Lupita Nyong’o is one of the best actresses in her – *my* – generation. (We Millennials are happy to claim her as one of us.) She broke into the mainstream with 2013’s 12 Years a Slave and quickly established herself as a fantastic dramatic actress. She’s also starred in blockbuster franchises, like the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Nakia in both Black Panther movies, played a role in the Star Wars universe as Maz Kanata (a stop-motion role), gone the horror route in Jordan Peele’s Us, and done an action/spy movie, The 355, which I really liked. She’s currently starring in the prequel to A Quiet Place, A Quiet Place: Day One. But there’s one genre that Lupita is really looking to break into, and that’s the romantic comedy. During a recent event celebrating her career hosted by Paramount Pictures and Hollywood Confidential, Lupita let it be known that she would really like someone to send her a rom-com script.

Lupita Nyong’o has a request for Hollywood casting directors. On Friday, June 14, Paramount Pictures and Hollywood Confidential hosted an event celebrating the Oscar-winning actress, 41, for her years of work in the film and TV industries at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Los Angeles.

Nyong’o’s film and TV résumé is expansive — she took home a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award in 2014 for her work in 12 Years a Slave, portrayed a spy and romantic interest to Chadwick Boseman in Black Panther and starred in horror movies including Jordan Peele’s thriller Us — but there’s one genre she really wants to tackle next, she told PEOPLE.

“Please tell everybody I’m looking for the rom-com,” she announced. “I am here. I’m taking calls. Listen, if I need to audition, I’ll do it. I’m dying to do a comedy. Dying to do a comedy.”

The Emmy winner has started taking matters into her own hands, posting silly videos of herself, her cat and more to show off her lighthearted side.

“I’m trying to tell these executives that I’m funny and that I can be lighthearted and light-footed,” Nyong’o added. “But I do have more dramatic roles in the can than light ones, so someone’s just got to take a chance with me. So consider this my open application.”

[From People]

Okay, listen up, Hollywood. When Lupita Nyong’o asks to do a rom-com, you say “YES!” Someone send this woman a script, pronto. I’ve never seen it, but back in 2018, Lupita did a “horror/rom-com hybrid” zombie comedy that streamed on Hulu called, Little Monsters. She got great reviews, too. I would love to see her in a straight up rom-com as the female lead. Everyone keeps trying to make Glen Powell happen; I’d watch a movie with the two of them. I also kinda have a crush on Daniel Kaluuya and wouldn’t mind watching him reunite on screen with Lupita. Also, don’t hate me, but I would also watch her in a movie with Channing Tatum. Yes, I know, I know, but I kinda love me some Channing T. He has this earnestness that does it for me. Hmm, who else? I would also throw Donald Glover in the mix, as well. I watched the Mr. And Mrs. Smith series, and as a result, I dig him as a romantic leading man. So yeah, someone in Hollywood needs to make this happen for Lupita. I’ll be there opening weekend.

Photos credit: Justin Ng / Avalon, Avalon.red, sb/Avalon

In the days and weeks ahead of Trooping the Colour, there were so many conversations about whether the Princess of Wales would be seen on the day and whether the Wales kids would be seen as well. Kate and the three children had not been seen out in public since Christmas Day, and it did feel like they would have to be a package deal for Trooping, it wasn’t like Prince William could just turn up with Prince George and call it a day. One of the conversations was also: if Kate and the kids show up, will they overshadow King Charles at his big birthday parade? The answer was yes, they did overshadow Charles. But it looks like Charles was playing a much bigger game. He’s now using Kate and the Wales kids’ appearances for his own “grandpa embiggening” campaign. Buckingham Palace clearly ran straight to Becky English at the Mail with a full briefing which centered the Wales family’s reappearance solely on Grandpa Charles. There’s also a low-key admission that Charles needs to be seen with George, Charlotte and Louis publicly because the cat’s out of the bag that he’s a dogsh-t father and grandfather.

To his grandchildren, however, he is just known affectionately as ‘Grandpa Wales’. While much has been written — not all, it has to be said, complimentary — about the King’s role as a father over the years, it is his unbridled enthusiasm as a grandfather that has shown Charles in a softer new light. An enthusiasm that explains why, despite the family’s personal difficulties, the Prince and Princess of Wales were so keen that their children, George, ten, Charlotte, nine, and Louis, six, joined their ‘GW’ at Trooping the Colour on Saturday.

In order for the youngsters to be there and play a full role — riding in a carriage on The Mall, watching proceedings on Horse Guards and joining the family ‘balcony moment’ — Mummy needed to be there too to keep the ‘kiddies’ (as she calls her young brood) in check as Papa was on horseback. For Kate, there was also a determination to support the father-in-law she has become increasingly close to over the years and with whom she now shares the unenviable bond of a serious health battle.

In recent years the King has become a central part of William, Kate and their young family’s lives — a relationship emphasised by the lack of personal contact with Harry and Meghan’s two, Archie, five, and three-year-old Lilibet. He has only met his youngest granddaughter in person once since she was born, and Archie barely a handful of times.

Recently, it was suggested that the King was unhappy with the situation and ‘keener than ever’ to build a relationship with them that wasn’t just confined to video calls to California. The story was not universally welcomed as it put Buckingham Palace in an impossible position: those close to the King genuinely never speak about the Sussexes’ children to avoid inflaming transatlantic tensions, but to deny it would be to suggest that the King doesn’t want greater contact with them — which clearly isn’t true at all.

And the situation is particularly complicated because of Harry’s repeated attacks on his father and family, his dogged insistence in the UK courts that he isn’t safe bringing his family to the UK, plus Charles’s inability to travel to the U.S. because of his health issues and responsibilities. When I asked a well-placed source whether Harry could bring his children to see the King at Balmoral this summer as a compromise, the answer was a resounding snort. Read into that what you will. His relationship with his other three grandchildren is in a far better place.

The family’s relocation to Windsor, where they live in Adelaide Cottage in Windsor Great Park, along with the King’s decision to spend more time at the castle, has given him the chance to see more of the little Waleses. One close friend says: ‘He cherishes being a grandfather and enjoys enormously the time he spends with them. He loves playing with them in the garden and reading to them.’

I’m told that the King has even named an area he has created at his Scottish home of Birkhall ‘Prince George’s Wood’.

‘While people don’t see often him with his grandchildren that much because most of those moments happen behind closed doors, I know he is very careful to ensure he makes time for them in his busy schedule,’ the close friend says. He is, another source tells me, ‘doting in his own way’.

[From The Daily Mail]

I’ve pointed out before that Charles is actually breaking a significant royal tradition, where royal kids are often mentored by their loving grandparents. Charles was mentored by his grandmother (the Queen Mum), Harry and William had a close bond with QEII, etc. Charles doesn’t give a sh-t about his grandkids. He evicted the Sussexes and refused to give them security for their visits. He barely spends time with the Wales kids, and he only uses them as props for “loving grandfather” PR. I came into this story surprised that Charles is basically making Kate’s reappearance sound tangential to the need for the KIDS to be there, then I was doubly surprised that there’s a section about the Sussexes. Someone in Buckingham Palace (not Charles) understands that he looks like a horrible father and grandfather because of his cruel actions against the Sussexes. He couldn’t have Kate and the kids missing in action too.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

It’s been more than a month since a celebrity posted their American Riviera Orchard jam-baskets from the Duchess of Sussex. Those jam-baskets went out throughout April, then they stopped when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex had other things on their plate – Harry went to London for an Invictus service, then Harry and Meghan went to Nigeria for a “quasi-royal tour.” Since all of that happened in May, it’s been pretty quiet in the royal court of Montecito. I have been waiting and hoping for a real American Riviera Orchard launch, to the point where I’ve wondered if Meghan hit pause because of all of the shenanigans across the pond.

Well, that all changed this weekend, when Nacho Figueras suddenly posted some new ARO products on his Instagram Stories. It looks like Meghan didn’t just make strawberry jam, she also made raspberry jam and fancy dog biscuits. She sent jars of both to Nacho and Delfina, and Nacho was the one who posted them. Nacho and Delfina are ride-or-die for Meghan. Nacho really is the brother Harry never had.

Anyway, are we ever going to be able to buy any of this stuff? I want to buy jam which will bring down the monarchy! I want to taste a jam flavored with the tears of the British royalists. I also hope Meghan remembers that cats need treats too!

Photos courtesy of Cover Images, Nacho’s IG.

Billy Ray Cyrus filed for divorce/annulment from Firerose last week. Well, he filed for divorce but he’s seeking an annulment based on some kind of “fraud” on Firerose’s part. As I said at the time, Firerose has always given me huge con artist vibes and I find it hilariously suspicious that she just showed up one day, claiming to be an Australian songwriter with a curiously empty backstory. Still, Billy Ray married her last year. It only took him eight months of marriage to figure it out. Apparently, as soon as he filed for divorce, Firerose started running up all of his credit cards. Who could have ever predicted this turn of events??

Billy Ray Cyrus and Firerose are going head to head in court over their finances. Weeks after filing for divorce, Cyrus filed on emergency motion in Tennessee court on Thursday, June 13 seeking a temporary restraining order that would keep his estranged wife from any “unauthorized” use of his personal and business credit cards and accounts.

The country singer, 62, alleged in documents obtained by PEOPLE that Firerose — real name Johanna Rose Hodges — has in recent weeks spent $96,986 on 37 unauthorized charges on his business account, including $70,665 in payments to her attorneys.

“As a result of these fraudulent charges… I am concerned that Ms. Hodges is in possession of other information that she may use to make fraudulent, unauthorized charges to my business and personal credit cards and accounts,” Cyrus wrote in an affidavit.

Cyrus claims in the documents that the charges began on May 23, the day he filed for divorce after nearly seven months of marriage. The “Achy Breaky Heart” singer cited irreconcilable differences and inappropriate marital conduct as reason for the split, and is also seeking an annulment on the grounds of fraud.

In a response to Cyrus’s emergency motion filing, Firerose, 37, said there was in fact “no emergency,” and that she has had access to his American Express credit card since June 2022.

“To claim Wife has made 37 unauthorized charges is untrue,” her attorneys wrote in the response filing, which was obtained by PEOPLE. “Throughout the divorce proceedings, the parties are to live as per the status quo during the marriage. Wife was simply living as she has since October 10, 2023, and Husband has no right to cut her off.” Firerose’s filing said that after she and Cyrus married in October 2023, she continued to use his cards with his full permission, and that the couple would “routinely go over” her expenses on the card in question.

Cyrus’ motion, meanwhile, alleges that he and Firerose, a musician, do not have any joint accounts, credit cards or real estate, and that neither party was ever an authorized signer or user on the other’s cards or accounts. He also claims that she owns real estate in Los Angeles worth over seven figures, and that she has more than $500,000 in “liquid and investment assets at her disposal.” The former Hannah Montana star is asking his estranged wife to refund or return anything she bought with his business credit card.

[From People]

That last part is interesting – Firerose already owns real estate in LA and she has $500K stocked away? I don’t know enough about California divorces or who pays the divorce lawyers’ bills, but I honestly don’t have a problem with Firerose charging her divorce lawyers to Billy Ray’s credit cards. That’s honestly an “atta girl” moment for me. I loved when Christine Baumgartner did that to Kevin Costner too. I suspect both Billy Ray and Firerose are playing a bit fast and loose with the facts – I’m sure Billy Ray did give her a credit card to use, but I bet she was also running up some charges after he filed for divorce. Oh well. I’m expecting much more to come out of this divorce in the weeks to come.

Photos courtesy of Billy Ray’s IG.

Well, that was a wild six-month ride… and for what reason? The Princess of Wales made a big appearance at Trooping the Colour today with her three children. This is the first credible “sighting” and first public event for Kate since Christmas Day 2023. Kate made the Trooping-attendance announcement yesterday, seemingly timed for the evening news in Britain on a Friday. This makes two Troopings in a row – the first two Troopings of King Charles’s reign – where the Wales family’s shenanigans have stolen the king’s thunder.

For her first event in nearly six months, Kate wore a new Jenny Packham dress in black-and-white. She looked… pretty much the same as ever? I would even argue that she looks better and “healthier” right now than she did last fall. She was able to wear high heels. She was able to film a behind-the-scenes video for Kensington Palace’s social media. She was able to ride in a bumpy carriage with her kids. She was able to pose on the balcony. So… yeah. I have no idea. I’ve had no idea what the hell has been going on for the past six months of frankenphotos, body-double sightings, back-and-forth about whether she’s ever coming back to work and a chronology that makes zero sense. Still, I’m genuinely glad that she seems to be well enough to do all of this.

All set for The King’s Birthday Parade! pic.twitter.com/jbangtZvA3

— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) June 15, 2024

Photos credit: Dutch Press Photo/Cover Images, PA Images/INSTARimages

Nicole Kidman wore a flesh-colored Gucci to the premiere of A Family Affair. Nicole does this consistently, she wears too-pale looks and I hate it. [Just Jared]
Joey King wore Simone Rocha to the same premiere. [RCFA]
Denise Richards has another reality show coming out. [Socialite Life]
Tom Hardy continues to do the bare minimum. [LaineyGossip]
Louis CK should have been permanently sh-tlisted by everyone. [Pajiba]
Oh, this Monique Lhuillier collection is gorgeous. [Go Fug Yourself]
Iconic drag performer Kelly performs at Pride. [OMG Blog]
Will you watch the Brat Pack documentary? [Seriously OMG]
What is Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” really about? [Starcasm]
Jay-Z made a surprise appearance for Tom Brady. [Hollywood Life]
I want to know how to make McDonalds-style frappes at home. [Buzzfeed]

Last year, before the coronation, Queen Camilla’s longtime hair colorist Jo Hansford gave a lengthy interview to the Telegraph. It was a palace-authorized interview, one of many with Charles and Camilla’s inner circle as they desperately tried to hype the new king and queen ahead of the coronation. What was amazing about Hansford’s interview was that she was rather blunt and honest about many of the royals – she said Kate’s hair was too long and she needed to dramatically cut her hair and get some layers. Hansford also said this about the Windsor men’s extreme baldness: “The problem with the ‘inner circle’ is that they really don’t get given the right advice… I really feel sorry for William because he had such a lovely head of hair and he should have done his ages ago. If he were a client of ours, we would have advised him to do that as soon as he started to lose it, but of course he can’t do anything now because it’s gone so far.” It’s true! Well, now the Mail’s Ephraim Hardcastle had this funny little piece:

As Princes William and Edward can attest, with the King and Harry wanly nodding in agreement, baldness is rife among male members of the Royal Family.

Now fashionable coiffeur Nicky Clarke wants William and his sparsely-furred relatives to tackle their hereditary male pattern baldness.

‘Royals have not traditionally got good heads of hair,’ he says. ‘More people in the public eye now are using the latest hair technologies like implants so why not?’

Might Nicky, nostalgically recalling his styling of Diana, yearn to weave his magic scissors over the restored luxuriant locks of William and Harry?

[From The Daily Mail]

I like how all of these professional hair people keep chiming on how William is bald as hell and there’s little hope for him. Hansford’s comment was the truth though – “of course he can’t do anything now because it’s gone so far.” He can’t just show up one day with hairplugs or a toupee, please, the British media would eat him alive. It should have been a phased-in process which started years ago. Sidenote: I sort of think that Prince Harry has already started taking some steps to keep what’s left of his hair. Whatever he’s doing, it looks pretty natural (I think it’s good quality hairplugs). Harry really was “alarmed” by William’s baldness.

Note: CB loves baldies and she wanted me to put something in here about Not All Bald Men! Granted, some bald men are hot because they have swagger and innate sexiness which is not connected to hair. That is not William.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

This week, the New York Times’ Style editors tried to do a trend-watch piece and it’s getting mixed reviews. The trend? “Rodent Men.” Actors or celebrity men who are some being designated as “rodent men.” Not to be confused by “rat-faces,” which really confused me. When I say someone looks like a rat or has a rat-face, I do not mean it as a compliment. It means that someone’s eyes are too close together and their features are too rat-like. The NYT seemingly explands the idea that Rodent Men are distinguished by not just their physical qualities but by their vibe and aura. Which… is very strange. The NYT says that some of the notable Rodent Men are: Jeremy Allen White, Josh O’Connor, Mike Faist, Barry Keoghan, Rami Malek, and Matty Healy. Josh O’Connor is NOT rat-faced, but he does have the look of a very sweet-faced cartoon mouse. Mike Faist, I will grant you, sort of has rat-like features. As does Matt Healy. But Rami Malek? Barry Keoghan? This whole concept doesn’t make much sense.

“Rodent Men”: What are they? Tiny men? Men who eat garbage? Some kind of furry science experiment gone wrong?

According to the tabloids, they’re actually the most physically desirable thing a man can be at this particularly disorienting moment in American history. Exemplified by the faces of actors like “The Bear”’s Jeremy Allen White and “Challengers” leads Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor; as well as the 1975 band member Matty Healy and Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker, hot “Rodent Men” are a loose category that seems mostly to refer to men who look a bit like mice or rats.

Rodent Man: An unconventional mousy man with a toothy smile, and instead of a chiseled face like Brad Pitt or Chris Hemsworth, it’s more pointy. It’s important for their faces to be angular, that’s the dead giveaway. That and big ears. They come off as edgy and elusive.

[From The NY Times]

My confusion is “a bit like mice or rats.” There’s a huge difference between someone who has mouse energy versus someone who has rat energy. As I said, Josh O’Connor looks like a sweet mouse and I’m appalled that someone would call him a Rodent Man. But Matt Healy? Everything he does and everything about him is so rat-like, so he IS a Rodent Man. I feel like we should talk about Glen Powell here too – his eyes are too close together and the man has a ratty vibe.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid, Cover Images.

It’s still completely wild to watch the Windsors and the royalist press twist themselves in knots over bullsh-t rules THEY MADE UP. The “working royal” situation is something invented specifically to snub and punish the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. QEII never really gave a sh-t, and she welcomed the whole family to family events and even allowed for various “non-working royals” to step in and do some vague royal work. King Charles is different though. Even by the accounts of royal experts on Charles’s side, his “working royal” rules make zero sense. According to Tom Quinn, Charles is currently sending Prince Harry a “message” that Harry will never be allowed to live in Frogmore Cottage again, because royal residences are only for working royals. Except Charles wants to force Prince Andrew – who is no longer a working royal – to live in Frogmore. Nevermind all of the non-working royals who also live in royal residences.

King Charles has seemingly sent a message to his son Prince Harry “that he will never be allowed back to Frogmore Cottage”, according to a royal expert. A year after the Duke of Sussex, the King’s son, was evicted from Frogmore Cottage, the monarch is sending him a stark message, according to royal author and expert Tom Quinn.

The expert spoke exclusively to The Mirror, revealing: “For King Charles, forcing Andrew to move to Frogmore solves several problems at once – it sends a message to Harry that, as a private citizen and no longer a working royal, he will never be allowed back to Frogmore.”

Quinn added: “It sends [a] message to Andrew that having disgraced himself, he can no longer expect to live in the grand style. And, finally, it means that a suitably grand residence can be made ready for the royals who really matter – William and Kate. Charles is determined that Royal Lodge is the only residence on the royal estate at Windsor that is big enough and regal enough for his heir.”

[From The Daily Mirror]

They keep going on and on about how unimportant Andrew is, but then why does Charles want Andrew to live in Frogmore Cottage, a home which seems to be designated solely for working royals, huh? As I’ve said before, so much of what Charles and William do and say is for an audience of one: Prince Harry. They’re consumed with hatred, jealousy, fear about Harry and they’re publicly twisting themselves in knots to “show” Harry. It’s an insane way to live if you’re the goddamn king. Also: Quinn is saying it plainly, that this is all about getting William into Royal Lodge. This has been consuming William for years, his desire for his uncle’s mansion.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Netflix.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Star Wars (@starwars)

Soooo, who’s watching Disney+’s newest Star Wars series, The Acolyte? We are! I didn’t do much prep going into it and have found myself really liking it so far. The Acolyte, which is set around 100 years before the Skywalker saga begins in The Phantom Menace, follows a Jedi Master and former Padawan investigating a series of crimes that will “pit [him] against a figure from his past.” It’s been heavily implied that this series was going to show the beginning of the end of the Jedi Order and the rise of the Dark Side. I was really intrigued by the premise when it was first announced, and I know I wasn’t the only one. The Acolyte also had the highest opening day viewers for a Disney+ show so far this year.

Of course, right on cue, the whiny fanboys are at it again. They screamed and cried before the series even debuted, taking issue with its creator, Leslye Headland, who also happened to create one of the best shows of the last decade, Russian Doll. According to these crybabies, Headland, who is married to actress Rebecca Henderson (Russian Doll’s Lizzy), has set out to ruin Star Wars by making it “woke” and pushing an LGBTQ+ agenda. As Lucasfilm CEO Kathleen Kennedy told the NY Times, “Because of the fan base being so male dominated, they sometimes get attacked in ways that can be quite personal.” These so-called fans are so emotional that they’ve orchestrated a campaign to review bomb The Acolyte on Rotten Tomatoes.

In spite of a favorable response from critics, The Acolyte is currently being review-bombed on sites such as Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic. The Disney era of Star Wars has hardly been an uncontroversial one, with the fandom dividing in the aftermath of Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Those divisions remain to this day, as has been proven with The Acolyte. Showrunner Leslye Headland has proved especially controversial, and there’s been a vocal backlash against the Star Wars TV show from certain parts of the fandom.

This has continued with the release of The Acolyte premiere on Disney+. At time of writing, The Acolyte has an audience score of just 32 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, while the show has a user score of 4.1 on Metacritic. Looking at the actual reviews, there’s evidence of a review bombing campaign; many appear to be AI-generated, consisting only of basic plot synopses. A surprising number of half-star reviews on Rotten Tomatoes are from brand-new accounts, another indicator of a review-bombing campaign.

The Star Wars fandom has always been a divided and divisive one, but it’s become worse over the last few years, with a portion objecting to what they perceive as “wokeness” in the Disney era. This even resulted in a South Park parody of Star Wars, declaring that everything was the fault of Lucasfilm boss Kathleen Kennedy. The Acolyte is headed by a lesbian showrunner, and stars female and Asian leads, meaning it was always going to be controversial with this part of the fandom.

The campaign against The Acolyte has hardly been in good faith, with many quotes pulled out of context on social media. When star Dafne Keen discussed the ambition to produce fight choreography as good as that of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, it was seen as an insult to the prequels rather than proof of how highly they were held by the creative team. Kennedy and Headland addressed The Acolyte backlash ahead of their show’s release, calling out what they perceive as racism and sexism.

It’s important to note there are probably genuine criticisms amid the review bombing, drowned out by the campaign. Some critics have called out pacing and dialogue problems, and those could well pose a problem to members of the audience as well, resulting in negative reviews. Ironically, the review bombing campaign means real dissatisfaction is impossible to evaluate, while those who loved The Acolyte wind up on the defensive. It’s a self-defeating strategy, because it makes it easier to tune out any criticism as part of the campaign.

[From Screen Rant]

This is why it’s stupid to put so much weight and copy into what user-led review sites like Rotten Tomatoes say. It’s just another way for the worst people in any fandom to game the system. And neither Disney nor The Acolyte’s cast and crew should have to go on the “defensive” at all. Why on earth would the cast and crew waste their breath on bots and racist incels? We get it, they don’t like women, POC, LGBTQ, or anyone who actually wants to bring the Star Wars series forward as actors and showrunners. They’re so threatened that people who aren’t “them” are also into Star Wars, and refuse to believe that they always have been.

Anyway, F them. I’m still so mad at how terribly they treated Kelly Marie Tran, John Boyega, and Daisy Ridley and at how awful The Rise of Skywalker was thanks to these jackasses. Star Wars isn’t some cult nerd property. These POSes don’t own it and the franchise certainly doesn’t need their sorry selves. Rotten Tomatoes needs to come up with a credible verification system that makes coordinated attacks like this tougher to pull off.

Embed from Getty Images

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Star Wars (@starwars)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Star Wars (@starwars)