GoneTrending

Today in We Didn’t Need This, But Sure, Fine: Deadline reports that Robert Rodriguez’s remake of his classic 2001 kids’ film Spy Kids for Netflix has landed its leads in Gina Rodriguez and Zachary Levi.

Rodriguez will write, direct and produce the next film, which will introduce a new family of spies. The original Spy Kids film followed the Cortez family. It starred Antonio Banderas, Car Gugino, Alexa PenaVega, Daryl Sabara, Alan Cumming, Danny Trejo, and Thumb Thumbs. In the original film, two kids become super spies in an attempt to save their ex-spy parents from an evil mastermind.

In place of the iconic original cast are Gina Rodriguez and Zachary Levi, whom we can probably assume are playing the spy parents. Rodriguez was the star of The CW’s telenovela Jane the Virgin (2014-2019) and has appeared in films including Netflix’s Something Great, and Annihilation. Levi played Chuck on the NBC series Chuck (2007-2012) and is currently the star of DC’s Shazam! film series. The film’s sequel, Shazam! Fury of the Gods, is scheduled to be released in December 2022.

Per Deadline, the Spy Kids reboot is “set after the children of the world’s greatest secret agents unwittingly help a powerful game developer unleash a computer virus that gives him control of all technology, leading them to become spies themselves to save their parents and the world.”

We didn’t need it but we’ll take it.

(Via Deadline)

The Ezra Miller saga continues. After being arrested twice while in Hawaii, hit with a restraining order after threatening a couple, and accused of grooming multiple teenagers, Miller is now allegedly hiding out on a farm with a woman and her three young children.

According to Rolling Stone, Miller has been housing an unnamed 25-year-old female and her three kids (aged one to five) on a secluded farm in Vermont. The children’s father claims that he has not been able to see or speak with his kids. Miller allegedly met the mother while in Hawaii, and flew her back to the farm where they have been since April.

Footage obtained by Rolling Stone implies that there are multiple weapons on the property, including eight assault weapons, rifles, and handguns lying around the living room, with some weapons “propped up next to a pile of stuffed animals.” A source called the environment “chaotic” and said that one of the children, allegedly the one-year-old, picked up a loose bullet and put it in her mouth.

Sources also alleged that there has been “frequent and heavy” use of marijuana, which was seemingly grown on the farm by Miller and their friend Whitney Suters. While the state of Vermont permits two to four marijuana plants on an individual property, Miller’s farm is not a licensed cultivator, and there are as many as 28 different marijuana strains growing on the property. Videos of Miller appearing to be smoking with teenagers have also been surfacing online.

While Vermont’s Department For Children and Families has carried out a wellness check, they were unable to find anything out of the ordinary, and the family is reportedly still at the farm. The mother claims that Miller helped her escape her “violent ex,” though the father has denied any allegations of wrongdoing.

Miller is still expected to star in the upcoming Flash movie, which finished filming last fall, mostly because replacing them would be much too expensive. All in all, the whole situation is…very troubling.

(Via Rolling Stone)

Anyone who has ever had to work on a team knows it can be hard to collaborate at work, especially with someone who has a difficult personality or where there’s a larger skill gap between collaborators. Now, you might think that people who make music for a living would have less trouble with this, but as Dreamville rapper JID recently pointed out on Twitter, it appears that they run into similar issues.

Earlier today, JID tweeted, then deleted, his thoughts in this respect, complaining that “none of my rap co-workers be tryna rap wit me dawg.” After noting the exceptions, since “only women and pop stars” have been calling to collaborate, he took a swing at explaining just why this is the case, positing, “I think y’all n****z is scared, I’m talking to bigger rap artists.”

It’s true that most of JID’s higher-profile collabs have come with artists outside the genre of hip-hop. Two of his biggest hits to date have been the Arcane theme song “Enemy” with Imagine Dragons and “Dope” with John Legend, whereas most of his rapper collaborations have come with his Dreamville labelmates, other members of Spillage Village, or close friends such as Denzel Curry and Mike Dimes.

There is one A-list exception though — emphasis on the “A” — with fellow Atlanta rapper 21 Savage on “Surround Sound,” but it does appear that JID has yet to rap alongside many non-J. Cole-signed lyricists. While it’s anyone’s guess whether they’re actually worried about being outrapped on a song (or being “renegaded” — named for Jay-Z’s 2001 collaboration with Eminem, on which many fans say Em rapped circles around his host), they shouldn’t worry too much about it. After all, JID’s presence could very well bring the sort of contemporary clout that can help keep a veteran rapper relevant, even if they do get smoked on their own song.

Vladimir Putin’s been waging a dismal war in Ukraine for over 100 days, and all the Botox in the world can’t help his image.

What a way to sum things up. Putin is, in fact, apparently still deep into the Botox, and despite supply-chain hiccups, he’s still said to look embalmed as a result of his obsession. The Ukrainian people didn’t roll over as he presumably expected, what with the grandmas waving molotov cocktails around and President Zelensky refusing a lift out of the country, preferring to stay and ride with his people.

Meanwhile, reports of Putin’s circle maneuvering to find a successor persist for many reasons, not only including rumors about Putin’s physical (and mental) health but also because, according to a Pew Research Poll and the Moscow Times, Putin’s worldwide ratings are at a 20-year low:

A median of 9% of respondents in 18 countries said they have confidence in Putin “to do the right thing regarding world affairs,” Pew said. That compares with 18% confidence in Chinese leader Xi Jinping and 60% for U.S. President Joe Biden and 59% German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

Putin’s worldwide approval has been on a downward trend during his two decades in power. :But in 2022, these numbers reached record lows in every nation where trends are available,” Pew said.

The report even indicates that right-wing participants, who previously looked favorably upon Putin, have jumped ship as well. This won’t do anything to quell word from U.S. intelligence officials who read reports indicating that Putin’s “rule is no longer absolute” in Russia, and CNBC is now reporting that Putin’s already tiring of being a global pariah. He’s now attempting to strengthen his still remaining ties with China and India while lashing out at what he’s describing as “politically motivated” economic sanctions levied upon Russia since the Ukraine invasion began. So, sanctions are political, but war is not? Yup, it sounds like he’s really saying that.

(Via Pew Research, Moscow Times & CNBC)

On the heels of his latest album, Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, Kendrick Lamar is attending Paris Fashion Week. Today, Lamar performed at the Louis Vuitton Men’s Spring/Summer 2023 fashion show. During his set, he paid tribute to the late Virgil Abloh, Louis Vuitton’s menswear collection’s artistic director.

Lamar performed several cuts from Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, including “Savior,” during which, he chanted Abloh’s name. Additionally, he performed, “Rich Spirit,” “Count Me Out,” and”N95.” Before he performed “N95,” he shouted, “Long live Virgil.” Throughout the song, Lamar was wearing a crown of thorns and a large, draping suit.

Abloh, known for designing for artists like Kanye West and Pharrell Williams, died in November of last year, following a two-year battle with cancer. Earlier this year, Lamar wore a piece from Abloh’s Fall/Winter 2022 collection during his performance at the Super Bowl.

During a visit to Accra, the capital of Ghana, Lamar also spoke with several children about Abloh while visiting Freedom Skatepark, the first skatepark in Ghana, which opened last December and honors the late designer.

“Virgil,” Lamar said. “What he means to them, you know, as far as letting them have this creative space for them to enjoy themselves. That’s special.”

Check out the performance above.

On one hand, Lady Gaga is one of the most recognizable artists in the world, given that she’s been one of the biggest pop stars for well over a decade now and she’s launched a nice acting career for herself, too. On the other hand, she often wears elaborate outfits and costumes that make it hard to see what she really looks like. So, for some people, it could be a toss-up whether or not they’d actually recognize Gaga if she was standing in front of them.

For Leslie Jordan, one of her co-stars in American Horror Story: Roanoke, he didn’t manage to put two and two together when he first met her.

On yesterday’s (June 22) episode of Apple Music Country’s Trailblazers Radio With Fancy Hagood, Jordan said of meeting Gaga for the first time (as Exclaim notes):

“The first day, I showed up and there was a girl standing there and they said, ‘Leslie, have you met Stefani?’ And I thought she was maybe an extra. I didn’t know who she was. […] They could tell I didn’t know. They go, ‘Leslie, that’s Gaga.’ I go, ‘Huh-uh.’ They said, ‘Yes, it’s Gaga.’ And she was just adorable.”

He also previously spoke about working with Gaga in a a 2020 episode of his “Pillow Talk” Instagram series, saying:

“We had a scene where she was gonna blow fairy dust in my face, and then knock me down, and blind me, chase me, and then roll me over, kick me. And then she was supposed to squat down on me and cut me with a knife. She took me in the woods right before we shot, and she said, ‘You know, I tend to sexualize all my acting partners.’ I thought, ‘Where’s this going?’ Well honey, she kicked me, rolled me over, and got down on me and started riding me… I didn’t know what I was supposed to do! I just laid there and thought, ‘How do I get myself into these situations?’”

Speaking of Gaga’s acting career, she may have landed a role in an upcoming Joker sequel.

How many pancakes do you think Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson can eat in one sitting?

I’ll give you a minute.

Have a figure in mind? Good. Well, it’s probably less than what you’re thinking. The Rock’s personal chef, Janette “Puttie” Clark, spoke to Men’s Health about her “world famous” pancakes, and she revealed, “I make a pretty good-sized pancake, and he can pretty easily get to four on a morning he’s in a mood to go in.” There’s been times where she’s made The Rock eight pancakes, “just in case he was feeling extra hungry. But I haven’t seen him finish eight.” Honestly? I’m disappointed. I was thinking it would be at least a dozen pancakes. Even Review host Forrest MacNeil put away 15 pancakes (plus an extra 30), which is an upsetting number of pancakes.

If you want to eat as many (cod-free) pancakes as The Rock, here are the ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour
3 tsp baking powder
3 Tbsp cane sugar
1/2 tsp sea salt
10 Tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut
2 medium bananas, diced small
2 eggs
1 cup coconut water
1 cup canned coconut milk
3/4 cup whole milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbsp coconut oil, melted
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
Extra virgin olive oil spray, for griddle

You can find the recipe here. Please do not eat 45 Rock-cakes.

(Via Men’s Health)

Spoiler alert: Although the news you’re about to read is not all that surprising, please stop reading if you have not finished the Obi-Wan Kenobi series on Disney Plus. If you have not finished watching Obi-Wan Kenobi and continue to read this, well, you were warned. And also, there are other things to be mad at right now.

At the end of the Obi-Wan Kenobi series finale (for now at least), the Force Ghost of fallen Jedi Qui Gon Jinn appears in the Tatooine desert to lead his former Padawan. For this brief appearance. Liam Neeson returned to the Star Wars franchise for the first time since 1999’s The Phantom Menace.

Neeson spoke to The Hollywood Reporter and in typical Neeson fashion, very briefly explained why he decided to return to the role after over two decades.

“I certainly didn’t want anyone else playing Qui-Gon Jinn, and I wanted to show my respect for George [Lucas] and that mythical world that he created. Plus, Ewan [McGregor] is a pal, and I loved working with him during The Phantom Menace 25 years ago.”

So, Neeson returned to Star Wars to play a ghost with a few lines because he did not want anyone else, such as another actor with visual effects, playing Qui-Gon. So, Liam Neeson didn’t want to get Mark Hamill-ed. Fair enough. He also probably got paid a lot of money.

The Los Angeles Lakers entered Thursday as one of five teams without a 2022 Draft pick, having dealt all of theirs away in various trades over the past couple of years.

However, that didn’t stop them from hosting draft workouts and evaluating prospects in the second round range, as they planned on trying to buy their way into the second round, as there are always teams with multiple picks ready to accept cash considerations for them. On Thursday afternoon, the Lakers found just such a team, as the Orlando Magic are sending L.A. the 35th overall pick for a future second and cash, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

The 35th pick is pretty high up there, and it should allow the Lakers to target a strong player in the draft, particularly if someone finds themselves slipping out of the first round. The Magic already had the 32nd pick (as well as No. 1 overall), so it’s not a shock that they’d move off of their other second rounder for cash and a future pick. The Lakers will certainly be hoping to land a player who can contribute immediately — at least in the regular season rotation — as they are in desperate need of filling out their roster with minimum players (veteran and rookie alike), and the 35th pick is a good place to try and find one of those.

Taika Waititi stopped by The Late Show on Wednesday night to deliver the most important Marvel movie news to date: Chris Hemsworth‘s butt will not be censored in Thor: Love and Thunder. As shown in the film’s second trailer, Russell Crowe’s Zeus accidentally disrobes Thor, leaving the God of Thunder standing fully naked in front of an entire arena. However, in the trailer, Hemsworth’s super-jacked cheeks are blurred out. Waititi promises that will not be the case in the final product.

“In the movie, it’s not pixelated, though,” Waititi told host Stephen Colbert. “You get the full Hems’ Worth. The full worthiness!”

The Love and Thunder director went on to explain how the world deserves the end result of Hemsworth’s insane fitness regime, plus Waititi just likes putting naked butts in movies. Via AV Club:

“With Chris, he’s worked so hard on that,” Waititi continues. “It’s so many squats! It’d be depriving humanity if I didn’t show that.”

The Oscar-winning director already surprised audiences with a shot of the Hulk’s pea-green posterior in his previous Marvel outing, 2017’s Thor: Ragnarok.

“Some may say it’s an obsession, I just say it’s art,” he concludes.

Of course, with Hemsworth angling for a cameo in Deadpool 3, this may not be the last Marvel fans see of his godly rear. Unless the Rated-R movie goes in a different direction, in which case, firefighters should probably be standing by to hose off theatergoers.

Thor: Love and Thunder will bring the butt thunder to theaters on July 8.

(Via AV Club)