The Producers Guild Awards were held this weekend too! Oppenheimer won the top prize but here are cute pics of Margot Robbie in Balmain (she was nominated as executive producer on Barbie, which didn’t win anything). [Just Jared]
Ricky Martin has something in common with Quentin Tarantino. [Socialite Life]
The Oppenhomies were on Jimmy Kimmel last week. [LaineyGossip]
How did Shane Gillis do as SNL host? Not great, Bob. [Pajiba]
Tom Ford said: Pants! Military coats! Suits! [Go Fug Yourself]
These childhood photos are absolutely precious. [OMG Blog]
Cillian Murphy looks like he’s been listening to “Texas Hold ‘Em”. [RCFA]
Is Kieran Culkin getting that third kid he wanted? [Seriously OMG]
Ethan & Olivia Plath filed for divorce. [Starcasm]
I’m totally going to watch Mary & George. [Hollywood Life]
More women should give their kids their maiden-name/surname. [Buzzfeed]

People who only started following royal gossip when Prince Harry fell in love with then-Meghan Markle missed the years in which the British media regularly criticized Prince William. These days, you would think Prince William walks on water and Kate’s farts smell like roses, that’s how positive and sycophantic their coverage has become. But it was quite a regular thing, especially circa 2014-2016, for the British press to scornfully write about “work-shy Will” and “lazy Kate.” I still remember the well-deserved pile-on when it was revealed that William didn’t even commit to a part-time air ambulance pilot schedule, and he regularly skipped important events like the BAFTA simply because he didn’t feel like it. There were deep concerns, as late as 2016-17, that William would be petulant, entitled, lazy and blundering all of his life.

I bring all of that up because William has never enjoyed better press than when he’s selling out his brother and sister-in-law. But recent weeks have felt different. William went MIA for weeks right when King Charles and Princess Kate were dealing with medical issues. Now he’s arrogantly issuing self-serving statements about sensitive political issues, all while maintaining a deafening radio silence about his wife, who hasn’t been heard from in two months. Well, the Mail published this curious column from Amanda Platell: “Don’t lecture us all about Gaza, William… just tell us how Kate is.”

The shock waves hitting the House of Windsor this year have been relentless, not least among them the news that King Charles has been diagnosed with cancer. So it was heartening to see him meeting Rishi Sunak at Buckingham Palace this week, getting on with his job. Discussions between them turned to the importance of raising awareness for cancer charities and the Prime Minister commented on how well the King looked.

Rishi wasn’t the only one who thought so. The King’s appearance was a reassuring message of hope. He hadn’t lost his hair, as some of us feared, as a result of possible chemotherapy. Nor had he lost too much weight. He seemed in good heart.

But to me there was also something rather poignant about seeing him. It made me think about the Princess of Wales and how we haven’t seen her for so long. The most recent pictures I can find of Kate were taken on Christmas Day last year on the royal walk to church in Sandringham. It was January 17 when it was announced she had been admitted to hospital for unspecified surgery. She then spent two weeks in a private clinic before her planned three-month recuperative break from royal duties.

Can we even remember a time since she married William in 2011 when she was not there in our lives, smiling and laughing at official events or with her husband and her children? Her absence feels almost like a bereavement so used to her have we become. Wherever I go — the hairdresser, the butcher, shops, even in the street — I am asked about Kate by people who think I might have some information about the Princess because I am a journalist (I don’t).

Everyone’s desperate to find out what’s happening. How she is. When we’ll see her. But there is radio silence. If Charles can be open about his condition, why can’t we hear about how Kate is getting on?

William can pontificate foolishly about Gaza all he likes, but those of us who support and admire him and the Royal Family are not even vaguely interested. We just want to know about Kate. So please, William, stop lecturing us about the Middle East. And tell us that the wonderful woman you married — and who long ago captured our hearts — is doing OK.

[From The Daily Mail]

In recent years, I’ve gotten the sense that the British media is under strict editorial guidance to handle William and Kate with kid gloves, especially since they were both “playing the game” starting in 2017-18. But Kate went missing for two months and Kensington Palace bungled the release of information… and people are starting to get unsettled. Then again, I believe that there are many rota people already have some idea about what happened to Kate, but there’s some kind of embargo on that information. This Platell column can be read as a threat, just the Mail pulling on William’s leash a bit, telling him “stop with the politics and give us something on Kate.” It’s remarkable that it’s taken two months for this shift to happen.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid, Cover Images.

Katie Nicholl at Vanity Fair had a somewhat interesting piece about all of the royal shenanigans a few days ago. She was piggybacking on the fantastical claim that Prince Harry had “offered” to return to the UK temporarily to help out while King Charles is being treated for cancer. It was a make-believe story thrown out there just so Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace could make a big show of snubbing Harry yet again – they’ve run out of punishments so now they create fantasies in which he’s begging to come back just so they can scream “NO!” Anyway, Nicholl had some new quotes involving a “contingency plan.”

Sources close to the king insist that while Charles wants to show the world it is “business as usual,” reports about his son Prince Harry returning to official duties are incorrect. “The idea of Harry coming back to the UK to carry out engagements on behalf of the King is highly, highly unlikely,” a well-placed source tells Vanity Fair. “There is a carefully mapped out contingency plan in place if the king is unable to carry out public-facing engagements over the coming months, and none of these involve Prince Harry.”

VF previously reported that Prince William is being lined up to stand in for King Charles if the monarch is unable to attend next month’s Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey. Sources close to the Prince of Wales say that the idea Harry could return to the royal fold in a working capacity is “unthinkable.” “The brothers are barely speaking so the idea of William wanting Harry to come back and represent the firm is both laughable and unthinkable,” says a friend.

While Harry seems keen to paper over the cracks, palace aides have insisted that a cool distance remains between the Sussexes and the royal family. While Harry traveled from California to see his father in a last-minute dash following the king’s shocking cancer diagnosis, he was apparently told to wait until the king was at Sandringham. “The advice was for Harry to leave it a while and come to see his father in Sandringham while he was recuperating, but there was a big rush for Harry to come and see his father. It was all very last minute hence why the meeting was so short,” says a source.

[From Vanity Fair]

So… Harry was told to wait a few days before visiting so that he could go to Sandringham for a longer visit with his father? What’s interesting about that is Camilla was telling everyone that Harry was banned from Sandringham. As for this quote –“The brothers are barely speaking so the idea of William wanting Harry to come back and represent the firm is both laughable and unthinkable”– literally no one cares, William. Stop screaming, crying and throwing up about Harry for two f–king seconds. Regarding the “contingency plan” though, here’s an interesting little story:

King Charles has reportedly begun work on his succession plan, sparking fears his cancer diagnosis may be ‘more dangerous than we have been led to believe.’ Earlier this month Charles revealed he had been diagnosed with cancer after being admitted to hospital for a separate issue regarding an enlarged prostate. The type of cancer has not been revealed to the public, but it was reportedly caught early and the King has been undergoing ‘regular treatments’ ever since.

Nevertheless, the issue has reportedly prompted the King to start formalising his succession plans earlier than intended and ensure that Prince William is at the heart of them, sparking rumours that his illness could be more serious than we have been led to believe.

Tom Quinn, a Royal expert and author, told the Mirror: ‘Charles is also aware that, as future king, William is at the heart of the succession planning that is taking place right now – officials had assumed Charles would remain healthy at least into his mid-eighties before succession planning would need to begin but in fact it has now begun and indicates perhaps that Charles’ cancer is more dangerous than we have been led to believe. Succession planning is highly secret and no one trusts Harry to be part of it for the simple reason that if he feels in any way slighted or not given what he feels he deserves he will run straight to the media.’

[From Metro]

As I always say, these people have plans on top of plans and it wouldn’t surprise me at all if the palace was already knee-deep in plans for Charles’s funeral, William’s accession and everything in between. The planning alone doesn’t mean that Charles’s condition is more serious than has been disclosed. That being said, it feels like there was a reason why Harry rushed to the UK as soon as Charles called, just as my radar is pinging about two different articles referencing contingency plans and succession plans.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

One of the weirdest things about the Heritage Foundation’s deeply unsettling targeted attack on Prince Harry is that Harry received his visa in 2020, when Donald Trump was president. Heritage is trying to claim that the Biden administration is “hiding” something about Harry’s visa, when really, the visa application was submitted and approved during the Trump administration and whatever Harry’s residency status, the Biden administration is likely just extending whatever policy from the Trump administration. Something to think about. Not that Trump likes the Sussexes – of course not. He’s been targeted them for years, making public proclamations about how they wouldn’t get security when they moved to California, how Harry is “whipped” and how Meghan was “disrespectful” to QEII. Well, Ol’ Dementia Don is at it again, clout-chasing the Sussexes in a desperate bid for cultural relevancy.

Donald Trump has said Prince Harry will be “on his own” if he wins a second term this year as the former president criticised him for an “unforgivable” betrayal of Queen Elizabeth II. Mr Trump said that Joe Biden’s administration had been “too gracious” to the Duke of Sussex since he moved to America in 2020.

Speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference near Washington DC on Saturday, Mr Trump told the Express: “I wouldn’t protect him. He betrayed the Queen. That’s unforgivable. He would be on his own if it was down to me.”

On Mr Biden’s approach to the Sussexes, he added: “I think they have been too gracious to him after what he has done.”

Prince Harry’s immigration status has become the subject of legal dispute by the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, which argues he cannot legally have entered the US because he admitted to taking illegal drugs in his memoir, Spare.

[From The Telegraph]

I guess Heritage sent Trump some talking points. I’ll say it again – the Sussexes are not receiving anything special from the Biden White House. They pay for their private security themselves, and some of their security people are former Secret Service and retired military. They are already “on their own” when it comes to security. And once again, Harry moved to America during the Trump administration. His visa was granted by the Trump-era DHS. Anyway, just another reminder – the biggest losers in the world hate the Sussexes. ‘Tis always the case.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.

Jennifer Aniston came out for the SAG Awards because she was nominated for The Morning Show, and because she was asked to co-present the Lifetime Achievement Award to Barbra Streisand. It made me remember that very strange 2010 Harper’s Bazaar editorial where they styled Aniston to look like a vintage Streisand – it’s clear that Aniston has always believed that she looks like Babs, even if Aniston has done everything she can to surgically remove the likeness. Speaking of! Yeah, Aniston overdoes it with the Botox and fillers. Everything looks okay in still photos and then when she tries to move her mouth or face in any way, it’s painful for everyone involved.

I asked on Twitter if people think she got a boob job but now, looking at the photos, I agree that it was probably just the dress/taping situation. The dress is very good, actually – a silver Celine, rather than one of Jen’s preferred black-widow looks. Her haircut is also pretty good – the bob is really having a moment with Hollywood ladies. Also: Aniston wore a diamond-looking ring on her left ring finger. Is that anything?

Margot Robbie wore Schiaparelli – the Barbie looks are limping along at this point, but bless her heart for trying. I don’t like this at all and I’m mad that Margot and Barbie are getting nothing at these awards shows!

America Ferrera wore a very boring Dior to the SAGs. She better have a great look for the Oscars.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

For the past year, the Heritage Foundation, an American right-wing think tank, has been engaged in a targeted harassment campaign against Prince Harry. Heritage has marched into court multiple times to try to force the Department of Homeland Security to “release” Harry’s visa application. DHS has refused, saying that every visa applicant has the right to privacy. Heritage’s deranged argument is that Harry wrote about using drugs in his memoir, and then something something, what if he lied on his visa application? That’s it. That’s their whole legal strategy, it’s based on “what if” and endless and baseless supposition. Well, Heritage was back in court on Friday and DHS’s lawyers tried a new strategy. Anti-Sussex Derangers are always calling Harry and Meghan liars, so DHS was like “Harry could have been lying in his book, who even knows, a memoir is not a court of law.”

The Duke of Sussex’s admission in his memoir that he took drugs is not “proof” and could have been embellished to “sell books”, a lawyer for the US government has argued in court. The Biden administration is resisting demands for Prince Harry’s US visa application to be made public to see if he lied about his drug use when he moved to America in 2020.

As a federal court in Washington began hearing the case, John Bardo for the Department of Homeland Security claimed the revelations in the prince’s memoir, Spare, were not “sworn testimony or proof” that he took drugs.

“Just saying something in a book doesn’t make it true,” Bardo said. The prince’s book was written “for a commercial audience” and does “not necessarily tell the full story,” he added.

Judge Carl Nichols, overseeing the case, said early in the hearing that he was uncomfortable referring to the duke as Prince Harry, deciding that it was too informal. “You wouldn’t call me Judge Carl,” he told the court.

Under US law, applicants who are “determined to be a drug abuser” are generally denied a visa, although the government is permitted to make exceptions. Past drug use has caused problems for other celebrities seeking a US visa.

“The duke explicitly admitted at length to drug use” in his book, said Samuel Dewey, a lawyer for the Heritage Foundation, holding a copy of Spare in court. Dewey added that Harry had admitted to taking drugs after entering the US and had not denied the revelations in his memoir under cross-examination in other court cases in the UK. “Spare is a valid admission” of drug use, Dewey said.

The government has refused to reveal any of Harry’s immigration documents, even refusing to say what type of visa he was granted. “There are multiple lawful ways that the duke might have entered the US and do not show government impropriety,” Bardo said.

The judge suggested that the questions surrounding the prince’s visa raised a “suite of red flags”. He confirmed that he had not looked at any of the prince’s visa documents to avoid prejudicing his questioning at the hearing, but said he will now decide “pretty soon” on whether to order the government to submit Harry’s visa declarations for him to view in confidence. A ruling is expected in the coming weeks.

[From The Times]

Apparently, the judge ordered the lawyers to refer to Harry as “the Duke of Sussex” throughout the arguments because the judge was so uncomfortable with the informality of calling him “Prince Harry.” As for the DHS stuff… yeah, you can argue that the book is an admission, but Harry wasn’t “under oath” when he wrote the book. There’s also a difference between “drug abusers” and “drug users.” The foreign nationals who have visa issues because of drugs have usually been convicted or charged with drug crimes internationally. Harry has never been charged with anything, nor has anyone credibly claimed that he is a habitual drug abuser (or even habitual drug user). Saying “I did coke once when I was a teenager” in a book or interview is not the same thing as saying it under oath in court, nor does it follow that Harry lied about anything in his visa application.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

Welp, there goes that dream – I genuinely hoped that Travis Kelce flew to Sydney, Australia for an extended stay with Taylor Swift during the international leg of her Eras Tour. Instead, that meathead flew to Australia (a long-ass flight of more than fourteen hours) last week and then was on a flight back to the US in less than two days. It’s not like he flew back for some important meeting or a trip to the White House or something – he flew back to Las Vegas just to party with his team!!

Travis Kelce’s visit to see girlfriend Taylor Swift was short and very sweet. The Kansas City Chiefs tight end, 34, returned to the U.S. on Saturday, PEOPLE has learned.

Kelce had supported the “Anti-Hero” singer, 34, at her first Eras Tour stop at the Accor Stadium in Sydney on Friday after flying across the world to spend some time with her. But it was a whistle stop tour Down Under for Kelce, as he began his journey back stateside on Saturday.

Though her boyfriend wasn’t in the crowd for her second show in the Australian harbour city, Swift had a blast, and happily shared her delight with the audience as they cheered for her.

“”Ah Sydney, you are just … right off the bat you’re making me feel so … just extraordinary right now,” she told the crowd on Saturday in a fan video posted on X (formerly known as Twitter).

[From People]

TMZ had a larger story when Kelce was en route to Vegas, reporting that “when he arrives in Vegas — we’re told TK is set to reunite with his teammates, including his QB and other players … which our sources say had been the plan all along dating back to the Super Bowl…Our sources say this 2nd Vegas get-together with the team isn’t for any particular reason or occasion — we’re told this is just another celebration to ring in the big Super Bowl win.” So… given the crazy logistics of this, why did Travis go to Australia at all? He was already in Las Vegas for some golf thing before he went to Sydney. Why didn’t he just wait until the partying was done and then head out to Singapore to spend more time with his girlfriend? Did he take a whirlwind trip to Australia just to get the Traylor fans off his back? Because they were really mad that he didn’t drop everything to fly to Australia immediately. Anyway, I’m getting a weird feeling about this.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.

Amanda Seyfried wore Givenchy to the Berlinale premiere of her latest film, The Seven Veils. I actually like the lace but the whole look is kind of meh. [RCFA]
KFC has released “Chizza” – chicken pizza. [OMG Blog]
Oh, Ben Mckenzie & Mischa Barton secretly dated?? [Socialite Life]
Has the awards season been too long? The thing is, the Globes were too early! And yes, maybe the Oscars should have been scheduled for March 3rd. [LaineyGossip]
Lily Gladstone looked great at the Costume Designers Guild Awards. [Just Jared]
From what I’ve seen, the Hunter Biden stuff is about to blow up in the Republicans’ faces in a huge way and it’s fascinating to watch. [Pajiba]
These Burberry coats are amazing. [Go Fug Yourself]
Lisa Whelchel forgot she kissed George Clooney on Facts of Life. [Seriously OMG]
A 90 Day Fiance guy was arrested for domestic violence. [Starcasm]
Emma Stone regrets joking about Taylor Swift. [Hollywood Life]
I loved this dietitian’s viral video. [Buzzfeed]

Sunday, February 25th will mark the two-month anniversary of the last time the Princess of Wales was seen and photographed in public. That was on Christmas Day at Sandringham, where she appeared to be fine as she spoke to well-wishers and wrangled her three kids. There was a rumor, based on a tweet with a video, that Kate might have been rushed to the hospital on December 28th. All we know is what Kensington Palace has told us, which is that Kate had “planned abdominal surgery” on January 16th and that she needed to be hospitalized for two weeks. Then we heard she left the London Clinic on January 29th, without anyone seeing her or getting photos of her or Prince William (who reportedly “picked her up”).

After her hospitalization, we were told that she was recuperating in Adelaide Cottage. Still no sign of her. Then, two weekends ago, she was moved from Windsor to Norfolk during the kids’ school break. One of the weirdest things about that story is that there’s zero conversation about whether Kate was able to “go back” to Adelaide Cottage after the week-long holiday at Anmer Hall. Like, is she still in Norfolk while her kids are back at school? No one has seemingly asked that. We can’t even get the royal reporters to churn out some placeholder stories about “she’s doing fine, she’s back in Windsor!” Personally, I have my doubts that she was in the London Clinic for two weeks, just as I have my doubts that she recuperated for any amount of time in Adelaide Cottage. I actually suspect that she’s been in Norfolk for much of the past two months (especially since that was the last place anyone saw her).

Another bizarre thing is that at no point has Kensington Palace reassured the public that Kate will make a full recovery. Instead, sources keep pushing back expectations for when we’ll see her again. Maybe around Easter, but oh no, her kids are on holiday again so it will probably be more like May. Definitely in June, of course! Meanwhile, when Prince William made his big Middle East statement, he didn’t sign his wife’s name. It was his statement alone, on his own separate letterhead. All of which has led to even more speculation.

I am not trying to be a conspiracy theorist about the situation at all, but it is WILD how much the royal family has shut down press about where Kate Middleton is/why she hasn’t been seen.

— Sophia Benoit (@1followernodad) February 19, 2024

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

Rob Lowe turns 60 years old in March. Lowe is an OG Brat Packer and, back then, I never would have thought that he would have the kind of career longevity he’s had. He’s currently on 9-1-1: Lone Star and he’s fashioned a pretty successful and long-running career for himself, mostly on television. Lowe recently chatted with People Mag about his upcoming birthday, his health and wellness in general. I don’t think he’s promoting anything in particular (other than the TV show, I guess), but the conversation ended up going to weight-loss drugs and diabetic drugs. Weirdly, People Mag didn’t note that Lowe is still a spokesperson for the Atkins Diet. Some highlights:

On weight loss drugs: Stressing his commitment to overall health and wellness, the actor shares his concern with people relying on weight loss drugs, referring to medications like Ozempic, an FDA-approved prescription medication for people with type 2 diabetes. It’s one of the brand names for semaglutide — also known as Wegovy — which works in the brain to impact satiety, and is the latest Hollywood weight loss trend. “I see people who are taking all the new weight loss drugs and that’s great, and it’s really changed their lives. But my concern always is, okay, now what?” Lowe tells PEOPLE. “What’s the plan for the longevity of everything? I never ever talk about diets, I talk about lifestyle.”

He has a sweet tooth but he’s trying to be healthier: “I’m trying to be even more disciplined now as I’m older just because as you get older, you need to watch what you eat even more than when you were younger. So I tried to cut sugar completely as my new year’s resolution. And now I’m figuring, okay, that’s not sustainable for me, but how do I really watch my sugar consumption?”

He’s always been into fitness: Lowe notes that he’s never struggled when it comes to having a good grasp on fitness, boasting that he feels “better than I’ve ever felt…I can’t wait to train or to do something physical. I have very good friends and family that have to be dragged into doing something physical… that would be super tough to overcome. I am blessed that I really enjoy physical exertion and adventure. So if I’m not on a set, I build my entire day around what activity I’m going to do. It might be a paddle in the ocean, a hike, running sprints on the track, pickleball, tennis. I’m pretty much up for anything. It’s a lifestyle,” Lowe tells PEOPLE, noting that his latest health goal is trying to find the balance between “longevity and consistency” and “non-injury and pushing myself as hard as I ever did.”

[From People]

On one side, I agree with him that there should be conversations about what happens to longterm users of those diabetic/weight-loss drugs. Diabetics using those drugs are pretty much going to be on the drugs for a very long time, but people using them purely for weight loss have experimented with going off the drugs, to some wild-or-expected effects (like gaining weight back and then some). Again, drugs like Ozempic were and are made for diabetics and it’s been a game-changer for the treatment of diabetes, but… yeah, you’ll likely have to take it for years and years.

It does feel like Lowe is being sort of shady about Ozempic users, like he’s edging up to saying “why not just watch your diet and work out.” Lowe has so much privilege and he rarely ever sees it – the privilege of being a white man, the privilege of second, third and fourth chances in his professional life, pretty privilege and the privilege of “good genes.” He doesn’t know what it’s like to have a genetic propensity for weight gain or diabetes and his casual smugness is rubbing me the wrong way.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.