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Boo-able Warner Bros. Discovery honcho David Zaslav has made many boneheaded decisions during his tenure, but perhaps the cruelest involved shelving two movies that were almost complete. One was the animated Scooby-Doo sequel. The other was Batgirl, which was to deepen the since mid-revamping DCEU. Instead Zaslav put all his chips on The Flash. That didn’t go so hot. And now, a year after the shelving, Batgirl’s directors are opening up about the aftermath.

In an interview with Insider, Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, who also helmed the threequel Bad Boys for Life, spoke about what it was like to see The Flash, the movie that Zaslav let live while snuffing theirs out.

“We watched it and we were sad,” Adil said. “We love director Andy Muschietti and his sister Barbara, who produced the movie. But when we watched it, we felt we could have been part of the whole thing.”

They lamented how the movie was essentially just erased, seen only by certain cast and crew members.

“We didn’t get the chance to show Batgirl to the world and let the audience judge for themselves,” Adil said. “Because the audience really is our ultimate boss and should be the deciders of if something is good or bad, or if something should be seen or not.”

So what was Batgirl even like? “Our movie was very different than The Flash,” Adil explained. “That has a big fantasy component, ours was more grounded. More like Tim Burton’s Gotham City.”

Adil called the ordeal the “biggest disappointment of our careers.” And yet they’re not above working for Warner Bros. Discovery again.

“There’s still a feeling of unfinished business,” Bilall said.

“Our love for DC, Batman, Batgirl, Gotham City, it’s so big that, as fans, we could never say no to another project,” added Adil. “If we got another chance to be part of it, we’d do it. We didn’t get our day in court. We still want to make our case.”

In the meantime, at least they have a new movie coming to theaters: the Syrian war drama Rebel. And perhaps Batgirl may one day see the light of day, one of these days.

(Via Insider)

The final game of Week 1 of the 2023 NFL season was also the most anticipated, as the Buffalo Bills visited the New York Jets on Monday Night Football for the debut of Aaron Rodgers.

It was a raucous atmosphere in MetLife Stadium, with the added emotion of it being September 11, with Rodgers taking the field last in intros to wild applause.

After the Jets forced the Bills to punt on their opening drive, the crowd went wild for Rodgers and the Jets as they took the field, but after a big run from Breece Hall on the first play of the game, the reality of the Jets offensive line concerns returned to focus. Rodgers was under pressure a number of times on his first drive, ultimately getting sacked by Leonard Floyd on a first down drop back. During that sack it appeared he had his left foot get caught in the turf and after getting up and trying to move around, he sat back down and had to be helped off the field by the training staff.

That meant Zach Wilson had to enter the game at quarterback and the Jets offense stalled out while Rodgers was back in the medical tent. Shortly after, as the Bills came out for their second drive of the game, the cart was brought to the Jets sideline and Rodgers was taken back towards the locker room for further evaluation. The official first update from the Jets was it was indeed an ankle injury and Rodgers was questionable to return — Wilson was back under center for the Jets second drive of the game.

His status is obviously vital to the Jets achieving their goals as a team this season, and even if he’s able to return and it’s minor, there is still some level of concern about him picking up an ankle injury this early in the season that they will now have to monitor and manage the rest of the way.

UPDATE: Rodgers reportedly left the X-ray room in a walking boot, which makes it seem unlikely he will play again on Monday night but that he’s walking in a boot could be a mild positive that it isn’t an injury that will threaten his season long-term.

It’s only been a year since the release of Rod Wave’s album, Beautiful Mind. He’s already back into the studio, with the follow-up, Nostalgia, on the verge of release.

In a clip shared on Rod’s official TikTok page, he discussed what inspired the title of the forthcoming release. “It ain’t the destination, it’s the journey for real,” he said. “That’s why I named this album, ‘Nostalgia.’ Back then, I was thinking about the future or the past instead of living in the moment.”

Here’s everything we know so far about Rod Wave’s Nostalgia.

Release Date

Nostalgia is out on 9/15 via Alamo Records/Sony Music. Find more information here.

Tracklist

The official tracklist for Nostalgia has not yet been revealed. However, on Apple Music, the listing suggests that there will be a total of 18 tracks. Only three song titles are visible, each one a previously promoted single.

3. “Call Your Friends”
5. “Come See Me”
9. “Fight The Feeling”

Singles

So far, Rod has shared “Call Your Friends,” “Come See Me,” and “Fight The Feeling.”

Artwork

View the official artwork below.

Tour

In support of the album, Rod will hit the road on the Nostalgia Tour alongside featured guests Ari Lennox, Toosii, G Herbo, and EELmatic in October. Fan pre-sale will begin on Tuesday, September 12. A venue pre-sale will start on Wednesday, September 13. General ticket sales start on Thursday, September 14. All sales begin at 10 am local time. View the tour schedule below. Find more information here.

10/19 — Lincoln, NE @ Pinnacle Bank Arena
10/20 — St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center
10/21 — Milwaukee, WI @ Fiserv Forum
10/23 — Kansas City, MO @ T-Mobile Center
10/24 — Indianapolis, IN @ Gainbridge Fieldhouse
10/26 — Louisville, KY @ KFC Yum! Center
10/27 — Detroit, MI @ Little Caesars Arena
10/29 — Pittsburgh, PA @ PPG Paints Arena
10/30 — Columbus, OH @ Nationwide Arena
11/02 — Toronto, ON @ Scotiabank Arena
11/04 — Baltimore, MD @ CFG Bank Arena
11/07 — Albany, NY @ MVP Arena
11/08 — Boston, MA @ TD Garden
11/09 — Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center
11/11 — Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center
11/12 — Washington, DC @ Capital One Arena
11/14 — Raleigh, NC @ PNC Arena
11/15 — Charlotte, NC @ Spectrum Center
11/16 — Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena
11/18 — Legacy Arena in Birmingham, AL
11/19 — St. Louis, MO @ Enterprise Center
11/22 — Chicago, IL @ United Center
11/24 — Oklahoma City, OK @ Paycom Center
11/29 — Los Angeles, CA @ Kia Forum
11/30 — Oakland, CA @ Oakland Arena
12/04 — San Diego, CA @ Pechanga Arena
12/05 — Phoenix, AZ @ Desert Diamond Arena
12/07 — Houston, TX @ Toyota Center
12/09 — Fort Worth, TX @ Dickies Arena
12/10 — Austin, TX @ Moody Center
12/12 — New Orleans, LA @ Smoothie King Center
12/13 — Atlanta, GA @ State Farm Arena
12/15 — Orlando, FL @ Amway Center
12/17 — Fort Lauderdale, FL @ FLA Live
12/18 — Jacksonville, FL @ VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena

Marilyn Monroe only owned one house independently — a Spanish-style residence in the Brentwood section of Los Angeles that she purchased in 1962 after divorcing playwright Arthur Miller. It’s where the screen legend died half a year after acquiring it. And it just came awfully close to demolition, only to be spared — for now.

As per Entertainment Weekly, earlier this month the owner of the building had scored a permit to demolish Monroe’s final home. It wasn’t clear what they wanted to do with the property, but word of the looming destruction caught the eye of a Los Angeles councilmember.

“Immediately my team and I sprung into action” upon learning about the construction plans, Councilmember Traci Park said on Friday at a press conference . “Unfortunately, the Department of Building and Safety issued a demolition permit before my team and I could fully intervene and get this issue resolved.”

L.A. City Council then voted unanimously to temporarily halt the demolition. It’s up to the Office of Historic Resources and the Historic Cultural Commission to evaluate if Monroe’s home qualifies for historic preservation. They have 75 days to do so.

“For people all over the world, Marilyn Monroe was more than just a movie icon,” Park said. “Her story from her challenging childhood growing up in orphanages and foster homes to becoming a global sensation is a shining example of what it means to overcome adversity.”

Last year Monroe was the subject of Blonde, a loose (i.e., not exactly truthful) biopic, which received polarizing reviews, though the actress’ estate came to its defense. Ana de Armas’ portrayal of the troubled icon was widely praised, though, earning her an Oscar nomination.

(Via EW)

As the nation helplessly watches our highest halls of government toss justice to the wind, a 2nd grader has given us someplace to channel our frustrations. In a hilarious video rant, a youngster named Taylor shared a story that has folks ready to go to the mat for her and her beloved, pink, perfect attendance pencil.

Instagrammer @tabgeezy shared a video of her daughter telling the story of how she put her perfect attendance pencil—the pink one that she had legitimately earned—in the classroom box of pencils to be sharpened. But when she went to retrieve it from the sharpened pencils box, all she found were plain yellow pencils. That’s because Lizzie—who, by the way, had not earned a perfect attendance pencil because she had gone to CANADA—was using it. And not only that, but Canada Lizzie then lost Taylor’s pencil in her desk, and her teacher was no help.

You have to hear Taylor tell it to understand why this travesty of justice has gone viral.

See on Instagram

If you think this pencil battle is of no consequence whatsoever, think again. People on Twitter got hold of the video, and folks are rallying behind Taylor as if that pink pencil is our democracy and Taylor and Lizzie are the House and Senate.

If somebody ever takes my childu2019s perfect attendance pencil which SHE earned cuz she didnu2019t even go to Canada, the entire school getting shut down.

— riley wuz here (@riley wuz here)
1580451908

IS THERE NO JUSTICE IN THE WORLD

— Charlotte Clymer ud83cudff3ufe0fu200du26a7ufe0fud83cuddfaud83cudde6 (@Charlotte Clymer ud83cudff3ufe0fu200du26a7ufe0fud83cuddfaud83cudde6)
1580482234

“Lizzie” was trending on Twitter as people called out the little girl who went to CANADA and then dared to take Taylor’s perfect attendance pencil.

Me and the crew showing up to school the next day looking for Lizzie and getting to ride out for Tayloru2019s Perfect Attendance Pencil https://twitter.com/_FemGod/status/1223105472393121793u00a0u2026pic.twitter.com/3Hw7ASVmpX

— Matthew A. Cherry (@Matthew A. Cherry)
1580483395

All I am saying is that if Lizzy wanted a pink Perfect Attendance pencil then she shouldn’t have gone to CANADA.nn#JusticeForThePencil

— Gail Simone ud83dudc99ud83dudc9b (@Gail Simone ud83dudc99ud83dudc9b)
1580488889

There were some shout-outs to Taylor’s classmate who understood what that pencil meant to her.

shout out to reece who was the only one who understood the gravity of the situation. don’t let me see lizzie in the streets! https://twitter.com/_FemGod/status/1223105472393121793u00a0u2026

— in charge of the girls (@in charge of the girls)
1580474444

But Taylor’s teacher certainly wasn’t getting any love.

Me writing an email to my babyu2019s teacher saying that messy ass Lizzie better come up with a perfect attendance pencil or sheu2019s going to be going back to Canadapic.twitter.com/ZbcjpwBvUr

— u2728La Bruja Buenau2728 (@u2728La Bruja Buenau2728)
1580474199

Twitter’s collective reaction even started getting its own GIFs.

All of Twitter getting ready to go ask Lizzie, who was in Canada, about a certain pink perfect attendance pencilpic.twitter.com/xwIBRzYFF5

— Lana Del Gay (@Lana Del Gay)
1580485811

Twitter uniting to get her perfect attendance pencil back from Lizzie because she went to Canada and DID NOT earn it:pic.twitter.com/4U9qFgB6Jm

— Sarah Guy (@Sarah Guy)
1580477370

People had so. many. feelings. about baby girl getting back her pencil, about the way her mom and teacher dismissed it as “just a pencil,” and about poor little Lizzie who probably still doesn’t understand what all the fuss is about.

Why do we care so much? Adorableness aside, we’re all a little burned out on politics and the methodical dismantling of our country’s checks and balances, so maybe getting charged up over an adorable little girl’s pencil injustice somehow feels cathartic.

John Delaney dropped out of the race… Meh!nnThereu2019s a Presidential impeachment… Yawn. nnSomeone stole a little girlu2019s perfect attendance pencil. nnMe:pic.twitter.com/aXBot4y58G

— AL (@AL)
1580478694

Hope you get your pencil back soon, Taylor. We all need a little glimmer of hope that justice can, indeed, prevail.

This article originally appeared on 01.31.20

Chart-topping recording artist Rod Wave is gearing up to release his heavily anticipated fourth studio album, Nostalgia, this Friday, September 15. Just days before it’s set to debut on streaming platforms, Rod has announced that he will end his year with a nationwide supporting tour.

Beginning next month, fans can catch Rod performing live at one or more of the 35-city tour stops. Opening night for the Nostalgia Tour is scheduled for October 19 at Lincoln, Nebraska’s Pinnacle Bank Arena. Ari Lennox, Toosii, G Herbo, and EELmatic will join him on the road as featured acts.

Rod Wave’s Nostalgia Tour fan pre-sale will begin on Tuesday, September 12. Each venue on the tour will open up its pre-sale on Wednesday, September 13. General ticket sales start on Thursday, September 14. All sales begin at 10 am local time. View the tour schedule below. Find more information here.

10/19 — Lincoln, NE @ Pinnacle Bank Arena
10/20 — St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center
10/21 — Milwaukee, WI @ Fiserv Forum
10/23 — Kansas City, MO @ T-Mobile Center
10/24 — Indianapolis, IN @ Gainbridge Fieldhouse
10/26 — Louisville, KY @ KFC Yum! Center
10/27 — Detroit, MI @ Little Caesars Arena
10/29 — Pittsburgh, PA @ PPG Paints Arena
10/30 — Columbus, OH @ Nationwide Arena
11/02 — Toronto, ON @ Scotiabank Arena
11/04 — Baltimore, MD @ CFG Bank Arena
11/07 — Albany, NY @ MVP Arena
11/08 — Boston, MA @ TD Garden
11/09 — Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center
11/11 — Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center
11/12 — Washington, DC @ Capital One Arena
11/14 — Raleigh, NC @ PNC Arena
11/15 — Charlotte, NC @ Spectrum Center
11/16 — Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena
11/18 — Legacy Arena in Birmingham, AL
11/19 — St. Louis, MO @ Enterprise Center
11/22 — Chicago, IL @ United Center
11/24 — Oklahoma City, OK @ Paycom Center
11/29 — Los Angeles, CA @ Kia Forum
11/30 — Oakland, CA @ Oakland Arena
12/04 — San Diego, CA @ Pechanga Arena
12/05 — Phoenix, AZ @ Desert Diamond Arena
12/07 — Houston, TX @ Toyota Center
12/09 — Fort Worth, TX @ Dickies Arena
12/10 — Austin, TX @ Moody Center
12/12 — New Orleans, LA @ Smoothie King Center
12/13 — Atlanta, GA @ State Farm Arena
12/15 — Orlando, FL @ Amway Center
12/17 — Fort Lauderdale, FL @ FLA Live
12/18 — Jacksonville, FL @ VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena

During his 2016 campaign, Donald Trump amassed support in part by mopping the floor with his fellow GOP candidates during debates. Not this time. The former president is crushing the primary polls, all without sharing the stage with his opponents. Why show up when he’s leading by double digits? Well, if he continues to play hooky with future showdowns, one of his rivals has a back-up plan.

As per Mediaite, Chris Christie, Trump’s fiercest Republican critic (and there aren’t many, at least not publicly), went on Fox News Sunday, where he addressed the elephant in the debate room, if you will. Howard Kurtz brought up how much the former New Jersey governor would love to go toe-to-toe with his old pal, which reportedly terrifies Trump. Has that thrown a monkey wrench in Christie’s campaigning, Kurtz asked?

“Well, if he doesn’t do any of the debates, Howie, you know, we’re going to give him another chance,” Christie replied. “I’m sure he’s not coming to the Reagan debate. We’ll give him another chance in Alabama. But if he doesn’t come there, then I’m going to follow him around the country. Wherever he goes, I’ll go. And we’ll wind up talking to each other one way or the other.”

“You’re going to change your travel schedule to go where Trump goes, just so I’m clear?” Kurtz asked.

Christie replied, “You bet.”

Trump famously skipped the first GOP debate, which forced Christie to instead drag new kid on the block Vivek Ramaswamy. At the time Christie called Trump a “coward,” saying, “There’s no other conclusion to come to that he’s both afraid of me and he’s afraid of defending his record. And if I had his record, I’d be nervous about showing up, too.”

During the same interview, Christie also asserted that Republicans are “kidding” themselves if they think the guy with four indictments can win over anyone but the hardcore base, all but handing the presidency back to Joe Biden.

(Via Mediaite)

Donald Trump has always done his best to sabotage any attempts to hold him accountable, but with four indictments — plus a looming trial in New York you may have forgotten about — he’s extra-desperate. On Monday, he and his team came for the case involving Jan. 6, making what will almost certainly prove an unsuccessful attempt to get rid of the judge with whom he’s already been tussling.

That judge is Tanya Chutkan, who’s had to reprimand Trump after he dropped a threatening social media post about those who “go after me.” The former president’s team filed a motion demanding she recuse herself over a statement she made while sentencing a Jan. 6 rioter last fall.

“This was nothing less than an attempt to violently overthrow the government, the legally, lawfully, peacefully elected government, by individuals who were mad that their guy lost,” Chutkan said at the time. “And the people who mobbed the Capitol were there in fealty … not to the ideals of this country; and not to the principles of democracy. It’s a blind loyalty to one person who, by the way, remains free to this day.”

“The public meaning of this statement is inescapable — President Trump is free, but should not be,” reads the filing, which claims this is an “apparent prejudgment of guilt.”

Does the Trump team have a good case here? Not really, say legal experts. “Unsurprising that he would do this,” tweeted former federal prosecutor Joyce Vance. “Seems unlikely to succeed. The case for refusing Judge Cannon in Florida would be far stronger & so far, the govt has not chosen to bring it.”

Others agreed. “Judge Chutkan’s statements were made at January 6 sentencings, based on evidence in those proceedings,” tweeted lawyer Max Kennerly. “The defendants argued they were following Trump’s instructions, so Judge Chutkan addressed that. Thus, Liteky v. US applies, and the bar for recusal is nearly insurmountable.”

Judge Chutkan isn’t the only person Trump’s mad at right now. He also threatened to lock up his many, many enemies, which a psychiatry professor called psychopathic.

(Via Raw Story)

Teachers deserve lots of kudos, but teachers who teach little kids deserve an extra measure of admiration.

I know this first hand, having been a middle and high school teacher who substitute taught a first-grade class once for two days. By noon on the first day, I found myself slumped over the teacher’s desk in a daze while the kids were at lunch. Teaching tweens and teens isn’t easy, but teaching little ones with their relentless needs and squirrel-like attention requires a whole other level of energy.

Pre-K? Can’t even imagine. Give those teachers alllll the money. They deserve it.

Of course, preschool teachers do not get all the money, which is why a video from a Pre-K teacher pretending his house is getting robbed keeps going viral.

Mr. Williams, a teacher and therapist who goes by @mrwilliamsprek on Tiktok, created the video from the POV of a thief trying to rob his home. Williams leads the thief to his “valuables,” and from the “You can use your words, I’ll wait,” to the “We’re passing the potty, do you need to go?” to “Honey, I don’t see your getaway car, are you sure they’re coming to pick you up?” it’s a non-stop parody of what Pre-K teachers actually say all day long.

The fact that he managed to get so many classic teacher-isms in while also making it clear how little he had to steal was brilliant, and his delivery is just delightful.

Watch:

@mrwilliamsprek

#teachersoftiktok #teacherlife #tiktokteachers #teachercomedy #HausLabsFoundation

People loved the skit, but it especially hit home for fellow teachers.

“My corporate coworkers forget that my masters is in education until I throw in an ‘I’ll wait’ at them when I’m getting no participation in the team meeting,” wrote one person.

“I was in K for 20 years and then did a career change. I work at a law firm now [and] when our clients from jail call with attitude, I go into teacher mode,” wrote another.

“One of my old teacher coworkers actually made the two young men robbing her house sit on the couch and wait for the police,” wrote another commenter.

“Another teacher I worked with came home to find men robbing her house and scolded them so hard they just apologized and left,” shared another.

Don’t try to rob teachers, man. They have no money AND they know how to get just about anybody to fall in line.

Find more of Mr. Williams’ hilarity on Tiktok @mrwilliamsprek.

Beatle George Harrison was pigeon-holed as the “Quiet Beatle,” but the youngest member of the Fab Four had an acerbic, dry sense of humor that was as sharp as the rest of his bandmates.

He gave great performances in the musical comedy classics, “A Hard Days Night” and “Help!” while holding his own during The Beatles’ notoriously anarchic press conferences. After he left the band in 1970, in addition to his musical career, he would produce the 1979 Monty Python classic, “The Life of Brian.”

Harrison clearly didn’t lose his sense of humor for the rest of his life. Shortly before his death in 2001, he played an elaborate prank on Phil Collins that shows how the “Here Comes the Sun” singer would go the extra mile for a laugh.

In 1970, Harrison was recording his first solo record and arguably the best by a Beatle, “All things Must Pass.” The session for the song, “The Art of Dying” featured former Beatle Ringo Starr on drums, keyboard legend Billy Preston on keys, virtuoso Eric Clapton on guitar, and was produced by the notorious Phil Spector.

Harrison wanted a conga player for the session, so Ringo’s chauffeur reached out to Phil Collins’ manager. At the time, Collins was a relative unknown who was about to join Genesis, a band that would bring him worldwide stardom.

The 18-year-old Collins was starstruck playing on a session with two former Beatles, so he played extra hard in rehearsals, resulting in blood blisters on both hands.

“Anyway, after about two hours of this, Phil Spector says, ‘Okay congas, you play this time.’ And I’d had my mic off, so everybody laughed, but my hands were shot,” Collins told Express.

“And just after that they all disappeared – someone said they were watching TV or something – and I was told I could go,” after that, Collins was relieved of his duties and told to go home. A few months later, Collins bought the massive triple album in the record shop and was devastated to learn he’d been edited out of the song.

“There must be some mistake! Collins thought. “But it’s a different version of the song, and I’m not on it.”

Some thirty years later, Collins bought the home of Formula One driver Jackie Stewart, a close friend of Harrison. Stewart mentioned to Collins that Harrison was remixing “All Things Must Pass” for a rerelease.

“And he said, ‘You were on it, weren’t you?’ And I said, ‘Well I was there,”‘ Collins recalled.

Two days later, a tape was delivered from Harrison to Collins with a note that read: “Could this be you?” Collins continued: “I rush off and listen to it, and straight away I recognize it.” It was a recording of “The Art of Dying.”

“Suddenly the congas come in – too loud and just awful,” Collins was devastated, then as the end of the take, Harrison can be heard saying, “Hey, Phil, can we try another without the conga player?”

Collins was devastated, to say the least.

A while later, Stewart calls Collins and puts Harrison on the line. “‘Did you get the tape?’ Harrison asked. “I now realize I was fired by a Beatle,” Collins sighed. The two changed the subject, but a few minutes later, Harrison couldn’t stop laughing.

“Don’t worry, it was a piss-take. I got Ray Cooper to play really badly and we dubbed it on,” Harrison admitted. “Thought you’d like it!” So, Harrison had an entire recording session with a conga player who he asked to play poorly, just to pull one over on Collins.

If you’re in the mood for another of rock’s greatest pranks. The story of “The Ring” told by Beastie Boys’ Adam “Ad-Rock” Horovitz shared in “Beastie Boys Story” is another great example of someone going to incredible lengths just for a laugh.

The story revolves around the late Beasties’ rapper Adam “MCA” Yach, his bandmate Horovitz, and a very creepy ring given to him by a fan backstage at a concert.

This article originally appeared on 12.01.21