Terry Crews is like a giant fountain of energy wrapped in a blanket of charisma. Terry’s enjoyed plenty of success, but he’s currently killing it as a sensitive tough guy on Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It’s also difficult to forget those Old Spice ads from days past.

Terry is an unabashed feminist. Last year, he published a memoir called Manhood, which detailed his awakening to the need for gender equality. Along the way, he also stomped all over the traditional clichés of masculinity. Terry has a new interview with Dame magazine where he covers so much stuff — his feminine side, the misogyny of sports culture, and how male pride is a terrible thing. Oh, and he believes 50 Shades is truly dangerous:

Embracing his feminine side: “One thing I love, and that I’m starting to understand more, is that we really are both. Every man and every woman has both sexes in them. As manly as I am, with a one chromosome difference, I’m a woman. We have to embrace the duality that we are. When you’re in touch with that feminine side, you can empathize, along with having the strength. You become protective of people who are being wronged. When you’re too manly, there’s no grace, there’s no empathy. It’s all judgment. When you embrace either side of who you are, if you’re a woman and you embrace that manly part of you, or if you’re a man and you embrace that female part of you, it makes you a really whole, wonderful person.”

Misogyny, sports culture & 50 Shades: “Coming up in the sports culture, I saw it was nothing for guys to say things like, ‘Oh, you know she wanted it.’ I knew guys who had the attitude of, ‘You know you shouldn’t have walked out the door looking like that, girl,’ thinking they had the right to feel on her or to rape her, because of what she was wearing. Once I realized that I was part of that culture, I knew that I had to change it. This is the truth — thinking is the hardest thing you can ever do. For example, 50 Shades — can you just think about what it’s saying? Every art form has a message, and the message I’m getting from 50 Shades is that it’s OK to dominate and control women. And not only is it OK, it’s sexy. And even worse, deep inside, she wants it. That’s the most dangerous mind-set you can have, and our mind-set will determine where we end up. We can do something about this. I’m very optimistic because right now, we have more ways to go than we did before. Before, as a man, it was that Mad Men type of misogyny or nothing.”

On male pride: “My message to all men is that you have to kill pride. You’ve been taught that pride is a manly thing, that pride is a good thing. But the problem with pride is that it stops you from growth. When you’re so proud that you won’t change, you’ve got problems. Male pride causes wars; millions of people have died because of male pride, because one man would not back down. Male pride will say, ‘I’d rather blow up my whole family than have everyone look at me as though I’ve lost.’ That is so dangerous. I go back to the biblical story of Solomon. I look at male pride in that respect: a man who is proud would rather cut the baby in half and destroy it all, rather than save his own life and his own future. When you kill that pride, instantly, you become a better person, because now you’re listening. Now you don’t know it all. Now you’re humble. Now you can grow and get smarter.”

[From Dame magazine]

The whole interview is an engrossing read. Terry discusses the “pimp culture” he grew up with and how came to reject it. He also details his role with the Polaris Project, which aims to eliminate human trafficking.

What’s interesting about Terry’s views is that he’s changed over the years. During an interview with The Agenda (last year), Terry said, “I have been that guy where I felt I was more valuable than my wife and kids.” He grew ashamed of that attitude and learned from his mistakes. Terry vowed, “I’m not going to be silent” on issues of gender equality. Did you know he’s been married for 25 years to Rebecca King? Dude is doing something right at home, which isn’t hard to believe.

Photos courtesy of WENN

I have no plans to see Fifty Shades of Grey. I read the book and that was enough for me. For what it’s worth, I’ve heard that film is better than the book, that they strengthened the Anastasia character and made her likeable and charming. Which is nice, because Ana was awful in the book. She was flavorless, a dishrag, a whining, perpetually tear-stained mess. There were many treatises and “think pieces” written about Anastasia and Christian Grey’s relationship, whether it was truly consensual and loving, or whether it was an abusive relationship dressed up like BDSM. Since I can only speak to the book characters, I’ll just say that their relationship made me uncomfortable and yes, I think Christian crossed the line several times into fitting the description of an abuser.

I wasn’t alone – many people do believe the book and the film represent a glorification of abuse, and there were some protests against the film. When Dakota Johnson sat down for an interview with TV2, she was asked about the protests and the assessment that Ana was Christian’s victim rather than his romantic partner. Dakota disagrees.

Speaking in a video interview with Kjersti Flaa for TV2 about criticism that Christian’s treatment of her character is abusive, Dakota Johnson, who plays Anastasia Steele, said: ‘I think that is an uneducated opinion. Maybe because I know more about the BDSM world, so it makes sense to me, but everything that these characters do, they make the decision to do it.’

Domestic violence campaigners in America and the UK called for a boycott of the film when it was released last month because they believed it ‘glorified’ and ‘romanticised’ abuse against women. The National Center on Sexual Exploitation launched a campaign titled Fifty Shades Is Abuse, which urged people to donate to local women’s shelters instead of buying movie tickets. In London, feminist campaigners, Fifty Shades Is Domestic Abuse, said the novel dangerously romanticises the idea that women can fix broken men.

Defending the film, Dakota added: ‘Christian doesn’t abuse Ana. She’s not a victim. She’s not a sad, weak-minded, passive person. She’s strong and confident and is exploring her body and her sexuality in a private environment with somebody that she loves. And, you know, it’s a movie.’

[From The Daily Mail]

Ana is “not a sad, weak-minded, passive person”??? YES SHE IS. At least she was in the book. She was always crying! She started guzzling endless amounts of alcohol to numb herself to Christian’s sexual and emotional demands. He literally orders her around, tells her what to eat, what to wear and he even tells her what birth control she should use. There were like a million examples of the Fifty Shades of Sketchiness in the book.

Now, all that being said… Dakota didn’t write it. The way I see it, she’s just defending her portrayal of a screwed up character in a screwed up situation. I don’t think Dakota should be slammed for this. Go yell at E.L. James.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

In December and January, the internet exploded with Kaley Cuoco stories. She said she wasn’t a feminist, then described all the ways she was a feminist as a way to explain why she’s not a feminist. At the end of the day, I said we should just stop arguing with her because there were only so many rounds we could go on that particular merry-go-round. I bring that situation up because something similar is happening with the ongoing Dolce & Gabbana controversy. At this point, I’m kind of like “ugh, stop arguing, these jagoffs are never going to ‘get it’.”

As we’ve been covering all week, the controversy began when Stefano Gabbana and Domenico Dolce made some comments about gay marriage, gay families and children born via IVF. Their comments went viral and Elton John was one of the first to call for a boycott of D&G. Stefano Gabbana responded by calling Elton a “fascist” for daring to disagree, and for thinking that children born via IVF are just normal kids instead of “synthetic children” who will obviously be screwed up in life because their parents are gay. Well, here’s the next part – Stefano and Domenico sat down with CNN to defend themselves and they literally DO NOT GET IT. They do not understand why their comments offended so many people.

You can see the video here. They don’t understand that they are allowed their opinion, same as everyone else. They don’t understand that if they make bigoted statements about LGTBQ families and their children, people have every right to react. That is what happens in a free society. At one point, Gabbana says: “Boycott Dolce & Gabbana for what? They don’t think like you? This is correct? This is not correct. We are in 2015. This is like medieval. It’s not correct.” Yes, we are not in medieval times. It is 2015. Why are YOU still happy to treat gay parents like second class citizens? Dolce also says some words about how he, personally, “believes in the traditional family” but that he doesn’t “judge” people who go through IVF. How generous.

Either they still don’t understand why people are upset, or this whole thing is just some stupid stunt. Either way, I hope we can stop arguing with them about it. In their original interview, they didn’t say “Oh, I don’t want to be a father, that’s not for me, I personally have traditional views on that kind of stuff.” They made sweeping and offensive generalizations about all gay parents and kids born of IVF, and it’s not “medieval” or “fascist” for people to react to their comments.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

I used to think Miles Teller was hot in an offbeat/bro sort of way. Then he opened his mouth and it turns out he’s sort of a toolbox. But you know what? I still find him sort of hot. It would be a “no, no, don’t speak” situation. He’s really tall, and I always wondered what he’s got underneath those nice suits. And now I know: he’s packing. His body is HOT.

The above side-by-side comes from Miles’ appearance on The Tonight Show a few nights ago. Jimmy Fallon showed the side-by-side – which I assume Miles provided? – of Miles’ transformation for his film Bleed For This. Miles plays “five-time World Champion Boxer, Vinny Pazienza, who recovered after hurting himself in a near-fatal car accident in 1991.” This is also the film where Miles has a mustache. Or his sad attempt at a ‘stache, which just looked like a Bieber-esque dirt-lip. Jimmy Fallon teased him about it during the interview too.

So, Miles Teller… would you hit it? Just know, you could hit it without having to talk to him (I think he probably prefers that).

Some photos of Miles at the Insurgent premiere earlier this week:

Photos courtesy of WENN, NBC.

Call me crazy, but I’ve been missing Jennifer Aniston. All of a sudden, she got sort of interesting when she was hustling for an Oscar nomination. But since the Oscars (where she failed to get a nom but did score a presenting gig), she’s been really quiet. Which is her M.O. – she turns on the hustle and then she’s capable of “disappearing” or staying off the radar for months at a time. So I’m glad that she’s giving interviews again. Unfortunately, her new interview with Fashionista is all about…wait for it… hair. It’s just infotainment/product placement/shilling for Living Proof, the haircare company that she co-owns. Some highlights:

Her hairstylist & BFF Chris McMillan convinces her to try new things: “Oh god, yes. Always. Chris has that thing where he’s like Edward Scissorhands. He just sees hair and he wants to cut it. He would love for me to go… he wants to just cut it all off, kind of like a pixie, which I will never do. And he always likes to give it a good two inches every year, just a healthy cut. He’s also suggested going back to dark brown. We play with different things. I do listen to him sometimes.

Whether she ever felt the urge to go platinum: “No. No I don’t. I’m not a trend person really. I kind of wait for the trends to go. Platinum blond — unless it was a wig — no.”

The no-shampoo movement: “Silicone is a culprit in most shampoos. Over time, it builds up and turns into a hard coating and it cracks and breaks and snaps your hair. [People were] always saying, ‘Don’t wash your hair every day!’ but it was impossible — because of all the oils and silicone — it would create this greaseball head of hair within a day. The Living Proof scientists over there at MIT found a molecule to replace the silicone. Therefore, your hair is lighter and cleaner for days. I’d say I go every two to three days easily without washing my hair.

Whether she shampoos her hair after workouts: “No, I don’t. I actually don’t. A little sweat in the hair is nice. It’s like a little product. You just blow it out with your fingers and it’s actually just fun.

Why she wore her hair down at the Oscars: “I just wanted to be comfortable that day. The [Versace] dress just fit like a glove and I felt so comfortable. I don’t like [to wear] my hair up very much. I’m not an up-do kind of gal. I feel like if you’re wearing a gown with glitter, you want to have beachy, natural hair to kind of go against that. So that’s sort of my main thing, being me. Being comfortable.

[From Fashionista]

She was doing updos for some of the earlier awards season events, likely in attempt to show potential Oscar voters that she could be serious and award-worthy, that she wasn’t just a shallow lady with famous hair. But once she didn’t get the Oscar nom, the hair came down and it’s never going up again!!! What else… I agree with Chris, she should go dark brown (or even a warm medium brown) for a change. I think darker hair would make her look younger. I don’t think she should ever go platinum though – that’s a difficult look for many women, and I don’t really think Aniston has the skin to pull it off. As for Chris wanting to do a pixie on her… eh. I think pixies are “trendy” too, but thankfully the trend seems to be dissipating some.

Last thing: I think it’s gross to NOT shampoo your hair after a workout. But then again, I get really sweaty and I can’t imagine not properly washing everything after a workout.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

I’ll admit that when I saw the news at E! Online that Julianne Hough has a new lifestyle website, I rolled my eyes. I’m used to celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow and Blake Lively trying to impress us with their overpriced tchotchkes and purple prose. When celebrities launch websites there are exceptions to the haughty rule, like Zooey Deschanel’s Hello Giggles (which is a pop culture and news site, not a lifestyle site) but overall they’re more like Olivia Palermo’s self-named site, a glossy tribute to high end fashion and luxury goods.

Julianne Hough’s new site, Jules, is kind of sweet, though. It’s more of a pinterest-type site with quick tips and advice. After I read a few entries I found myself warming to her. Her blog entries are short, upbeat and simple. There’s nothing groundbreaking there, we have the whole internet full of free advice and tutorials after all, but it’s a nice view of her outlook and lifestyle. She seems relatable, incredibly nice and earnest to a fault. Here’s what she wrote in her intro entry and it’s a little goofy.

Welcome to my cozy little corner on the World Wide Web! I wanted to design a space where I could connect with fans and friends about the things I’m most passionate about, and I wanted to be able to hear from all of you. This is a place where we can share recipes, workout tips, talk about style, beauty and home décor. I’m especially excited to talk to you guys about things that matter most, like ways we can all be rock stars in our communities and tips to become the best versions of ourselves.

This is a place for all of us, sort of like a fun digital neighborhood, and it’s important to me to hear from you. So, what do YOU want to see on my site? Let’s create something amazing together!

xoxo
Jules

[From JulianneHough.com]

The blog has a total of 11 posts so far, which isn’t bad for a launch. She has quick advice from her trainer on getting fit on the go, directions for a messy braid (I can’t believe she can do that so well with a bob) and her resolutions for the new year, which include eating out less and carving out more free time for herself. So far she’s not selling us anything (she does show a preference for a brand of candle but IDK), which is a welcome change from the Olivia Palermos and Goops we’re used to. She’s just kind of connecting to her fans and letting people know what works for her. I can’t help it, I like it.

Over the weekend I looked for interviews with Marian Keyes, a very popular Irish women’s lit author, as I’m currently reading my second of her many funny, relatable books. (Maybe we’ll get the CB book club started up again now that awards season has wrapped. I’m reading Rachel’s Holiday and just finished Watermelon.) I found a series of interviews between Keyes and beauty writer Sali Hughes. They start off in Keyes’s bathroom (this is a thing that Hughes does with celebrities) and discuss her beauty regimen and then go over her product drawer. It’s not everyone’s thing, but I was totally delighted to listen to them discuss makeup and skincare. The best part was when they went into Keye’s shoe closet and picked over her shoes. I guess my rambling point is that it’s fun to see what celebrities think about superficial, frivolous things, as long as they’re genuine and real.

Look at Hough’s puppies! Those look like Cavalier King Charles Spaniels but not quite. I wonder what breed they are. So cute.

photo credit: JulianneHough.com

Shailene Woodley covers the April issue of Nylon to promote Insurgent. She talks about feminism again. To briefly recap, Shailene spoke last year about why she’s not a feminist: “I love men, and I think the idea of ‘raise women to power, take the men away from the power’ is never going to work out because you need balance. I’m very in touch with my masculine side.” Many of us rolled our eyes because Shailene didn’t understand feminism’s definition. She later “clarified” her thoughts: “The word ‘feminist’ is a word that discriminates, and I’m not into that.” Shailene didn’t claim to be misquoted but believed the original journo tried to “burn” her. Nylon picks up the discussion, and Shailene still doesn’t know what she’s talking about:

On not identifying as a feminist: “The reason why I don’t like to say that I am a feminist or I am not a feminist is because to me it’s still a label. I do not want to be defined by one thing. Why do we have to have that label to divide us? We should all be able to embrace one another regardless of our belief system and regardless of the labels that we have put upon ourselves.”

On media scrutiny of her words: “I mean, if we spent as much energy focusing on the genocide that’s going on right now in parts of Africa as we spent on that one article, think about what we could accomplish. Change is not going to come from focusing on the small things that actors say.”

On her career path: “Two years ago it was very easy for me to understand and also emotionally tell the story of a 16-year-old, and now, I feel like I could not tell that story as truthfully because I just can’t empathize with it. I’m not there on an emotional level anymore.”

Acting doesn’t define her: “It does take up 10 to 11 months of my entire year, so it is my career now. It’s still just a hobby, just something that I live and breathe to do. In a few years, I’ll probably take some years off to explore the other things that I’d love to do while I’m still in my 20s.”

[From Nylon]

The last quote shows how insulated Shailene is from civilian life. Shailene begrudgingly admits that acting might be her career because it takes up most of her year. Most people would jump at the chance to have 1-2 months of annual free time. She takes that major perk for granted. Shailene believes she’s enlightened and in touch with world because she pays attention to some social issues, but she picks and chooses. Feminism is important on a worldwide basis, and women’s rights tie in directly to some of the international conflicts she’s talking about. Sometimes it’s hard to see the forest for the trees, right?

Photos courtesy of Hilary Walsh/Nylon

Yesterday, I covered People’s gratifying revelation that Katie Holmes and Jamie Foxx were hitting it for over a year, which we first heard about in October, 2013. People stories are usually true even without photo evidence, but Us Weekly was quick on the draw with an exclusive first photo of Foxx and Holmes holding hands. If you haven’t seen the picture, go look. They seem pretty cozy, right? Us kicked off their story with a couch-jumping joke:

No couch-jumping for these two. As the ex-wife of A-lister Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes was once half of one of Hollywood’s highest-profile couples. For the past year-and-a-half, though … she’s been hooking up on the DL with none other than Jamie Foxx. And only Us has an exclusive first photo of them holding hands and getting their flirt on with a little game of footsie!

The picture, taken in February, offers a rare glimpse into the couple’s undercover flirtation. As detailed in the new issue of Us Weekly, the Woman in Gold actress, 36, has been secretly spending time with the Annie star, 47, since the summer before last, when he wooed her at a benefit in the Hamptons.

What started as a fling, however, has since become a long-term attraction. “Jamie is someone she can trust and have fun with,” a mutual pal tells Us of Holmes, who shares 8-year-old daughter Suri with ex-hubby Cruise, to whom she was married from 2006 to 2012. “She’s getting everything from Jamie that she didn’t get with Tom.”

Foxx, for his part, is equally taken with the Dawson’s Creek alum. According to one insider, he even refers to her using the term of endearment “my girl” — as in, “My girl is calling.”

[From Us Weekly]

This is a sweet story. Absolutely hot, but sweet. Lainey believes the hand-holding photo is authentic, and it definitely looks like real coupledom. Well… Gossip Cop says all of this hookup business is nonsense. Jamie’s rep reportedly says he and Katie are “just friends.” There’s “nothing romantic about their affection” because (maybe) they were reading lines together. Because lots of actors hold hands and rub feet for no reason during casual line readings? Not buying the denial, sorry.

More Katie drama. TMZ reports that she and Tom Cruise do not speak at all, ever. This doesn’t have anything to do with Jamie. Katie’s miffed at how Tom doesn’t visit Suri very often. It doesn’t surprise me that Tom’s still putting himself first — that’s always what he did when he and Katie were married. But at least Suri’s not around all of the Scientology nonsense. TMZ says the former TomKat has “no direct co-parenting discussions. Everything regarding Suri is handled through intermediaries.” It sounds like Tom’s still peeved that Katie had the audacity to leave him. She’s the only person to ever defy his authority.

FYI, Tom is selling off property like mad. His Telluride estate is on the market for $59 million, and he just put his Hollywood Hills home on the block for $13 million. I wonder why he’s so eager to unload his homes — probably because he’s never stateside anymore.

Photos courtesy of Us Weekly, Fame/Flynet & WENN

Then this happened @taylorswift vs taylor spliff #grammys2015

A photo posted by diplo (@diplo) on Feb 9, 2015 at 12:00am PST

Diplo has been trying to start a war with Taylor Swift for a while. Well, I say that… but maybe Swifty started it? I have no idea. It’s all to do with Swifty’s War of Attrition with Katy Perry. Diplo maybe-sort-of dated Katy at some point, and I guess Diplo is more on #TeamKaty. But Diplo is also tight with Lorde, who is one of the many BFFs Taylor has collected in the past few years. Despite the seemingly divided loyalties, Diplo keeps throwing significant shade on Swifty and her fans though. In a previous interview with GQ (US), Diplo pointed out that Swifty is “very strategic” with her friends and enemies, and he called Swifty’s fans a bunch of “crazy, bizarre and disgusting” lunatics. And in a new interview, Diplo has more to say.

Diplo on Swifty’s Army: “It’s like an army that’s worse than North Korea. All I know is don’t ever get into a feud with Taylor Swift. She has like 50 million people that will die for her. You can’t step into that arena. That was something I was never prepared for … one of the biggest mistakes of my career was definitely f—king with her.”

On his friendship with Lorde: “I can go head-to-head with anybody. I don’t care who you are. I didn’t go after Lorde because she’s my friend and she’s a young girl and the one person I kept it cool with.”

[From The Daily Mail]

Eh. Diplo is a known douchebag but at this point, I think he’s just mentioning Swifty’s name because he knows it will be good for some headlines. Diplo and Swifty seemingly buried the hatchet at the Grammys last month (the Instagram photo header) and this seems like he’s still mostly dissing The Taygency more than Swifty herself. Except for the part of the controversy when he was making fun of Swifty’s flat butt. That was just rude and sexist.

Photos courtesy of Instagram, WENN, Diplo’s Instagram.

Since Princess Charlene of Monaco gave birth to twins late last year, things have been pretty quiet in Monte Carlo. Pre-pregnancy, all of the gossip was about Charlene being a mess and a disappointment, and how Charlene and Albert kind of hated each other and their marital bed was pretty cold. But then Charlene “did her duty” and provided an heir and a spare in one go. Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella are already more than three months old! I think Charlene might be done, don’t you? She gave him an heir. Now it’s time for Charlene and Albert to enjoy a “traditional” royal marriage, which is to say… living separately. But Albert gave a lengthy, exclusive interview to People Mag about his life as a new dad (cough… he has a bunch of other kids) and how he and Charlene are just fine. Some highlights:

On the rumors of marriage trouble: “It’s totally incredible that we have to justify ourselves all the time. It’s ridiculous. It’s just impossible to believe that these stories have come up again. It’s surreal! It’s impossible to believe responsible media would pick up on these totally false stories.”

Charlene took the babies to the South of France: But not because of marriage trouble, she moved away temporarily because the Prince’s Palace is being renovated. Albert says: “We’ve been planning to renovate and redecorate for a long time. It’s not totally calm and quiet the way you would like to have when there are very young children around. There’s a lot of work going on, lots of noise, a lot of people running about. We thought it was a lot of work to have done around kids.”

Gabriella & Jacques will share one nursery: “My sisters [Princesses Caroline and Stephanie] and I shared one nursery and I know times have changed, but they can get by with one nursery as well I think.”

Charlene got to have a big say in the renovations: “As far as redecorating the apartments. I’ve had some input of course, but I’ve let my wife decide things. And she’s let me have some input. I mean, c’mon, I need my man cave!”

Taking care of the babies: Albert has “been involved with the children, and with them as much as I can, ever since their birth…I try to help out with their feeding, I give them their midnight bottles, I change and bathe them, and thank goodness we have help because it’s twins. But it’s been an incredible experience.”

Baby personalities: “Jacques is a little more loud and he moves a little bit more. Gabriella takes her time, she’s more, well, of a baby. But it changes quickly. It changes in a few days, in a week, they’ve already changed personalities, several times.”

[From People]

There’s a lot of stuff about the extensive renovations to the Prince’s Palace. Apparently, the grand pink palace hasn’t had a major overhaul since the 1950s or early 1960s. Albert says he hopes the main part of reno is done “by Easter,” but if Monegasque contractors are anything like American contractors, they’ll be lucky to have the reno done by the babies’ first birthday. I think it’s sort of sweet that Albert just wants the one nursery, so Gabby and Jacques can play together as they grow up. And I don’t really think there are major marriage problems with Charlene and Albert right now – I think she’s just focused on the babies and he’s focused on the reno, so he was just like “Fine, go to the South of France for a few months and I’ll see you when I see you.”

Oh, and we’ll see the babies again on May 10, for their christening in Monaco.

Photos courtesy of WENN.