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Grey’s Anatomy stars Ellen Pompeo and Katherine Heigl reunited to reflect on their residency on the ABC’s hit medical drama.
The actresses, who played Meredith Grey and Izzie Stevens, respectively, recently took part in Variety‘s “Actors on Actors” series and reminisced about working on the landmark show, having been part of the cast when it premiered in 2005.
While Heigl said she “hasn’t gone there yet” and watched Grey‘s with her eldest daughter Naleigh, Pompeo revealed she has tried to watch it with her eldest daughter Stella.
Pompeo said Stella came up to her and said it was “embarrassing and weird” that all her friends had seen the show and she hadn’t, so Pompeo decided they’d take the plunge together.
“At first I was like, ‘Oh, this is so amazing, and we’re going to watch it together,'” she recalled. “And then it was episode after episode after episode, and I was just like, ‘I don’t have the stamina for this! I filmed all these episodes. I did it. I can’t now go back and watch it again.'”
Unlike Pompeo, Heigl revealed when she was on the show, she watched every episode as it aired.
Meredith left Seattle during season 19 and popped back up in the season finale — and Pompeo said that won’t be the last we see of the titular character.
“I will be making some appearances hopefully next year, if I can find some time,” Pompeo teased. “It’s not a complete goodbye, and I think we’ve got an interesting story to tell.”
Pompeo explained in September, she’ll start working on a Hulu series that’s under the working title of The Orphan.
“I haven’t played another character in 18 years,” she said of the “intense” part. “That’s crazy — crazy town, crazy town,” she added.
Wall Street Journal reporter Brett Forrest speaks to ABC News about his book “Lost Son.” — ABC News
(NEW YORK) — The detentions of U.S. citizens, like reporter Evan Gershkovich, Brittney Griner and Paul Whelan by Russia, has kept tensions between the U.S. and Russia high as the war in Ukraine rages on.
Wall Street Journal national security reporter Brett Forrest has taken a look at another case, the 2015 disappearance and murder of Billy Reilly, an FBI informant in his new book, “Lost Son: An American Family Trapped Inside the FBI Secret Wars.”
Forrest spoke about the case and his book with ABC News Live Monday. The FBI didn’t immediately comment on the book and Forrest’s reporting.
ABC NEWS LIVE: So your book dives into the post 9/11 world and the FBI’s Confidential Human Source program. Explain what that program is and how Billy Reilly got pulled into it, and the world of global intelligence.
BRETT FORREST: Well, the FBI, since its foundation, has used cooperators and informants as a fundamental part of its work. But after 9/11, when Congress and the administration mandated that the FBI do more to be proactive in its prevention of terrorist conspiracy, the bureau really stepped up its game with such people and reconfigured their approach with them.
They created something called the Confidential Human Source program, which ultimately they used to gather not just evidence to be used in courtrooms, but intelligence to be used outside of DOJ.
ABC NEWS LIVE: And your book is based on an article that you wrote back in 2019 called “The FBI Lost Our Son,” where you followed Billy’s tracks up until the point where he was found without revealing what happened to him. Can you explain how he went missing?
FORREST: Billy Reilly was a young man growing up outside Detroit, and he came of age after 9/11 and was fascinated by global conflict and world religions and foreign languages. And that brought him to the attention of the FBI, as internet traffic did ultimately after the war in Ukraine broke out in 2014.
A year after that, Billy traveled to Russia. His parents weren’t sure why he went and he disappeared there.
ABC NEWS LIVE: How do you hope or perhaps expect people to react at home when hearing his full story?
FORREST: Well, I think fundamentally the lesson we have here is that the FBI and other federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies continue to demand our scrutiny, and they need oversight.
In the case of Billy Reilly, the FBI has not been forthcoming with the family, nor with myself and others who are trying to get answers, including folks on Capitol Hill. And his story, the ending, at least, and the FBI’s involvement in it remains a mystery.
ABC NEWS LIVE: Your colleague, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, is still being held. From your research, what can families like his hope for when it comes to dealing with Russia?
FORREST: Well, not every American who goes missing or is detained in Russia gets the same treatment from the U.S. government. Evan, despite the negative experience that he’s undergoing, at least has the support of the U.S. government who has designated him as wrongfully detained.
There are other people, other Americans in Russian prisons who have been there for years under questionable circumstances, who have been forgotten. Nonetheless, all these people face a terrible fate of not really being able to affect their circumstances.
ABC NEWS LIVE: You’ve also been on the ground in Ukraine covering the many brutal battles of the Ukraine-Russia war more than a year into this conflict. What’s your biggest takeaway from your time in the field there?
FORREST: Well, I have had quite a number of years in both countries, so for me, it’s been a terrible personal experience as well. And we all just want to figure out how this could possibly end. And that remains a big question mark because both sides have told themselves that they’re winning, at least to some degree. And that makes it very difficult for them to come to the negotiating table.
ABC NEWS LIVE: Would you go to Russia at this point for work or personal reasons or otherwise?
FORREST: I think that’s probably not a good idea, especially given what’s been happening with Evan. This is something I think many of us were afraid of as a possibility once the war began and the worst forces in Russia came to the fore.
The genie is out of the bottle in Russia. And I don’t think it’s necessarily a good idea for folks to go over there and work there at least Americans.
(RICHMOND, Va.) — A father and son were killed and several others were hurt in a mass shooting following a high school graduation in Richmond, Virginia, police said.
The suspect, 19-year-old Ameri Ty-John Pollard, is in custody in connection with the shooting, which unfolded in a park on Tuesday after the Huguenot High School graduation ended in a nearby theater.
The suspect watched the graduation ceremony, after which it appears he went to his car to get a handgun and then returned, police said.
Killed in the shooting were Huguenot High School graduate Shawn Jackson, 18, and his father, Renzo Smith, 36.
Pollard and Jackson knew each other and had an “ongoing dispute,” Richmond Police Chief Rick Edwards said at a news conference Wednesday.
“This was targeted at one individual,” Edwards said.
“I didn’t know Shawn, but I shook his hand and wished him congratulations about 20 minutes before he died,” Richmond Public Schools Superintendent Jason Kamras said at Wednesday’s news conference. “Those who did know Shawn described him as bubbly and the life of the party.”
“Getting to the graduation stage was not easy for Shawn, nevertheless, he did it, and he was rightly proud, smiling and celebrating like all of his peers,” Kamras said. “Then, just a few minutes later while enjoying the moment with his family in Monroe Park, he was gunned down. I can’t shake the image of him receiving CPR on the ground, still in his graduation gown.”
Five people were shot and survived: four adults and a 14-year-old boy, authorities said. One victim, a 31-year-old, is in the hospital in life-threatening condition while the other four suffered non-life-threatening injures, authorities said.
Several others suffered various injuries in connection to the shooting. Jackson’s 9-year-old sister was hit by a car and hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, police said.
Two people were treated for falls and nine people were treated for anxiety and minor injuries at the scene, police said.
The shooting took place around 5:13 p.m. in Monroe Park, near Virginia Commonwealth University, officials said. The scene was near the Altria Theater, which was scheduled to host several graduation ceremonies for Richmond Public Schools on Tuesday.
Students in graduation gowns could be seen running away.
Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney called the shooting a “selfish, senseless act.”
“A child should be able to go to their graduation and walk up to graduation and enjoy the accomplishment with their friends and their families,” Stoney told reporters.
Thomas Jefferson High School’s graduation ceremony scheduled for Tuesday night was canceled and all Richmond Public Schools are closed Wednesday.
Pollard made his first appearance in court Wednesday where he was charged with two counts of second-degree murder and held without bail. He’s due back in court on June 21.
ABC News’ Lauren Minore and Laryssa Demkiw contributed to this report.
Lil Nas X became an ambassador for Yves Saint Laurent Beauté last year, and now he’s starring in a new campaign for the makeup brand.
The campaign is made up of five vignettes, each of which represents a different look. The first two looks are called The Icon and The Edge. The Icon has Nas showing off a glowing look, with products like YSL’s NU Halo Tint Highlighter in both Bronze and Gold, Lash Clash mascara in Brown and Candy Glaze Lip Gloss Stick.
The Edge, inspired by Nas’ festival appearances, features him wearing NU Halo Tint Highlighter in Rosy Quartz and Gold and Lash Clash mascara in Black.
In a statement, Lil Nas X says, “Since the beginning of last year,my partnership with YSL Beauté has been about pushing the beauty boundaries and embracing individuality.”
“With this new campaign, we’re exploring my many faces & personalities through five different makeup looks that gave me the chance to experiment with my makeup in a more artistic way,” he adds. “I hope we can inspire the future generation to do the same.”
Festival co-founder Jane Rosenthal – Tribeca Enterprises
On Wednesday in New York City, the 22nd annual Tribeca Festival kicks off. Founded in 2001 by Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal in an effort to revitalize lower Manhattan after the 9/11 attacks, the event has broadened in scope from a film festival to celebrate visionaries in various media, from film and TV to interactive, audio and gaming.
Rosenthal recently told ABC Audio that finding the right projects to celebrate during the event is a daunting task. “We’re very fortunate that we have an extraordinary group of curators led by festival director Cara Cusumano, and they get to deal with the 12,000 plus submissions, and they cull it down.”
She adds, “So Bob [De Niro] and I get the benefit of watching it pretty much after it’s been really narrowed down.” That said, she admitted she was still “bleary-eyed” from watching so much content before the event.
Rosenthal also spoke of the festival shifting primarily from film to highlight many mediums, from a documentary about trailblazing ballet dancer Misty Copeland to Disney-Pixar’s movie Elemental and mainstream TV properties like AMC’sThe Walking Dead spinoffDead City.
“Whether they’re on … television or in a theater or whether you’re streaming it, or whether it’s a game or audio storytelling, the festival is about great stories,” Rosenthal says.
Apart from the submissions, this year’s festival is special for one major reason: It’s the first Tribeca since the U.S. COVID-19 public health emergency was declared over.
“I’m really looking forward, especially after what feels like the long years of COVID and COVID protocols, to just be there and laugh or cry or yell in a movie theater,” Rosenthal says.
The Tribeca Festival runs through Sunday, June 18.
(MIAMI) — The founder of MAGA Inc and a former Trump aide, Taylor Budowich, is appearing in front of a South Florida grand jury on Wednesday.
An ABC News camera caught Budowich going into the federal court in Miami. He did not respond to questions or a request for comment. His lawyer also didn’t respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
It comes as ABC News has previously reported that the Special Counsel has expanded his probe into political action committees that were formed by Trump allies.
A federal grand jury investigating the activities leading up the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and the push by former President Donald Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 election, has expanded its probe to include seeking information about Trump’s leadership PAC, Save America, sources with direct knowledge tell ABC News.
(NEW YORK) — CNN Chairman and CEO Chris Licht is stepping down, parent company Warner Bros. Discovery said on Wednesday.
Over a 13-month tenure, Licht vowed to institute down-the-middle coverage but faced backlash over decisions such as a recent town hall event with former President Donald Trump.
Former Beverly Hills, 90210 star Shannen Doherty has given her Instagram followers a sobering look at her ongoing battle with stage 4 breast cancer.
Captioning a video from January showing her getting fitted with a face mask used for radiation treatment for brain cancer, Doherty explained Tuesday evening that a CT scan “showed Mets in my brain,” meaning cancer cells have migrated there.
“January 12, the first round of radiation took place,” she explained. “My fear is obvious. I am extremely claustrophobic and there was a lot going on in my life. I am fortunate as I have great doctors like Dr Amin Mirahdi and the amazing techs at [Cedars Sinai Hospital].”
She added, “But that fear…. The turmoil….. the timing of it all…. This is what cancer can look like.”
Doherty was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, and after entering remission, she revealed in 2020 the disease had spread and returned as stage 4.
In an interview with Good Morning America, the actress said the diagnosis was “a bitter pill to swallow in a lot of ways.”
“I definitely have days where I say, ‘Why me?’ And then I go, ‘Well, why not me?’ Who else? Who else besides me deserves this? None of us do,” she said at the time.
HBO’s reboot of Perry Mason, which is co-produced by Robert Downey Jr. and his wife Susan, and which stars The Americans Emmy winner Matthew Rhys in the title role, has been canceled by the cable network after two seasons, according to Deadline. The show, in which Rhys plays a private investigator who eventually becomes an attorney, debuted its second and final season in March…
Former Wild ‘N Out performer Jacky Oh — born Jacklyn Smith — was found “unresponsive” when emergency workers arrived at her Miami hotel room to assist her on June 1, according to a police report obtained by E! News. “She was transported by Miami Fire Department to Mercy Hospital where lifesaving efforts were conducted,” the report added, “but unfortunately, she was pronounced deceased at the hospital.” The report listed her age as 33. A cause of death has not been revealed…
Deadline reports Peter Pan & Wendy‘s Garfield Wilson has landed a recurring role in Syfy’s Reginald the Vampire. He plays Balestro, “a confident, poised and intimidating Angel who descends from heaven to announce the eventual extinction of all vampires on the planet.” Reginald the Vampire — led by Jacob Batalon, star of the Spider-Man films — follows Reginald Andrews, who, in a world populated by beautiful, fit and vain vampires, tumbles headlong into it as an unlikely hero,” per the cable channel…
(OCALA, Fla.) — The family of Ajike Owens, 35, and their attorney Anthony D. Thomas held a news conference on Monday demanding an arrest be made for the shooting death of Owens, a Florida mother of four. The Owens family is also being represented by civil rights attorney Ben Crump.
Owens was shot and killed last Friday in Ocala, Florida on the doorstep of the suspect’s home, after she went to the suspect’s residence to question the unidentified woman about an alleged dispute with Owens’ children, according to police reports.
Susan Lorincz, 58, the neighbor, was arrested and charged with manslaughter, the sheriff’s office said on Tuesday. She was also charged with culpable negligence, battery and two counts of assault.
“She knocked on Susan’s door, a closed, locked door,” Pamela Dias, Owens’ mother, said at the news conference. “Door never opened. My daughter, grandchildren’s mother was shot and killed with her nine-year-old son standing next to her.”
Marion County sheriff Billy Woods held a press conference earlier on Monday. Woods said no arrests had been made yet because his department had to follow due process under Florida Stand Your Ground laws.
“I wish our shooter would have called us instead of taking actions into her own hands,” Woods said. “I wish Ms. Owens would have called us in the hopes we could have never gotten to the point at which we are here today.”
In announcing the arrest on Tuesday, Woods’ office said the investigation established that “Lorincz’s actions were not justifiable under Florida law.”
Woods said there was an ongoing feud between Owens and the suspect, and there was a heated confrontation between the two before the shooting.
The day of the shooting, the children were playing in a field on the property in which the suspect’s home is located. The suspect allegedly yelled at the children to get off the field, according to Dias.
One of the children left a tablet on the property and went back to the suspect’s home to retrieve it because the suspect allegedly took it into her possession, according to a police report.
Lorincz allegedly threw a pair of skates at the child and the minor notified Owens, resulting in Owens going to the suspect’s home, according to Woods. Woods said more than one of Owens’ children may have witnessed the shooting. The children have not been interviewed yet out of respect for the trauma of losing their mother, according to Woods.
“According to the one side, there was a lot of aggressiveness from both of them,” Woods said. “Whether it be banging on the doors, banging on the walls and threats being made. And then at that moment is then when Ms. Owens was shot through the door.”
According to police records, when officers arrived on the scene, they found Owens under a nearby tree with a gunshot wound in an undisclosed location on her body. She had a faint pulse as the officers applied medical aid. Owens was transported to a local hospital where she was pronounced deceased at 9:33 P.M on June 2.
The police transported Lorincz to the central operations bureau for an interview, according to police reports. Details of the interview were not disclosed. The suspect did not immediately return ABC News’ request for an interview or statement.
Woods said Florida Stand Your Ground laws make it harder to execute an immediate arrest.
“We have to rule out whether deadly force was justified or not before we can make an arrest,” Woods said. “And sometimes it makes it difficult and sometimes it becomes an obstacle, but only a temporary obstacle because it will be moved and the final answer will come forward.”