#Emmys 2019 Winners

[nessa007]

#winner of 17 emmys!!! VEEP (2012 - 2019)

[caramara3]

Just Friends...?: Imani Cove

Playlist for fic

Name: Imani Cove

Nicknames: Emmi, Emms, Snips, Mani Jade

DOB: November 24, 1990

Zodiac Sign: Sagittarius

Born: Houston, TX

Billed from: Houston, TX

Resides: Orlando, FL

Age: 32 (as of 2023)

Ethnicity: Afro-Caribbean (mother is from Barbados; father's family is from New Orleans)

Height: 5 foot 7

Alma Mater: Texas Southern University

Occupation: Professional Wrestler * actress *

Years Active: 2008-present

Family:

Grandmother: Evangeline Whitley

Grandfather: Charles Whitley Sr.

Younger Sister: Nylah Raine

*Notes: this is an AU in which Asuka didn't go to NXT and just went straight to the main roster. Imani takes the place of Sasha Banks in this AU but with slight changes. Imani also takes the place of Mia Yim as a surprise in the 2019 NXT Women's WarGames match, not Candice LeRae. Sasha Banks doesn't win the Women's tag titles with Bayley either times nor does she main event WM37 with Bianca Belair, Imani does. Imani's superstar level is in comparison to the likes of Bianca Belair & Becky Lynch, loved by fans and WWE Officials*

Accomplishments:

WWE:

NXT Women’s Championship (1 time)

WWE RAW Women’s Championship (2 times)

WWE Smackdown Women’s Championship (2 times)

WWE World Women's Championship (1 time, current; won at WrestleMania 40)

WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship (2 times, inaugural) with Bayley

Women’s Royal Rumble Winner (2024)

Third WWE Women’s Triple Crown Champion

Fourth WWE Women’s Grand Slam Champion

NXT Year-End Award (2 times) - Match of the Year (2016) vs. Bayley at NXT TakeOver: Dallas; Match of the Year (2019) -Team Ripley vs. Team Baszler at NXT TakeOver: WarGames

ESPY Awards:

Best WWE Moment (2021) - Imani Cove and Bianca Belair make history as the first Black Women to main-event WrestleMania 37

Bumpy Award (4 times)

Best Match of the Half-Year (2019) - surprise participant in the NXT Women's WarGames match

Tag Team of the Half-Year (2020) – with Bayley

Best Match of the Half-Year (2021) – vs. Bianca Belair at WrestleMania 37

Best Match of the Half-Year (2022) - vs. Charlotte at WrestleMania 38

Little Facts about Imani:

Imani is a graduate of the Reality of Wrestling school.

Before signing with the WWE, Imani was the it girl on the indie circuit from 2008-2015, shattering glass ceilings and expectations from fans and critics alike. She signed with the WWE in mid-2015 and would make her first appearance on NXT confronting Bayley. She would win the NXT Women's Championship at TakeOver: Dallas and begin a near 5 month feud with the former champion.

She still holds the record for longest NXT Women's Championship title reign at 502 days before being defeated by Ember Moon at TakeOver: WarGames 2017. She would make main roster debut the RAW after WrestleMania 34.

She appeared in the first ever Women's Royal Rumble at entry number 4, lasting 35:46 before being eliminated by Asuka.

In 2019, she made a surprise appearance at NXT TakeOver: WarGames as the mystery teammate for Team Ripley after Mia Yim was injured prior to the pay-per-view.

In June 2022, Imani got into a terrifying car accident while at home in Orlando. Her injuries were bad enough that it forced her to relinquish her Smackdown Women's Title less than two months after retaining it against Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania 38. Imani returned the RAW after WrestleMania 39 100% cleared to compete again.

For her WrestleMania 38 entrance, Imani paid tribute to her Houston roots. She entered the arena surrounded by drivers of slabs with her in the main car.

Her dream WrestleMania entrance is to have either Megan Thee Stallion or Kendrick Lamar performing her theme.

Imani’s entrance music is heavily influenced by a mixture of 90s/00s hip hop and 2000s grunge.

Imani loves horror movies and musicals. Very odd combo I know, but a girl likes what she likes. Her favorite horror movie is Dracula/Scream and her favorite musical is Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Right now Imani has over 13 tattoos and counting, 13 to symbolize her lucky number. And yes, a good amount of her tattoos were done on Friday the 13th.

When Imani was 13 and Nylah was 7, they went into the custody of their paternal grandparents.

When Imani was 7 years old, her father died unexpectedly while on his way home from work. According to the autopsy, he suffered a brain aneurysm while driving on the road.

Imani, though a social butterfly, tends to keep her private life extremely secretive, especially in regards to her childhood.

Imani participated heavily in sports as a teen; mainly basketball, volleyball, and track & field. She was also heavily involved in choir and her school's theater department.

Imani has her B.A. in Music from Texas Southern University.

Thanks to her grandparents she is classically trained in piano and can play the guitar. There was a time before she got into wrestling that she wanted to be a singer or a songwriter.

Imani's grandmother Evangeline was terrified learning her baby wanted to be a wrestler, but she agreed to let her train on one condition: that she went to college and get a degree just in case.

A few of Imani's major wrestling influences are Rey Mysterio, Chyna, Lita, The Wild Samoans, Batista, Trish Stratus, Eddie Guerrero, and Shawn Michaels.

Imani reps her hometown teams the Houston Texans and the Houston Astros.

She is very close friends with Rhea Ripley, Bianca Belair, Bayley, Sami Zayn, Finn Balor, Samantha Irvin, Zelina Vega, Naomi, and Jade Cargill.

She met Damian Priest in 2014 during the final stretch of her indie days and the two quickly formed a friendship.

Imani is fluent in three languages: Spanish, French, and German. She knows a little Japanese and is currently learning Italian.

She has an insane sweet tooth. She loves brownies, cakes, and ice cream, especially cookies-and-cream ice cream. Her favorite candy is watermelon rings.

Imani's signature fragrance is a perfume she created at a local shop in New Orleans. It's a blend of vanilla, black orchid, and amber that she pairs with Eos Cashmere Vanilla lotion.

Imani grew up in an affluent musical family. Her grandmother was a jazz singer in New Orleans for 30 years and her grandfather played trombone for her band (that's how they met).

Imani has three pets: an orange Tabby male named Cheddar, a Maine Coon female named Satine, and a grey pitbull male named Obi that she adopted during a UK tour.

She's a BIG ass nerd. Loves Lord of the Rings, Marvel, and is currently obsessed with a show called The Legend of Vox Machina. And she plays D&D with Xavier Woods.

The first thing she did with her first big paycheck, aside from paying her student loans, was pay off her grandparents house in Houston and move them to Orlando to be close to her.

Her favorite two matches of her career so far have been her vs Ember Moon at TakeOver WarGames and main eventing WrestleMania 37 with Bianca Belair.

Her sister Nylah is 6 years younger than her. Nylah is currently finishing her Master's in Law at Howard University. Nylah plans to use her degree and become a Civil Rights Attorney.

~~~~~~

TagList:

@beibigirl124 @bossbitch-22 @bonni-98 @queencherryberry @blueblazezz @jstarr86 @just-another-side-blog @southerngirl41 @abadbitchblogs @new-zealand-chic @joannasteez @miss-kuki-nz @shamaness11 @thedeboniardevistation @crossfitjesusinblackskinnyjeans @damiansgoodgirll @terrortwinunicorn @bigstrongblackheart @rootedinrevisions @lavitabella87 @royallyprincesslilly @chaneajoyyy @gold--gucciempress @msbigredmachine @msnikkimoneypenny @cookiebelle @flawlessglamazon @wrestlingbabe @fivefootxo @adriennegabriella @joy-of-life88 @daniiwrites @glitterquadricorn @lorena26 @ambreignsfan4life @eringobragh420 @babiidee28 @madhatterbri @mzv11 @bellaamor88 @queenoftheworldisdead @wrestlingbabe @yana3sworld @writinglionqueen @retro-rezz-the-est

[on-this-day-btvs]

November 6, 2001

Once More, With Feeling aired for BTVS season 6, episode 7. This was the only BTVS episode performed as a musical. All of the regular cast performed their own vocals, although two actors (those who played Willow and Dawn) were given minimal singing at their request. Apart from vocal and choreography prep: "[actual shooting] took something like 19 hours of singing and 17 hours of dancing in between shooting four other episodes."

The demon Sweet (shown in a blue suit above) is played by Hinton Battle, a three-time Tony-winner. This is his only Buffyverse appearance.

(mod note: Apparently Hinton Battle also choreographed the dancing in this episode!)

Commonly referred to as "OMWF," the episode was nominated for a 2002 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Direction. (If it had won, the award would have gone to Christophe Beck and Jesse Tobias.) Despite the nomination, the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences neglected to include the title on the ballots. The Emmy was awarded to the Opening Ceremony of the Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Winter Games.

In March 2019 a vinyl press of the original cast recording was released, with cover art by Paul Mann (shown above).

The moderator is unaware of any recordings of the 2002 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony ever being sold, in any format.

(image create to illustrator Paul Mann) (vinyl details and image via Consequence) (SMG quote and other information via wikipedia)

[ishido-enjoyer]

This show deserves ALL the Emmys.

[ilikethisacompletelynormalamount]

In the true story, BAFTA winner Scott, also coming off rave reviews for All Of Us Strangers, is set to play Group Captain James Stagg, the Allies’ Chief Meteorologist whose job it was to inform Supreme Commander General Eisenhower of weather conditions that would make-or-break their Normandy invasion. The decision-making was critical in the fate of the war and the course of history.

Anthony Maras (Hotel Mumbai) will direct the ticking-clock thriller, which is due to start shooting in the UK this September. Additional casting is underway, with Studiocanal handling world sales.

Olivier award-winner David Haig and Maras wrote the screenplay based on Haig’s critically lauded play, which ran in London’s West End before going on to be performed for the late Queen Elizabeth II and world leaders to mark the D-Day 75th anniversary in 2019. The official synopsis reads: “In the seventy two hours leading up to D-Day, all the pieces are in place except for one key element—the British weather. Britain’s chief meteorological officer James Stagg (Andrew Scott) is called upon to deliver the most consequential forecast in history, locking him into a tense standoff with the entire Allied leadership. The wrong conditions could devastate the largest ever seaborne invasion, while any delay risks German intelligence catching on. With only his trusted aide Captain Kay Summersby to confide in, and haunted by a catastrophic D-Day rehearsal, the final decision rests with Supreme Allied Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower. With only hours to go, the fate of the war and the lives of millions hang in the balance.” Haig’s play explores the personal and military stresses on Stagg and how tensions grew between the teams with different weather forecasts for the date of the proposed D-Day. The film will concentrate on the pressure-cooker of the decision-making but also capture the scale of the landings. Studiocanal previously had commercial and critical success with WWII story The Imitation Game while Working Title similarly scored box office and Oscar recognition with WWII film Darkest Hour.

[broadwaydivastournament]

Broadway Divas Tournament: Round 1C

Two-time Tony-winning dancer-extraordinaire Bebe Neuwirth (1958) is best known for her winning role as Velma Kelly in Chicago (1996) alongside her beloved Annie Reinking. After playing Velma off-and-on for some years, she then took on Roxie, and later Matron "Mama" Morton. Bebe has also won for Sweet Charity (1986), and is a two-time Emmy winner for, of course, Lilith in Cheers. Other credits include Here Lies Jenny (2004), Fosse (2001), and Cabaret (2024), opening next month. In addition to her beloved stage, Bebe is a devoted cat-lover, and activist. She founded the Dancers' Resource program to provide support for injured and/or aging dancers.

Stalwart theatre veteran Laurie Metcalf (1955) is also a two-time Tony winner and four-time Emmy winner. Her consecutive Tony wins for A Doll's House, Part 2 (2017) and Three Tall Women (2018) places her on an elite list of just six other performers (including fellow Diva Judith Light). She has also appeared in Misery (2015), Hillary and Clinton (2019), and Grey House (2023), an experimental horror play that ultimately flopped. (And I have opinions on that.)

PROPAGANDA AND MEDIA UNDER CUT: ALL POLLS HERE

"Let me be abundantly clear. Bebe Neuwirth is my ultimate Diva. It may be stiff competition, but she wins the bracket of my heart every time. I would follow this woman to the end of the earth and back. I love everything about her from her cats, to her giggle, to her exquisite grey hair. I so admire any woman who chooses to age gracefully and without resentment, and Bebe's really settled into this adorable cozy old cat lady life. Back in the day, it was all stiletto heels and tight little black dresses and yes, that was very sexy. But now she's enjoying the comforts of flat sturdy boots, massive sweaters with cute little cats on them, glasses on chains, and divine grey hair. Gorgeous, yes. Talented, fuck yes. This woman has music in her bones and not even three hip surgeries can steal it away. I love her."

"Oh, Bebe Neuwirth? Love of my life, champion of my soul? Her legs are simply to die for. Not convinced? Search up When Velma Takes the Stand on YouTube and feast your eyes. You’ll be watching clips of her entire Broadway career next, trust me. She is truly a powerhouse of a woman, and one of Bob Fosse’s greatest interpreters." Propaganda submitted by anon "V"

"The pandemic robbed us of many things, but for our purposes here, the greatest loss to theatre was the revival of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf starring Laurie Metcalf. During the dinner scene, so I'm told by the gays on twitter, she came out in a sheer white blouse and black bra, and I am devastated we didn't get her unhinged Martha. She would have done Uta Hagen and Elaine Stritch proud."

Bonus poll in the tags/comments: Tell me who you think wins in a fight? Lilith from Cheers/Frasier, or Jackie from Rosanne. If you're too young to know what I'm talking about, what are you doing here?

[pers-books]

“Doctor Who” star Jodie Whittaker will lead a short film fund aimed at championing female and non-binary filmmakers.

The Empower fund, a community-led initiative backed by Primetime, a global vetted platform to help the industry find and hire more women above and below the line behind the camera, and Bournemouth Film School, was launched at the Cannes film market. It aims to remove the barriers of access to finance and star power that restrict underrepresented filmmakers. The fund will focus on championing female and non-binary filmmakers and grant them access to a minimum of a £10,000 ($12,430) grant in addition to other perks.

Whittaker will feature in or voice the final film, with the intention of increasing the visibility of the project and the filmmaker selected. The actor will also collaborate to create a prompt for filmmakers as a starting point for a character or story she would like to explore. There will be a focus on accessibility and reaching filmmakers who might not traditionally put themselves forward for grant funding. A brief will then be distributed and U.K.-based female and non-binary filmmakers will be encouraged to submit their short film project for consideration. Five projects will be shortlisted via an industry jury, and from that Whittaker will select the live action or animation film she would like to take part in or voice.

The fund will be accessible for any female or non-binary filmmaker who has directed at least three short films, one of which must have screened at a BAFTA or Academy qualifying film festival. The teams applying for funding must adhere to BFI diversity standards in order be considered.

Primetime was launched by actor Victoria Emslie (“Downton Abbey”) at Cannes in 2019 and the platform was relaunched earlier this year. It has members in some 70 countries, including multi-BAFTA, Emmy and Academy Award winners and nominees. Bournemouth Film School, at Arts University Bournemouth, has partnered with Primetime as part of its Funding Futures platform, which houses several funding schemes to support filmmakers, creatives, artists and innovators.

Whittaker said: “Being a part of this exciting journey and having the opportunity to work with talented new voices and creatives is an absolute joy. I can’t wait to work alongside Victoria and the amazing teams at Primetime and Funding Futures.”

Emslie added: “Community-driven change is one of the single most powerful and actionable ways to shake up traditional funding pipelines and the projects that receive finance. By paying in for each other with this focused intentionality, the rise to the top is navigated together as a collective.”

Jonathan Carr, director of the Bournemouth Film School, said: “The success of our groundbreaking Funding Futures schemes hinges on the strength of our partnerships. Our key focus is to encourage positive change within a sustainable industry. We’re delighted to play a pivotal role with Primetime to create a funding opportunity to truly champion inclusivity.”

Will Shutt from Funding Futures said: “The Empower fund hopes to create a space to make a film with filmmakers that reflects the core values of Primetime’s mission. I’m excited to see the outcome of connecting talented filmmakers with Jodie and the award. It can only lead to something special.”

Bournemouth Film School is hosting a Funding Futures showcase event at BFI Southbank on June 16 to unveil the Empower fund.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

“When E. Jean Carroll talks about the loss of her reputation, it's hard for Millennial, Gen Z, and frankly, even Gen Xers like me, to fully appreciate what she lost. Yes, she was an advice columnist for ELLE magazine. But she was also the stuff of journalistic legend. She made her bones in the often macho "gonzo journalist" movement, inserting herself into -- and often doing crazy things -- in the name of a story. Her big break came from taking Fran Lebowitz *camping*; her byline appeared in Rolling Stone and Playboy. She was sophisticated, witty, beautiful, and as one reviewer wrote, like the late Nora Ephron, but "wilder." She was Carrie Bradshaw if Sex and the City began in the mid-80s, not the late 90s, and everyone gathered at Elaine's, not Balthazar. In fact, Bradshaw's creator/alter ego, Candace Bushnell, wrote in 2019 that Carroll "was the coolest woman journalist around – daring, had a ton of guts, and was as funny as the guys. . . . There really wasn’t and isn’t anyone else like her.” If you were a trailblazing Emmy winner once known as the "coolest woman in journalism" by a woman who herself redefined the zeitgeist for a generation of New York women, ask yourself whether you'd risk that legacy all for a lie. Yeah, I didn't think so. Trust women.” ~Lisa Rubin

[denimbex1986]

'It’s one of those odd April days in Los Angeles, the type that locals know well: Hours after noon, the sun still seems ambivalent about whether it wants to make itself known. An outsider wouldn’t think it possible for the gleaming capital of show business to feel so grayed out. But if you grew up on an island where colorless skies are the norm, it might feel familiar.

“It’s like, Will I? Won’t I?” the Irish actor Andrew Scott quips as he settles into his chair on the rooftop of the Edition Hotel in West Hollywood. He’s been in town promoting his Netflix series “Ripley,” which launched a few weeks ago, and the foreboding weather seems apt. On that limited series, the Italian vistas seem as unsettled as its antihero’s soul. The show’s vibe is “almost like L.A., what we’re looking at here now,” Scott says, as I begin to regret not bringing a jacket to our alfresco lunch. “It’s cloudy. I come from a place where the sky is normally like this.”

Scott’s “Ripley,” an adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s novel about a grifter whose 1950s Euro-trip comes with a body count, is morally cloudy, too, and glamorously gloomy besides. Unlike the 1999 film “The Talented Mr. Ripley,” which placed an uptight Tom Ripley (then played by peak-heartthrob-era Matt Damon) amid the rustic charm of Italy and drew its charge from the contrast, this year’s version is a blunter object. Speedo-clad Damon romped through the Italy of your dreams; the baggily attired Scott staggers through a nightmare.

Written and directed by Steven Zaillian and likely to place Scott in contention for a limited-series lead-acting Emmy, it’s mesmerizing but cool to the touch, using Oscar winner Robert Elswit’s stark black-and-white cinematography to depict a landscape as forbidding as its central character. That may account for why the series got off to a slow start on Netflix’s weekly viewership charts. But “Ripley” has also attracted the kind of positive notices that suggest a potential long tail, especially as Emmy season looms.

The series was a crucial test for Scott, who, at 47, has proven himself a shape-shifter. The out gay actor, who in 2019 stole scenes as the “Hot Priest” on the second season of “Fleabag,” and who had an awards-season run for his lovelorn role in last year’s “All of Us Strangers,” knows how to win hearts. Even playing the villainous Moriarty opposite Benedict Cumberbatch’s Holmes on the 2010s BBC “Sherlock,” Scott became known for his loopy, outsized line readings. So what would it feel like to play a tamped-down sociopath?

But Scott didn’t see Ripley that way. “I found an enormous amount to like,” he says. “There’s something about that character that, I think, a lot of people see themselves in. And I think it’s to do with being an outsider.” Tom Ripley, plainly gifted, lacks the social connections of the wealthy American expats he meets (played here by Johnny Flynn and Dakota Fanning as layabouts and occasional boors). His flashes of rage — forcing him, later, to methodically dispose of multiple corpses — exist for Scott as a sort of frustrated creative impulse. “He probably is more of an artistic sort, but he doesn’t feel he’s got the class to call himself that.”

There’s something about Ripley, in other words, that’s tortured — a trait Scott can conjure with ease. On “Fleabag,” his unnamed Catholic clergyman struggled through a crisis of faith-versus-lust that was both funny and painful. In “All of Us Strangers,” his conflicted gay writer goes on a dreamlike journey to re-encounter his late parents, forgiving both them and himself for past miscommunications while falling in love with a character played by Paul Mescal.

“Fleabag” cut against, and “All of Us Strangers” leaned into, Scott’s rare status as a gay leading man. “And not afraid to talk about it and be open about it!” marvels Andrew Haigh, his “All of Us Strangers” director. There’s little Scott isn’t open about: In a wide-ranging conversation, he volleys back his answers with the relentless self-examination — and the fleeting tearfulness — of a person who’s spent time in his feelings.

It can be hard not to conflate the characters he’s played with the sense that Scott is Hollywood’s new prince of heartache. In fact, he has a direct line to the queen of such matters. “Taylor’s new album is sensational! I texted her yesterday to say how amazing it is,” Scott says about “The Tortured Poets Department,” which came out three days before our conversation. Taylor Swift, he says, is a friend, and he beams with vicarious pride about her 31-track magnum opus: “I think she is just a force of nature, just an extraordinary human, and this album is really, really amazing.” His favorite song on it, for the record, is “The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived,” a ballad that begins with quiet heartbreak and builds toward a dramatic excoriation.

But Scott is perhaps being modest. Some believe that he is as much to credit for the title of the album as the men Swift sings about. Consider the explosion online after a 2022 Variety Actors on Actors conversation between Mescal and Joe Alwyn (who was dating Swift at the time, and is thought to have inspired a few songs on the album) in which they discussed their membership in a group chat called “Tortured Man Club.” Scott, they said, had initiated the chat.

“Let me tell you what that is!” Scott says. Just before Alwyn was to appear in the TV adaptation of novelist Sally Rooney’s “Conversations With Friends,” Scott — Alwyn’s co-star in the 2022 film “Catherine Called Birdy” — set him up with Mescal, of “Normal People,” another series based on Rooney’s work. “So they were about to play these tortured characters, and I had played a tortured character in ‘Fleabag.’ It wasn’t about our own characteristics!” The chat quickly died on the vine, he says. “I think there were three texts, like, ‘Hey, guys.’ You know those groups that you set up, and they just collapse.”

Short-lived or not, the existence of the chat had taken on a second life ever since the announcement of “The Tortured Poets Department.” And the whole incident speaks to Scott’s easy way of connecting people.

“He’s a great guardian of actors, if you’re lucky enough that he admires you or has respect for you,” Mescal says. “He’s got an overseeing quality, in terms of understanding that good art and good actors are hard to come by.”

Mescal, 28, and Alwyn, 33, feel in a sense like peers of Scott’s. “Fleabag” Season 2, which brought Scott to a new echelon of fame, was just five years ago, and in conversation, he has a Peter Pan energy: raffish, barking laugh and eyes that seem to twinkle with each new disclosure. And yet Scott makes for a notably older Tom Ripley — a character written by Highsmith to be just past college age.

“It was just a beautiful film,” Scott says of Anthony Minghella’s 1999 adaptation. “The idea of approaching that again, one of my first questions was ‘OK, who wants to do a carbon copy?’” Scott gestures at what, in the dim light of the patio, appears to be his delicately lined face: “Jesus, look at my age!”

Scott’s take on the character reads as more experienced, and wearier. More tortured, over a longer timeline. Scott can relate. Our conversation is the final stop on a lengthy press tour, which came on the heels of promoting “All of Us Strangers” during Oscar season; he flies back home tomorrow. Before that was “Ripley”’s long road to the screen: After some 162 days of principal photography from summer 2021 to spring 2022, the series, which had been made by Showtime, bounced to Netflix amid a fire sale at the Paramount-owned cable network.

Following “Ripley,” “All of Us Strangers” and his solo show “Vanya” on London’s West End last fall, Scott is on a career high, and he’s become a red-carpet fixture as a fashionista. (His all-white tux-and-tee combo as a nominee at this year’s Golden Globes deflated the pomposity of the event, while looking dazzlingly fresh.) “It’s a way of having fun, being creative — going, OK, well, this is a bit of a laugh.” Scott stammers, but goes on: “My mother was a very stylish, creative person, and it’s something I’ve always been interested in. Why not just have a bit of fun while we’re here?”

Scott has brought up his mother a few times before I get the chance to offer my condolences. She died unexpectedly on March 7 — less than a month before “Ripley”’s premiere. “It came very suddenly to our family,” he says, “and it’s landed in the middle of all of this stuff. Her spirit is so alive in me in the immediate aftermath of her death.”

There are painfully mixed feelings at play: Scott is proud of the work he’s done (and duty-bound to promote it), while part of him is elsewhere. Talking about his mother is a way of keeping her close. She was an art teacher, “and her way of dealing with people was so kind, but she wasn’t very good at small talk,” Scott says. “She connected with people in a very particular way. What I was taught was the idea of being authentically yourself.”

Which extends to Scott’s self-presentation. In our meeting, he’s neon-bright, wearing a teal crewneck sweatshirt under a fuzzy cardigan the precise shade of cerulean that Miranda Priestly popularized. “People say that they look back at photographs and cringe,” he says. “Who cares? It’s about playfulness. It’s about going, How would I be if I wasn’t scared of criticism?”

“Ripley,” in its ambiguity, is a show unafraid to trigger debate. Among the choices Zaillian (best known for his Oscar-winning screenplay for “Schindler’s List”) made was a greater fealty to Highsmith’s text. Minghella’s film untangled her complications: Tom lusted after Dickie (played by Jude Law), and he had to destroy what he could not obtain. Here, though, Tom seems repulsed by Dickie, even as he admires his lifestyle and easy way of being. Tom doesn’t seem to fit into any identity at all, leaving some viewers to wonder whether he’s even gay in this version.

“Everything that I feel on that subject is in the show,” Zaillian says when asked to clarify Ripley’s sexual orientation. “I don’t like to do anything overtly; I think subtlety is best. It’s not that I’m trying to hide anything, but I think it’s all there.”

Scott is willing to go a bit further. “I didn’t want to diagnose him with anything in particular,” he says. “I don’t think he would be comfortable in a gay bar or a straight bar. I think his sexuality is elusive to him.” What he does to Dickie is an expression of frustrated heartsickness, perhaps. “I think he has a feeling of love for him. Sometimes it could be sexual. Sometimes it could be fraternal. And sometimes it could just be amicable.” What was a quarter century ago rendered as an outright homoerotic story here gets into levels of confusion that feel more challenging, more novelistic. “If she was alive today,” Scott says of Highsmith, “I’d love to ask her a bit more about that.”

Highsmith, whose own relationship with her lesbianism was complicated, likely wouldn’t recognize the world through which Scott strides. Indeed, he has previously expressed his dubiousness about language around sexuality — specifically, the term “openly gay,” which he derides. “It’s wonderful to be able to talk about sexuality in an open way,” Scott says. “But I do feel sometimes, other people — and by other people, I mean straight people — don’t have to explain or talk about their sexuality every time they go to work.”

Scott, thus far quick-witted and voluble, has begun to weigh his words carefully. “The idea that I’m being defiant by just being exactly who I am … Be open about it? Why wouldn’t you be open about it?” The distinction between disclosing one’s sexuality and not isn’t lost on Scott, and he doesn’t mind it — that’s what, to him, the word “out” is for. “But the word ‘openly,’ for me, just seems a little loaded.”

The actor’s newfound prominence as a gay leading man is both a turning point for our culture and a fact that might seem to lend him special access to certain characters. In his first conversation with Haigh about “All of Us Strangers,” “he understood so deeply what that character needed to be,” Haigh says. “You want someone to connect to the character on a personal level. And I don’t think Andrew is afraid of that. In fact, it excites him, and he wants to embrace how he can make it personal.”

And yet Scott resists the idea that the story is solely one for gay viewers: He remarks that just today, he received a note from a friend who watched with his wife, and was moved. “A lot of this stuff has really affected me in my own life growing up — God knows I didn’t have a lot of gay content,” Scott says. “We live in an identity-politics era. We’re separating each other more than we need to. This hysteria about your sexuality and how that is something that is only understandable to people who belong to the same tribe as you — it just doesn’t seem truthful.”

Part of Scott’s response might be a desire to sidestep misreadings of his intentions with “All of Us Strangers” and “Ripley.” In both projects, he plays a character who has experienced some version of same-sex attraction; in both, his character also seems miserable. “Sometimes I find it hard when you’re doing press,” he says, “because I feel so joyful and so emancipated. It seems like I always want to talk about the difficulties that I have with being gay, when actually, it’s the greatest joy of my life.”

His presence on the celebrity circuit, though, suggests that culture is still figuring out how to treat an out star at Scott’s level. At this year’s BAFTAs, a red-carpet reporter for the BBC asked Scott about Barry Keoghan’s genitalia as seen in the film “Saltburn,” implying that Scott and Keoghan (who is dating the pop star Sabrina Carpenter) had been intimate. Scott quickly walked away. “It was awkward,” he says. “It was a little bit weird. But I got an apology from the journalist. I think it was a series of unfortunate events. And I totally accepted his apology.”

Scott doesn’t dwell on the incident, saying, “I wouldn’t want him to suffer any more.” But the story resonates with a general sense that Scott’s work, or his public self, is held to a different standard. The understandable excitement around Scott booking massive jobs — and his experience of being the “first” or “only” in many professional settings — feels strange from the inside. “What is the best thing that we could do?” he asks me. “I don’t have the definite answer. Would it be unusual for us not to mention my sexuality at all?”

Well, yes — but we move on. The moment Scott’s experiencing is the culmination of an incremental build, after an initial leap of faith. He’d dropped out of Trinity College in Dublin (alma mater of Irish artists such as Oscar Wilde and, more recently, “Normal People”’s Rooney and Mescal) after six months to pursue theater. “Sometimes you shouldn’t have a safety net,” he says. “If you have a safety net, you’re going to be really, really safe.” Early screen roles included appearances in “Saving Private Ryan” and “Band of Brothers.” The parts gradually got bigger — his performance in the 2014 drama “Pride,” about the gay-rights crusade in Britain, is a fan favorite, and he was an appropriately sinister opponent for James Bond and MI6 in 2015’s “Spectre” before playing the lead in a 2017 London staging of “Hamlet.”

But it was “Fleabag” that lit his career aflame. Scott calls Phoebe Waller-Bridge “one of my main homies” and, to the extent that the Hot Priest phenomenon has followed him, says it’s all for the good. “It hasn’t prevented me from playing any other characters. And I just feel so proud of the process and the product.” Would he return to a hypothetical “Fleabag” Season 3, if Waller-Bridge asked him to? “Of course I would,” he says before unleashing one of those great Andrew Scott guffaws. “But she’s not going to!”

It’s hard to overstate the impact Hot Priest had, turning what had been in its first season a charming critics’ favorite into a world-devouring, Emmy-sweeping hit on the strength of Scott’s chemistry with Waller-Bridge. (Scott was not himself Emmy-nominated for “Fleabag,” but was the following year for an episode of “Black Mirror.”) Sad-eyed yet smiling, H.P. forges a deep understanding with Waller-Bridge’s Fleabag: They both know that they want to be together, and they both know that they cannot.

Which makes “Fleabag” an intriguing counterpoint to Ripley, a character who pushes his way past every limitation he cannot hack his way through. The monochrome look of the show turns Scott’s eyes into vampiric black pools of need; over eight episodes, we witness Ripley’s lower-class life and high-class ambitions, and his willingness to turn to violence to bridge the two. There’s an unholy gnarliness to Ripley that Scott sells well.

“Ripley” is a double risk, as Scott knew when he took on the role. The series updates — by more closely following Highsmith’s tricky, nasty novel — a film that’s widely beloved, and does so with a leading man whose reputation is for suffering sweetly. “I’m just concerned about how it would be perceived, how it would change things for me,” Scott says. He acknowledged that fear — then let it go.

“When I played James Moriarty, I was younger than people wanted the character to be. And they’d go, ‘I wanted the character to have a beard and wear a top hat, and this little fucker is now playing it like this, and I don’t want that!’ The biggest challenge for you is to put your dukes up and go, Sorry, but this is this.” Risk — in comparison to what Scott calls “cynical and unconfident” compromise — works.

His co-stars have noticed the chances he takes. “Technical brilliance is one thing. And then there’s this other part of Andrew that is incredibly raw in his performance,” Mescal says. “You could sit around and talk to actors about their lives all day — they love nothing more than talking about themselves. But Andrew lets an audience into the corners of themselves that we don’t talk about.”

Sam Yates, the director of Scott’s 2023 “Vanya” — which won an Olivier Award for best revival in April — describes the places Scott would go onstage as “trancelike.”

“How do you go through that without a level of someone else taking over?” Yates says, adding that Scott “is being led by a certain degree of technique, but by a huge degree by his aliveness to his own emotions. He would surprise himself constantly onstage.”

He seems to surprise himself in conversation, too, returning with frequency to a subject that’s evidently joyful to recall and painful to discuss. Previously this season, while being interviewed by Terry Gross on NPR’s “Fresh Air,” his voice got tight when she asked him, seemingly not knowing the answer, if his parents were both still alive. Now, though, his mother feels like the third person at our table under a gray L.A. sky.

“You keep your Irishness alive by telling the story,” he says. “Thinking about my mom recently and talking about her — it was really important to me, in the eulogy, to celebrate her.”

I remark that his mother — her artistic sensibility, her impatience with pleasantries — feels very present to me. He pauses, seems to shudder slightly. Like a sudden storm, tears are rolling down his cheeks, and he takes a moment to speak. When he finally does, his voice is steady.

“It’s a really funny thing, to be honest,” he says. “I can’t disappear the fact that this has happened in the midst of all this. The juxtaposition of these two extremes in my life where all these projects are coming out, and I’ve had to be much more public-facing than I usually am, at a time when I’m going through this extraordinary personal loss.”

He begins talking more rapidly, becoming more animated as he wills himself out of crying. “I’m not even sure if it’s the right thing to do, but you have to tell your own truth. My job is to understand what it’s like to be a human being, and I don’t like perpetuating the myth that we’re all perfect. That you have to be a movie star.”

Scott’s production company, he tells me, is called Both/And — he notes the slash in the middle. “I’ve always believed that things are always both something and something else. It could be the happiest day of your life, and you’re hungry. You’re at a funeral, and you have a laugh. There’s always something else.”

I can relate: I’m pleased to be connecting, but sorry that I upset him. And so I apologize.

“No, no, listen! I’m upset anyway!” he says, then lets loose another hearty laugh, loud and rich enough to crack the tension of the moment. In its gusto and its surprising timing, it does feel like a laugh at a funeral, but sometimes those are the kind one needs.

“Ripley” may represent the greatest challenge this versatile actor has experienced — he’s at the center of each of its eight episodes, and nothing happens without him.

“We would do what we could in our time off, but I know it was really taxing for him,” Fanning, Scott’s co-star, says. “We found a lot of common ground, because we’ve both done this for the majority of our lives. We approach work in a very similar way — there’s a time and place to be serious, and there’s a time you need to tell some stupid joke. And we did that too.”

The presence of co-stars was a balm, but Ripley, necessarily, is alone a great deal. “Spending a lot of time with a character who is solitary when I was feeling solitary myself was quite tough,” Scott says. “I love that about my job — that you can go into a particular world — but it was very different from what gives me joy. It’s the sheer stamina that was needed: It’s a lot of acting.”

The show’s two bravura set-pieces involve the disposal of bodies. “It was important to me that this character was not a professional killer,” Zaillian says. “And so we have to see him think each one through. And Andrew can bring us into his thoughts and feelings.”

Scott, compact of frame, lugged his fellow actors (rather than dummies) as much as was feasible: “I remember doing a long take, seven or eight minutes, me just trying to lift something up, and Steve just let the camera go as I struggled, and didn’t cut.”

He doesn’t linger on this aspect of the shoot. Easily able to access heartache and joy, he tends to stop short when specifics about the work come up. “It goes into a sort of PR-speak,” he says, “where you have to tell people how much suffering you’ve been through.” He draws an analogy of a host throwing a dinner party: “If you spend the whole night saying, ‘Well, I couldn’t find any organic chicken, and the vacuum wasn’t working’ — they’re like, ‘Just give me my fucking dinner!’”

“He’s aware that his work isn’t for him,” Mescal says. “You’re providing a service to an audience. Nobody really gives a fuck about your process, and if they do, they’re boring.”

Elsewhere in our conversation, Scott edges up to describing his method for finding Ripley: “I’m always really interested in the vulnerability of people. What’s the thing they’re unconfident about? What are they hiding? It was hard to access that.” What he found, in the end, was less “a biographical sort of solution,” he says, than an absence — of the ease it takes to get through life. “Not everybody is charming and capable and socially adept and sexy. You have to advocate for people who don’t have it easy. That’s what made me have some degree of affection for him.”

Affection, even on a dark project, is what it’s all about. “He’s a big advocate for play,” Mescal says. “He takes the work very seriously, but he wears it lightly. And that allowed our chemistry to be pretty playful and organic.”

On “All of Us Strangers,” the pair, already acquainted, bonded deeply. “It developed into a genuine love between them, and you can still see that now,” Haigh says. “I felt like I’d been a dating agent, and I brought these two people together.”

The film, shot quickly after “Ripley”’s protracted production, helped Scott emerge and reset after playing Tom. “Sometimes a change can be as good as a rest,” he says. “Although, I have to say, I do need a rest now.”

I have one last question before I let Scott go. He’d said he wondered how “Ripley,” with its grand ambition and with Scott at the center of the story, might change things for him. What kind of change would he want?

It turns out the real question is what kind of change doesn’t he want. “You want to keep your life,” he says. “I like my life. I don’t want people to become the enemy. Because I like people.”

He lets out a sigh. “I’m glad to be wrapping up the promotion aspect of it, because it’s been quite a big journey, and obviously, I need to go and be with the people I love.” He smiles, and his eyes turn down slightly. “So it’s just time for me to exit stage left for a little while.”

I turn my tape recorders off; Scott has given me enough. But he waits a second, his gaze once again as eager as during the formal part of our interview: What had I meant when I used the word “obversely”? (I’d said that the Hot Priest persona seemed like a gift, but — obversely! — potentially limiting as well.) He usually uses the word “conversely” to describe what he thought I meant.

We both look up definitions on our phones, and conclude that the two words mean the same thing: two feelings coursing at once, in seeming opposition to one another. Like the lovability and loathsomeness dueling within Ripley; like happiness and sorrow in a single charged moment. Both/and, or something like that. Words are funny things! And isn’t it amazing, Scott muses, that we can use language to communicate what we’re feeling. What an invention. What a gift. He grins. And if there’s another feeling behind it, both the smile and something else, the sun is suddenly shining too brightly for me to see.'

[destinyc1020]

Imma be honest if you look outside of stan twitter alot of people are actually excited for dune part 2 and arent just enjoying things. I've seen people praising austin for his feyd, his voice and his fighting skills same with timmy. Im seeing people love florence and zendaya as well. Like leave stan twitter and believe me people are hyped by the cast. People forget that austin is fairly know to the general public elvis was popular and had a long awards campaign. Zendaya is household name and one of the most well known stars in part b/c of disney/ spiderman /euphoria and jlher fashion. Timmy with wonka more people know his name. While florence may not be as big remember little women 2019 was the cultural moment at the time and shes was in two marvel projects . Like anyone saying florence or austin should not be on the press tour are dumb and are out of touch with reality WB knows all four of them bring people in. Put all that pressure on two people would be silly so use all four of them.

I agree Anon with all of this. Look, WB is NOT dumb lol. 😅 They have these 4 promoting this movie for a REASON.

They've Got:

THEE 2-time Emmy winner, Golden Globe winner, and SAG-nominated actress Zendaya ("Hollywood's Darling") in this film, who's also part of the huge Spider-Man franchise, as well as the lead of the hit HBO show "Euphoria",

Oscar-Nominated and Golden Globe nominated actor Timothee Chalamet, who's film "Wonka" just made bank at the box office, and who will be in the upcoming Bob Dylan biopic,

Golden Globe winner, SAG-nominated, and Oscar-Nominated actor Austin Butler, who's film "Elvis" also did very well at the box office, and "Masters of the Air" just dropped on AppleTV, and lastly,

Critics Choice-Nominated and Oscar-Nominated actress Florence Pugh, who is also a Marvel alum (like Zendaya), who was just in the film "Oppenheimer", which made bank at the box office and is cleaning up this year's awards season.... Soooo..... Yea girl.... Your last few sentences said it all.... WB knows what they're doing lol. These 4 are definitely going places if they keep playing their cards right. 😊

[d-criss-news]

Darren Criss Live at Tre Posti Vineyards

Pre-Concert Wine Tasting Reception • Live Concert in the Vineyard • Post-Concert 3-Course Vintner's Dinner

Time & Location Jul 25, 2024, 6:00 PM Tre Posti Vineyards, 641 Main St, St Helena, CA 94574, USA

About the event Please note: Concert is at 7:30pm. Arrival time varies based on ticket type. Broadway & Vine invites you to an unforgettable evening pairing some of Napa Valley most beloved vintner's with a concert by Golden Globe, Primetime Emmy, Critic's Choice, and SAG Award Winner Darren Criss (TV: Glee, Ryan Murphy’s The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, Hollywood, Broadway/Off Broadway: Maybe Happy Ending, Little Shop of Horrors, American Buffalo, Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2015), How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying) at Tre Posti's Vineyard. For this concert, Darren will be performing a playlist of songs featured throughout his wildly eclectic career as both a songwriter and performer.  Supplement your concert experience with a pre-concert wine tasting reception and post concert Vintner's dinner.

Since bursting onto the pop-culture landscape over a decade ago, Darren Criss has embodied the kind of kaleidoscopic artistry that’s entirely uninhibited by form or genre.  Before Darren Criss exploded into the internet’s subculture as both an actor and songwriter for the YouTube viral hit A Very Potter Musical in 2009, he had made a small name for himself playing unique interpretations of popular songs he’d perform at cafes and bars in his hometown of San Francisco.  Little did he know that the same knack for covering tunes would serve him well in 2010, when he was cast on FOX’s massively successful musical series Glee, from which many of his performances of popular songs would lead to several Billboard-topping records.  In 2015 his songwriting also landed an Emmy nomination for Best Original Music and Lyrics, from penning the song “This Time” for the show’s series finale.

Criss has continued to write and produce music extensively through the years, whether for his own releases as an artist or as a songwriter for theater, film & television.  In 2019 Criss created, executive produced, starred in, and provided all the original songs for his short-form musical comedy series Royalties, and earlier this year provided the music & lyrics for the opening number of the 2022 Tony Awards: Act One.  As an artist, he most recently delivered a genre-diverse collection of "character-driven" singles as part of his 2021 solo EP titled “Masquerade” (BMG), and in the same year, released a full-length Christmas album titled- aptly- A Very Darren Crissmas (Decca).

As an actor, Criss is a veteran of the stage whose Broadway credits include the titular role of Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2015), How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying (2012), and the most recent 2022 revival of David Mamet’s seminal play American Buffalo alongside Laurence Fishburne and Sam Rockwell.  In 2018 his work in Ryan Murphy’s The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story received wide critical acclaim, earning him a Primetime Emmy, Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild, and Critics’ Choice Award.  He was most recently seen starring in Netflix’s hit series Hollywood, for which he also served as executive producer.”

Please Note: The event will be held outdoors at sunset and the temperature will vary. Seating is based on party size and arrival time, and is up to the discretion of the event management. No seat is greater than 35 feet from the stage in this exclusive Broadway concert experience.  ALL SALES FINAL.

[shefanispeculator]

The Voice sure does know how to go out with a bang! As the reality competition show draws to the close of its 24th season, the Emmy-winning program has announced its star-studded lineup for its finale episode, which is set to air on NBC's Dec. 19 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

2024 Grammy nominees Jelly Roll and Tyla are set to take The Voice stage to commemorate the season 24 finale, alongside performances from Earth, Wind & Fire, AJR, Keith Urban and season 25 coaches Dan + Shay. The intergenerational genre-spanning lineup will play a collection of songs that combine major moments in their respective careers, the dominant songs and styles of 2023 and their latest releases.

Jelly Roll, a four-time 2023 Billboard Music Awards finalist, will perform his Grammy-nominated Lainey Wilson-assisted "Save Me," the second single from his chart-topping album Whitsitt Chapel. Amapiano/Afropop star Tyla will perform "Water," her breakout single, which recently hit the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 ahead of the release of her forthcoming debut studio album.

Music legends Earth, Wind & Fire will perform a career-spanning medley that previews the band's upcoming Heart & Soul 2024 Tour, which they are co-headlining with Chicago. Another genre-fusing band, AJR, will perform a medley of its hit single "Bang!" and "Yes I'm a Mess," which hit No. 28 on Rock Airplay this year.

Keith Urban, a four-time Grammy winner who previously served as a judge on American Idol and a coach on the Australian version of The Voice, will perform "Blue Ain't Your Color," his 2016 hit single which ranked at No. 9 on Billboard's Decade-End U.S. Hot Country Songs (2010-2019). Another superstar country act, Dan + Shay, will grace the stage with a performance of "Bigger Houses," the title track from their most recent LP.

In addition to these eye-popping guests, The Voice has even more performances in store for the season 24 finale. Season 22 winner Bryce Leatherwood will return to perform "The Finger," a single from his forthcoming project. Furthermore, this season's top 12 artists will band together for a special joint performance. In that spirit, this year's coaching panel - Niall Horan, John Legend, Reba McEntire and Gwen Stefani - will join forces for a bubbly rendition of "Let It Snow."

This season marks the first in which none of the show's original coaches - Blake Shelton, Christina Aguilera, Adam Levine and CeeLo Green - from the series' inaugural season appear on the coaching panel. Shelton departed after last season, which saw One Direction alum Niall Horan emerge victorious.

Jelly Roll, Tyla & Dan + Shay Lead Star-Studded ‘The Voice' Season 24 Finale Lineup (msn.com)

[tomhollandnet]

Apple TV+ limited series “The Crowded Room,” starring and executive produced by Tom Holland, unveils first look and sets global premiere for Friday, June 9, 2023

Amanda Seyfried and Emmy Rossum also star in new 10-episode series hailing from Academy Award winner Akiva Goldsman

Apple TV+ today debuted a first look at “The Crowded Room,” the gripping, limited series starring and executive produced by Tom Holland, and created by Academy Award-winning writer and executive producer Akiva Goldsman (“A Beautiful Mind”). Starring an ensemble cast led by Holland, Amanda Seyfried and Emmy Rossum, “The Crowded Room” will make its global debut on Apple TV+ with the first three episodes of its 10-episode first season on Friday, June 9, 2023, followed by one new episode weekly every Friday through July 28, 2023.

“The Crowded Room” follows Danny Sullivan (Holland), a man who is arrested following his involvement in a shooting in New York City in 1979. A captivating thriller told through a series of interviews with curious interrogator Rya Goodwin (Amanda Seyfried), Danny’s life story unfolds, revealing elements of the mysterious past that shaped him, and the twists and turns that will lead him to a life-altering revelation.

In addition to Holland, Seyfried and Rossum, the series stars Sasha Lane, Will Chase and Lior Raz, along with guest stars Jason Isaacs, Christopher Abbott, Thomas Sadoski and Zachary Golinger.

“The Crowded Room” is a co-production between Apple Studios and New Regency. Goldsman serves as executive producer through his Weed Road Productions banner. The series is also executive produced by Alexandra Milchan for EMJAG Productions; and New Regency’s Arnon Milchan, Yariv Milchan and Michael Schaefer. Kornél Mundruczó directed several episodes, including the pilot, and executive produces.

Apple TV+ offers premium, compelling drama and comedy series, feature films, groundbreaking documentaries, and kids and family entertainment, and is available to watch across all your favorite screens. After its launch on November 1, 2019, Apple TV+ became the first all-original streaming service to launch around the world, and has premiered more original hits and received more award recognitions faster than any other streaming service in its debut. To date, Apple Original films, documentaries and series have been honored with 348 wins and 1,436 award nominations and counting, including multi-Emmy Award-winning comedy “Ted Lasso” and Oscar Best Picture winner “CODA.”

[georgiapeach30513]

I’ll use my parents as a yardstick. They are true boomers and immigrants and out of the six avengers, they only know RDJ by name.

Neither of my parents particularly like RDJ because they basically know him as guy who was in jail once (sorry Robert) and Ironman. But they do know him.

They know Chris E and Scarlett J by face but not so much by name. I think cap and black widow are more familiar to them and they are not American so they remember the character names and not the actor names.

I would say off the top of my head: true a listers are Brad, Leo, Tom, Angelina, Will Smith, Harrison Ford, George Clooney, Tom Hanks, Meryl, Julia.

Because even without their last names being mentioned, I’m sure 98% of you know who I’m referring to. And so will Gen X, Boomers, and maybe even our grandparents generation.

I’m sorry, this will upset many of you, but Margot and Pedro are not true A list either. Despite the big year they have had, and Ryan Gosling, it’s going to be a few more years before I would have that convo. Emma stone too. For the younger generation yes, but I would argue some people know Scarlett and Chris E more than they do Emma stone or Pedro. Winning awards does not make you A list either. You are respected, yes, but how many Emmy and Oscar winners and nominees are actually unknown by many of the GP? It’s a complicated conversation.

I think people have a false perception of who’s hot right now and trending means they’re A list. But a true A lister doesn’t always have to trend and doesn’t even always have to have an actively hot career. They could more or less go into retirement and or just making alcohol (hi George Clooney) but still be on the tips of people’s tongues.

I do think Chris was getting to the point of pretty A list in 2019. That was a huge year for him and I think he defied a lot of expectations and when I realized my parents knew his face and who he was that was a big step. But he’s not a true A list, nope.

BUT it does not mean he is C list.

I have to agree with all that you said. I’m not sure who is the latest crop of A listers. I think Jennifer Lawrence was on her way. But I don’t see any of them having the “power” that the celebrities of the early 2000s had.

In my job I have so many different age groups, and some will know Marvel, but not the actor. Some won’t know either. I think currently our media is oversaturated. We have a younger generation who influencers are their celebrities.

[lingyunxiang]

David McKenzie Producer, Director, President of ATI

ATI has been in business for over thirty years. During this time, the company produced and distributed award-winning original programming for network and cable television and sold millions of DVDs. ATI's programming includes nature programs such as Killer Instinct and Safari as well as specials on pop culture milestones. Since 1986 he has been involved in more than 100 film and television productions.

In addition to pop culture and nature specials, David McKenzie has executive produced television movies, series and documentaries such as American Thanksgiving (2006), At Home (2008), The Illusionist (2009), The Real Vice (2008-09) ), and Mississippi Spirit (2010). His most recent credits as a producer include the Emmy Award-winning Among Us (2019), Touch of Evil (2019) and Inferno (2020).

David McKenzie also specializes in producing and directing awards shows and events. He is an executive producer of the 47th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards (2020), having performed the same duties for the 2009, 2010 and 2011 ceremonies. He has also produced and/or directed the annual Hollywood Christmas Parade nine times since 2009, as well as being the winner of the 21st Annual Movie Guide Awards (2013), the 36th Annual Gracie Awards (2011), and the 2007, 2008 and 2009 World Magic Awards.

In addition to winning an Emmy for his directing work on The Hate Us (2019), David McKenzie has also won an Emmy for his directing work on On the Edge: Africa's Poverty Crisis (2009) and America's Invisible Children: Homelessness in America The Crisis in Education (The 2007). He has also been nominated for This Just In (2016), Living on the Edge: A Global Crisis (2008), and Who’s Who in World Giving (2007). In addition, ATI has received awards and honors from several other industry organizations.

[spacemiyy]

Review on TV series: "Succession"

"Succession" is a captivating TV show that dives into the ruthless world of a media dynasty, the Roys. Led by the Logan Roy, the family battles for control of their vast empire.

The ensemble cast, delivers amazing performances, bringing to life a mix of complex characters with sharp, witty dialogue.

What sets "Succession" apart is its dark humor and satirical take on the ultra-wealthy and their power struggles. The show dives into family dynamics, portraying the Roy siblings' rivalry and conflicting loyalties.

As the narrative unfolds, "Succession" keeps viewers hooked with unexpected plot twists and a relentless exploration of power, morality, and ambition.

With its compelling storytelling, outstanding cast, and a unique perspective on the wealthy elite, "Succession" is a must-watch for those seeking a thrilling, thought-provoking TV experience.

As of my last knowledge update in January 2022, "Succession" has received widespread critical acclaim, and its excellence has been recognized with numerous awards and nominations.

However, please note that information about awards may have changed since then, so it's advisable to check the most recent sources for the latest updates. As of my last update, here are some of the notable awards and nominations for "Succession":

Primetime Emmy Awards:

Outstanding Drama Series (Winner - 2019, 2020)

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series (Jeremy Strong - Winner - 2020)

Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series (Jesse Armstrong - Winner - 2019)

Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series (Andrij Parekh - Winner - 2019)

Golden Globe Awards:

Best Television Series – Drama (Winner - 2020)

Best Actor in a Television Series – Drama (Brian Cox - Winner - 2020)