Entertainment

Sean Penn and Ben Stiller on Tuesday were among 25 “high-ranking officials, representatives of the business and expert communities, as well as cultural figures” banned from Russia by that country’s foreign ministry, according to Deadline. Penn traveled to Ukraine earlier this year, meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and filming a documentary about the conflict with Russia for VICE. Stiller visited Ukrainian refugees in Poland in June before traveling to Kyiv and, as part of his work representing the United Nations Refugee Agency, got to spend time with Zelenskyy on World Refugee Day…

Top Gun: Maverick has topped $700 million in North America, surpassing Marvel’s Black Panther, which grossed $701 million in 2018. The film added $7.9 million between Friday and Monday, bringing ticket sales to $701 million. According to Paramount, Maverick is the only film to ever be #1 at the domestic box office for both Memorial Day and Labor Day holidays, Variety reports. Globally, Top Gun: Maverick is currently the 12th-biggest movie, and poised to take over 11th place from Disney’s Frozen II, which currently boasts a global gross of $1.45 billion…

Peacock has canceled Rutherford Falls, the series co-created by Ed Helms and Michael Shur, after two seasons, according to Entertainment Weekly. Starring Helms and Jana Schmieding, the show followed two best friends navigating their fictional town’s complex history. The show drew positive reviews for its strong characters and Native American representation when it premiered in 2021…

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Gabby and Rachel arrived in gorgeous Mexico on Monday’s episode of The Bachelorette — the first of a two-part fantasy suites week — joined their final three men.

Gabby’s first overnight date began with her and Erich taking a lovers leap into a natural spring from platforms set at varying heights. Later, over dinner, he confessed that he was in love with her and didn’t want to leave the competition without her. They capped the date off with a night in the fantasy suite.

Gabby’s date with Johnny ended on a sour note when he revealed that he wasn’t ready to get down on one knee. The news came as a “punch in the gut” to Gabby, who sent Johnny home, explaining that she wouldn’t settle for less than an engagement at the end of her journey.

Unbeknownst to Gabby, things were about to get worse after Jason, ahead of his overnight with her, confided to host Jesse Palmer that he also wan’t ready to put a ring on it.

Meanwhile, Rachel’s first two overnight dates with Aven and Tino each ended with a trip to the fantasy suites and both men feeling more confident than ever about their relationships with her. She has one more date left with Zach before deciding who she’ll bring home to meet her family.

The episode ended in a cliffhanger when Erich, arranged an impromptu meeting with Gabby to express his displeasure with her potentially spending a night with the other two men — an issue she thought they had settled off-camera during their overnight. The meeting left her questioning whether or not he was really “her guy” after all, and if she would end up leaving the competition alone.

Part two of The Bachelorette‘s fantasy suites week continues Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

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Just in time for gift-giving for Saturday’s National Welsh Rarebit Day, Ryan Reynolds and his partner-owner of the Wrexham AFC, Rob McElhenney, have created a cookbook to celebrate the dish. 

In a cheeky video promoting the publication, Reynolds narrates that readers can learn the answers to their most pressing questions on the subject, like: “What is rarebit?” 

As pages flip, Always Sunny‘s McElhenney promises “international spins on a Welsh delicacy for fans around the world” in a cookbook, Reynolds deadpans, “that’s definitely not the same recipe on every page except for the garnish.”

As the photos change from English Rarebit to Mexican Rarebit, Italian Rarebit and more, it becomes obvious that the pages of the book are exactly that. The U.K. version sees a piece of toast’s traditional cheesy top topped with beans; the Mexican one, pico de gallo; and for the American version, ketchup tops the cheesy slurry that separates rarebit from an ordinary slice of toasted bread.

While that would make the cookbook a waste of money as far as recipe building goes, the guys’ intentions are pure: all proceeds of its $18.64 price tag will benefit the Wrexham Food Bank. 

The price tag refers to the Red Dragons’ founding date of 1864: Wrexham AFC is Wales’ oldest football club and the third-oldest in the world.

You can see the pair’s trials and tribulations in getting the underdog footie team back on its feet in FX’s new reality series Welcome to Wrexham.

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Jane Fonda announced Friday that she has been diagnosed with cancer.

“So, my dear friends, I have something personal I want to share. I’ve been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and have started chemo treatments,” the Grace and Frankie star, 84, wrote in an Instagram post.

“This is a very treatable cancer,” she continued. “80% of people survive, so I feel very lucky.”

Fonda said her chemotherapy will last six months and she is handling it “quite well” thus far, adding, “… believe me, I will not let any of this interfere with my climate activism.”

“Cancer is a teacher and I’m paying attention to the lessons it holds for me,” the Oscar-winning actress wrote.

“One thing it’s shown me already is the importance of community. Of growing and deepening one’s community so that we are not alone. And the cancer, along with my age — almost 85 — definitely teaches the importance of adapting to new realities.”

Fonda called herself “lucky” for having health insurance, and access to the top doctors and treatments, two things she said “far too many people” don’t have.

“I realize, and it’s painful, that I am privileged in this,” she wrote.

According to the National Cancer Institute, non-Hodgkin lymphoma begins in the cells of the lymph system, which is part of the immune system and helps the body fight infection and disease. It can occur almost anywhere, as lymph tissue is found all throughout the body.

Fonda previously underwent a lumpectomy after being diagnosed with breast cancer in 2010. In 2018, she revealed she had a cancerous growth removed from her lip.

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There be dragons … at the top of the streaming charts. HBO’s already-renewed House of the Dragon again topped all competition for last week, according to streaming service aggregator Reelgood.

Dragon remained perched in the #1 slot of Reelgood’s streaming Top Ten list for the week ending August 31; Sylvester Stallone‘s Amazon superhero pic Samaritan made its streaming debut in second place.

Netflix’s thriller series Echoes took the third spot, followed by Disney+’s Marvel Studios series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law in fourth place.

Kevin Hart and Mark Wahlberg‘s Netflix comedy film, Me Time, rounded out the top five.

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The first guest on Jennifer Hudson‘s new talk show will be a blast from the past: her former American Idol judge Simon Cowell.

Hudson came in seventh place in the third season of the show, which was won by Fantasia Barrino — but Hudson went on to become an EGOT winner.

The first installment of the syndicated The Jennifer Hudson Show will mark the first sit-down between Cowell and Hudson since the reality competition.

The chat show’s premiere on Monday, September 12, will also feature a birthday party for its host, who turns 41 that day.

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As The Crown rolls through the years, season 6 will apparently show a teen Prince William and his eventual wife, Kate Middleton.

Variety reports 16-year-old newcomer Rufus Kampa and 21-year-old Ed McVey have been cast as William in two points of his life; Kate Middleton will be portrayed by lookalike Meg Bellamy. The trade reports Kampa and Bellamy were found via an online casting call.

The fifth season of The Crown, which drops on Netflix in November, features Tenet‘s Elizabeth Debciki‘s as Princess Diana, Prince William and Harry‘s mother, and focuses on her tumultuous marriage to Prince Charles, played by Dominic West.

Princess Diana was killed in a car crash with her companion Dodi Fayed on August 31, 1997, when William was 15, the trade reasons, so it’s likely the season will cover the time span of the late ’90s to the early 2000s. William met Kate in 2001 when they were both students at Scotland’s St. Andrew’s University.

The Crown‘s cast also includes Jonathan Pryce as Prince Philip, Imelda Staunton as Queen Elizabeth, and Lesley Manville as Princess Margaret.

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While promoting his controversial cannibal road trip film Bones and All at the Venice Film Festival Friday, Timothée Chalamet took aim at the “onslaught” of social media.

“To be young now, and to be young whenever — I can only speak for my generation — is to be intensely judged,” 26-year-old Chalamet said, according to Variety.

“I can’t imagine what it is to grow up with the onslaught of social media, and it was a relief to play characters who are wrestling with an internal dilemma absent the ability to go on Reddit, or Twitter, Instagram or TikTok and figure out where they fit in,” he continued.

The Dune star added, “I have a little brother who’s 19, 20-ish, and thinking about him in this world, and the self-judgement and judgment of others that people seem so flooded with every day in such a drastic and severe way is so scary, because the hope is that you can find your own compass within all of it and that seems like a difficult task now.”

The actor expressed he’s not “casting judgment” on those who use social media, but he opined, “I think it’s hard to be alive now. I think societal collapse is in the air…”

Based on Camille DeAngelis‘ 2015 book of the same name, Bones and All has a U.S. release date of November 23.

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Tiffany Haddish and Aries Spears are being sued for allegedly sexually molesting a child in Los Angeles. Both comedians are denying the accusations.

A woman identified as Jane Doe sued Haddish and Spears in California’s Superior Court for Los Angeles County on behalf of a minor identified as John Doe, People reports. Haddish’s attorney says the complaint has no merit.

“Plaintiff’s mother, Trizah Morris, has been trying to assert these bogus claims against Ms. Haddish for several years,” Haddish’s lawyer said in a statement. “Every attorney who has initially taken on her case — and there were several — ultimately dropped the matter once it became clear that the claims were meritless and Ms. Haddish would not be shaken down.”

In a separate statement, Spears’ lawyer said that he “isn’t going to fall for any shakedown.”

The lawsuit alleges that John Doe was molested by Spears in 2014 when he was 7 years old.

Court documents claim that Haddish told him he would be taping a reel for Nickelodeon at Spears’ home. She then witnessed the alleged incident “and aided, abetted, and watched Spears sexually molest a child,” according to the filing.

Haddish and Spears are being sued for intentional infliction of emotional distress, gross negligence, sexual battery, sexual harassment and sexual abuse of a minor.

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(NOTE LANGUAGE) Bob Odenkirk addressed the Venice Film Festival via video from Los Angeles Friday, and he explained he wants some action now that Better Call Saul is over.

According to Deadline, Odenkirk spoke fondly of his 2021 hit Nobody, in which he played a seemingly boring suburban dad who goes all John Wick on his enemies.

“I was very surprised by Nobody,” the actor explained. “I had initiated that project because I had a feeling that the character I was developing in Better Call Saul was the kind of character you see in an action film. He has earnest desires and he was willing to sacrifice himself…”

Odenkirk continued, “I still train multiple times a week and if I get my way you’re going to see me doing more action. I found the action sequences a great deal of fun and close to doing sketch comedy…I love the early Jackie Chan films which had humor in them. I’d like to get that in in future.”

Odenkirk also shared what he thought was the secret behind the success of Nobody, which director David Leitch has said has a sequel in the works: “It’s almost like people like to see older people lose their s***,” he said. “Why does that seem to make sense to everyone? It’s funny.”

When asked to look back at Better Call Saul weeks after the show’s highly-rated finale, Odenkirk said, “I have very mixed feelings. It was a long time to play one guy and portray his psyche…”

He added of his Saul Goodman, “that’ll be the role I’ll be known for my whole life. And I’m proud of that.”

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