(POTENTIAL SPOILERS) Elizabeth Olsen‘s Wanda Maximoff may have been causing multiversal chaos as the Scarlet Witch in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, but she doesn’t see her character as a villain.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe veteran recently stopped by Good Morning America to answer fan questions. When asked about what it was like to play an evil character, Olsen said, “I will never think of her as a baddie.”
“I think she learns a lesson, but I think of her as she’s just processing big emotions,” she explained, drawing a parallel between her MCU persona and the protagonist of her and husband Robbie Arnett‘s new children’s book, Hattie Harmony: Worry Detective, out now.
Olsen described Hattie Harmony’s name as being “inspired by helping kids deal with big, complicated feelings that are hard to understand or identify” and giving kids the language and tools to manage those feelings.
The Emmy-nominated actress said she utilized methods like mindful movement and mindful breathing when dealing with “a lot of weird panic attacks” in her early 20s, which she said “really threw me off.”
“I never had a stress ball, but I would do other kinds of body tension things to help relieve the anxiety in my head or the stress or the overwhelming feelings I would get,” she continued. “And also the positive self-talk that Hattie uses I feel like we could all use a little bit of that.”
With the fate of Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch left uncertain at the end of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Olsen said she doesn’t know what’s next for her in the MCU.
“I would love to know myself,” she said. “Keep spreading rumors and maybe they’ll hire me again.”
Marvel Studios is owned by Disney, the parent company of ABC News.
From 1993 to 2001, Darren Hayes was the frontman for the chart-topping Australian pop duo Savage Garden, known for hits like “I Knew I Loved You” and “Truly Madly Deeply.” Today, he’s a solo artist and an out gay man who’s been married to his husband for 17 years. As Pride Month wraps up, he talks about what the word means to him.
He tells ABC Audio that “to be proud is to be completely rid of shame,” adding, “Having shame is such a dark cloud under which I spent so much of my young life.”
Darren tackles that topic indirectly in his new single and video, “Poison Blood,” which details his and his family’s history of depression. He notes, “So much of my own struggle with mental health in the past centered around my own internalized shame around my sexuality as a young person…so I hope this song is a comfort for anyone who needs reminding they are not alone.”
Darren adds that shame can also be dispelled by representation.
“I look back on the beginning of my career when I was still coming to terms with my own sexuality, and I didn’t really have any role models or anyone that I felt like I could look up to,” he tells ABC Audio. “And today, I’m just so grateful that we live in a time where there are so many young performers, athletes, journalists, politicians, artists…who comfortably…live their truth in the public eye.”
“It’s that old adage: You have to see something in order to be able to be it,” he adds. “So that’s what Pride means to me. It’s about visibility. It’s about continuing to show up and be a voice, because no one knows when our rights can be taken away from us.”
Earlier this year, Asia announced that it was organizing a new tour to mark the supergroup’s 40th anniversary that would kick off this summer, but now, plans for the trek have been revised.
The tour, a joint outing with The Alan Parsons Live Project, originally was supposed to have launched in August, but the trek has been delayed because of a medical procedure Alan Parsons underwent recently. The tour is now being rescheduled for early 2023, and new dates will be announced soon.
Asia’s current lineup features two original members, drummer Carl Palmer and keyboardist Geoff Downes, as well as bassist/singer Billy Sherwood and lead vocalist/guitarist Marc Bonilla.
Sherwood joined Asia in 2017 after original lead singer and bassist John Wetton‘s death, while Bonilla was recently welcomed into the band to replace singer/guitarist Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal, who began playing with the group in 2019.
Bonilla is a former member of late Emerson, Lake & Palmer keyboardist Keith Emerson‘s solo band.
“We were hoping to be out this August, however moving the tour to early next year so we can remain on a co-bill with The Alan Parsons Project will be well worth it,” says Palmer. “I am so thrilled that ASIA has finally been able to return to performing after three years off the road due to the pandemic; we have much to celebrate.”
Adds Downes, “ASIA has been through a lot during these last four decades, but the music has always endured…This tour will be historic.”
In addition to celebrating its 40th anniversary, the band also will be promoting its recently released multi-disc box set, ASIA in Asia — Live at The Budokan, Tokyo, 1983, which focuses on a historic concert the band played in Japan that featured ELP’s Greg Lake stepping in for Wetton.
Metallica has canceled the band’s headlining performance Wednesday at the Frauenfeld Rocks festival in Switzerland due to a “member of the Metallica family” testing positive for COVID-19.
“We are beyond sorry to disappoint those of you planning to attend the show,” the metal legends write in a statement posted early Wednesday morning. “It was our intention to reschedule a show in Switzerland as soon as possible, however in overnight discussions with the local promoters, sadly it became apparent that schedules and venues do not line up for the remainder of this year or next.”
The festival will still take place as scheduled with sets from Five Finger Death Punch, FEVER 333 and others. With Metallica now out of the lineup, though, organizers are offering ticket holders a partial refund for those who still plan to attend. Ticket holders who decide not to go at all because of the Metallica’s cancellation will receive a full refund.
Metallica’s next scheduled concert is set to place this Friday, July 1, at Belgium’s Rock Werchter festival. Rock Werchter organizers tweeted Wednesday that they’re “in contact” with the Metallica camp, adding that the group is “hopeful to play.”
Sam Asghari, who married Britney Spears earlier this month, says their wedding was a “fairytale.”
On Wednesday morning, the Iranian-American actor appeared on ABC’s Good Morning America to talk about his new film, Hot Seat, but he also opened up about life as a married man. “I have to wear this thing now,” Sam joked, pointing to his ring. “It’s heavy, man. I’m getting a workout with it!”
“It’s just been surreal, man.” he added. “It’s been a minute. It was way overdue for us, and we imagined this thing being a fairytale and it was.”
Sam and Britney first met while on the set of her “Slumber Party” music video in 2016. After five years together, Sam popped the question in September 2021.
His comments about the wedding were echoed by wedding guest Paris Hilton, who told E!, “It was a magical fairytale. I’m so happy for her. She’s like an angel. And it was just an iconic night with so many incredible powerful women.” In addition to Paris, the guest list included Drew Barrymore, Donatella Versace and Madonna.
“Just seeing her walk down the aisle in the dress, I was crying,” Paris added. “It was just so beautiful and romantic and just seeing sparkles and happiness in her eyes. And just seeing my Brit back and just in love and just the whole thing.”
Paris, who sang her hit “Stars Are Blind” at the wedding with Selena Gomez, said of her longtime friend, “She’s one of the kindest people in the world and is such an angel. She is not like any of the people in this town. She means a lot to me.”
Sam’s movie Hot Seat is out July 1 and also stars Mel Gibson, Shannen Doherty and Kevin Dillon.
Miranda Lambert has great news about the breast cancer diagnosis her mother, Beverly, received last September.
“She’s been through a whole lot, but she’s doing really well, and she’s ready to roll,” the star says, revealing in a new Peoplecover story that her mother is now cancer free.
“I was able to be there with her through the hardest parts. She’s unstoppable,” Miranda explains. “She’s just been so strong and positive through the whole thing. It’s a good lesson for people to take away from a journey like that: Even though it’s a really scary place to be, the more positive, the better.”
The singer adds that she, her dad Rick and brother Luke, all gathered around Beverly in the family’s home state of Texas to help her through the ordeal.
Miranda and her mom have always been close — they even co-founded the MuttNation Foundation, an organization that supports shelter pets — and Beverly tells People that her country superstar daughter was there every step of the way.
“When she wasn’t here in Texas, we talked by phone or FaceTime so she could see how I was,” Beverly recounts. “On my head-shaving day, she FaceTimed with me and my hairdresser so she could be with me.”
She adds, “We had some unexpected bonding moments over her rubbing my bald head with essential oils. Those were the rawest and most tearful moments.”
Mandy Moore is putting her family first and cancelling her tour.
Taking to Instagram Tuesday, the This Is Us star, who is expecting her second child with husband Taylor Goldsmith, shared, “It is with a heavy heart and much consideration that I have to let you all know that I am cancelling my remaining show dates in 2022.
“It has been an honor and an absolute dream to return to the stage again this past month, performing for all of you,” she continued.
The actress, 38 — who is also mom to 16-month-old son August Harrison — explained that she wasn’t pregnant when the shows were booked and while she thought she “could power though,” it was “long hours” and “not getting proper rest” that ultimately made it “too challenging to proceed.”
“I know that I have to put my family and my health (and the health of my baby) first and the best place for me to be right now is at home,” she wrote.
Moore thanked her fans for their support and for respecting her decision, before notifying them that all tickets will be refunded.
(NEW YORK) — Three tropical systems are churning in the Atlantic basin that could develop into a tropical storm or tropical depression over the next two days.
The closest system to the U.S. is near the Texas coast. It has a 40% chance of strengthening into a tropical depression as it moves on shore just south of Houston in the next 24 hours.
Up to six inches of rain is possible south of Houston and three to four inches is expected for Houston itself Wednesday night through Friday morning. Street flooding is possible.
The second system is in the southern Caribbean and has a 90% chance of developing into Tropical Storm Bonnie.
Gusty winds and heavy rain are expected in Aruba and life-threatening flash flooding is forecast for Nicaragua and Costa Rica.
The third tropical system is now moving through the central Atlantic and will be hovering over the eastern Caribbean by this weekend. This storm may bring heavy rain and gusty winds to Puerto Rico for the 4th of July.
(NEW YORK) — Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “special military operation” into neighboring Ukraine began on Feb. 24, with Russian forces invading from Belarus, to the north, and Russia, to the east. Ukrainian troops have offered “stiff resistance,” according to U.S. officials.
The Russian military has since launched a full-scale ground offensive in eastern Ukraine’s disputed Donbas region, capturing the strategic port city of Mariupol and securing a coastal corridor to the Moscow-annexed Crimean Peninsula.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Jun 29, 9:15 am
Finland, Sweden invited to join NATO
The leaders of NATO countries have invited Sweden and Finland to join NATO, they announced at the Madrid summit.
NATO leaders in their declaration called Russia “the most significant and direct threat to Allies’ security and to peace and stability in the Euro-Atlantic area.”
Jun 29, 8:28 am
NATO to identify Russia as its ‘main threat,’ Spanish PM says
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who is hosting a NATO summit in Madrid, said Russia will be identified as the alliance’s “main threat” in its new strategic concept unveiled during the summit.
“The strategic concept of Madrid will be naming Russia as the main threat of the allies,” Sánchez told Spanish media on Wednesday. NATO previously considered Russia a strategic partner.
Sánchez stressed that Russian President Vladimir Putin was the only person “responsible for this substantive change.”
During a speech at the NATO summit on Wednesday, the Spanish Prime Minister said the summit carried a clear signal for Putin.
“We are sending a strong message to Putin: ‘You will not win,’” Sánchez said.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said on Facebook on Tuesday that thousands of Ukrainian soldiers had mastered the use of weapons supplied by Western countries, while other troops are in ongoing training.
Reznikov said Ukrainian specialists were training on aviation and other types of high-tech weaponry, including artillery systems and means of reconnaissance.
“We are learning at a fast pace,” the defense minister added. “Any weapon in the hands of the [Ukrainian] Armed Forces becomes even more effective.”
In his speech at the NATO summit on Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy repeated his plea for more weapons supplies, highlighting Ukraine’s need for more modern artillery systems.
To break Russia’s artillery advantage, Ukraine needs “much more modern systems, modern artillery,” Zelenskyy said.
-ABC News’ Edward Szekeres, Max Uzol and Yuriy Zaliznyak
Jun 29, 7:39 am
Missile strike on mall may have been mistake
Russia’s recent missile strike on a shopping mall in the central Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk, which killed at least 20 people, may have been “intended to hit a nearby infrastructure target,” the U.K. Ministry of Defense said Wednesday in an intelligence update.
The ministry called it “a realistic possibility” and noted that “Russia’s inaccuracy in conducting long range strikes has previously resulted in mass civilian casualty incidents, including at Kramatorsk railway station” on April 9.
“Russian planners highly likely remain willing to accept a high level of collateral damage when they perceive military necessity in striking a target,” the ministry said. “It is almost certain that Russia will continue to conduct strikes in an effort to interdict the resupplying of Ukrainian frontline forces.”
“Russia’s shortage of more modern precision strike weapons and the professional shortcomings of their targeting planners will highly likely result in further civilian casualties,” the ministry warned.
Jun 28, 4:51 pm
20 dead, 40 still missing from mall strike
Twenty people are dead and 59 are wounded from Russia’s missile strike on Monday at a mall in the central Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk, according to Kyrilo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of the Office of the President of Ukraine.
Forty people remain missing, Tymoshenko said.
“Several fragments of bodies have been found ripped off limbs and feet of the people,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the United Nations Security Council.
He said if Russia denies the devastation was wrought by one of its missiles, he asked the U.N. send an independent representative to the site of the attack to verify for itself.
First Deputy Permanent Representative of Russia to the U.N., Dmitry Polyanskiy, flatly denied carrying out strikes against any civilian target.
-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford, Oleksii Pshemysko and Fidel Pavlenko
Jun 28, 12:58 pm
Sean Penn meets with Zelenskyy
Sean Penn met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Tuesday after the actor arrived in Ukraine to shoot a documentary, according to Zelenskyy’s office.
Penn, who first came to Ukraine on the day Russia invaded in February, wants to “visit settlements in Ukraine affected by Russian aggression,” according to Zelenskyy’s office.
Jun 28, 4:13 pm
Biden: Ukraine ‘standing up’ to Putin ‘in ways that I don’t think anyone anticipated’
President Joe Biden and Spanish President Pedro Sanchez delivered remarks Tuesday on new areas of cooperation between the two countries and efforts to keep supporting Ukraine against Russia’s invasion.
Biden did not mention Monday’s strike on the Ukraine mall that killed 18, but said the invasion has “shattered peace in Europe and every norm since WWII.”
Biden said he and Sanchez discussed the need to continue to provide weapons to Ukraine.
The Ukrainians “are standing up in ways that I don’t think anyone anticipated, showing enormous bravery, enormous resolve,” Biden said.
He said he believes Putin’s objective is to “wipe out the culture of Ukraine.”
Biden said NATO allies will be “standing as one” to support Ukraine and teased more military posture commitments in Europe. Biden said the U.S. and Spain are working on an agreement to increase the number of Navy destroyers stationed at Rota Naval Base in Spain.
(SEOUL, South Korea) — A North Korean defector group in Seoul claimed on Tuesday to have launched air balloons carrying medical supplies near the inter-Korean border.
The Fighters for Free North Korea, an activist group of North Korean defectors who send anti-propaganda leaflets across the border, said they flew 20 air balloons carrying 50,000 pain relief pills, 30,000 vitamin C and 20,000 N-95 masks. Dispatching unauthorized materials at the border is against the law in South Korea.
“In order to help the miserable mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters in North Korea who are dying without any medicine, the Fighters for Free North Korea is temporarily halting the anti-Pyongyang leaflet sending, and will send medical supplies to help with COVID situation in the North,” Park Sang Hak, a North Korean defector who leads the activist group, told ABC News.
The South Korean government since 2020 has banned sending leaflets across the border. Sending them carries a maximum prison term of three years or fines up to $27,400.
The non-government organization has been gathering help from human rights support groups based in Seoul and the U.S. to send medical supplies to the North since the Kim Jong Un regime acknowledged the outbreak on May 13.
North Korea remains one of the only two nations without COVID vaccines. Ever since admitting that it had its first COVID patient, the isolated regime has been announcing the number of ‘fever patients’ and COVID-related deaths through its state media daily. Lacking medical supplies to treat the pandemic, Pyongyang’s main newspaper, Roding Sinmun, advised people to use traditional remedies such as drinking willow or honeysuckle leaf tea.
“In South Korea, even animals are given medicine to treat diseases, the North Korean regime is uncivilized at the worst level,” Park told ABC News. “All we want for the families and friends in North Korea is for them to be treated with real medicine to fight COVID-19.”
An official from the Unification Ministry told ABC News that police and other authorities were working to confirm Tuesday’s balloon launch.
“The ministry understands the intent of the distribution, but believe in the need [for the group] to restrain its activities considering the sensitive inter-Korean relationship and the government’s effort for cooperation in the inter-Korean disinfection, and whether [the activities] could actually help the North Korean people,” the official said.
The group claims that it’s the second time this month they have sent air balloons with medical supplies to the North, and will continue to do so.
