Director Pablo Larraín‘s movie Spencer just debuted at the Venice Film Festival, and Kristen Stewart is already winning raves for her portrayal as Princess Diana.
The Hollywood Reporter, for example, piled on the superlatives for the film, calling Stewart “incandescent,” and declares that the actress “has seldom been more magnetic, or more heartbreakingly fragile.”
Variety also praised the Oscar-nominated Jackie director’s new film as “masterly” and “enthralling,” and Stewart a “superb” in the story, which takes place over a Christmas weekend in the 1990s in which Diana’s rocky marriage to Prince Charles finally comes apart at the seams.
For her part, Stewart spoke about the role after the screening, saying she, “took more pleasure into my physicality making this movie than I have on anything.” According to Deadline, she continued, “I felt more free and alive and able to move, and taller even. Now put a leash on that.”
Stewart praised Diana, who eventually divorced Charles and remained an icon of fashion and a tireless humanitarian before her tragic death in a car accident in 1997. “There are some people that are endowed with an undeniable penetrating energy,” the actress explained. “I think it’s just something she was born with.”
Stewart continued, “I think the really sad thing about her is that as normal and casual and disarming her air is immediately, she also felt so isolated and lonely she made everyone else feel accompanied and bolstered by this beautiful light and all she wanted was to have it back.”
(CHICAGO) — Chicago Cubs manager David Ross and president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer have both tested positive for COVID-19, the team said on Friday.
A spokesperson for the Cubs said that both men are quarantining and feeling fine. Both are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus.
In Ross’ absence, bench coach Andy Green will manage the club. Green previously served as manager of the San Diego Padres from 2016 to 2019.
All of Ross’ close contacts were tested on Friday, the Cubs said, with none returning a positive test. There was no immediate indication that any players would be unavailable.
The Cubs are one of seven teams in Major League Baseball that have failed to reach the 85 percent vaccination threshold required to enter relaxed COVID-19 protocols. They did, however, issue a vaccine mandate for non-playing employees, the team told ESPN Thursday.
That policy goes into effect next month, with employees needing to be fully vaccinated by October 4. A source tells ESPN that at least 90 percent of team employees have been vaccinated.
The video for Bring Me the Horizon frontman Oli Sykes‘ collaborative song “Salt” with buzzy Filipino-Australian musician daine is out now.
The clip begins with some Lord of the Rings-esque cosplay, with daine playing a Galadriel-type royal elf. Sykes, meanwhile, shows up as a sort of ghostly specter that appears in daine’s mind’s eye.
You can watch the “Salt” video streaming now on YouTube.
The song “Salt” premiered last week. When it dropped, Sykes called “Salt” his “fave collab so far.”
You’ll also get to hear Sykes on the upcoming new Bring Me the Horizon song “Die4U,” set to premiere September 16.
Texas State Capitol in Austin, TX (Credit: dszc/iStock)
(WASHINGTON) — The Supreme Court issuing an unsigned order refusing to block a Texas abortion ban while it faces a legal challenge stunned many and marked a significant moment in the United States’ history of reproductive rights.
The playbook for years by anti-abortion legislators was to slowly chip away at the right to an abortion via mechanisms like “targeted restrictions on abortion providers” or “TRAP” laws, while outright pre-viability bans were seen as unrealistic.
“This was really bad and really unexpected,” Robin Marty, operations director at the West Alabama Women’s Center and author of “New Handbook for a Post-Roe America,” told ABC News. “We thought it would be slower and not nearly as, ‘all right, we’re done, rights are gone.'”
The Texas law bans physicians from providing abortions “if the physician detects a fetal heartbeat,” including embryonic cardiac activity, which can be as early as six weeks into a pregnancy. Before Wednesday, no law was in effect that banned abortions earlier than 20 weeks of pregnancy. Many states had tried to enact early gestational bans, but they had all been blocked by courts.
That’s because of clear precedent. In 1973, the Supreme Court declared abortion a protected right in Roe v. Wade. Twenty years later, in 1992’s Planned Parenthood v. Casey, the Supreme Court reaffirmed “the constitutionally protected liberty of the woman to decide to have an abortion before the fetus attains viability and to obtain it without undo interference from the State.”
“Viability” means a fetus can survive outside of a uterus, and that typically happens around 24 to 28 weeks. So laws that outright ban abortion before that stage have been systematically knocked down by courts.
“Every time the states have passed them, the federal courts universally blocked them,” Marc Hearron, lead attorney on the Texas case and senior counsel at the Center for Reproductive Rights, told ABC News. “This is the first time that a federal court has allowed a six-week ban to take effect.”
A six-week ban in Georgia, for instance, was struck down last year.
“A ‘heartbeat’ ban isn’t even close to viability. So there’s nothing about that that was even an attempt to be within the confines of the Constitution. That standing alone would make it unconstitutional,” Kimberly Mutcherson, co-dean and law professor at Rutgers Law School, told ABC News about the Texas law.
Before the Georgia law was struck down, it was blocked from going into effect while courts heard the challenge. That is how these cases usually go and was what the Center for Reproductive Rights was asking for from the Supreme Court.
“The thing that the federal court should do when a law is going to pose grave harm is preserve the status quo while if there are difficult issues, you can litigate those difficult issues,” Hearron said.
This was something Chief Justice John Roberts called for in his own dissent, writing: “I would grant preliminary relief to preserve the status quo ante — before the law went into effect — so that the courts may consider whether a state can avoid responsibility for its laws in such a manner.”
The Texas law is different from previous bans in that it prohibits the state from enforcing the ban, instead authorizing private citizens to bring civil suits against anyone who “aids or abets” an abortion.
With that, Mutcherson said, “they created this sort of confusion and this hook that the Supreme Court was able to use in order to say, ‘We’re not going to stay the law, we’re going to allow it to go into effect, and then we’ll see what happens.'”
Marty believes one thing that will happen is “people are going to have to decide for themselves whether this is a just law that needs to be followed or not, and what sort of risks they’re willing to take in order to essentially bring it down.”
What’s also different now is the makeup of the Supreme Court since President Donald Trump’s appointments and the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. To Mutcherson, this was a sign of “raw politics coming out of the Supreme Court,” and many saw this as the result of years of increasingly bold state laws being proposed by lawmakers emboldened by the new conservative majority and a slate of federal appellate judges appointed by Trump.
It is important to note that the Supreme Court’s order stated it “is not based on any conclusion about the constitutionality of Texas’ law.” Rather, the order not to issue an injunction was on technical grounds, and the legal challenge against the law is ongoing.
“The law remains that these bans are unconstitutional. Unfortunately, the Supreme Court let one take effect anyway,” Hearron said.
This order also in no way overturned Roe.
“Where we stand right now is that Texas has a law on the books that is completely unconstitutional under the precedent of Roe and Casey, but that law has not yet been enjoined or officially declared unconstitutional by any court,” Mutcherson said, adding, “The right to abortion continues to exist and continues to be protected by Roe and by Casey.”
And in the meantime, Mutcherson said, “The women who are going to suffer are women of color, poor women, young women, women who are undocumented — those are the folks that these kinds of laws really strike at.”
Apparently, Chieftain Mews isn’t cutting it on Radiohead‘s TikTok.
Earlier this year — on April Fools’ Day, in fact — the “Creep” outfit launched their own TikTok starring Mews, the strange character Radiohead previously used for their old web broadcasts. In keeping with the band’s ever-enigmatic vibe, each TikTok would feature Mews sitting at a desk repeating random phrases with unsettling vocal effects. That is, until now.
In Radiohead’s latest TikTok, which went up Friday, frontman Thom Yorke makes his debut appearance, alongside frequent artistic collaborator Stanley Donwood. The clip begins with the pair going over the low, “embarrassing” amount of views and follows Chieftain has brought with the broadcasts.
“You’ve promised us you that could give us a strong identity on TikTok, promote the music, get us back into the marketplace,” Yorke says to Mews, who can be heard from offscreen. “But instead, you’ve just become a source of acute embarrassment.”
“It’s not the ’90s anymore, is it?” he adds.
One can only hope that Radiohead’s TikTok use means new music is on the way — the band’s most recent album is 2016’s A Moon Shaped Pool.
(NEW YORK) — An agreement has been reached that will allow NHL players to participate in the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing, China.
The deal was brokered between the NHL, the NHL Players Association, the International Olympic Committee and the International Ice Hockey Federation, allowing NHL players to return to the Olympics after they were not allowed to participate in 2018. It does, however, contain an opt-out clause that would allow the NHL and NHLPA to pull players if the schedule for the upcoming NHL season is disrupted by cancellations and the Olympic break is needed to make up games.
NHL players not participating in the 2018 Games ended a string of five consecutive Olympiads where the league allowed its stars to compete on the international stage.
“As any Canadian kid, your dream is to play in the NHL, and then your dream is to play for Team Canada at the Olympics. I think that’s always how it is, and I’m no different,” Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid told reporters last week. “Obviously, with not going to the Olympics, it’s been a long time since we’ve been able to represent our country at a best-on-best tournament. So, my last time would have been a world juniors [in 2015], so it’s been a long time, and I’m certainly looking forward to, I guess, having the ability to chase down a spot and hopefully make the team and represent my country at the Olympics.”
The deal stipulates that the IIHF and IOC will pay for travel and insurance costs for players, and will cover players’ guests as well.
The NHL’s Olympic break is scheduled to run from February 3 to February 22. All-Star Weekend will begin on February 4, whether players participate in the Olympics or not.
Any NHL players who take part in the Olympics would be required to be vaccinated against COVID-19, with limited exceptions on a case-by-case basis. Multiple league sources told ESPN that “an overwhelming majority” of NHL players have already been vaccinated.
Sources also say that players are being advised to prepare for strict protocols during the 2022 Games, which could include a bubble environment, daily testing, restrictions on movement and interactions, and even the possibility of wearing GPS devices to help with contact tracing and compliance.
(NEW ORLEANS) — President Joe Biden traveled to New Orleans Friday to survey damage caused by Hurricane Ida, meet with local leaders and demonstrate the federal response to the storm that made landfall in Louisiana before devastating much of the Northeast United States.
“We came because we want to hear directly from you all, what specific problems you’ve been dealing with,” Biden told local officials in hard-hit LaPlace, Louisiana, just outside New Orleans
In LaPlace, local officials spoke with the president about the destruction in the region and the long-term impact the storm would have in the area.
Biden told the officials — including Gov. John Bel Edwards, the CEOs of local hospitals and the energy company Entergy, members of Congress and local parish presidents — that he thought it was important to rebuild damaged infrastructure in a more resilient manner, whether it meant placing power lines underground or making roofs stronger.
“This storm has been incredible, not only here but all the way up the East Coast,” Biden said.
Air Force One touched down in New Orleans early Friday afternoon, where the president was greeted by federal, state and local officials from Louisiana: Edwards, U.S. Sens. Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy, U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell and Jefferson Parish President Cynthia Lee Sheng.
Biden then took a helicopter over storm-damaged homes to LaPlace, where in addition to the briefing from local leaders, he planned to tour a neighborhood and make remarks.
He was then scheduled to take an aerial tour of particularly battered communities in the area, including Lafitte, Grand Isle, Port Fourchon and Lafourche Parish, according to the White House.
Later, he was scheduled to travel to meet with local leaders in Galliano, La., south of New Orleans.
The White House has sought to project a strong federal response to the storm as the president suffers from public disapproval of his handling of another recent crisis, the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
During remarks Thursday, Biden told those in the Gulf region that “we’re all in this together.”
“The nation is here to help,” he said.
Ida and its remnants have left more than at least 61 people dead in eight states, including at least 48 in the Northeast.
(NEW ORLEANS) — President Joe Biden planned to travel to New Orleans Friday to survey damage caused by Hurricane Ida, meeting with local leaders and demonstrating the federal response to the storm that made landfall in Louisiana before devastating much of the Northeast United States.
Biden was scheduled to head to hard-hit LaPlace, La., just outside New Orleans, to receive a briefing from local leaders, tour a neighborhood and make remarks.
He planned to then take an aerial tour of particularly battered communities in the area, including Lafitte, Grand Isle, Port Fourchon and Lafourche Parish, according to the White House.
Later, he was scheduled to travel to meet with local leaders in Galliano, La., south of New Orleans.
The White House has sought to project a strong federal response to the storm as the president suffers from public disapproval of his handling of another recent crisis, the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
During remarks Thursday, Biden told those in the Gulf region that “we’re all in this together.”
“The nation is here to help,” he said.
Ida and its remnants have left more than at least 61 people dead in eight states, including at least 48 in the Northeast.
It’s kinda random, but BTS and Coldplay’s Chris Martin are teaming up on a project.
On Thursday, September 9 at 11:45pm, BTS will appear on YouTube Originals’ weekly series RELEASED, along with Chris. They’ll discuss the #PermissiontoDance challenge on YouTube Shorts, among other topics. They’ll also screen a selection of videos created by BTS fans from around the world. You can watch a teaser of the episode on YouTube now.
Then at midnight, September 9, the “Shorts Challenge version” of the “Permission to Dance” music video will have its premiere.
The #PermissiontoDance challenge started on July 23. Fans were asked to make 15 second YouTube Shorts that included the “International Sign” gestures for “joy,” “dance” and “peace,” which were featured in the song’s original music video.
Ten years ago, Michael Bolton changed up his image by collaborating with the comedy team The Lonely Island for hilarious Saturday Night Live digital short Jack Sparrow. And he says he still feels the project is “the gift that keeps on giving.”
Speaking to Yahoo Entertainment, Michael says that Jack Sparrow — which features him singing about about the Pirates of the Caribbean character while Andy Samberg and the rest of the Lonely Island crew are trying to make a hip-hop track — was “one of the “most enjoyable, greatest experiences” of his entire career.
Initially, Michael was reluctant to get involved because he thought “some of the lyrics were a little bit raunchy,” which he felt might turn off his fans. But The Lonely Island guys wanted him on the song so badly that they agreed to change the lyrics. According to Michael, the SNL producers “went crazy for” the song, so they made the music video, which Michael says was so much fun, he didn’t want it to end.
The morning after it aired, Michael was shocked when his daughter told him that the video had totally gone viral, and even Justin Bieber was praising it on social media. Jack Sparrow has since racked up 220 million views, and Michael says its the reason younger people recognize him in airports.
“It’s been incredible, and it has opened this much bigger, universal door into projects,” Michael says — including his current stint on ABC’s Celebrity Dating Game. “Basically, it was one of the best things I ever did. I call it the gift that keeps on giving.”
Michael says he’d love to do an entire album with The Lonely Island in the future.
