Matthew Monagle
Legendary Comedian Jerry Lewis Dies at 91
Today the world of comedy lost one of its brightest stars. Jerry Lewis was no stranger to controversy during his decades-long career, but his impact on both Hollywood and comedy in general cannot be denied. From his early days as Dean Martin’s partner-in-crime to his career-capping turn in Martin Scorsese’s The King of Comedy — and countless box office success in the interim — Lewis’s impact on Hollywood will be a source of much discussion for years to come.
Ron Howard Teases a Droid Barbecue in His Latest ‘Han Solo’ Set Videos
Ever since he took over as the director on the standalone Han Solo movie, Ron Howard has been endlessly toying with Star Wars fans on social media. From set photos suggesting new characters to behind-the-scene looks at hyperspace travel, Howard seems to be doing his best to pivot the narrative surrounding Disney‘s latest Star Wars prequel from, “Wow, I can’t believe they fired those directors!” to “Wow, I can’t believe Ron Howard is being such a jerk on Instagram!” Seriously, Ron, would it kill you to show something up close for once?
John Heard, Star of ‘Home Alone’ and ‘Big,’ Dies at 72
For many people who grew up in the 1990s, Home Alone is a film that ages alongside them. When you’re a child, you feel an immediate kinship with Macaulay Culkin’s Kevin, sharing in his delight at being able to run around the house entirely rule-free. The older you get, though, the more you find yourself goggling at the actions of John Heard and Catherine O’Hara‘s parents. How on earth could they manage to leave their youngest child behind? Was it really that easy to breeze through airport security in the ‘90s? Why do I still feel so sympathetic towards them even after all that?
Say Hello to the First Female Doctor in ‘Doctor Who’ History
You know those rare moments when everyone on the internet seems to be talking about the same thing? Sports, politics, entertainment, whatever… those are the moments that make social media both a blessing and a curse. Take, for instance, a talented (if not slightly unknown) actress named Jodie Whittaker. If you were to go to Google Trends right now and look up her name, you’d see a sudden spike in searches, indicating that everyone everywhere is suddenly obsessed with learning more about her career. Why on earth could that be?
Weekend Box Office Report: All Hail The Truly Wondrous ‘Wonder Woman’
Based on how this weekend’s box office numbers shaped up, odds are good that you either saw Wonder Woman this weekend or you avoided the theater altogether. It was a record-setting few days for everyone’s favorite warrior princess — sorry, Xena — but things were decidedly less rosy if your movie was… well, literally anything else. Here are the box office estimates as of Sunday afternoon:
Weekend Box Office Report: ‘Fate of the Furious’ Zooms Up the Record Books
Audiences don’t turn their back on family. That’s the lesson to be learned from this past weekend, anyways, when The Fate of the Furious proved that this is one franchise showing no signs of slowing down. It was never a question of whether The Fate of the Furious would take the top spot this weekend, but even the most optimistic of projections couldn’t have expected the global domination that this movie undertook. Here’s the box office estimates as of Sunday afternoon:
Date Night Takes a Turn for the Steamy in This ‘Fifty Shades Darker’ Clip
For most people, the decision to make a sequel to 2015’s Fifty Shades of Grey is probably the punchline to a bad joke. But have you actually stopped and looked at the box office numbers for Fifty Shades of Grey recently? We’re not talking about $100 million at the global box office; we’re not even talking about $200 million. We’re talking about $571 million worldwide, more than Mad Max: Fury Road and Creed combined and the eleventh highest-grossing movie of the year. With those kind of numbers, you pretty much have to make a sequel. I don’t blame them.
Ewan McGregor Calls His ‘Fargo’ Accent the ‘Hardest Accent’ Ever
Raise your hand if you get bored and try out different accents. This is a habit I picked up as a kid that continues to this day. After watching the first season of Justified, for example, the rural Kentucky accent wormed its way so deeply into my brain that I had a hard time turning it off. As a result, one of my favorite videos of 2016 was this Wired piece where a dialogue coach weighed in on 32 different performances. It really highlights the amount of detail that goes into every single sentence an actor delivers.
Ben Affleck Explains What Separates His Batman From His Predecessors
After years of watching a certain segment of fans argue over which Enterprise captain was the best, I think it might be time for Star Trek fans to admit that they’re no longer the leader in casting fan arguments. Now all the cool kids want to argue over which Batman actor played the role best. While the obvious answer for most millennials would be Christian Bale, I tend to gravitate towards the early performances of Michael Keaton, a Batman who was a bit more believable as an intellectual than subsequent versions of the character. To each their own, I suppose.
Get Your Lin-Manuel Miranda Fix With This Outtake Track From ‘Moana’
It seems to me that Moana brought in two very different audiences this holiday weekend. For some, Moana was the newest entry in a long line of Disney princess movies and a step in the right direction for the studio in terms of inclusiveness and empowering young women. For others, it was a chance to cure their Lin-Manuel Miranda withdrawals after the turnover of the Hamilton cast and the end of the regular Ham4Ham sidewalk performances. That probably explains the odd mix of millennials and children at the recent matinee you attended.
Sylvester Stallone Forsakes ‘Godforsaken’ One Week Before Shooting
Even as an aging action star, Sylvester Stallone has kept up a steady pace. The actor has spent the past few years alternating between action vehicles and voice over work on children’s movies, always outpacing Hollywood obsolescence with his incredible work ethic and his willingness to not deviate from the ’80s action formula that helped make him a star. And while plenty of Stallone fans were pleased to see the actor pull in a Best Supporting Actor nomination for Creed, with Stallone’s latest production troubles, one cannot help but wonder if this will have an effect on the types of movies he makes going forward.
Ewan McGregor Explains Why He Nearly Turned Down ‘Star Wars’
Over the past few years, there has been a small but noticeable attempt to rehabilitate the image of the Star Wars prequels in popular culture. Last November, for example, the A.V. Club published an article on why the Star Wars prequels don’t deserve our hatred. Similar pieces have been published in The Mary Sue, USA Today, and many other websites and online publications. It just goes to show that there is a lid for every pot, no matter how misshapen that pot may be.