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Admittedly, there was a feeling of, let’s say, trepidation before meeting Joaquin Phoenix for an interview on the balcony of a Midtown Manhattan hotel room. This would be my first in-person interview since March of 2020 and it was with an actor who makes it abundantly clear that he doesn’t like doing interviews. When I arrived I was told Phoenix had requested that the interview be paired with C’mon C’mon director Mike Mills. I was also supposed to interview Mills later that day and decided to not put up a fuss because I wasn’t going to tell the guy who already hates interviews that I turned down his request to make the interview more comfortable for him. (Yeah, “Hey, sorry I couldn’t agree to your request, but now let’s dig deep into who you are,” didn’t seem like it was going to go over very well.)

The thing I learned about Joaquin Phoenix is, yes, it’s true he doesn’t like interviews – and his mood changes so drastically from minute to minute I had no idea how it was going. At one point he got up and left and I had no idea why or if he was coming back or not; he did come back – but he’s never a jerk about it. (He seemed his happiest when we were talking about the Lee Majors television shows The Fall Guy and The Six Million Dollar Man and he seemed his least happiest when he was talking about himself.) The best comparison I can think of is how I react when my optometrist wants to give me the air puff test. I am miserable and very stressed out, but I am not mad at the optometrist. I know it’s part of the deal and we have to get it over with.

Joaquin Phoenix’s performance in Mike Mills’s wonderful C’mon C’mon isn’t a typical Joaquin Phoenix performance in that it, strangely, feels relatively “normal,” to the point it seems abnormal for Phoenix. This movie will not be billed as, “Joaquin Phoenix takes his darkest turn yet.” Phoenix plays Johnny, a journalist who is doing a series of interviews around the country with kids about their hope, dreams, and future. His sister, Viv (Gaby Hoffmann) is going through a rough patch and offers to take her son, Jesse (Woody Norman), along with him on his travels to give her some breathing room. Along the way, Johnny and Jesse start to bond. And, as Mills points out, the movie began as a story inspired by his own kids (following Beginners, a movie about his dad, and 20th Century Women, about his mom), but then became more about Joaquin Phoenix and Woody Norman bonding in real life, and we see that relationship unfold onscreen.

But, first, before we got into all that (and Phoenix’s sincere statement that he just realized he wants to make a The Six Million Dollar Man movie), Phoenix hits me with some advice…

Joaquin Phoenix: Life is a fucking maybe.

That should be your mantra.

Joaquin Phoenix: Yeah, it is my mantra, my unspoken mantra.

Mike, you’ve said that this is a movie about Joaquin’s relationship with Woody as actors and watching them bond over the course of filming.

Mike Mills: It definitely started with me and my kid, right? And I was writing about things I observed. And then when you start writing it, it takes its own light, just getting away from you. And then these guys come and, by the end of the movie, I felt like we weren’t just filming Jesse and Johnny, there was something going on between Joaquin and Woody that’s on screen that the camera was available for.

Joaquin Phoenix: Joaquin and Woody in this environment that they would not normally be in, right? So what is that? What is that situation? I mean, hopefully, that’s always the case? Whatever environment you created, whenever the people interact within that environment suddenly becomes just those people interacting with each other, right?

Mike Mills: There is something real happening between everyone, I feel.

Did you feel that way while filming, that you were bonding?

Joaquin Phoenix: Well, hold on, man. Because if I said no, I know Woody would say, “What a fucking joke. He said that he wanted to bond with me!”

Yeah, you would get a text.

Joaquin Phoenix: I don’t know what the right analogy is. But with this group of people, particularly this kind of film, this really small little group of people, right? There’s a bond that I think we all form together in different ways. Because it wasn’t just me and Woody alone. We’re interacting with 20 people every day. We’re reacting to new people that Mills is bringing into our little group and we’re working with new actors and some non-actors. So obviously a bond is formed. I don’t know that I thought of it that way. I didn’t consciously try to do that. But I think, inevitably, that happens. You’re spending every day together, right? So of course that came up. And he’s so impressive. He’s a truly sensitive, empathetic, thoughtful person that feels things really strongly. And there’s a certain responsibility, I think, in some of the things that we talked about in some of those moments that we had.

Is he aware that you acted when you were around his age? Does he know that?

Joaquin Phoenix: Yeah.

Do you tell him that?

Mike Mills: Woody’s the smartest person at the table, by far. So he knows everything and Woody’s the most developed smart person on the set.

Were you ever like, “Buddy, when I was your age I was doing episodes of The Fall Guy and you’re in a Mike Mills movie, so you’re doing pretty well…”

Joaquin Phoenix: Yeah, I was hyper-aware of that. No, man, we talked about it. [Laughs] But The Fall Guy was fucking dope! So don’t fucking knock The Fall Guy.

Oh I’m not. I watched The Fall Guy every week. Colt Seavers.

Joaquin Phoenix: Yeah, I know we talked a lot about that. We’ve talked about it a lot. Talked about it today a lot. What a cool kind of initial experience, but I don’t know what else he did. Did you see previous work of his?

Mike Mills: No.

Joaquin Phoenix: Just when you met him was the person?

Mike Mills: His audition, yeah.

Joaquin Phoenix: You met and worked with him and then I met him, right?

Mike Mills: Just like the day before.

Just because I wanted to see, I did look up that The Fall Guy scene. I was expecting it to be a touching moment between you and Lee Majors, or something like that. There’s a motorcycle gang trying to steal your kite.

Joaquin Phoenix: That’s what I’m doing? I don’t remember.

It’s on YouTube.

Joaquin Phoenix: That’s amazing.

Yeah, you’re being picked on. But not by kids. Literally, a motorcycle gang is just trying to steal your kite. What is this about? Who would do that?

Joaquin Phoenix: [Laughs] What is that about?

That’s the meanest motorcycle gang.

Joaquin Phoenix: It’s the most unbelievable motorcycle gang. What was happening in 1982? Was it 1983? When was that?

I think it was 1984.

Joaquin Phoenix: 1984?

Mike Mills: Was The Six Million Dollar Man with Lee Majors?

Joaquin Phoenix: Yeah, but no it’s different, right? He’s a bounty hunter…

Yeah, he was a stuntman bounty hunter…

Joaquin Phoenix: The Fall Guy was after, right?

You’d have been too young for The Six Million Dollar Man.

Joaquin Phoenix: No! I remember, The Six Million Dollar Man!

Not to see it, but I mean to be on the show.

Joaquin Phoenix: Right.

People have been trying to remake that forever.

Joaquin Phoenix: We’re actually doing it.

Wow, breaking news.

Joaquin Phoenix: We should do it!

Mike Mills: You’re directing the first one.

Joaquin Phoenix: Why not? I really think we should do it.

Mike Mills: “How did you guys start this movie?” “Well, we did this interview for Uproxx and…”

I think Mark Wahlberg is trying to make it. So you’ll have to fight him for it.

Mike Mills: He’s not that big.

Joaquin Phoenix: No, we’ve worked together. We don’t have to fight.

So did you want to give Woody advice? Or you say he’s the smartest guy in the room, so maybe he doesn’t need it.

Joaquin Phoenix: I think he gave me advice and I listened to it. I listened to it the day before and I still utilize it to this day. I don’t think I ever gave him advice, right?

Mike Mills: I think Joaquin is just super available for Woody and just in it and that’s the form of the advice. But I think Joaquin never presumed that he could school Woody. And then if you meet Woody, he didn’t feel that way either. He’s a super capable person and he’s got his own ideas.

Do you think that this movie is part of your trilogy about family, in a way?

Mike Mills: No.

You don’t?

Mike Mills: No, I get it. I get it. That would mean I intended to do that.

Oh, I see.

Mike Mills: So, each one I didn’t. My dad was dying and I was like, oh, that is something maybe I could say. And then so, no, my course has been completely: I’m the last one to know what the fuck I’m doing. I don’t plan. It doesn’t work that way. So, I do know that I really like working from things I’ve seen or experienced. And felt that maybe then I could report something of interest or with detail or that maybe has something real about it, right? So that’s all I know.

So, it’s not planned, but I have a feeling you expected people like me to probably bring that up.

Mike Mills: Well, it was probably in my head. It’s like, okay, so everyone’s going to go think that. I’m not going to let that stop me. I’m just going to keep going and just because this feels right.

I’m always fascinated the directors Joaquin works with because you’ve done, I counted, roughly 40 movies now. And there’s only four directors you’ve ever worked with more than once. Is it you want to work with as many people as possible? Or is it not a planned thing and things happen just like it happens.

Joaquin Phoenix: That has nothing to do with anything that happens in my career. I don’t really make any fucking choices ever.

Well, eventually you have to sign a contract I assume.

Joaquin Phoenix: Things happen. I’m guided by something else. I have no idea what’s happening. So that’s, really, I wouldn’t know how to answer that question, honestly. That’s not me being evasive…

No, no, I don’t think that.

Joaquin Phoenix: It’s me being as honest as possible. I come up with reasons. I try to come up with reasons with these interviews even! But honestly, the older I get in my work, I realize that I have very little say in this creative flow, how it’s diverted, and where it goes. And I’m pretty much along for the ride and just strive to be the conduit as much as possible. But I really don’t deserve any credit for any choices being made.

So I have this iced coffee I’m drinking right now. If you’re asking me, “is that your flavor?” I don’t know. I walked by the store and that sounded good at that moment. Is that a dumb analogy? That’s probably a dumb analogy.

Joaquin Phoenix: No, that’s fine. Whatever analogy helps you to understand it, because I don’t know that I fully understand it either. So whatever helps you. But yeah, I don’t know. It’s something that is – I’m hoping to be a part of whatever that creative spirit or flow that has existed for all time. I want to be a part of that, and that’s all. And sometimes, hopefully, I get to ride along on that stream that has guided others. I know it’s not a satisfying answer for you.

I don’t feel that way.

Joaquin Phoenix: But I’m tired of trying to come up with this fucked up reason, this interview “reason to do things.”

Mike Mills: Having been around him and working together, that was a very real answer. That’s really what goes on all the time.

Well, do you ever then, no matter how you got there, do you ever look back and go “Hey, pretty good? I got to work with all these people. However it happened happened, but I still got to do it.”

Joaquin Phoenix: No, of course, it’s true I’m constantly in gratitude. Yeah, it’s very cool.

I guess what I’m saying is, you’ve never been in a sequel. And you work with all these amazing people. I know how much you love Raging Bull and your career is a lot like the career of someone successful from that era, only you’re doing it in 2021. If you were an actor in the 1970s I’m convinced you’d have also done very well.

Joaquin Phoenix: But having been around long enough to have gone through several phases of hearing they don’t make those movies anymore only to find that creative thing, whatever the fuck it is, is powerful. And it’s bigger and more powerful than all of their fucking research and understanding of what works and what sells and what doesn’t. It’s bigger than that. It finds its fucking way no matter what, because it’s always been up against the thing that it is popular and what works and what should work, right? And it fucking finds its way through. And, so, it’s important. And, thankfully, there are people who come along… There are those that are on the other side of things, the money side of things, that recognize, every once in a while, they recognize a unique vision like Mike Mills to go, “We need to fucking support that. We need to get behind that.” It’s incredible that they’re there, right? It’s incredible that A24 is around right now and goes like, “Look, we get you. We love you. We want to support you.”

Mike Mills: A24, they never gave me a note. I had to beg them to give me criticisms.

Wait, how does that work? You went to them and you were like, “Hey, if you see anything you don’t like…”

Mike Mills: Well, in editing, I’m like, come on! What do you really think? Because you need to hear and they’re just, “Well, we just believe in you.” It’s like, what? It’s, whatever they’re doing is, you can’t get much better. Because it’s like, go do your thing. There’s no holds barred. No trick. No manipulation.

By the way, I agree with you when people say, “Oh, they don’t make them like that anymore.” But you find them, that’s the thing. You always find them.

Joaquin Phoenix: I don’t find them, they…

They find you.

Joaquin Phoenix: Of course.

You can contact Mike Ryan directly on Twitter.

Donald Trump and Chris Christie have a, let’s say, tumultuous relationship. The former-New Jersey governor was the first “high-profile establishment Republican to legitimize Donald Trump in 2016,” leading to this incredible moment in Hostage Face history, but since then, Christie and the ex-president have been locked in various petty feuds.

Trump blamed his exposure to COVID-19 on Christie, going so far as to claim that he saw “the spittle” come out of his mouth and “tried to duck from the droplets” as they sat across from each other while prepping for a debate against Joe Biden. In his new book, Republican Rescue: Saving the Party From Truth Deniers, Conspiracy Theorists, and the Dangerous Policies of Joe Biden, Christie also revealed what an infected Trump called and asked him when they were hospitalized with the deadly disease.

Mr. Christie reveals how worried he and others were for his survival when he became infected with the coronavirus after being at the White House around the same time that Mr. Trump and several other aides contracted COVID-19. Mr. Christie writes that his priest arrived in the hospital and rubbed oils on his forehead in the sign of the cross, praying over him. He got a call from a hospitalized Mr. Trump, who had one main concern: “Are you gonna say you got it from me?” Mr. Trump asked him.

A “get well” gift basket from McDonald’s would have sufficed.

Anyway, Christie claims his book isn’t about Trump. “It’s a book about where we go from here and why it is important for us to let go of the past,” he told the New York Times. And if New Jersey residents want to let go of Bridgegate, Christie would be fine with that, too.

(Via the New York Times)

It was reported last week that Travis Scott and other co-defendants connected to the Astroworld tragedy were being sued by the family of a 9-year-old boy who was trampled at the festival. At the time, the lawsuit indicated that the boy, Ezra Blount, was “in an induced coma on life support and has severe liver, kidney, and brain damage.” Now, unfortunately, the worst possible outcome of this situation has been reached, as Blount has died, his family told Houston’s ABC13. Blount’s passing marks the tenth death connected with Astroworld.

Ezra’s family’s attorney, Ben Crump, said in a statement, “The Blount family is grieving the incomprehensible loss of their precious young son. This should not have been the outcome of taking their son to a concert, what should have been a joyful celebration. Ezra’s death is absolutely heartbreaking. We are committed to seeking answers and justice for the Blount family. But we stand in solidarity with the family, in grief, and in prayer.”

Bernon Blount, Ezra’s grandfather, previously told Rolling Stone, “We have a lot of anger right now because someone is responsible for the condition of our grandson. For him to have the injuries he has, I can’t help picturing in my mind what he had to go through to get those injuries. Someone should be held responsible. He went there with his father to have a good time, not to be trampled halfway to… I don’t want to even say the word.”

When talk shows take on talk shows, that’s when some magic can happen, and it’s particularly amusing when satiric shows take on Fox and Friends, particularly when it comes to the hosts’ habits. So far, Steve Doocy (who’s the relative voice of reason lately, next to many of his fellow Fox News hosts) has been immune to this skewering because he does a lot of listening. That includes all of the instances highlighted by Comedy Central’s The Daily Show on Ainsley Earhardt’s “my friends” remarks. And over on HBO’s Last Week Tonight, John Oliver delights in roasting Brian Kilmeade, who’s Columbus obsession did the deed for Indigenous People’s Day.

Now, it’s time for a followup segment, “The Many Questions of Fox and Friends‘ Brian Kilmeade.” There’s a lot of them, alright. Here are some of the “better” ones:

– “How do diners have twenty pages in their menu?”
– “How does a baby retire?”
– “And why did it hit the iceberg, do you know?”
– “Do you think the sharks know it’s Shark Week?”
– “What great American decided that you need a bun with a hot dog?”
– “Why was it ever the International House Of Pancakes?”

That doesn’t even touch the threepeat “turnip” obsession,” but it does make me hungry for pancakes and gives me a surprisingly “zen” feeling as well. This subject helps wind down the final Last Week Tonight episode of 2021. We’ll miss John Oliver’s sharp-witted execution of f-bombs and will look forward to him blowing sh*t up (metaphorically, of course) in 2022.

When Kelly Mantoan got the news that her 1-year-old son, Fulton, had spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) – a rare and progressive genetic disease – she was devastated. More difficult news came just a few months later when she gave birth to her newborn son, Teddy, at 32 weeks. As she sat with him in the neonatal intensive care unit shortly after his birth, doctors confirmed that Teddy had tested positive for SMA as well.

“I was sobbing uncontrollably,” Kelly remembers. “[My husband and I] hadn’t even fully come to terms with Fulton’s diagnosis, and now we have two kids with it.”

The Mantoans knew little about SMA – only that the condition involved the loss of motor neurons in the spinal cord due to a defect on the SMN1 gene. The SMN1 defect, the couple learned, meant the boys were unable to produce a protein called SMN, or “survival motor neuron.” Without this protein, the muscles surrounding the spinal cord (and then, later, distal muscles such as the arms and legs) gradually weaken, affecting the person’s ability to walk, breathe, and swallow. Worse still, while Teddy had been classified as having SMA Type 2, Fulton was classified as having Type 1 – the most fatal form of SMA, typically resulting in a life expectancy of less than three years. (Fulton was later re-evaluated and determined to have SMA Type 2. With proper care, people living with SMA Type 2 often live well into adulthood.)

“We truly thought Fulton was going to die within three years,” Kelly recalls.

At the time of Fulton’s diagnosis in 2009, there was little anyone could do. Physical therapy helped slow the muscular atrophy, but no medications existed to reverse the muscle function that the boys had already lost. But when Fulton was 8 and Teddy was 10, Kelly heard about a clinical trial for a drug, infused every few months through a lumbar puncture, that could stop the muscle atrophy and potentially even reverse some of the damage. If the treatment worked, the boys, who were now in wheelchairs full time – might be able to regain some of their muscle strength and their function. Kelly and her husband, Tony, were skeptical at first, but changed their minds when other parents in the SMA community started reporting incredible results. Kids with SMA who had lost muscle function were starting to smile, to hold things, to lift their heads on their own. “When it got FDA approval, I knew enough about it that I wanted to get both boys on board,” she says.

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Testing and advancing new genetic therapies toward FDA approval is the ultimate goal of scientists such as Jane Owens, a Senior Director in the Discovery Biology group at Pfizer within their Rare Disease Research Unit. Owens leads a group of scientists who work to develop medicines for patients with rare diseases that affect skeletal muscles. Although Owens and her team were not involved in developing the therapy that Fulton and Teddy Mantoan have used, they are helping develop therapies that may address the underlying cause of other genetic diseases. “Our genes contain the instructions for making proteins,” Owens says. “If the cause of a genetic disease is a gene mutation that results in low levels or even none of that protein being made, we can generate a molecular construct that allows us to deliver a corrected copy of the gene to the patient, thereby replacing the missing protein,” she says. This, says Owens, is the premise of many gene therapies in development — and the medicines that may be borne out of this research give hope to families like the Mantoans. “As scientists, our goal is to advance research to unlock the promise of gene therapy for patients, living with rare genetic diseases worldwide, for whom the current standard of care falls short. We’re driven by the potentially transformative benefits for patients and their families,” Owens said.

Photo by CHUTTERSNAP on Unsplash

Currently, Teddy (now 10) and Fulton (13) are both on a new genetic medicine for their SMA. The new medication, similar to the first, is designed to stimulate the production of the missing protein, only this time the boys take a daily oral medication rather than a lumbar puncture.

While neither of the Mantoan boys has seen dramatic changes in their condition, Kelly says that their therapy has prevented a decline — something the entire family is thankful for. “People want to know if they’re doing these big grandiose things like walking, and they’re not doing that. But breathing is so important, and we’re grateful they haven’t lost that ability.”

It is important to note that all families may not have the same experience as the Mantoans. There is still much to be understood about genetic therapy. “It’s not right for every patient, and the patient responses may be variable,” Owens said.

Looking toward the future, the Mantoans are cautiously optimistic that genetic medicine will help the boys maintain their present quality of life.

“Prior to these [treatments], you’d have a skill, then plateau, and then your function would decline and continue to go down,” she says. “Now the boys are maintaining, and they’re not getting significantly weaker. We’re just really happy about that.”

The Las Vegas Raiders signed DeSean Jackson after he was released by the Rams in hopes of adding a vertical threat to their offense after cutting Henry Ruggs III following his arrest for DUI resulting in death.

On Sunday night against the Chiefs, we saw why Jackson was scooped up by the Raiders when he popped the top on the Kansas City defense and seemed to have at the very least a huge play, if not a touchdown, after hauling in a deep pass from Derek Carr and shedding his defender. However, from there, Jackson made some bizarre decisions, like running away from the end zone as he tried to evade a KC defender, ultimately getting the football punched out and recovered by the Chiefs.

The still shots of the play look especially bad, but Jackson was probably getting run down if he stays on the same path but, cutting back completely across the field rather than at an angle was a total head scratcher. Unsurprisingly, fans on Twitter had plenty of jokes and commentary about Jackson’s rather unfortunate moment of confusion.

From that point, the Raiders saw the Chiefs start to pull away, as Jackson fumbling away a red zone opportunity down 10 proved very costly — but at least provided non-Raiders fans with some laughs along the way.

The Atlanta Hawks haven’t gotten off to the start to the 2021-22 season they hoped coming off a surprising trip to the conference finals this past summer. At 5-9, Atlanta has stumbled out of the gates as they’ve struggled to find the same rhythm from the second half of last season.

The good news is that the Hawks struggled early last season and eventually hit their stride at the right time to make a deep playoff run. The bad news is, suddenly there are some unfortunate similarities to last season in the form of the injury bug biting one of their key players. De’Andre Hunter suffered a wrist injury in a loss to the Warriors last Monday and, after playing 21 minutes on Friday against Denver, had an MRI that revealed a tendon injury that would require surgery and keep him out for two months.

It’s the second straight season the Hawks have seen Hunter suffer an early injury, as his meniscus derailed his season a year ago, ultimately requiring a second surgery that ended his season in the playoffs. This year, it’s a wrist that will sideline the Hawks’ top defensive wing and force the Hawks to turn to others to step up. In the postseason a year ago, Kevin Huerter became a hero in the Sixers series and earned himself a healthy extension, and one would expect Atlanta to lean heavily on him going forward, as well as more responsibility on Cam Reddish.

Hunter is not just a defensive ace, but has become one of their most reliable three-point threats (39.6 percent from deep this season) and his absence will be significant on both ends. They weathered that storm a year ago, but it’s not what Atlanta wanted to have to replicate again, particularly after stumbling early.

For a little over a week, Ye has been teasing the release of a deluxe version for his tenth album, Donda. He recently spoke about it during an appearance on the Drink Champs podcast, and while exact details behind the deluxe were not revealed, but luckily for those who were excited to press play on the updated album, it’s finally here. On Sunday evening, Ye released the deluxe version of Donda complete with five new songs that extends the already-lengthy album to a total of 32 songs.

The new additions include the previously-leaked “Life Of The Party” with Andre 3000, which features a new verse from Ye. The track also features audio from a beloved video featuring the late DMX which sees him comforting his daughter while they ride a rollercoaster together. Ye also added sequels to “Remote Control,” which features Kid Cudi in addition to Young Thug, and “Keep My Spirit Alive,” which brings in KayCyy to join Conway The Machine and Westside Gunn. The last two additions to the deluxe version of Donda are “Never Abandon Your Family” and “Up From The Ashes.”

The new release comes after a number of Ye clones were spotted in New York City. The clones mimicked Ye’s Donda-era look by rocking black pants, black bomber jackets, a black baseball cap, and a beige prosthetic mask.

Donda (Deluxe) is out now via GOOD Music/Def Jam. Get it here.

Young Thug is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Summer Walker has a number of accolades and record-breaking moments to her name in her short career. The singer already has a top-five chart entry on the Billboard 200 thanks to her 2019 debut album, Over It. That project also broke the record for the most-streamed album ever by a female R&B artist, surpassing a mark previously held by Beyonce’s Lemonade. This success continued through Summer’s sophomore album, Still Over It, which she released earlier this month. The project became Apple Music’s biggest album debut ever and the platform’s biggest R&B album debut ever in addition to going No. 1 in 40 markets globally. More than a week after its release, Still Over It continues to break records for Summer.

Still Over It went No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart dated November 20, 2021. The album accomplished this by selling 166,000 album units in its first week. This number is comprised of 153,000 streaming equivalent album units which amounts to 201.1 million on-demand streams of the album’s tracks. The project also tallied 12,000 pure album sales. With that, Summer lands the first No. 1 album by a female R&B singer in over five years, with the last being Solange’s A Seat At The Table, as well as the biggest week for a female R&B singer since Beyonce’s Lemonade.

Elsewhere, Still Over It earns the biggest first week for an R&B album released in 2021, the largest streaming week ever an R&B album released by a woman, and the fourth-biggest debut by a woman in 2021.

You can revisit our review for Still Over It here.

Still Over It is out now via LVRN/Interscope. Get it here.

The lawsuits that Travis Scott and Astroworld’s festival organizers have received are already in the triple digits with more on the way. This comes after the death of nine attendees at the showcase earlier this month. Hundreds more were injured as well during the festival. Travis Scott and Astroworld organizers announced that they will provide full refunds for everyone who purchased tickets to attend the show, but legal experts warn that accepting these refunds could come with irreversible consequences. Neama Rahmani, co-founder of the personal-injury firm West Coast Trial Lawyers spoke to Insider about this.

“Courts generally uphold those types of waivers,” Rahmani said. “The classic case is arbitration agreements. Everyone kind of scrolls through. No one reads the fine print, and guess what, you’ve waived your right to a jury trial, waived your right to file a lawsuit, to demand arbitration.” Legal analyst Carmen Roe had similar thoughts to Rahmani’s own, which she shared with Houston’s local station KHOU 11.

“What they need to look for specifically, is the word ‘Waiver,’ ‘Consent’ ‘Agreement’ of any kind,” Roe said when she was asked what attendees need to look for before accepting refunds. “And most importantly, they need to be concerned if they’re asked to sign anything.” She added, “Refunds should not come with a signature. So, in this particular case, Live Nation has suggested they’re going to refund these people, and that this is all going to be on the up and up. That shouldn’t require their signature under any circumstances.”