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The world lost one of its best beloved television icons over the weekend. Alex Trebek, the host of Jeopardy! passed away at age 80 of pancreatic cancer. His cancer journey, which began in March 2019, served as an inspiration for millions, with Trebek sharing messages of hope and resilience throughout his treatments and continuing to host the show for as long as he could.

Many people have posted tributes to the famously upbeat host, including an in-person thanks from a Jeopardy! episode that aired just three days before Trebek passed.

After being named champion of the show, which was taped in August, 37-year-old Burt Thakur explained what being on Jeopardy! meant to him. Trebek asked if there was anyone special cheering him on at home, and Thakur, fighting back tears, replied:

“You know, here’s a true story, man. I grew up, I learned English because of you. And so, my grandfather, who raised me—I’m gonna get tears right now—I used to sit on his lap and watch you every day so it’s a pretty special moment for me, man. So thank you very much.”

According to TODAY, Trebek had a humorous response to Thakur’s touching story. “Without skipping a beat he said, ‘I too sat on my grandfather’s leg, but he taught me swear words!'” Thakur told the outlet, laughing.

“My grandfather would always look at Alex and say, ‘That’s a good man and one day you’re going to meet him and shake his hand,'” Thakur told TODAY.

Thakur said Trebek was “an absolute gentleman and professional” when he met him. “He was so witty and funny,” Thakur told TODAY. “Alex Trebek is a significant reason why I am the way I am.”

Judging by his social media posts, Thakur is a kind and humble gentleman, so that makes perfect sense.

Even fans who never got to meet Trebek in person shared their gratitude to the man who they had watched for years.

Kazeem Famuyide wrote, “Alex Trebek did nothing but make you feel cool for being smart for 30 minutes every day for 36 years. Not many better ways to live a life.”

Canadian comic strip artist Kate Beaton explained how he felt like part of the family. “Alex Trebek made you feel smart and proud, smarter than your dad or your sister or whoever in the never ending family tournament – or ready to reclaim the crown, and he was always on your side, he was part of the family. He was part of ours.”

Two-time Battle Rap World Champion Adam Ferrone wrote, “Alex Trebek’s death hit me more devastatingly than any celebrity death this year, maybe because I spent so much time consuming his content or maybe because he just seemed like a really decent, smart, curious man. RIP.”

“Alex Trebek made us all feel smart and eager to learn without being condescending,” wrote Fawn Moscato. “He was upbeat and enthusiastic and always treated his guests with respect. Truly no one else like him on tv!”

Indeed, those of us who grew up watching Jeopardy! with our families could always rely on that half an hour to be soothing yet exciting, curiosity-inducing, and educational. When you guessed correctly, you felt like a brainiac. When you had no idea, you felt better when the smart people on the show missed some, too. I always wondered how much Trebek himself learned while making that show. He had to be a walking encyclopedia by the end.

But Trebek’s legacy will be in who he was, not what he knew. The Canadian who became an American citizen in 1998 was a philanthropist and activist who helped with many different charitable efforts from the USO to education to improving the lives of children in developing countries. He was a father of two and a breeder of racehorses. He was a kind and inclusive man who made everyone who came on his show feel welcome and everyone watching at home feel a part of it. And in his final months, he was an inspiration to us all.

“I’m not afraid of dying,” he told CTV News in October 2019. “I’ve lived a good life, a full life, and I’m nearing the end of that life … if it happens, why should I be afraid [of] that?”

What a beautiful example. The world will miss you, Alex.

Drake is one of the biggest artists in the world and has been for some time now. While people in his position have a lot of fans, inevitably, they also have a lot of haters and doubters. Drake thinks that latter crowd will pop up when he releases his new album, Certified Lover Boy, as he told a fan that he thinks some people will hate it.

On Sunday, Drake’s father, Dennis Graham, got on Instagram Live to host a post-election jam session. Drake decided to participate by hopping in the comments and interacting with viewers. In an Instagram Story after the fact, one fan pointed out, “I told drake ‘views be hittin different’ in his dads live, and he gave me some closure on how certified lover boy gon sound.” The fan shared screenshots of Drake’s comment, which reads, “they hated on views just like they will CLB but it’s music to evolve to.” The fan also added, “Drake actually responded to me, f*ckin respect to da almighty [GOAT].”

Whether or not the haters decide to make their presence known on the Certified Lover Boy release day, the album will inevitably perform well commercially, since pretty much every project he has ever released has raced to the top of the charts.

The college basketball season is set to tipoff at the end of the month as they look to navigate the uncertain path of conducting an indoor sports season without a bubble amid the COVID-19 pandemic that is seeing record numbers of cases nationwide this week.

Schools and conferences have created guidelines and protocols to try and mitigate the spread of the virus, but as the NFL and college football have learned in recent months, even the best laid plans aren’t foolproof when it comes to a pandemic. On a day in which numerous college football programs in the SEC announced outbreaks that threaten their ability to play this weekend, we also learned that the virus has already reached the doors of one of college basketball’s biggest programs.

Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo announced that he had tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday morning and was feeling minor symptoms but was, mostly, in good health and spirits. Through the university he released a statement thanking fans for their support and hoping to offer yet another example of the power of the virus and the need for everyone to take every possible precaution — and how even then it can still be contracted.

Izzo, who is 65 years old, will hopefully remain only mildly symptomatic and be able to make a full recovery, but it illustrates the dangers of starting a season in the midst of yet another spike in cases around the country, particularly as we see more gatherings of people around the holidays. There will undoubtedly be more coaches and players who test positive and the hope is that cases are limited as best they can and are not too serious or cause serious complications down the road, but this is just the beginning of a long and difficult journey for college basketball to stage a season.

Atlanta rap icon 2 Chainz is set to release his sixth solo album So Help Me God this Friday after a handful of delays but fans of the “I’m Different” rapper will be able to check out several of its songs early — provided they’ve also got a copy of NBA 2K21 handy. The latest iteration of the premiere pro basketball video game franchise will host an in-game music experience on November 12 giving first access to five new 2 Chainz tracks for 24 hours ahead of the album’s release.

In the press release, 2 Chainz again highlighted the connection between hip-hop, sports, and video games. “I’m always looking at new ways to drop new music and connect with my fans,” he explained. Premiering my music in NBA 2K21 is an incredible, exciting opportunity. Music and sports go hand in hand, rappers wanna be athletes and athletes want to be rappers. 2K has grown into a leading music platform and we wanted to bring the NBA 2K community these hits to ball out to in The City or at the 2K Beach.”

Chainz has already released a pair of singles for the album with high-profile features: The Lil Wayne-accompanied “Money Maker” and the Mulatto collaboration “Quarantine Thick.” Check out his exclusive preview of new songs beginning 12:00 am on November 12. NBA 2K21 is out November 10 for Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S and November 12 for PlayStation 5. The soundtrack is out on Spotify.

So Help Me God is due 11/13 via Def Jam Recordings.

Netflix can have Vanessa Hudgens play as many princesses as she wants, but for my money ($7/month), Hulu’s Happiest Season is the only streaming service Christmas movie worth watching this year. Directed and co-written by Clea DuVall (Marjorie from Veep!) with Comedy Bang Bang favorite Marry Holland, the holiday season romantic-comedy stars Kristen Stewart as Abby, who plans to propose to her girlfriend Harper, played by Halt and Catch Fire great MacKenzie Davis, at her family’s Christmas party. Problem is, Harper hasn’t come out to her conservative family.

The nice thing about Christmas movies is that they don’t need to reinvent the wheel. They just need to be fun and comforting. I’m prettttty sure I know how Happiest Season is going to end, but it doesn’t matter, because if it means spending two hours with Kristen Stewart and Mackenzie Davis, along with Alison Brie, Aubrey Plaza, Dan Levy, Victor Garber, and Mary Steenburgen, and they’re all wearing sweaters, I’m in.

Here’s the official plot synopsis.

Meeting your girlfriend’s family for the first time can be tough. Planning to propose at her family’s annual Christmas dinner — until you realize that they don’t even know she’s gay — is even harder. When Abby (Kristen Stewart) learns that Harper (Mackenzie Davis) has kept their relationship a secret from her family, she begins to question the girlfriend she thought she knew. Happiest Season is a holiday romantic comedy that hilariously captures the range of emotions tied to wanting your family’s acceptance, being true to yourself, and trying not to ruin Christmas.

Happiest Season premieres on Hulu on November 25.

Ronald McDonald has just thrown whatever hat he wears atop his firey red hair into the plant-based fast-food ring. After some tests abroad, the McPlant will be the chain’s first plant-based burger to arrive stateside. It’s important to note that this patty isn’t made by Impossible Foods or Beyond Meat, the two most visible plant-based brands in the fast-food market. (Impossible locked down Burger King with the Impossible Whopper so Beyond Meat scoring McDonald’s would’ve been a big win for the brand.)

So who is making the McPlant? In an interview with CNBC, McDonald’s declined to identify a supplier, but the chain’s International President Ian Borden has implied that the McPlant is a platform rather than a product — indicating that chicken substitutes may also follow next year’s plant-based burger. McDonald’s will test their new meat-free burger in several markets worldwide beginning next year.

The McPlant burger won’t technically be McDonald’s first plant-based burger, as the brand has experimented with a plant-based meat patty made by Nestle in Germany. According to USA Today, they tested out the P.L.T. (which is a great name for a plant-based burger) in several dozen restaurants in Ontario, Canada. It would seem the P.L.T. didn’t test well, though — McDonald’s has no plans to bring it stateside.

The announcement of the McPlant resulted in a drop in shares for Beyond Meat, so it’s overall been a tough day for Beyond. Expect the McPlant — and our full review — to in early 2021.

Saturday Night Live‘s longest running cast member, Kenan Thompson, stopped by The Tonight Show, where he opened up about almost being brought to tears after an interaction with Dave Chappelle. In a conversation with Jimmy Fallon, Thompson talked about prepping the big post-election episode hosted by Chappelle. The prolific comedian hosted SNL after the 2016 election, and this was his first time hosting since that monumental election, so it was a pretty big deal to begin with. But according to Thompson, Chappelle couldn’t have been more prepared, and the comedian was a natural at rallying the cast, which was deep into a six-episode run while working under strict COVID regulations.

“He made an insane speech, you know, before the table read. Did the same thing years ago,” Thompson told Fallon. “The guy is such a prolific speaker, and he speaks from the heart, and a brilliant mind. And it’s such a pleasure to be around.”

Thompson then revealed that Chappelle also took time to individually compliment the cast, and when he personally spoke to Thompson, the SNL alum admits it was an emotional moment.

“He told me I was good at my job, and I almost cried, you know what I’m saying?” Thompson said. “The dude is, I mean, as far as the pinnacle of people I look up to in the voice of my generation, it’s that guy.”

On top of receiving the compliment from Chappelle, Thompson also got to appear in the best sketch of the night, in which the stand-up comedian did an impression of the “All-State Guy” Dennis Haysbert that was so hilarious, Pete Davidson broke character.

New console week is finally upon us, and apparently Microsoft is bringing even more to the Xbox Series X and Series S thanks to its Game Pass subscription service. Xbox announced on Monday that it’s adding a free month of Disney+ to the various perks of subscribing.

Using the service’s most popular show, The Mandalorian, Xbox Wire shared that starting on Monday, a Game Pass subscription gives gamers a free 30-day trial of Disney+.

As Xbox explained in a press release, the deal is simple: if you have Game Pass, you now have a month of Disney+ you can access through your Xbox. And, of course, you can use that Xbox to stream the Disney+ app.

Starting today, Ultimate members will be able to stream all of the great entertainment available with Disney+, including content from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, and National Geographic. From old favorites to the latest epic movies, series and Originals from the world’s best storytellers, including the new season of The Mandalorian, we’re excited to provide this trial as a Perk to our members. Ultimate members who are new to Disney+ will be eligible to claim the 30-day subscription trial through the Perks Gallery on their Xbox console, on the Xbox app on Windows 10 PC, or through the Xbox Game Pass mobile app on iOS and Android. Once the Perk is claimed, members will be directed to the Disney+ site activate their subscription.

As Microsoft shared on Monday, the deal is only good for new Disney+ users. But it’s also good timing if you have, say, several email addresses and, perhaps, are just running up on the end of your free year of Disney+ you got from another offer when the service launched last year. At the very least, it’s a great thing to try on your new console once you can actually get your hands on one later this week.

It’s a lot cheaper than that Mandalorian-themed Xbox controller, anyway.

Doja Cat’s “Say So” has been one of the year’s biggest songs, so naturally, it’s been everywhere. While it’s a tremendous tune, one could be forgiven for experiencing a bit of fatigue with it. It looks like even Doja herself feels that way, as she tweeted over the weekend, “im tired of say so too yall.” Also this weekend, she performed the track at the 2020 MTV Europe Music Awards, but perhaps due to her being a bit over the song, she took it in a completely different direction.

While the original song is smooth, sugar-sweet pop, for this performance, she turned it into an intense, metal-edged rocker. Joined by a band, Doja and company played the song like a guitar-driven nu-metal, which was pulled off impressively well. Some of her airy vocals from the original song find their way to the forefront, but otherwise, this version of the song is entirely different.

Following the performance, Doja shared a gallery of images from the night and wrote, “Had such a great time performing ‘Say So’ at this years @mtvema ‘s! Thank you to all my fans for making me the winner of the ‘New Act’ category & to @mtv for having me!”

Watch Doja perform “Say So” above.

The Buffalo Bills were expected to be a good team this season, but I’m not sure many anticipated that they’d be in the conversation for the second-best team in the AFC. At the midway point of the season, that’s exactly where they are after dominating the Seahawks on Sunday in a 44-34 win that wasn’t really as close as that final score indicates.

There are certainly some flaws for the Bills on both sides of the ball, but the leap forward taken by Josh Allen at quarterback has been tremendous to watch and has put them in the mix among the AFC’s best teams. Allen has always had spectacular arm talent and athleticism — it’s why he vaulted into the top 10 when the Bills took him three years ago — but harnessing that arm and avoiding turnovers has been a significant issue in his young career. Thus far in 2020, he’s managed to limit those turnovers with just five interceptions and four fumbles, while throwing for 19 touchdowns and rushing for five more.

On Sunday, he had three TDs through the air and one on the ground, and after his latest rushing touchdown, the budding star QB broke out a Hot Rod celebration with Dawson Knox that few noticed what it was until later, when a Twitter user synced up the videos.

For those unaware, Hot Rod is an Andy Samberg/Lonely Island movie that flopped in theaters but has become a cult classic (as Samberg movies are wont to do) and features some truly outstanding performances from Bill Hader and Danny McBride. I hope Allen dips into the Hot Rod canon for more celebrations, as there are plenty of options to choose from. I hope to see the Richardson dance soon and also maybe picking up the pylon and beating a teammate while exclaiming he’s been drinking green tea all goddamn day.

There’s a lot to pull from but most importantly, we hope Allen is able to finally beat up his stepdad and earn his respect.