October 17, 2022 - Music Observer

Russell Crowe Says Alleged ‘My Best Friend’s Wedding’ Audition is ‘Pure Imagination’

Music Observer Staff on October 17, 2022

Russell Crowe might not agree with the recent blow in his acting skills.

In February, Vulture released an excerpt from Scott Meslow’s romantic comedy From Hollywood With Love: The Rise and Fall (and Rise again), in which director P.J. Hogan said Crowe performed “one of the worst table reads I’ve ever experienced” for the movie.

And today, more than eight months after Hogan’s statement, the Gladiator star wants to clarify a few things.

“Pure imagination on behalf of this director. I did not audition for this film,” Crowe took to Twitter to express his truth on Friday. “I have never done a table read with the actress mentioned. Would be funny if it wasn’t so pointless.”

In the article, Hogan claimed Crowe was his “first choice” to star alongside Julia Roberts as Michael O’Neal, her best friend and love interest in the rom-com following his wife – screenwriter and filmmaker Jocelyn Moorhouse – worked alongside Crowe on Proof, a 1991 movie.

But he eventually said Roberts had final casting clearance when it came to her co-actor, so Hogan told Crowe the casting was via a table read with the star that reportedly didn’t end well.

“I don’t know what went wrong,” he elaborated. “It was one of the worst table reads I’ve ever experienced. Russell was seated opposite Julia. He gripped that script, and he stared at that script, and he didn’t look at her once.”

Hogan Against Crowe

And to aggravate the situation, Hogan stated that Crowe carried on reading “every line in a monotone” and continuously prevented Roberts’ gaze.

“At one point, Julia was literally leaning over the table, staring, like, inches from Russell’s face, trying to make eye contact. And he wouldn’t look at her,” he stated.

“At the end of the reading, Russell came up to me and said, ‘I thought that went pretty well.’ And then I knew: Russell was not going to be in My Best Friend’s Wedding.”

Although, according to the excerpt, Matthew McConaughey, Matthew Perry, and Edward Burns were all vying for the role, Dermot Mulroney was the triumphant star in the end, completing the star-studded cast that consisted of Roberts, Cameron Diaz, Rupert Everett, and Philip Bosco.

When asked by EW for a comment, Hogan and Roberts’ reps did not respond.

Crowe Missed

My Best Friend’s Wedding follows the story of a 27-year-old (three weeks to 28) New York good critic Julianne “Jules” Potter as she receives a call from her longtime best friend Michael O’Neal, a sportswriter in Chicago.

Years earlier, the two had made a promise: if they hadn’t been married at 28, they would marry each other. If you think it happened, you need to read more.

Michael called to inform his best friend that he would tie the knot with gorgeous Kimmy Wallace in four days. After hearing the news, Jules realized she loved Michael more than a friend, so she decided to cook up a plan to sabotage the wedding. But all of that failed.

Ultimately, she and Michael did not end up together. But she found a new love interest named George.

Photo: YIMG

Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson Shares Fake Alcohol Film Secret

Music Observer Staff on October 17, 2022

Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson are revealing one pretty serious ale-ment that they’ve faced in the course of their careers.

The stars, who portray roles in The Banshees of Inisherin, shared that, prior to the non-alcoholic version of Guinness, they previously would drink fake movie beer made up of “all sorts of unspeakables” to remake the look of the iconic beverage onscreen.

“Everything was ghastly,” Gleeson revealed on the latest episode of Late Night with Seth Meyers. “It was actual cream…”

Farrell then butted in, “Grape juice with cream! All sorts of drinks you shouldn’t be mixing.” If that didn’t take away your appetite, the star stressed that the cream was always “curdled”.

“Flat Coke and stuff like that with all sorts of unspeakables on top of it,” Gleeson continued. “It was okay, but if you had a lot of takes, and you had to drink in it, it was just… I mean, Il faut souffrir, they say. It’s important to suffer… for art. And this was suffering.”

Fortunately, during the filming of their new movie, the two colleagues were drinking Guinness Zero on set and not the old grotesque substitute they had previously drunk.

“Thank God for it,” Farrell said. “On the production, we would’ve had to drink just an unutterable amount of [bleep]. And it’s not [bleep]. It’s actually really tasty.”

Although Farrell said Gleeson didn’t exactly like a glass of the alcohol-free drink (“he likes the proper stuff”), he has suddenly plunged into the alcohol-free pint.

“It’s delicious,” he stated. “I’ve given it to a few other people who are, you know, stout aficionados who are like, ‘Jesus, that’s an eight.”

Click here to watch Gleeson and Farrell as they share the film industry’s beverage secrets.

Farrell and Gleeson on Film

Written and directed by Martin McDonagh, The Banshees of Inisherin – starring Farrell (Padraic Suilleabhain), Gleeson (Colm Doherty), Kerry Condon (Siobhan Suilleabhain), Barry Keoghan (Dominic Kearney), Pat Shortt (Jonjo Devine), Jon Kenny (Gerry), Gary Lydon (Peadar Kearney), Sheila Flitton (Mrs. McCormick), and David Pearse (the Priest) – follows a story of two friends on a conflict when one of them suddenly terminates their friendship, which brought critical consequences for both of them.

The film premiered at the Venice International Film Festival last September 5, where Farrell bagged the Volpi Cup for Best Actor, and McDonagh snagged the Golden Osella for Best Screenplay.

Furthermore, it received critical acclamation as critics complimented the performances (specifically Farrell’s), direction, and screenplay.

The Banshees of Inisherin drops on October 21 on Searchlight Pictures.

Photo: Media 4

Bruna Papandrea Wants More Female Voices on Hollywood Films

Music Observer Staff on October 17, 2022

Bruna Papandrea has been producing for film and television for over 20 years. Gone Girl, Wild, and Big Little Lies are just a few of her hugely successful projects, but the one she’s most proud of is the movie that premiered on Netflix last week, it’s Luckiest Girl Alive.

As a producer on the film adaptation of Jessica Knoll’s dark and twisted 2015 novel, Papandrea has been leading her efforts to take the story from page to screen for nearly eight years. And while it was a long journey, giving up was not an option for her because she knew that her story and character (portrayed by Mila Kunis) needed a spotlight.

“Honestly, the project I’m most proud of is Luckiest Girl Alive because it is completely unique in terms of the tone and the themes we were balancing,” the 51-year-old said in an interview with EW. “It’s about how this woman has turned herself into someone else to survive a trauma.”

This story follows the life of a successful Ani Fanelli (Kunis) in his twenties suffering from past trauma. This is partially inspired by the author’s own experience.

Papandrea recognizes that the subject matter – gang rapes and school shootings – can be hard to watch for some; however, that’s the same reason she wants everyone to see it. She hopes it will spark hard and necessary conversations.

“Everyone was so sensitive to all of it because that stuff is really hard to film, and it’s really hard to get right,” she stated.

“That was the most important thing, doing it authentically. We consulted with RAINN, we consulted with [people from] Sandy Hook, we consulted with Respect Ability. And I’m just really proud that this core team stuck together and that it was a really harmonious, safe, wonderful experience. And hopefully [a lot of people are] going to see it because it’s Netflix.”

The film reached Netflix’s Top 10 in 91 countries upon release, with over 43.08 million hours watched during its debut.

Papandrea Wants to Tell Female Stories

Papandrea wants to produce more female-driven stories focusing on characters and voices that need to be echoed.

“Getting to work on Big Little Lies with ensemble of women, not just in one great role but five female main roles, that to me is just so invigorating,” she stated.

“But you don’t always get it right, and I think you learn as much from the things that don’t work as the things that do, but I’d rather take the risk and fail. I’m not scared to fail.”

However, she wasn’t always sure about a vision for her life and work. As a matter of fact, Papandrea didn’t know producing projects about diverse female voices would ultimately become her life’s work – she apparently always thought she’d be an actor.

“I got rejected from three of the best drama schools in Australia,” she said while laughing.

“And then I wanted to be a writer, but I wasn’t good at that either, so I became a producer because I feel like all my interests convened in this one spot where I did feel like I was, even from a young age, kind of a champion.

“I was a very passionate young person, I loved telling stories, I loved the theater, I loved movies, I loved books. So, I was like, ‘maybe this is the job for me’ And what quickly became apparent to me was my skills in how I can help other people do that too.”

Photo: EW

T.J. Miller Shares Ryan Reynolds’ Approach on His Remarks

Music Observer Staff on October 17, 2022

Actor and comedian T.J. Miller claims he’s worked things out with Ryan Reynolds after he called the Deadpool actor an “insecure guy” and says he would “not work with him again.”

During a guest appearance on SiriusXM’s Jim Norton & Sam Roberts Show on Wednesday, Miller – who recently has been wrapped up in several controversies, like allegations of sexual assault and an arrest for reportedly creating a fake bomb threat – said Reynolds contacted him after his comments last week.

“It was really cool. He emailed me the next day,” Miller stated. “It was a misunderstanding, so I emailed him back, and now it’s, like, fine.”

When approached for comment, representatives for Reynolds did not immediately respond.

Miller, speaking to The Adam Carolla Show on Oct. 3, recalled a time on the set of Deadpool when Reynolds, who played the role, asked for another hit and was “horrifically mean” to him, according to the comedian.

The comedian later said he was no longer interested in working with Reynolds again, and claimed it is “weird that [Reynolds] hates me.”

During his interview with Jim Norton & Sam Roberts, Miller took offense on how the story was spelled in the media, referring to it as “clickbait” and claiming his statements were “misconstrued” by the press.

“It was just me telling a story from on set that I thought was weird,” he stated. “That was it.”

However, Miller admitted that he should have anticipated how his statements would be received and interpreted.

“That’s a big problem I have in general,” he stated, “is kind of not thinking about what the repercussions of saying this or that would be.”

Miller: A Walking Controversy

The 41-year-old has had a turbulent past few years.

In 2017, an unidentified woman alleged him of sexual assault when they were in college together; Miller repulsed the accusations. In 2018, he reportedly bullied a fellow star on the set of Silicon Valley; he repulsed the accusations and was ultimately written off the HBO series. He was also arrested in 2018 for creating a fake bomb threat while on an Amtrak train. The federal charges were eventually dropped, partially because of Miller’s previous brain surgery.

Miller told Norton and Roberts how much he enjoys Reynold’s portrayal in Deadpool.

“He is so funny, which I always maintained, and he is so amazing in those movies, and so that was kind of it, you know?” he stated. “It’s so funny. I said all of these complimentary things, and none of that shows up.”

He continued that his initial statements about Reynolds had nothing wrong in them.

“I didn’t think that I had said anything that was that negative,” Miller stated. “I feel bad that it was picked up, and it was misconstrued for sure. But no, the next day, he and I talked, and it’s fine.”

Deadpool has just announced a new installment into the franchise, with Reynolds reprising his role with Hugh Jackman sporting a comeback to the industry. No other cast has been announced for return yet.

Photo: Wired

Kaley Cuoco Had a Horse Incident During the Course of ‘The Big Bang Theory’

Music Observer Staff on October 17, 2022

Kaley Cuoco’s life and career – and those of her fan-favorite series The Big Bang Theory – were about to change drastically after a horrific riding accident.

Cuoco (Penny), in a recent oral history book titled The Big Bang Theory: The Definitive, Inside Story of the Epic Hit Series, along with co-actor Johnny Galecki (Leonard Hofstadter) and showmaker Chuck Lorre talked about the incident, which took place in September 2010.

According to an excerpt obtained by PEOPLE, Cuoco, a longtime rider who horse-jumps and competes, was riding a horse in Los Angeles when he got spooked and she fell off its back.

The horse then tried to jump on her . However, it hit on her left leg instead, which landed Cuoco in the hospital for treatment.

In the book, Lorre referred to the moment as “the darkest, most frightening time” in the series’ 12-year run.

“Kaley could have lost her leg. It was a series of miracles that allowed us to get through that and for her to come out the other end of that healthy,” he stated.

One of the miracles was that Lorre knew Dr. Stephen Lombardo, who worked at the Kerlan Jobe Orthopedic Clinic for Sports Medicine in Cedars-Sinai and asked Lombardo for help.

Per Lorre, his actor was quickly out “in surgery with the best surgeons available to stop an infection because her leg was wide open.”

The Big Bang Theory Was Saved

Cuoco recounted that she had to sign an acknowledgement that she could lose her leg post-op.

“Before I went into surgery, they made me sign something that said, ‘We don’t know until we get in there and see this leg, and it could come out that you don’t have it anymore.’ That wasn’t the case, obviously, but I had to sign something that said, ‘OK, you can,’” Cuoco stated.

“Everything ended up fine, and I was up and working a week later, but the doctors acted like I was never going to walk again. It’s still too much for me to go into, and it sounded way worse than it was. And, of course, it was spiraling, and everyone was freaking out, which I get. It scared people.”

“But I think it scared people in a good way, myself included,” Galecki said. “The first day I saw you in that state, I just shed tears in my garage.”

The excerpt stated that while doctors were worried that Cuoco wouldn’t be capable of walking for months, she was sent home from the hospital after two weeks with a walking boot and eventually was merely written out of the series for two episodes.

“It was an absolutely miraculous intervention that I ran into Dr. Steve,” Lorre stated. “Every time I see him, I say, ‘Thank you! You saved Kaley! On a lesser level, you saved The Big Bang Theory!’”

Fortunately, Cuoco completed her run on the series as planned, with The Big Bang Theory giving a final season on May 16, 2019, following 279 episodes ranging 12 seasons.

The Big Bang Theory also starred Jim Parsons (Sheldon Cooper), Simon Helberg (Howard Wolowitz), Kunal Nayyar (Raj Koothrappali), Melissa Rauch (Bernadette Rostenkowski), and Mayim Bialik (Amy Farrah Fowler).

Photo: Celeb Mafia

Blink-182 Comes Together for Tour

Music Observer Staff on October 17, 2022

Blink-182 reunited with founding member Tom DeLonge. They also announced a tour for 2023.

The lineup of DeLonge, Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker will also release a comeback single called “Edging” on Friday (October 14). According to a press release, the band will release a new album next year.

DeLonge formed Blink-182 with Mark Hoppus in 1992. The band’s debut album, Cheshire Cat, was released in 1995, followed by “Dammit”-featuring Dude Ranch in 1997.

After original drummer Scott Raynor was fired from the band in 1998, Travis Barker joined the band in time to record their 1999 multi-platinum album, Enema of the State. It contained the hit singles “What’s My Age Again?” and “All the Small things.”

In 2001, they released their first #1 album in the US, Take Off Your Pants and Jacket. DeLonge and Barker released a side project as a duo in 2002 – a self-titled Box Car Racer album. A year after, Blink-182 dropped a self-titled album ahead of revealing an indefinite break in 2005.

DeLonge put his efforts into his band Angels & Airwaves, who released their debut album in 2006, while Barker embarked on a career as a prolific drummer, particularly in pop punk and hip hop.

Barker was involved in a plane crash in 2008 that resulted in the three returning for a reunion in 2009. Blink-182 dropped Neighborhoods in 2011 and stayed on tour in the early 2010s. Then, DeLonge left the band in 2015.

After DeLonge left the band, Blink-182 recruited Matt Skiba from the Alkaline Trio. They released two albums during this time: California in 2016 and Nine in 2019.

In 2021, Hoppus found out he had been diagnosed with cancer. But he later confirmed he was cancer free.

In an August 2022 interview with People, Hoppus said DeLonge and Barker visited him before starting chemotherapy.

“It was the first time that all three of us were in the same room in, like, five years,” Hoppus stated.

“It’s actually better than it used to be. There was no agenda. There were no lingering grudges. It felt very back to what it should be: three friends sitting in a room… Everybody’s in a really great place right now.”

Blink-182:

03-11 Tijuana, Mexico – Imperial GNP

03-14 Lima, Peru – Estadio San Marcos

03-17-19 Buenos Aires, Argentina – Lollapalooza Argentina

03-17-19 Santiago, Chile – Lollapalooza Chile

03-21-22 Asuncion, Paraguay – Venue TBA

03-23-26 Bogotá, Colombia – Estereo Picnic

03-24-26 São Paulo, Brazil – Lollapalooza Brasil

03-28 Mexico City, Mexico – Palacio de los Deportes

04-01-02 Monterrey, Mexico – Venue TBA

05-04 Saint Paul, MN – Xcel Energy Center

05-06 Chicago, IL – United Center

05-09 Detroit, MI – Little Caesars Arena

05-11 Toronto, Ontario – Scotiabank Arena

05-12 Montreal, Quebec – Bell Centre

05-16 Cleveland, OH – Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse

05-17 Pittsburgh, PA – PPG Paints Arena

05-19 New York, NY – Madison Square Garden

05-20 Elmont, NY – UBS Arena

05-21 Boston, MA – TD Garden

05-23 Washington, D.C. – Capital One Arena

05-24 Brooklyn, NY – Barclays Center

05-26 Baltimore, MD – Baltimore Arena

05-27 Hershey, PA – Hersheypark Stadium

06-14 Phoenix, AZ – Footprint Center

06-16 Los Angeles, CA – Banc of California Stadium

06-20 San Diego, CA – Pechanga Arena

06-22 San Jose, CA – SAP Center

06-23 Sacramento, CA – Golden 1 Center

06-25 Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena

06-27 Vancouver, British Columbia – Rogers Arena

06-29 Edmonton, Alberta – Rogers Place

06-30 Calgary, Alberta – Scotiabank Saddledome

07-03 Denver, CO – Ball Arena

07-05 Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center

07-07 Austin, TX – Moody Center

07-08 Houston, TX – Toyota Center

07-10 Tampa, FL – Amalie Arena

07-11 Ft. Lauderdale, FL – FLA Live Arena

07-13 Atlanta, GA – State Farm Arena

07-14 Charlotte, NC – Spectrum Center

07-16 Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena

09-02 Glasgow, Scotland – OVO Hydro

09-04 Belfast, Northern Ireland – SSE Arena

09-05 Dublin, Ireland – 3Arena

09-08 Antwerp, Belgium – Sportpaleis

09-09 Cologne, Germany – Lanxess Arena

09-12 Copenhagen, Denmark – Royal Arena

09-13 Stockholm, Sweden – Avicii Arena

09-14 Oslo, Norway – Spektrum

09-16 Berlin, Germany – Mercedes-Benz Arena

09-17 Hamburg, Germany – Barclays Arena

09-19 Prague, Czech Republic – O2 Arena

09-20 Vienna, Austria – Stadthalle

10-02 Lisbon, Portugal – Altice Arena

10-03 Madrid, Spain – Wizink Centre

10-04 Barcelona, Spain – Palau Sant Jordi

10-06 Bologna, Italy – Unipol Arena

10-08 Amsterdam, Netherlands – Ziggo Dome

10-09 Paris, France – Accor Arena

10-11 London, England – The O2

10-14 Birmingham, England – Utilita Arena

10-15 Manchester, England – AO Arena

10-21 Las Vegas, NV – When We Were Young Festival

02-09 Perth, Australia – RAC Arena

02-11 Adelaide, Australia – Entertainment Centre

02-13 Melbourne, Australia – Rod Laver Arena

02-16 Sydney, Australia – Qudos Bank Arena

02-19 Brisbane, Australia – Entertainment Centre

02-23 Auckland, New Zealand – Spark Arena

02-26 Christchurch, New Zealand – Christchurch Arena

Photo: Flare

Dwayne Johnson Just Wants to be a Parent

Music Observer Staff on October 17, 2022

We won’t be seeing Dwayne Johnson’s name on the ballot anytime soon.

Despite a 2021 poll showing half of American voters would support him in his bid for the White House, the actor said a presidential bid “is off the table” during an episode of CBS Sunday Morning.

Johnson is, of course, “a patriot to my core,” but now parenting weighs more heavily on him than the presidency.

“It’s off the table. Yes, it is off the table,” Johnson said in the interview with Tracy Smith.

“I will say this ‘cause it requires the B side to this: I love our country and everyone in it. And I also love being a daddy. And that’s the most important thing to me, is being a daddy, number one, especially during this time, this critical time in my daughters’ lives.”

The former wrestler added: “I know what it was like to be on the road and be so busy that I was absent for a lot of years when my first daughter’s growing up in this critical age at this critical time in her life. And that’s what the presidency will do.

“So, my number one priority is my daughters.”

Johnson posted the segment on Instagram during the weekend, unveiling that he has been “approached by the most influential in politics on both sides of the aisle asking and supporting that I run for president” before the 2024 presidential election.

“It’s a humbling, grateful, and inspiring feeling to even have these conversations, as I’m not a politician, nor have I ever aspired to be one,” he wrote in the post. “But I am a patriot to my core, love my country and everyone in it.”

Johnson then noted that his daughters are the most important now.

But “being a father to my little girls is the most important thing in my life,” the actor added.

“To raise ‘em and always be there during these critical years in their life. I know what it’s like to not be there all the time as a father because of an unrelenting work schedule. I won’t let that happen ever again. Choosing parenting over presidency.”

Johnson is Born for the Role

Johnson is expected to play an anti-hero Black Adam in the upcoming superhero film (out October 21), which will star Johnson’s DC Comics character as he acquires superpowers after his son’s death. But thousands of centuries after his imprisonment, he wakes up in the modern world.

Since people can remember, Johnson has been talking about his eye for the role, and filmmaker Jaume Collet-Sera offered a sneak peek at his performance as “a completely new” Johnson.

“It’s always cliché to say that someone was born to play a role, but in this case, it’s true,” Collet-Sera said in an interview with EW. “The movie happened because of him. He’s the energy and the push that got this movie made.”

The director added that despite a long journey to this dream role, it is actually worth the wait.

“Even if it took him a long time to fulfill this dream of his, I think that it’s been worth the wait,” Collet-Sera added.

“In a lot of movies, you have a good guy, and a bad guy, and those lines are clearly defined. Here, they’re not so clear. You like both sides, and you understand both sides, but it really puts it up to the audience to choose which side they agree with.”

Photo: NY Post

Selena Gomez Celebrates Mental Health Day Releasing Her Doc ‘Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me’

Music Observer Staff on October 17, 2022

As today is World Mental Health Day, Selena Gomez opened up about her personal journey with the trailer for her latest documentary, Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me.

The documentary, directed and produced by Alek Keshishian (director of Madonna: Truth or Dare) and produced by Apple TV +, chronicles the singer’s six years of life battling mental health issues.

“Just be who you are, Selena,” Gomez starts in voiceover. “No one cares about what you’re doing. It’s about who I am, being okay with where I am. I am grateful to be alive.”

After a clip showing her lupus diagnosis and statements that she had a mental breakdown, Gomez vows, “I’m going to stop living like this.”

The pop star has been open about her mental health struggles and revealed in 2020 that she had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

“Recently, I went to one of the best mental hospitals in the world, but definitely in America, McLean’s Hospital, and I discussed that after years of going through a lot of different things, I realized that I was bipolar,” Gomez stated on Miley Cyrus’ Instagram Live talk show Bright Minded.

“And so, when I got to know more information, it actually helps me. It doesn’t scare me once I know it. And I think people get scared of that, right?”

The Only Murders in the Building star, who has worked since she was 10, has been in the spotlight for most of her life, which became a factor to her mental health problems as she grows up.

“My whole life since I was a kid I’ve been working,” Gomez states with tears in her eyes in footage from My Mind & Me. “I don’t want to be, like, super famous, but I do know that if I’m here, I have to use that for good.”

Click here to watch the trailer for Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me, coming to Apple TV + on November 4.

Start of Gomez Career

Gomez started her career appearing in the children’s television show Barney & Friends. Then, she gained traction in the Disney Channel TV show Wizards of Waverly Place as Alex Russo.

Besides her TV career, the 30-year-old has appeared in movies like 2008’s Another Cinderella, 2009’s Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie and Princess Protection Program, 2010’s Ramona and Beezus, 2011’s Monte Carlo, 2012’s Spring Breakers, 2013’s Getaway, 2016’s The Fundamentals of Caring, and 2019’s The Dead Don’t Die and Rainy Day in New York.

The singer-actress has also released albums and singles that we can’t seem to don’t talk about anymore, such as “Come & Get It,” “The Heart Wants What It Wants,” “Good For You,” “Same Old Love,” “Hands to Myself,” “We Don’t Talk Anymore,” “It Ain’t Me,” and “Lose You to Love Me.”

Gomez has also received several awards throughout her career, including being named Billboard’s Woman of the Year in 2017 and Time’s 100 Most Influential People in the World in 2020.

As of 2017, she has sold more than seven million albums and 22 million singles globally, per Billboard.

The child star has a massive following on social media and is the most followed musician and actress on Instagram. Elsewhere, Gomez has ventured into makeup, clothing, handbag, and fragrance lines. And it won’t be complete without her charitable organizations and serving as a UNICEF ambassador since she was 17.

Photo: Billboard

Rihanna to Perform at This Year’s Super Bowl

Music Observer Staff on October 17, 2022

Rihanna is set to headline the half-time show of the Super Bowl this February in Arizona, as per a statement from the NFL. The pop superstar announced the good news on Twitter, posting an image of an NFL-branded football.

Super Bowl organizers called the nine-time Grammy Award winner “a generational talent” in an announcement made Sunday night.

The show is one of the most coveted slots in the music space, as it will be a 14-minute extravagant show that will attract more than 120 million viewers this year, according to the NFL. The star-studded lineup includes Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar.

The show also won an Emmy for Outstanding Variety Special (Live).

“Rihanna is a once-in-a-generation artist who has been a cultural force throughout her career,” said Seth Dudowsky, NFL’s head of Music.

Jay-Z, who owns Roc Nation, which will help organize the performance, even described the superstar as a “woman of humble beginnings who has surpassed expectations at every turn.”

He added, “A person born on the small island of Barbados who became one of the most prominent artists ever. Self-made in business and entertainment.”

Rihanna Accepted Now, But Not in 2019

Rihanna’s acceptance of the offer is an abrupt turn from the singer, who rejected the initial offer to headline the show in 2019 to show support for NFL star Colin Kaepernick – a former quarterback playing for the San Francisco 49ers.

Kaepernick hasn’t played in the league since 2016 following his action to kneel during the pre-game national anthem. It sparked a global movement against racism.

Later, he sued the NFL, accusing the league’s execs of conspiring against him in the sport.

At the time, Rihanna stated that she would have been an “enabler” if she had confirmed her performance for the show.

“I just couldn’t be a sell-out,” she said in an interview with Vogue magazine. “There’s things within that organization that I do not agree with at all, and I was not about to go and be of service to them in any way.”

Earlier, many social media outlets reported that popstar Taylor Swift declined an offer to headline the show, deciding to re-record numerous albums instead.

This is not surprising, as Swift announced last year that she had plans to re-release her first six albums to have full credit for her music. The move came after the acquisition of her master recordings in 2019 by music tycoon Scooter Braun and his selling of them to an investment fund.

Photo: Hawt Celebs

Guillermo del Toro to the Rescue for Martin Scorsese

Music Observer Staff on October 17, 2022

You’ll get the horns of Guillermo del Toro if you mess with the Raging Bull director.

Award-winning Shape of Water director tweeted on Friday to defend Martin Scorsese after an essay from a British outlet The Critic, criticizing most of the iconic director’s filmography, saying he “had debased his talent” because of “rinse and repeat self-indulgence.”

“I very, very seldom post anything contradictory here,” del Toro said in his defense.

“But the amount of misconceptions, sloppy inaccuracies and hostile adjectives not backed by an actual rationale is offensive, cruel and ill-intentioned. This article baited them into traffic, but at what cost?”

He continued, “To be clear: If God offered to shorten my life to lengthen Scorsese’s – I’d take the deal. This man understands Cinema. Defends Cinema. Embodies Cinema. He has always fought for the art of it and against the industry of it. He has never-been tamed and has a firm place in history.”

Del Toro also noted the claims of the essay on Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street is “achingly slow” and that Raging Bull is “quite simply across-the-board bad filmmaking,” hinting that “film language discussions, history lessons and research may be needed” for the critic.

Written in the essay, critic Sean Egan says, “Scorsese’s career is speckled with genuine greatness,” however, he writes, “the truth, though, is that his directorial talent has never been as great as occasional masterpieces like Goodfellas (1990) tricked us into believing it was.”

Scorsese is Lucky with del Toro

Being a defense wall for him, del Toro compares the article to “faulting Picasso for ‘not getting perspective right’ or Gaugin for being ‘garnish.’”

He ends: “If you assail these cornerstones, you should lay it out – you disassemble the work and build your position – not just hand an opinion with ‘slamming’ adjectives. When I read pieces like this one. Aimed at one of the most benign forces and one of the wisest, I do feel the tremors of an impending culture collapse – and I do wonder: ‘To what end?’ …and find myself at a loss.”

Scorsese – who won an Oscar and earned nominations for 13 others – is hard at work on many upcoming projects, such as Killers of the Flower Moon.

Meanwhile, del Toro is gearing up to premiere stop-motion Pinocchio on Netflix on December 9th.

In the past, the Mexican filmmaker has jumped between personal, lower-budget Spanish language movies, like 1993’s Cronos, 2001’s The Devil’s Backbone, and Hollywood successes, such as 1997’s Mimic, 2002’s Blade II, 2004’s Hellboy and its follow-up 2008’s Hellboy II: The Golden Army, 2013’s Pacific Rim, 2015’s Crimson Peak, and 2021’s Nightmare Alley.

In his producing and writing career, he has been involved in films such as 2007’s The Orphanage, 2010’s Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark, 2021-14’s The Hobbit film series, 2013’s Mama, 2014’s The Book of Life, 2018’s Pacific Rim: Uprising, 2019’s Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, and 2020’s The Witches.

In addition, he has spent his career as an author in several projects like one with Chuck Hogan, The Strain trilogy (2009-2011), which later had its comic-book series adaptation in 2011-2015, and ultimately had a live-action television series between 2014-2017.

Photo: Indie Wire