandon Miller has shown some flashes and LaMelo Ball is still a very good offensive player. Otherwise, it’s a bit bleak in Charlotte at the moment.

26. Memphis Grizzlies (2-8, Last week: 27)

The Grizzlies won another game, beating the aimless Clippers on the road, and they’ve been close in all of their recent games, with their last three losses coming by six or fewer points. That’s maybe showing some signs of life and if they can just figure out how to go 8-7 in the next 15 games without Ja Morant they will have a chance of rebounding. That might be asking a lot, but if you’re a Grizzlies fan, that’s got to be where your hope lies.

27. Portland Trail Blazers (3-6, Last week: 21)

Portland has lost three straight, but they have been competitive in all three. That’s probably the ideal way for this season to go for the Blazers, albeit they’ll want Scoot Henderson healthy again soon. In his absence, Shaedon Sharpe is playing a comical number of minutes (39.4 per game) but is playing very well despite the heavy workload and that has to be the biggest positive for Portland so far this season.

28. San Antonio Spurs (3-7, Last week: 20)

The Spurs are the epitome of a young team learning to win. They have not had good success holding leads this season, but, like Portland, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Victor Wembanyama is very fun, even if he still clearly has lots to learn about playing in the NBA, and the Spurs are competitive more nights than not, which is a step forward for this group.

29. Washington Wizards (2-8, Last week: 30)

The funniest team in the NBA was at it again on Monday night, as they blew a big lead in Toronto and provided another funny lowlight in the form of giving up a 5-on-4 possession because Kyle Kuzma walked to the bench on the other end of the court asking for a challenge that was not given.

They did win a game this week, so they avoid the bottom spot in the rankings — I would like to petition the league to let the Wizards and Hornets play 82 games this year cause that would be far more entertaining and competitive for everyone involved. Also, Bilal Coulibaly has been terrific as a rookie, giving Wizards fans a little reason for optimism in what figures to be an otherwise rough season.

30. Detroit Pistons (2-9, Last week: 29)

The Pistons have lost eight straight after a solid first week, and they just do not seem to have enough on the offensive end right now. Cade Cunningham is being asked to do everything for this team and as a result he’s finding it tough to be efficient, both as a scorer and passer, even while showing flashes of brilliance. There’s an outline of a strong core, with Cunningham, Jalen Duren (who is currently out with an ankle injury), and Ausar Thompson, who looks like an elite defender already. Marcus Sasser is also popping from his bench spot, with some calls for him to get an expanded role. This is a team that could really use Bojan Bogdanovic and Joe Harris to get healthy and provide some spacing so they can at least see what this young group really looks like with capable veterans mixed in.

The Trolls are back, though this time several new band members have entered the mix.

Trolls Band Together, the third film in the franchise, follows Poppy (Anna Kendrick) who learns that her new Troll boyfriend Branch (Justin Timberlake) was actually a member of the former boyband BroZone. This obviously mimics the real-life past of Timberlake, though he’s definitely trying to keep that behind him for now.

When one of Branch’s old bandmates gets kidnapped, the trolls have to band together to find him. Get it? They are a boy band. It makes sense. Here is the official synopsis:

As they grow closer, Poppy discovers that Branch has a secret past. He was once part of her favorite boyband phenomenon, BroZone, with his four brothers: Floyd (Sivan), John Dory (André), Spruce (Diggs) and Clay (Cudi). BroZone disbanded when Branch was still a baby, as did the family, and Branch hasn’t seen his brothers since. But when Branch’s bro Floyd is kidnapped for his musical talents by a pair of nefarious pop-star villains — Velvet (Schumer) and Veneer (Rannells) — Branch and Poppy embark on a harrowing and emotional journey to reunite the other brothers and rescue Floyd from a fate even worse than pop-culture obscurity.

The film hits theaters on November 17th. As part of Universal’s slightly convoluted deal with Netflix, it will stream on Peacock for four months after its initial theatrical run, then will move to Netflix for ten months, and then will return to Peacock for the remaining four.

Trolls Band Together is expected to be in theaters for 45 days, so we could get to see those BroZone boys up on Peacock first, then Netflix by spring 2024 at the earliest. That’s when you’ll be able to hear that new NSYNC song from the comfort of your living room.

(Via Deadline)

Godzilla is smashing into the Thanksgiving season, so we you hope made lots of food. After last appearing in Godzilla Vs. Kong, the giant lizard is back with an all-new streaming series for Apple TV+, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters.

Starring Kurt Russell and his son Wyatt, Monarch is set in the same cinematic universe as the recent Godzilla and Kong films. The series will take a generation-spanning look at the secretive organization that seems to know way too much about the massive titans that once ruled the Earth and have returned to assert their dominance with devastating results.

Here’s what you need to know about the show before it launches:

Plot

From the official synopsis:

Following the thunderous battle between Godzilla and the Titans that leveled San Francisco, and the shocking revelation that monsters are real, “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” tracks two siblings following in their father’s footsteps to uncover their family’s connection to the secretive organization known as Monarch. Clues lead them into the world of monsters and ultimately down the rabbit hole to Army officer Lee Shaw (played by Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell), taking place in the 1950s and half a century later where Monarch is threatened by what Shaw knows. The dramatic saga – spanning three generations – reveals buried secrets and the ways that epic, earth-shattering events can reverberate through our lives.

Cast

Alongside the father and son Russells, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters also stars Anna Sawai, Anders Holm, Mari Yamamoto, Ren Watabe, Kiersey Clemons, and John Goodman reprising his role of Bill Randa from Kong: Skull Island.

Release Date

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters will smash onto Apple TV+ with a two-episode premiere on November 17. Weekly episodes will drop every Friday.

Trailer

You can watch the official trailer below:

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters premieres November 17 on Apple TV+.

If you’ve spent any amount of time on YouTube at all, you probably know about Lofi Girl. The “lofi hip-hop” streaming channel has become ubiquitous, even inspiring Halloween costumes. The Lofi Girl stream even has its own lore, which unfolds in mysterious, days-long events that introduce new characters and events that’ll shake up the life of the animated, forever studio titular character (one’s going on right now; you can check it out above). Even if you know all this, you may not know exactly who is behind the stream and its growing popularity.

Although the Lofi Girl creator chooses to remain mostly anonymous, there are some details out there in the world. The YouTube stream was originally started as ChilledCow in 2017 by a lo-fi hip-hop fan who called himself Dimitri (no last name) in a New York Times interview. Dimitri initially used footage of the character Shizuku Tsukishima from the Studio Ghibli film Whisper Of The Heart but the stream was taken down for copyright infringement. The stream was pulled down again in 2020 and in 2022 for copyright strikes against the music used, although Dimitri said he always got permission and the strikes were of dubious origin.

In March 2021, the name was changed to Lofi Girl in honor of the now-familiar character (whose name is Jade, by the way). Jade was created by a Colombian artist named Juan Pablo Machado in response to Dimitri’s call for artists to replace the former character. Machado later decided to set the character’s iconic room in La Croix-Rousse in Lyon, France, which can be seen through her window. And across the way is Synthwave Boy.

Now, if only we knew what that snowflake is all about…

Two GOP-fueled clashes have happened thus far on Tuesday, and the day is barely half over yet. Surprisingly enough as well, rootin’ tootin’ Lauren Boebert was not involved in either of these fights. Then again, she surely wants to tone down her firebrand ways after a certain “high school” insult (about her alleged promiscuity) got tossed her way last week. So, these feuds are all about the congressional dudes, and boy, they need to get it together.

One altercation was so pumped-up with attempted flexing that Bernie Sanders had to get involved to stop fists from actually flying. Sen. Markwayne Mullin, who owns a plumbing company in Oklahoma, had it out with Teamsters President Sean O’Brien. The launching point for the below video involves Mullin taking issue with a June tweet, in which O’Brien not only took a visual swing at Mullin’s height but also labeled him as a “[g]reedy CEO who pretends like he’s self made. In reality, just a clown & fraud. Always has been, always will be. Quit the tough guy act in these senate hearings. You know where to find me. Anyplace, Anytime cowboy. #LittleManSyndrome.”

That’s not all. During a March hearing, Mullin previously shouted “shut your mouth!” at O’Brien after detailing how Teamsters were once allegedly “leaning up against my trucks” while attempting to organize his employees. And the acrimonious nature continued on Tuesday with O’Brien vowing that he’d be ready to fight “any time, any place.” Mullin stood up like he was ready to throw down, and that’s when Bernie stepped in.

Poor Bernie. He would rather be sitting over there and making grumpy faces, but his GOP colleagues are all pumped up for some reason.

The second fiasco involves recently ousted ex-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who still isn’t getting along with all of his colleagues. Rep. Tim Burchett accused McCarthy of elbowing him with a “clean shot to the kidneys.” At that link, CNN detailed how McCarthy denied doing so, but NPR congressional correspondent Claudia Grisales relayed in a Twitter thread how she witnessed how McCarthy “shoved” Burchett before a “chase” broke out.

Burchett insisted to Grisales that the two men haven’t been on speaking terms, but man, this sequence of events tells a tale.

And it’s only Tuesday!

Something interesting happened at the Guggenheim a few years ago. The famed museum hosted an installation from a conceptual artist named Maurizio Cattelan that became a bit of a sensation in the art community and, look, I’m just going say it: We’re talking about a fully functional solid gold toilet. He called the whole thing “America,” which is really just very mean and also perfect. Visitors could go in and use the toilet — again, fully functional — for three minutes at a time. Lots of leisurely number ones and frantically rushed number twos, one assumes, with the “one” in this situation being me, because I thought about the golden toilet a lot.

Here, look, the New York Times wrote about it at the time.

It has been one of the smallest exhibitions in the museum’s history, comprising a single work of art: a fully functional 18-karat gold toilet, designed by the puckish Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan and installed in a single-occupancy museum restroom. But it has been popular with visitors, some of whom waited in line for an hour to test its metal.

“More than 100,000 people have waited patiently in line for the opportunity to commune with art and with nature,” wrote Nancy Spector, the Guggenheim’s artistic director and chief curator, on the museum’s website.

All good things come to an end eventually, though, and so did the golden toilet’s run at the Guggenheim. Two years after its debut, it was time to find a new home. Which, naturally, because why wouldn’t this be where a fully functioning solid gold toilet ends up, turned out to be a place called Blenheim Palace in England, a historical site best known for being the childhood home of Winston Churchill. A thing you will learn as we continue on here is that every twist in this story is so delightful that I’m not sure it could even exist in fiction. Real life is sometimes weird enough without help.

But anyway, maybe you saw that and thought “Hey, do they have enough security at Winston Churchill’s childhood home to protect a solid gold toilet? Like, the Guggenheim has guards and cameras and the NYPD is a phone call away. What if someone tries to steal the solid gold toilet?”

The Churchill family considered this but brushed it off for reasons explained by the dude who lives in the palace.

In August 2019, Edward Spencer-Churchill, the brother of the Duke of Marlborough who resides at Blenheim Palace, spoke to The Times, saying, “It’s not going to be the easiest thing to [steal]. Firstly, it’s plumbed in and secondly a potential thief will have no idea who last used the toilet or what they ate. So no, I don’t plan on guarding it.”

It brings me more pleasure than any of you can possibly imagine to tell you that the golden toilet was stolen two days after it was installed. Thieves broke in at 4:30 a.m. and ripped it out of the wall and left. This is interesting to me for three reasons:

• As a lover of very silly heists, who has written at this very website about thefts of everything from maple syrup to six-figures worth of ramen to Cadbury Creme eggs to a massive statue of Shrek, the opportunity to type “GOLDEN TOILET HEIST” was and is just very thrilling
• I choose to believe the thieves had no intention of stealing the golden toilet until they read the quote where the guy pretty openly said it wasn’t going to be guarded and then they were like “well, geez, we’d be stupid not to at least try”
• Some of the official quotes released by the interested parties after the robbery are really just beautiful

Look at this one.

“Due to the toilet being plumbed in to the building, this has caused significant damage and flooding. We believe a group offenders used at least two vehicles during the offense.”

Two notes here:

• Let’s be very clear about this: The childhood home of Winston Churchill was ravaged by substantial water damage because thieves ripped a fully functioning golden toilet out of the wall after the owner of the home kind of dared them to do it
• I choose to picture this exactly like the scene in Fast Five where Vin Diesel and his crew ripped a vault out of the headquarters of a crooked Brazilian businessman and fled through the streets with it towed behind them

Basically this, but with a golden toilet.

Moving on.

“The piece of art that has been stolen is a high value toilet made out of gold that was on display at the palace,” said Detective Inspector Jess Milne of Thames Valley Police at the time of the theft.

Imagine you get into law enforcement to right wrongs, to provide justice to the people who have been hurt or harmed by criminal activity, and you rise through the ranks to become Detective Inspector, and then one day you find yourself standing in front of a microphone saying the words “a high value toilet made out of gold.”

What a journey.

The New York Times also tracked down the artist himself, who said this.

Shortly after the robbery, Mr. Cattelan told The New York Times in an email that his first reaction was to think it was a prank. “Who’s so stupid to steal a toilet?” he said. He “had forgotten for a second that it was made out of gold,” he added

Hmm. Yes, I love him even more now.

But we press on. There was an arrest pretty much immediately but nothing stuck and the suspect was released. Time passed. Two whole years. No arrests, no sign of the golden toilet. At one point, seven people were charged but released. We had a full-on golden toilet mystery on our hands. My favorite quote about it all came from the guy at the company that insured it, who very much wanted to recover it instead of writing a check for millions of dollars with “for the stolen gold toilet” scribbled into the memo line.

Insurance firm Fine Art Specie Adjusters (FASA) said the reward, for safe return of the property leading to an arrest, still stood.

Director Philip Austin said: “No-one has come forward for the reward money yet… Initially there were lots of inquiries but now it’s all gone quiet.”

Two notes again here:

• It’s fun to picture a very sexy and mysterious insurance investigator — male or female, your choice, although I am going with “Rene Russo in The Thomas Crown Affair” for reasons I do not have to explain to any of you — flying around the world on private planes and wearing many thousands of dollars worth of designer turtlenecks all in search of a golden toilet some dudes yoinked out of a wall
• Please take a minute today and really think about the smorgasbord of bozo prank calls that must have come into the tip line for information about the stolen gold toilet

But then…

After many years…

A break in the case.

Earlier this month, police in England announced that four arrests had been made. Four years after the theft. Of the gold toilet. They worked on this case for four years. I know they probably worked on other cases between, but I’m just going to go ahead and pretend there was a Golden Toilet Task Force assigned to this case, specifically. With a war room and unlimited budget and everything. I’m picturing the full-on CSI lab here. There are lasers for some unknown reason. You should see the smile on my face as I am typing this.

The only sad part about the whole thing is that these arrests — should they lead to convictions, and yes, it is outrageously funny to think about a wild media circus trial with charismatic defense attorneys that ends in four Not Guilty verdicts — bring an end to the saga of the stolen solid gold toilet. Which is a shame. For me. It’s probably good for everyone else. But I guess I’ll just have to accept that it’s over and that there are no other rocks to turn over related to missing golden toi-…

To this day, the toilet has not been found.

Yes.

YES.

THE SAGA CONTINUES.

I NEED CONSTANT UPDATES ON THE HUNT FOR THE GOLDEN TOILET

MAYBE A REALITY SHOW

I KNOW IT WAS PROBABLY JUST MELTED DOWN MANY YEARS AGO BECAUSE THE RESALE MARKET ON FULLY FUNCTIONING SOLID GOLD TOILETS CAN’T BE THAT GREAT

BUT WHATEVER

LET ME HAVE SOME FUN

THE GOLDEN TOILET IS OUT THERE

WHAT HERO WILL FIND IT?

IT COULD BE YOU!

The more things change, the more they stay the same. The last time Tyler The Creator and his Odd Future family took over Dodger Stadium for Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival was four years ago and I wrote at the time that while the “mystery headliner” gamble didn’t pay off, “Camp Flog Gnaw is still one of the best festival experiences for your money.” Since then, the festival was derailed by a global pandemic and put on ice for another three years, during which the pop culture landscape shifted in all kinds of unexpected ways.

Yet, in its return to the fabled stadium overlooking Los Angeles, the festival not only lived up to that assessment but surpassed it; despite being gone from the public eye for nearly four years, Camp Flog Gnaw has become the best festival in America. There are myriad reasons for this, but we’ve listed the strongest ones below.

Dodger Stadium: The Ideal Venue For Camp Flog Gnaw

As the old saying goes, “Location, location, location.” You don’t get very many better locations than the famed Blue Heaven On Earth. Situated on its unnamed hill overlooking scenic Elysian Park and the sparse but dazzling LA skyline, the view is unmatched, aided by the famed West Coast weather that draws transplants — some enthusiastically, others reluctantly — from all around the world.

This year’s festival made incredibly effective use of its footprint in the sprawling lots surrounding the stadium. Where the previous iterations scattered the stages around the stadium itself, this year, they were lined up parallel to each other facing toward home plate. While the side-by-side arrangement created some slight sound bleed and the need to walk past the Camp stage to get from Flog to Gnaw and vice versa, it was an easy walk, affording the opportunity to check out the main stage between the intermediate and small stage sets.

The Crowd: Kids Who Grew Up In An Odd Future

Bless the Rolling Loud kids, but they are just a little too exuberant for me. Flog Gnaw is similar in age and diversity, but remarkably chiller — more “golden retriever” energy when compared to RL’s labradors. It’s definitely the best fest for people-watching, with attendees decked out in their best Tyler The Creator cosplay, from Doug sweater vests to Igor suits. I even spotted a few Tyler Baudelaire ushankas — the 80-degree LA weather notwithstanding.

And going back to that intro line, there was something comforting about seeing the shaggy looks of my millennial youth being so lovingly recreated by that generation’s descendants (did you know jorts are back, along with whale tails?). They’re a friendly bunch too; I found myself roped into an affable group made up of a tall white kid, a Filipino/Latino guy, a Persian Iranian, and a black rocker and felt like one of the gang.

The Lineup, From Kendrick Lamar and Baby Keem To Ice Spice and PinkPantheress

I mean, duh, right? But there’s something to the level of effort Tyler devotes to curating the lineup each year. While most other fests seemingly recycle the same buzzy names based on social engagement and streaming numbers, T selects friends and artists he’s genuinely a fan of. Witness his going absolutely ballistic in the photo pit for Sunday night’s Clipse set, rhyming “We Got It For Cheap” word for word.

The mutual appreciation that the artists display for each other radiates from stage to stage. Whether it’s the more left-field or underground acts on the Gnaw stage like AG Club, BADBADNOTGOOD, Redveil, and Toro Y Moi, or the nascent rockers like Kevin Abstract and Teezo Touchdown, these artists all genuinely love Tyler, and they love playing Flog Gnaw. This isn’t just “show up and collect a check” stuff. Headliners like Kendrick Lamar and Baby Keem showed out as well, even if they weren’t mainstays like Syd, Domo Genesis, or Earl Sweatshirt.

It’s also affirming to see how the crowd responds to these acts that mainstream observers overlook or sneer down their noses at. During Teezo’s set, his rapport with the crowd was ironclad and they sang every song from his album — only a few months old — at top volume. Ice Spice, for all the hand-wringing being done by folks my age and older (I’m getting sick of talking about it too, by the way, maybe y’all should chill out), delivered a blazing set that displayed real technical proficiency (her breath control is underrated) and had white boys in the crowd declaring their undying love.

Tyler The Creator, The Brains Behind The Operation

But really, the main thing that makes Flog Gnaw what it is, is its … ahem … creator. 10 years on from the formation and explosion of Odd Future, Tyler Okonma has found the balance between the angry, aggressive kid he was at the outset and the cheeky genius he showed flashes of until 2017 when he flourished with Flower Boy.

During his set, he joked with fans about his lack of new music, ribbed them gleefully about the last time we all gathered at this spot and they booed his beloved headliner, Drake, and offered moments of both humility and unhinged excess. Going from earnestly thanking his most loyal fans for returning from the uncertainly of pandemic living to flexing a literal flamethrower takes panache and a certain immodesty, and fortunately for all of us, Tyler has both in spades. Watching the “campers” depart at the end of the fest felt a lot like the end of summer — nostalgic for the recently made memories and already looking forward to next year.

Check out an exclusive photo gallery from Camp Flog Gnaw 2023 below

Tyler The Creator

The Hillbillies (Kendrick Lamar and Baby Keem)

Willow

Camp Flog Gnaw

PinkPantheress

Lil Yachty

Dominic Fike

Clipse

Kevin Abstract

Ravyn Lenae

Turnstile

Teezo Touchdown

Beabadoobee

Syd

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

Madi Diaz is only a few short months from releasing her new album, Weird Faith, but she is giving fans another surprise to look forward to in 2024. She announced her new headlining tour, which will kick off in January, as she plays shows across North America.

She will be joined by Olivia Barton, Jack Van Cleaf, and Daniel Nunnelee as support on select dates.

All tickets for the shows will go on sale this Friday, November 17, with more information available on Diaz’s website.

Today, Diaz also dropped her “Don’t Do Me Good” collaboration with Kacey Musgraves, which you can check out here.

Continue scrolling for a complete list of Madi Diaz’s new tour dates.

01/14/2024 — Morgantown, WV @ Mountain Stage
02/21/2024 — Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West *
02/22/2024 — Durham, NC @ Motorco Music Hall *
02/23/2024 — Charlotte, NC @ Neighborhood Theatre *
02/24/2024 — Charlottesville, VA @ Jefferson Theater *
02/27/2024 — Washington, DC @ The Atlantis *
02/28/2024 — Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live
02/29/2024 — Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair *
03/01/2024 — Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
03/03/2024 — Toronto, ON @ The Danforth Music Hall *
03/05/2024 — Ann Arbor, MI @ The Ark #
03/06/2024 — Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall #
03/07/2024 — St. Louis, MO @ Off Broadway #
03/08/2024 — Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl #
03/16/2024 — Dallas, TX @ The Kessler Theater
03/19/2024 — Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater %
03/20/2024 — Fort Collins, CO @ Aggie Theatre %
03/22/2024 — Salt Lake City, UT @ The State Room %
03/25/2024 — Vancouver, BC @ Fox Cabaret %
03/26/2024 — Seattle, WA @ Madame Lou’s %
03/27/2024 — Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge %
03/29/2024 — Oakland, CA @ The New Parish %
03/30/2024 — Felton, CA @ Felton Music Hall %
04/02/2024 — San Diego, CA @ Music Box %
04/04/2024 — Los Angeles, CA @ Troubadour %

* with Olivia Barton
# with Jack Van Cleaf
% with Daniel Nunnelee

The year has been filled with star-studded hip-hop collaborations. Drake and 21 Savage kicked things off last year with their Grammy Award-nominated album, Her Loss. Last week, Meek Mill and Rick Ross dropped their joint project, Too Good To Be True. Now fans patiently await the arrival of Lil Wayne and 2 Chainz’s long-awaited album, Collegrove 2.

The pair has already shared its lead single, “Presha.” Today (November 14), the full tracklist has been revealed, and it features guest appearances by 21 Savage, Usher, Ross, Benny The Butcher, Vory, and Marsha Ambrosius.

Based on the duo’s appearances on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, their highly anticipated joint album will be well worth the wait.

View the full tracklist and artwork for Collegrove 2 below.

1. “Scene 1: Welcome 2 Collegrove”
2. “G6”
3. “Big Diamonds” Feat. 21 Savage
4. “Presha”
5. “Long Story Short”
6. “Scene 2: Duffle Bag Boys”
7. “Million From Now”
8. “Crazy Thick”
9. “Transparency Feat. Usher
10. “Significant Other”
11. “Scene 3: Ladies Man”
12. “PPA” Feat. Fabolous
13. “Oprah & Gayle” Feat. Benny The Butcher
14. “Shame”
15. “Bars”
16. “Scene 4: No Fent”
17. “Godzilla” Feat. Vory
18. “Crown Snatcher”
19. “Can’t Believe You” Feat. Rick Ross
20. “Scene 5: Never Was Lost”
21. “Moonlight” Feat. Marsha Ambrosius

Welcome 2 ColleGrove is out 11/17 via Def Jam Recordings. Find more information here.

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