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With Lego now in the hands of Universal after spending considerable time over at Warner Bros., Peacock has officially announced an all-new Jurassic Park special will arrive on the streaming platform later this year.

The special was announced with a new poster featuring the Jurassic Park logo as well as the first look at Jeff Goldblum‘s Ian Malcolm, both in Lego form. Although, apparently, the chaos theory practitioner will be much older this time around judging by his gray hair, but that won’t stop the character’s penchant for bare-chested-ness.

Here are more details via Variety:

The 22-minute special, titled “Lego Jurassic Park: The Unofficial Retelling,” will stream exclusively on the platform this fall. The poster features the iconic dino park logo assembled out of Legos.

From Universal Pictures, Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment and the Lego Group, the special is part of a year-long 30th anniversary celebration of the original “Jurassic Park” movie and is linked to Lego’s “Jurassic Park” 30th anniversary merchandise.

With Universal now holding the rights to make Lego movies, that opens the door for other franchises besides Jurassic Park. The studio owns the right to the classic movie monsters like Dracula and Frankenstein as well as The Fast and Furious series. (Dom Toretto’s Dodge Charger is already available to buy in Lego form, and pretty sweet.)

However, the studio jump did come at a cost: RIP, The Lego Batman Movie 2.

(Via Variety)

For a little while now, there has seemed to be some beef between Charli XCX and Rina Sawayama, which saw Charli unfollow Sawayama on social media. Now, Charli herself has addressed it.

In a tweet shared today (August 30), Charli wrote, “look – this all got a bit crazy – me and rina spoke about things on the phone just now. my unfollowing (which happened a couple of weeks ago) was over a personal disagreement between friends which we’ve now spoken about <3.”

Charli and Sawayama, by the way, collaborated on “Beg For You” in 2022, so they were previously on good terms. As for what’s going on now, The Tab compiled a history of some factors that could potentially be at play.

Sawayama called out The 1975’s Matty Healy multiple times this summer. During her Glastonbury performance in June, she addressed Healy’s podcast controversy, saying, “I wrote this because I was sick and tired of these micro-aggressions. So tonight, this goes out to a white man that watches Ghetto Gaggers and mocks Asian people on a podcast. He also owns my masters! I’ve had enough!”

The next month, she said at a different show, “So I was thinking a lot about apologies. It’s just funny how some people get away with not apologizing ever for saying some racist sh*t, for saying some sexist sh*t. Why don’t you apologize for once in your life without making it about your f*cking self?”

Charli, meanwhile, appears to be dating The 1975 drummer George Daniel. So, there was speculation that Charli unfollowing Sawayama was related to that, but Charli has not confirmed what sparked the “personal disagreement.”

Charli XCX is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Earthgang‘s new song, “Die Today,” offers a scathing look at the ephemeral nature of fake love, so it’s only right that their video similarly lampoons the way rappers often become much more famous after they die. With hilarious bookends featuring a dazed Denzel Curry delivering an unhinged eulogy and an equally funny plot twist toward the end, the video is stuffed with clips from real-life news shows — from Fox News to SNL‘s Weekend Updates — with their deaths as the lead graphic.

There’s also some funny and insightful stuff about the performative nature of social media, as the news sends the Atlanta duo’s follower count skyrocketing and attracts messages from the likes of former President Obama, Elon Musk, Kris Jenner, and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. This is all especially funny when you consider that Earthgang only has one Billboard Hot 100 charting single (with J. Cole and JID, no less), and has yet to crack the top 40 on the Billboard 200 (their first album, Mirrorland, landed at No. 40, while their last album, Ghetto Gods, came in at No. 114).

But as Vince Staples once pointed out, there is no better album promo than death, and Earthgang’s new video allows them to enjoy its spoils without experiencing its obvious drawbacks. “Die Today” will appear on Earthgang’s upcoming album Earthgang Vs. The Algorithm, alongside the Adam Sandler-approved “Bobby Boucher.” The album is due soon via Dreamville.

Watch the “Die Today” video above.

Season one spoilers ahead, but when last we left the crew at the heart of Our Flag Means Death, everyone was scattered and recovering from the consequences of Stede Bonnet’s (Rhys Darby) decision to return to his fancy life ashore. This includes Stede, who quickly realized his place was back at sea.

From Stede in his row boat to poor drowned Lucious, the members of the crew who had been marooned to the point of near-cannibalism, and those who were suddenly being held captive by a version of Blackbeard (Taika Waititi) hellbent on proving that hurt people hurt people, the fallout from his and Stede’s breakup was wide and deep. It’s also pretty long-lasting, from what we can tell from the freshly released season two teaser trailer above.

Clearly, Stede and Blackbeard (or Ed) are in different places post-breakup, with one longing for those quiet moments of togetherness that sparked their love and the other violently crashing weddings and unleashing all manner of violent piracy and chaos on the high seas. When will they get back together? That’s anyone’s guess but also probably everyone’s wish. When we spoke with Darby in between seasons, he spoke about the magic of the mundane between he and Waititi’s character.

“We like the mundane, just hanging out and having conversations and going back and forth and having less action. I think that will definitely happen. But I think there’ll also be the idea of trying to find that buddyship again.”

Oh yeah, we’re far away from “buddyship” right now, but when the show comes back it’ll be a delight to see Stede eventually get to Blackbeard and try and get through to him. If anyone can. It’ll also fun to check in with the rest of the crew and see how they react to being put in the middle of what’s either a great love story or a killer breakup story.

The eight-episode second season of Our Flag Means Death returns to MAX on October 5 with two episodes dropping each week.

Mitch McConnell reportedly experienced another freezing episode in Kentucky this afternoon. While taking questions from reporters, McConnell once again froze in a similar incident to his previous episode during a late July press conference.

“McConnell didn’t respond to a question on re-election,” NBC News’ Ryan Noble tweeted. “He had to be told the question by an aide. He did not respond for more than 30 secs. At one point the aide asked the reporters for a minute.. McConnell then said “Ok” and took two more questions. both of which had to be repeated to him by the aide.”

According to Noble, McConnell seemed fine prior to the freezing episode.

“The press gaggle came after McConnell gave a lengthy speech to a local group and took questions at the end without any trouble,” Noble tweeted. “He told the group that he expected a continuing resolution to deal with the budget situation and described it as a ‘pretty big mess.’”

You can see video of the incident below:

According to Mediaite, an aide to McConnell has told reporters that the senator briefly felt “momentarily lightheaded,” but he’s now doing “fine.” He will be “consulting a physician prior to his next event.”

While McConnell bounced back quickly from his last freezing episode, that didn’t stop Twitter from quickly filling up with calls for the senator’s retirement as well as Dianne Feinstein’s. Both senators are up there in age and have shown signs of cognitive decline. Their continued presence in Congress has prompted accusations of elder abuse.

You can see some of the reactions below:

(Via Ryan Noble on Twitter, Hannah Thomas on Twitter)

Travis Scott finally released the dates for his anticipated Utopia — Circus Maximus tour. Last night, the rapper appeared alongside Drake at his show in Vancouver, and on the heels of his new album, Utopia, fans are likely excited to pick up tickets.

Here’s what to know about how to purchase them.

Scott’s tickets for the Utopia — Circus Maximus Tour are set to go on sale this Thursday, August 31 at 10 a.m. local time through his official website, where more information can be found.

Below, find a complete list of Scott’s dates for the upcoming tour.

10/11/2023 — Charlotte, NC @ Spectrum Center
10/13/2023 — Raleigh, NC @ PNC Arena
10/17/2023 — Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center
10/20/2023 — Kansas City, MO @ T-Mobile Center
10/22/2023 — Denver, CO @ Ball Arena
10/25/2023 — Phoenix, AZ @ Footprint Center
10/29/2023 — Las Vegas, NV @ MGM Grand Garden Arena
10/31/2023 — Oakland, CA @ Oakland Arena
11/05/2023 — Los Angeles, CA @ SoFi Stadium
11/08/2023 — Seattle, WA @ Climate Pledge Arena
11/10/2023 — Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena
11/12/2023 — Portland, OR @ Moda Center
11/15/2023 — Salt Lake City, UT @ Delta Center
11/18/2023 — Tulsa, OK @ BOK Center
11/21/2023 — Austin, TX @ Moody Center
11/25/2023 — Atlanta, GA @ State Farm Arena
11/27/2023 — Miami, FL @ Kaseya Center
12/04/2023 — Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena
12/06/2023 — Baltimore, MD @ CFG Bank Arena
12/08/2023 — Pittsburgh, PA @ PPG Paints Arena
12/10/2023 — Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center
12/12/2023 — Detroit, MI @ Little Caesars Arena
12/15/2023 — Chicago, IL @ United Center
12/18/2023 — Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center
12/21/2023 — New York City, NY @ Madison Square Garden
12/23/2023 — Boston, MA @ TD Garden
12/26/2023 — Newark, NJ @ Prudential Center
12/29/2023 — Toronto, ON @ Scotiabank Arena

While many fans took to social media to wish the late Michael Jackson a happy birthday on August 29, which would’ve marked his 65th, some noticed that his daughter, Paris, didn’t say anything on any of her channels. This prompted a slew of vitriol from Jackson’s followers, saying that she purposely ignored his birthday.

Though MJ’s birthday had not ended yet, Paris took to Instagram to address the messages she had received.

“I just got off stage and I’m very sweaty,” Paris said. “So today’s my dad’s birthday and back when he was alive he used to hate anybody acknowledging his birthday, wishing him a happy birthday, celebrating it, nothing like that. He actually didn’t want us to even know when his birthday was because he didn’t want us to throw a party or anything like that.”

She continued, saying, “That being said, social media is apparently how people express their love and affection these days,” she said. “And if you don’t wish someone a happy birthday via social media, it apparently means that you don’t love them, you don’t care about them. There have been times where I don’t post anything for my dad’s birthday and people lose their f*cking minds. They tell me to kill myself and they’re basically measuring my love for my own father based off of what I post on Instagram. So, I made you guys a little video and I hope you enjoy it.”

The Instagram clip then transitions to another video. In the video, Paris, who is seen onstage, speaking with a crowd of fans, acknowledging the work of her father, and how he set the precedent for her.

“It’s also my dad’s birthday and he would have been 65 years old today,” she’s seen telling the crowd in the live footage. “He put 50 years of blood, sweat, and tears and love and passion into doing what he did so that I could stand up here on stage in front of you and scream into a microphone. So I owe everything to him.”

The video then turned back to Paris speaking directly to her Instagram followers, whom she encouraged to volunteer their time or make donations to animal rights activism groups or climate change awareness groups.

You can see the full clip above.

Steve Elzinga, the owner of Erie Orchards in Michigan has publicly apologized after reportedly confronting a Muslim family and accusing them of stealing peaches. The incident occurred earlier this month, and it took Elzinga over two weeks to issue a statement where he notably does not detail his actions that were caught on video.

“My sincere apologies to Joe Mahmoud, his wife, family, and the whole community for my remarks and actions on Sunday, August 13. I am very sorry,” Elzinga wrote on the Facebook page for Erie Orchards. “As a family business we have made a conscious effort to be a welcoming place for all in an often fractured world, and Sunday’s incident, sadly, did not reflect that. What occurred does not align with my values, beliefs, and heart of inclusion for everyone. I sincerely regret this and offer my deepest apologies.”

According to Mahmoud, after he made a $70 purchase, an employee at the orchard told his young daughters that they could take a bag full of peaches home for free because they were most likely rotten. Thinking they’d just wrapped up a “peaceful family outing,” Elzinga approached the family’s car where the situation quickly went south.

Via Facebook:

He opened my vehicle door, began to rifle through our bags on the floor, and without any provocation, he stated, “You people are always stealing.” Shocked and willing to rectify any misunderstanding, I explained the information his staff had given us and that we were more than willing to pay for anything necessary. Then, to our horror and in front of my young girls began expressing openly racist sentiments, stating he didn’t want Muslims at the orchard, all they do is steal, and that he didn’t need us to patronize his business.

Elzinga began demanding that Mahmoud pay him $58 for the small bag of peaches that were only priced at $2.49. Mahmoud handed the bag back to Elzinga, who at that point was proudly admitting he’s racist on video, and the family attempted to leave. That’s when Elzinga got violent.

“As the man got super aggressive with his actions and as it became clear he had not called the police I began to fear for the safety of my family,” Mahmoud wrote. “I told him I was leaving and I began slowly backing out to make sure he would to get hurt. He then began to ram his shoulder into my truck.”

Fortunately, Mahmoud caught most of the encounter on video, which you can see below:

(Via Yousef Abu Jenna Mahmoud on Facebook, Erie Orchards and Cider Mills on Facebook)

U2 is kicking of their U2:UV Achtung Baby Live At Sphere Las Vegas residency shows in a big way. Ahead of the limited concert engagement, which kicks off at the end of next month, U2 will launch a special fan portal called Zoo Station: A U2:UV Experience.

Designed in collaboration between U2 and the band’s longtime creative director Gavin Friday, Zoo Station will boast over 12,000 square feet of space within The Venetian Resort in Las Vegas. Zoo Station will take place on two floors, as fans will be able to access interactive exhibit space.

Inside Zoo Station will be the Anton Corbijn Gallery, which will feature five decades’ worth of video footage and photography work from photographer Anton Corbin, who is curating the space.

Fans can also purchase merchandise from the U2 Pop-Up Shop, which will offer music titles from U2, as well as brand-new merchandise.

Zoo TV Cinema, which will be curated by U2’s The Edge, will show five film screenings daily including rare and unreleased concert footage from international U2 shows, as well as new documentary films, like Beyond The Tour and A Day In The Life Of The Edge.

The ground floor, which will hold the gallery, the pop-up shop, and interactive installations, will be open to the public and free to enter. However, the top floor, which will hold Zoo TV Cinema, will grant access to ticketholders.

Zoo Station opens September 28, and U2:UV Achtung Baby Live At Sphere, which will open The Sphere venue, runs from September 29 to December 16.

An interesting discovery during the middle of the NBA playoffs has led to the a referee’s immediate retirement. In a statement on Wednesday afternoon, the league announced that Eric Lewis decided to retire from officiating.

“NBA referee Eric Lewis has informed the league office that he is retiring, effective immediately,” the league said in a statement. “In light of his decision, the NBA’s investigation into social media activity has been closed.”

As the statement references, Lewis was at the center of a controversy back in May when basketball fans noticed the peculiar activity of the Twitter account @CuttliffBlair. There were plenty of hints that indicated Lewis was the person behind the account, both in who it followed and, more importantly, the activity. The account largely tweeted at people who were commenting on NBA officiating, and whenever this would happen, its posts would make it a point to defend Lewis.

The NBA, unsurprisingly, decided to launch an investigation into this, although it was not clear why the investigation ended just because he retired. While this was not nearly as big of a Twitter burner scandal as the one that saw Philadelphia 76ers executive Bryan Colangelo lose his job in the team’s front office, Lewis was not named one of the officials who got to work the NBA Finals, which he got to do in each of the previous four seasons.