Britt Hayes is a writer, movie lover, and sensible sweater enthusiast living in Austin, Texas. She watches too much TV and never eats her vegetables.
Britt Hayes
Donald Trump’s Inauguration Speech Was Totally Lifted From ‘Dark Knight’ Villain Bane
At some point we’re all going to have to stop asking, “Is this real life?! Is this really happening right now?!” The daily proliferation of surreal news headlines will never feel normal (nor should they), but it’s the frequency our country is operating at now, and it will likely continue at this pitch for the next four years, which officially kicked off today. In the latest episode of The Surreal Life, Donald Trump basically plagiarized Bane, Tom Hardy’s mush-mouthed villain from The Dark Knight Rises, in his inauguration speech.
Donald Trump’s 2020 Campaign Slogan Is, No Joke, the Tagline From ‘The Purge: Election Year’
This is real life. After insisting that he’ll “Make America Great Again” throughout his 2016 campaign, president-elect Donald Trump is already trying to trademark the slogan for his re-election campaign in 2020: “Keep America Great.” If that phrase sounds at all familiar to you, that’s because it was the tagline for The Purge: Election Year — James DeMonaco’s horror sequel, which envisions a dystopia where the government is controlled by far-right conservatives and all crime, particularly murder, is legal for one night every year.
Steve Harvey’s Apology for Racist Comments Is Tepid at Best
Steve Harvey has been making headlines for all the wrong reasons lately. In addition to meeting with president-elect Donald Trump, Harvey kicked up some controversy with a recent segment on his talk show, in which he made racist comments about the Asian community. Not long after, author and chef Eddie Huang responded with a poignant, thoughtful essay in the New York Times, which in turn inspired Harvey to do what most celebrities do when they receive backlash for their ignorant actions: Deliver a half-hearted apology in the hopes that all will be forgiven and forgotten.
Will Smith in Talks for Disney’s Live-Action ‘Dumbo’ Movie
If you’ve ever wondered what a Tim Burton movie starring Will Smith would look like, you might find out relatively soon. The actor is reportedly circling a role in Disney’s live-action remake of Dumbo, which Burton has been attached to direct for some time now. After delivering the disappointing one-two punch of Suicide Squad and Collateral Beauty, Smith sure could use a win, and joining Disney’s growing empire of live-action remakes seems like a pretty safe bet.
New ‘Baywatch’ Trailer Is NSFW and Totally Ridiculous
“Everything that you guys are talking about sounds like a really entertaining but far-fetched TV show” — so says Zac Efron in the new international trailer for Baywatch, which combines the self-awareness of 21 Jump Street (or seems to be trying to do that) with the ridiculous action of your average Dwayne Johnson movie. The latest trailer for the comedic retread of the classic ’90s TV series drops the green-band pleasantries for a profanity-laden, NSFW sneak peek at the upcoming film, and though we’re not 100 percent sold on it just yet, Baywatch looks pretty darn watchable, at the very least.
This iPhone ‘Theatre Mode’ Update Sounds Like a Threat
It’s hard to pass judgment on iPhone’s new “theatre mode” because, well, it doesn’t exist out in the real world just yet. But according to a new report, that might be changing sooner rather than later, as Apple’s latest update is said to include this mysterious function. What is it, exactly? What does it do? Is this good news or bad news? Is the sanctity of the theatrical experience facing a new, insidious threat? Whatever it is, we’ll probably find out on January 10, when the iOS 10.3 beta rolls out to iPhone users.
Those ‘Rogue One’ Reshoots Changed a Lot More Than the Original Ending
If you go back and watch the trailers and TV spots for Rogue One after you see the movie, a couple of things are glaringly obvious: First, you’ll notice a ton of scenes that don’t appear in the theatrical version, and second, it’s easy to sort of piece together the film’s original ending (recently confirmed by director Gareth Edwards) — all of which suggests that the reshoots were a bit more extensive than Lucasfilm wanted us to believe. According to the film’s editors, that’s certainly the case, and those reshoots changed a whole lot more than just the ending.
New ‘Rogue One’ Featurette Reveals Even More Scenes That Weren’t in the Film
Between the trailers, teasers and TV spots for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, we found more than enough scenes (18, to be exact) that didn’t appear in the film when it hit theaters last weekend — clearly due to all those highly-publicized reshoots in post-production. Weirdly enough, Lucasfilm has released a new Rogue One featurette that reveals even more scenes that didn’t make the final cut, including what appears to be an entire sequence filmed in Jordan.
New Amazon Prime Instant Video Releases: January 2017
We still have 10 days before the end of what hasn’t been the greatest year, but Amazon Prime is ready to help you ring in a (hopefully) better new year with their official list of new Instant Video releases. January’s titles include the premieres of original series Sneaky Pete (produced by Bryan Cranston) and Z: The Beginning of Everything (starring Christina Ricci as Zelda Fitzgerald). Notable movie additions include 2016 fave Swiss Army Man, and the cult classic teen rom-com She’s All That.
Rumor: Is This the Superhero Lineup for ‘Avengers: Infinity War’?
We already know Avengers: Infinity War is going to be huge, with the current MCU arcs building toward a crossover event that promises to be the studio’s biggest yet — even bigger than Captain America: Civil War. According to previous comments made by directors Joe and Anthony Russo, Infinity War will feature dozens of characters from the Marvel universe, including Chris Pratt’s Star-Lord and Brie Larson’s Captain Marvel. As for the rest of the lineup, we can only make educated guesses, but a new casting call may have spilled the beans.
You Will Believe Poop Can Talk in ‘The Emoji Movie’ First Teaser Trailer
When it was first announced, The Emoji Movie sounded like a joke — the inevitable apex of big budget studio movies based on products least likely to inspire a feature-length narrative. But Sony Pictures Animation has followed through on its threat to unleash an animated adventure featuring a walking and talking poop emoji, and we have the first teaser trailer to prove it.
Why Felicity Jones Has a ‘Rogue One’ Sequel Option in Her Contract
A couple of weeks back, someone asked Lucasfilm’s Kathleen Kennedy about a possible Rogue One sequel — a silly question given the film’s position in the Star Wars timeline, but not an entirely absurd one in this age of blockbuster franchises. The answer is, of course, no; there won’t be a Rogue One sequel because there already is a Rogue One sequel (it’s called A New Hope; maybe you’ve heard of it), and yet, Felicity Jones has the option to appear in a spinoff follow-up in her contract. Confusing? Not so much. Spoilers ahead!
Batman Breaks Joker’s Heart in ‘The LEGO Batman Movie’ Extended TV Spot
If you really think about it, Batman and Joker’s relationship is co-dependent and unhealthy (clearly). Joker is obsessed with the Dark Knight, and while those feelings aren’t quite mutual, they thrive on each other in a way that’s totally melodramatic — we all have that couple in our friends’ circle; the ones that fight constantly and make each other so miserable that even you want to break up with them. That’s the humorous gist of Batman and the Joker’s relationship in The LEGO Batman Movie, which delivers a big dose of the latter in this new and extended TV spot.
Long Before ‘La La Land,’ Ryan Gosling Released an Album of Spooky Love Songs
In Damien Chazelle’s romantic, musical ode to classic Hollywood, Ryan Gosling takes a combination of words that would usually inspire a heavy sigh — aspiring jazz musician — and transforms it into an incredibly charming performance, as only Gosling can. As Sebastian, Gosling croons and plays piano to such swoon-worthy effect that you might (understandably) assume that his musical skills are nothing more than deceitful movie magic; you’d be wrong. Long before La La Land, Gosling fronted a real-life band that released just one very lovely album in 2009 and subsequently vanished.
Ryan Reynolds Wants to Get Deadpool and Wolverine Back Together for Another Movie
Celebrities really are just like us — well, Ryan Reynolds is, anyway. Like you, he also wants to see Deadpool and Wolverine reunite on the big screen, this time for a much better film. It took several years, but the tenacious actor’s commitment to getting a proper Deadpool movie off the ground finally paid off (in a huge way), which has Reynolds thinking that maybe it’s time for the Merc With the Mouth and Old Man Logan to get the band back together.
Daisy Ridley Says ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ Already Revealed Rey’s Parents
One of the biggest questions we were left with at the end of The Force Awakens, aside from “Do you think Luke makes his own organic soap out there on that space island?” was “Who the heck are Rey’s parents?” It’s a question that won’t be answered in the Star Wars universe until Episode VIII hits theaters late next year…unless you’re a real smarty-pants like Daisy Ridley.