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Kat Coiro, who is just coming off the success of Marry Me (a movie, anecdotally from the amount of people who talk about it in my presence, everyone has seen), is now moving into the MCU, directing six episodes of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. And it’s interesting because She-Hulk might be closer in tone and situations to Marry Me than the traditional Marvel property. As Coiro says ahead, the two big inspirations for She Hulk: Attorney at Law were Ally McBeal and Legally Blond.

This is a Marvel show, so of course there are some overarching plot points that maintain themselves throughout the series – or, at least, the first four episodes that I’ve seen – like our old pal from The Incredible Hulk, Emil Blonsky, aka Abomination, (Tim Roth) who wants out of prison and has hired Jennifer Walters (Tatiana Maslany) to represent him. Jennifer is a talented and hard-working attorney who also just happens to be able to turn into She-Hulk. But, at this show’s heard, its kind of a throwback courtroom procedural with a “case of the week.” Only the case of the week on this show has clients who are superheroes. It’s a very clever concept that often has Jennifer breaking the fourth wall, for example complaining about the amount of cameos in a given episode before we even get a chance to think that.

Also, it’s a very L.A. show (as someone who lives in New York City, even I could use a break from the MCU version of this place) and, as Coiro says ahead, this could be a good starting point for the West Coast Avengers.

The amount of Marvel movies and shows can feel overwhelming, but what a breath of fresh air this was. This isn’t even really a superhero show, it’s more a legal procedural comedy.

Absolutely. I mean, part of what drew me to the project is that it’s such a fresh take on something that is so much a part of our cultural fabric. And my job was always to keep it within the world of the MCU, but also allow it to spread its wings as something totally different in a new genre.

So how much does She Hulk: Attorney at Law owe to Ally McBeal?

Both Ally McBeal and Legally Blonde were huge influences just in a simple fact that they subverted the idea of a courtroom visually, the way it looks, the way people behave. And that’s definitely something that we do is we take a genre that has been around for a very long time and we infuse it with something different, while still relying on some of the tropes and the familiarity of that genre. And it’s one of the things I’m most excited about, is having people experience these courtroom scenes that are just very familiar and also totally different.

I won’t spoil who does this and when it happens, but there’s a character that seems to be She Hulk’s main foe and you think it’s going to be a scene where, all right, the big fight is coming. And instead she sues She-Hulk and I found that so funny.

Well, part of what’s exciting about that storyline in general, is that when you’re in a film, you have this ticking clock, plot-driven energy and you have to get from point A to point B. And here we can meander. She’s there, she lurks around the whole series, but we don’t have to get to her climax or get to her motivation immediately. We can kind of do it after we’ve gotten to know our main characters.

It does seem to flow like a David E. Kelley show. There’s the kind of the trial of the week, like Wong showing up one week to sue a hack magician for using Sorcerer techniques. But there’s also this overarching thing going on with Tim Roth’s Emil Blonsky wanting out of prison…

I mean, that was something we kept saying, was we have to have that engine of the kind of formulaic legal show, courtroom episode per episode plot. And then you have the driving engine of getting to know Jennifer Walters, slash She-Hulk, and her internal conflict between being these two sides of herself. And then you have a whole other layer of Marvel super villains. So it’s got a lot going on.

And that’s the thing, you could have anyone on this show really. Picking up after one of the movies, after a big battle – well, who’s going to sue who after this?

People comment, oh, was it hard having all these cameos and making it feel organic? And I mean, we are set in the most organic place to have as many cameos as you can possibly imagine. We could literally have every single MCU character who needs legal help – which is, let’s be honest, everybody at one point or another – come through the show.

There’s a conversation in an episode if Avengers get paid or not. Maybe one of the Avengers isn’t getting their health benefits, so they need to sue. See, it feels like the sky’s wide open on this.

We’ve got to introduce you to the writers’ room.

Yeah, that’s a bad idea.

I feel like you’re bursting with ideas, Mike.

But seriously, as you watch the show, it’s the perfect engine to do all this stuff.

Oh, I’m so glad. It’s so fun. These are my first round of interviews where people have actually gotten to watch the show and I’m not sitting here afraid that the Marvel police are going to burst in and arrest me. So it’s so fun to talk about.

Right. You had to be vague…

I just say, “ask Kevin.” That’s my go-to line.

You’ve also got that ace in the sleeve of being able to break the fourth wall. You get to address any criticisms before we even think of them.

I mean, one of my favorite jokes is that Wong’s in the episode, so we have “Twitter armor.”

I’ve told a lot of people about that line.

We anticipate that there’s going to be an adjustment because she is such a different character than the audience people are used to. And what I love about the MCU is that it is interactive. It does listen to the fans. It does evolve based on what people want. And so this show is very much taking that to the next level. Where it’s like: we know what you’re going to say… come, be on the journey with us instead of against us.

You also apparently are listening to the trolls. Because when Jessica’s powers are revealed, there’s a news report with a bunch of people on the street interviews saying,“ why did it have to be a woman superhero?” And everyone’s favorite, “I’m not against a woman being a superhero, but why can’t they just make a new one?”

I’m not even on Twitter and I’m aware of all of that. And look, my hope is that this show is going to be fun and entertaining and action-packed enough that they just have fun and relax, take a load off all that trolling. Exhausting!

I’m looking forward to She-Hulk and Deadpool meeting each other and realizing they both break the fourth wall. I get he’s not technically in the MCU yet…

I know. I know. Which fourth wall are they breaking? It’s the same fourth wall?

Well, that’s going to be up to all the writers who are going to make the She-Hulk, Deadpool movie.

Amazing. I love it. I love it. Actually, our producer, Wendy Jacobson from Marvel, is also doing Deadpool.

So she’s the expert on breaking the fourth wall.

Exactly.

By the way, congratulations on Marry Me. I’m pretty sure everyone saw that movie.

Oh, thank you. I’m so excited. It does feel like every single person in the world has seen it. It’s a very exciting feeling.

Yeah, they used to make movies that were in theaters that were romantic comedies, with big stars. So it was fun to watch one again.

Oh, I’m so glad. That makes me happy. I mean, look, I love making movies for audiences. Between Marry Me and Marvel, it’s like a real dream come true to have people actually… from my indie film days where my mom and three people would see it, it’s a fabulous feeling.

There’s not a lot of Marvel stuff set in LA. There’s Iron Man 3. So it’s kind of refreshing to see a very LA show and also something that would set up a West Coast Avengers.

Absolutely. That was a huge part of my initial pitch to get the job. I wanted LA to feel like a character. And I definitely dropped the hint about the West Coast Avengers.

And She-Hulk was a big part of West Coast Avengers…

I’m with you a hundred percent.

’She-Hulk: Attorney At Law‘ will begin streaming via Disney+ on August 18. You can contact Mike Ryan directly on Twitter.

For months, Ezra Miller has been busy. The actor has been involved in one shocking story after another, from being repeatedly arrested in Hawaii to allegations of grooming to claims that they were starting a cult in Iceland. Through it all, Warner Bros. — who has that big Flash movie still set for release next year — has stuck by them, even having him do reshoots even as he was being busted for theft. But now it appears their reign of terror is at an end.

As per Variety, Miller has begun treatment. “Having recently gone through a time of intense crisis, I now understand that I am suffering complex mental health issues and have begun ongoing treatment,” Miller said in a statement. “I want to apologize to everyone that I have alarmed and upset with my past behavior. I am committed to doing the necessary work to get back to a healthy, safe and productive stage in my life.”

Miller’s antics have overshadowed their big screen work, which involves roles in not one but two Warner Bros. franchises. (The other is the Fantastic Beasts saga.) There’s already a lot of drama going on at Warner Bros. Discovery; they announced their shelving the Batgirl movie, even though it was already basically completed. Miller, who started playing the Flash/Barry Allen in 2017’s Justice League, seemed to be another thorn in their side, but it appears they’re working to mend that.

(Via Variety)

It’s been over seven long, long, oh so very long years since Donald Trump formally announced he was entering politics. It probably feels even longer than that. America was already a divided nation when he kicked off his first presidential campaign, but he made things even worse, and even if he does wind up in the slammer, neither he nor the culture he helped foster is going away. But even some of his former die-hards have at least toyed with kicking him to the curb.

One of them is Laura Ingraham, the queen of Fox News. It’s been alleged that she’s come to hate her longtime pal, but during an appearance on the podcast The Truth with Lisa Boothe, she suggested she’s not the only one who’s kind of sick of the guy.

“People conflate Trump with people’s overall sense of happiness in the country. Donald Trump’s been a friend of mine for 25 years, and I’m always very open about this on my show. But, you know we’ll see whether that’s what the country wants,” Ingraham said. “The country I think is so exhausted. They’re exhausted by the battle, the constant battle, that they may believe that, well, maybe it’s time to turn the page if we can get someone who has all Trump’s policies, who’s not Trump.”

Ingraham underlined that he did a lot of what she sees as good:

“The other problem is that it’s really not about Trump, right, this is about the views that Trump now brought to the floor for the Republican Party … They don’t like his views, they don’t like the fact that he called out the military for their failures, that he wanted us to pull out of Iraq and Afghanistan. That he wanted to treat China and our trade relationship with China in a much — it was smarter, but much different way than the globalists preferred. And they certainly didn’t like the fact that he sent all those illegal immigrants back to Mexico with that Remain in Mexico.”

Even Trump has recently noted that the country is “on fire,” even offering to help…all while continuing to pour gasoline on the fire he helped create. In the meantime, it’s not clear how much better the country will be if Republicans instead turn to the guy who bullies kids.

(Via The Hill)

Deadline has confirmed that both hip-hop sensation SZA and Euphoria star Chloe Cherry will be in a film entitled Tuna Melt, alongside Boogie‘s Eddie Huang, who wrote and will direct it. The publication calls it an “off-beat dramedy” that has been “likened to an updated Pulp Fiction meets High Fidelity.”

In the film, Huang plays a hitman enduring a breakup when he “unexpectedly meets the love of his life soon after he completes a job,” with SZA playing the role of the love interest. More details are yet to be revealed.

Meanwhile, fans of SZA are less interested in her acting career and more invested in when her next album is coming out. The long-awaited LP has been delayed, with the president of her label Punch making a statement about it last month. “SZA and myself initially spoke about a summertime album,” he wrote.” Which is why she mentioned summer in a post-Grammys interview. Shortly after discussing everything with RCA and Top, we decided it was best to do it a little bit later to set everything up correctly, giving it its proper space and lead time. There is a lot that goes into putting out a album and especially one with this much anticipation. We thank you for your continued patience and understanding. An announcement will be coming sooner than you think.”

Bob Odenkirk thought a whole lot about a certain Nic Cage movie while filming the final episodes of Better Call Saul, and let’s just say that there’s a “rock bottom” commonality going on. From Gene being found in a dumpster and ending up in jail, hysterically laughing at the “my lawyer will ream your ass” scrawling on the wall, it’s not looking good for him. The series finale went off with a few hitches for viewers, which distracted from the substance at hand.

And that’s a shame because people were ready to swallow the finale whole after the penultimate episode left off with Gene fleeing after Marion ratted him out. We saw Gene jousting with the legal system, a feat that was complicated by Kim Wexler already spilling her guts on Howard Hamlin. Yet Gene was also on the hook for various white collar crimes, and there was a wonderful, glorious surprise for viewers: another Heisenberg cameo. In the end, there is much to be said (and we will say it very soon) about the Better Call Saul finale. However, there was a bit of an issue, not unlike a certain Game Of Thrones episode, where viewers were obsessed by not being able to see the Battle of Winterfell in “The Long Night.”

So, was that kind-of what happened here with what viewers were calling a constant stream of commercials on AMC? It happens. This is, after all, a cable TV event that’s not readily streamable yet. And so, people got upset, perhaps unjustifiably, but the point stands. (And at the time of this writing, the finale’s not over yet.)

Yet there were a few ways to stream thing thing, and that includes the AMC app. That meant a slight delay but no commercials.

At least we’ve got Cinnabon memories. And babies.

The NBA will release its schedule in full on Wednesday afternoon at 3 p.m. ET, but over the last week there has been a steady trickle of reports offering us a glimpse at some of the biggest matchups on the biggest days of the NBA calendar.

The five Christmas Day games have all been reportedly set, with the Knicks, Celtics, Mavs, Warriors, and Nuggets all getting home games, while the Sixers, Bucks, Lakers, Grizzlies, and Suns will head on the road for holiday basketball. We also knew one part of the opening night equation, as the Warriors will host the Lakers for ring night, as LeBron James and Anthony Davis will get to watch Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green collect their fourth championship rings.

The early game on opening night will unsurprisingly feature the East champs, as the Boston Celtics will get the first game of the season at home, with their divisional rival in the Philadelphia 76ers heading to town.

It’s pretty clear that the league is going with its known commodities for its big tentpole days on the schedule, which means the Brooklyn Nets will likely not be featured heavily on key dates with Kevin Durant’s trade request looming and the expectation that he’s going to make things uncomfortable if necessary to force the Nets into action once camp begins — although, to be clear, he will not consider retirement. As such, the Celtics, Sixers, and Bucks are all going to be heavily featured on the national TV schedule based on what we’ve seen reported thus far.

We’ll get the complete national TV schedule (and every other game) on Wednesday, but for now we can pencil in the opening night plans for October 18.

There are few things as highly anticipated as Britney Spears’s post-conservatorship musical comeback. So when a collaboration with Elton John was rumored in July, as leaked to Page Six by a “music industry insider,” it was a big deal. “They have recorded a remix of ‘Tiny Dancer’ as a full duet — and it is incredible,” they told the publication.

The collaboration was confirmed early this month, first by none other than Paris Hilton, who said, “I know, it’s going to be iconic. I just heard it a couple days ago in Ibiza and it is… it’s insane.” Shortly afterwards, it was revealed by John himself on social media that the song was called “Hold Me Closer.”

The release date, though, has not been officially revealed. However, reports from Metro and South African radio station 5FM indicate it’s set to be released this Friday, August 19. Spears just confirmed the song today with an Instagram post of fan-made cover art for the song and noting, “name of song is HOLD ME CLOSER.” She added, “And thank you so much for this incredible art @monalisaney81. I appreciate this and all of your support it means so much to me !!! I can’t wait for you all to hear what we’ve been working on [winking emojis].”

It’s almost impossible to be handed a baby and not immediately break into baby talk. In fact, it seems incredibly strange to even consider talking to a baby like one would an adult. Studies have shown that babies prefer baby talk, too.

Researchers from Stanford found that babies prefer to be spoken to in baby talk or “parentese” as scientists refer to the sing-songy cooing we do when talking to infants.

“Often parents are discouraged from using baby talk by well-meaning friends or even health professionals,” Michael Frank, a Stanford psychologist, told Stanford News. “But the evidence suggests that it’s actually a great way to engage with your baby because babies just like it–it tells them, ‘This speech is meant for you!’”

The big question that has eluded scientists is whether parentese is a universal language or varies by culture.

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“Most of the research looking at this have studied urban societies in the U.S., Canada, Germany, Sweden, Russia,” Courtney Hilton, postdoctoral fellow and principal author of “Acoustic regularities in infant-directed speech and song across cultures,” told NPR. “But to make a rigorous claim that there is any kind of instinct to do this, we have to study more diverse cultures.”

Hilton, along with a team of researchers, collected 1,615 recordings from 21 cultures across six continents over a period of three years to find out whether parentese was a universal language. Their findings were published in the journal Nature Human Behavior.

What researchers found was that everyone changed their rhythm, volume, speed and other vocal traits when talking to infants. It didn’t matter if they were in San Diego, East Africa, New Zealand or China.

“Our study provides the strongest test yet of whether there are acoustic regularities in infant-directed vocalizations across cultures,” Hilton said. “It is also really the first to convincingly address this question in both speech and song simultaneously. The consistencies in vocal features offer a really tantalizing clue for a link between infant-care practices and distinctive aspects of our human psychology relating to music and sociality.”

So, according to research, if you hand someone a baby anywhere in the world, they would begin to speak to it in parentese, regardless of their culture, location, economic status or language.

The research makes it appear as though parentese is hard-wired into all of humanity. As infants, we seem to be drawn to those who speak it; as adults, we instinctually drop into the vocal patterns when communicating with a baby.

“These commonalities are almost woven into our biology,” Hilton said. “From people in crowded urban centers in Beijing, all the way to a tiny hunter/gatherer society in South Africa, there is something we share. It’s a kind of instinct that ties people together.”

In a world that is divided by race, class, culture, language, politics and geopolitical forces, there’s something comforting in knowing that on a deeper level we all react to infants the same way. It seems that no matter who we are or where we live, babies bring out the best in humanity.

What happens in a day in the life of a couple of news anchors and their newborn baby? Pure hilarity, that’s what.

Jeannette Reyes and Robert Burton—both professional news anchors—decided to “report” on the morning happenings of their baby girl Bella, and it rapidly went viral with more than 7 million views.

People loved the perfect combo of impressive production value (the hair and makeup, the music, the 100% commitment to their broadcast voices) along with some all-too-relatable parent content.

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“Good morning, Bella! It’s 9:52. Hopefully you slept well. Certainly no one else did, but we’re not going to point any fingers,” Reyes fires off before “sending it over” to Burton for the weather.

The camera quickly cuts to Burton, playing more of a field reporter role, who smoothly exits a building while boasting of a “beautiful day outside with temps in the mid-80s.”

“Will we get to enjoy it?” he asks. “Well, if spit ups, feedings and diaper changes don’t get in the way, we just might be able to make it out of here before midnight.”

When both of your parents are news anchors @Robert7News pic.twitter.com/E1z2J0kyQb

— Jeannette Reyes (@Fox5DCJeannette) August 14, 2022

Suddenly Reyes has “breaking news” to deliver: ”an explosion at the diaper station.”

While fortunately “no injuries have been reported,” Reyes informs us that authorities do have a suspect, as the camera slowly pans toward a guilty (yet adorable) looking Bella. Sadly, Bella has been linked to “hundreds of other explosions.”

Of course, the single best, most giggle-inducing part of the entire video is when Reyes sings “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” … delivered entirely in TV news anchor voice. Can’t hear the song any other way now.

Even “This Is Us” star Sterling K. Brown found this part delightful, commenting “Twinkle twinkle got me!” followed by a cry-laughing emoji.

Burton then wrapped up the segment by thanking everyone for watching the BBN, otherwise known as the Baby News Network.

With a video as funny as this one, it’s bound to inspire a treasure trove of equally brilliant comments. Here are a few gems:

Bella’s first words: “This just in, I’m speaking now. More at 5.”

— Destiny’s Stepchild (@KCCT) August 14, 2022

Could be an inside job… the suspect bears a resemblance to the reporters 🕵🏽

— Biba Adams🇻🇮 (@BibatheDiva) August 14, 2022

The call is coming from inside the house! 🤣🤣

— tanya hayles (@tanyahayles) August 14, 2022

Unsurprisingly, people are also begging for more. “So adorable. I’d tune in daily for this content,” wrote one person.

Will Burton and Reyes deliver more wholesome baby news? Will Bella confess to those diaper explosions? Stay tuned.

A video of a man introducing his new puppy to the neighborhood cat is a wonderful piece of optimism. Why? Because the man shows he believes that if we make an effort, even nature’s fiercest enemies—dogs and cats—can get along.

Heck, it’s the type of thinking that could solve a lot of problems between humans as well. Maybe if we took some time to understand one another and get past negative stereotypes we could coexist without any trouble.

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A TikTok user named Cheyenne caught the “pure moment” on video and says she hasn’t “stopped smiling since,” she captioned the video. After she posted the video it received more than 7.7 million views and 1.4 million likes.

It even caught the attention of the dog’s owner who commented on the video as Ted’s Dad.

“I should point out that I had petted the cat first and assessed how this might turn out. Ted is 4 months old and has been introduced to cats before,” he commented.

“Hope you enjoyed the video! Sorry if it’s intrusive but the moment was too sweet not to record! Glad it found its way to you! Ted is lovely,” Cheyenne responded.

According to Ted’s Dad, his dog is a woodle, which, according to Wag Walking, is “a hybrid designer dog that is created by mixing the Welsh Terrier with the Poodle.” Woodles are known for being “loving,” “caring” dogs who are exceptionally calm. Given the dog’s temperament, it’s no wonder Ted’s Dad thought it’d be OK to introduce him to the cat.

@cheyennetylerberry

caught this pure moment and I haven’t stopped smiling since 💖💗💕💝💓💘💞 #viral #dogsofttiktok #catsoftiktok