We’re in the thick of summer movie season, but it’s never too soon to start looking at the fall film-to-Oscar pipeline. One film that is sure to get a head start is The Social Reckoning, Aaron Sorkin’s follow-up to The Social Network. Where that film traces Facebook’s origins, The Social Reckoning focuses on the 2021 Facebook leak and subsequent congressional hearings and investigations.

Aaron Sorkin won an Oscar for scripting The Social Network, but that film was directed by David Fincher, and the combination of Sorkin and Fincher turned that film into a bleak warning about the oligarchy to come. Fincher declined to come back for the sequel(ish), as did Network star Jesse Eisenberg. Sorkin is now taking over directorial duties, and Mark Zuckerberg, no longer a college kid, is now played by Jeremy Strong doing a pretty damn good Zuck-voice in the trailer.

Jesse Eisenberg declined to return to play Zuck, so I have zero qualms about Jeremy Strong taking over. It really does sound like he just wasn’t interested in revisiting the character. But I also think the advantage of recasting the central role of the project underscores more effectively that we are dealing with two different eras of Facebook, and how much changed in like, barely 15 years. The recasting is so effective it’s actually redundant when Strong-as-Zuck announces, “I’m not two years out of a dorm room anymore.” Sorkin can be a great writer, but he can also land some real clunkers.

The film also stars Mikey Madison, in her first role since Anora—displaying a level of patience and taste that I hope is rewarded richly—as whistleblower Frances Haugen, and Jeremy Allen White as journalist Jeff Horwitz. Wunmi Mosaku, Bill Burr, Billy Magnussen, and Betty Gilpin also star. OF COURSE Billy Magnussen is playing a tech bro jagoff. He is a good actor, with a wider range than he often gets to display, but that is only because Billy Magnussen is MADE to play jagoffs. That guy smirks on screen and I automatically start doing jerk-off motions about whatever his character is saying.

So, the cast is good, the subject is rich, we know Sorkin can write a script, but his direction is…not David Fincher. Sorkin is good at confrontational courtroom style scenes, which he has a long history of writing, but I don’t think he has thematic flair like a director such as David Fincher. All of Sorkin’s style is dictated by his writing, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but a huge reason The Social Network holds up is because of Fincher’s particular vision.

The Social Network is a techno-fascist nightmare dressed up as a college coming-of-age, but Fincher always hints at the villainous roots of the story through visual cues, particularly the sickly green color grading—which becomes more prominent the further removed from healthy human interaction Zuckerberg becomes—and the Trent Reznor-Atticus Ross score, which buzzes with tension and lends the film an eerie emotional landscape. The score is a musical expression of “on tenterhooks”, just waiting for the moment when it all goes wrong.

I just don’t really trust Sorkin to deliver on that level of cinematic contextualization. None of his previous work suggests that is the way he directs. I expect the dialogue to crackle and the interrogation scenes, from boardrooms to congress, to be sharp and explosive. I just don’t expect a lot of style. If you want to see this in action, just go back and look at the trailer for The Social Network. The difference between Network and Reckoning isn’t casting or the passage of time. It’s style.

It’s taken me some time to process the fallout from the final installation of the Summer House reunion. Having spent years watching reunions, sometimes it can take a day or two to get a feel for the narratives that emerge after such a highly-anticipated finale. And like clockwork, since the reunion wrapped, we’ve heard the discourse surrounding Amanda Batula’s commitment to the damsel in distress bit, pondered the impact of the beta blockers West Wilson admitted to taking before the reunion and we all seem to be in a communal state of worry over Jesse Solomon, well, crying his eyes out over the utter betrayal of it all.

Now that I know what everyone else is thinking, though, I’ve been trying to compile my own thoughts. And for some reason, that’s proving to be more difficult than usual, and I think that’s due to a few things. The first is that to Lindsay Hubbard’s point, this reunion, despite the anticipation and the build-up for it, read a bit hollow. The second is that the bar for what it will take to be stimulated by reality TV continues to get higher and higher.

And the last thing is that the show, much like many of its peers that last this long, is having a bit of an identity crisis, making it difficult to decipher between what constitutes actual entertainment versus us just all bearing witness to people’s childhood and lifelong trauma and how that plays out in their interpersonal relationships.

Many online agree that there was something about the third installation of this reunion that felt unfinished. I don’t think that the audience, and certainly not the castmates, got the sense of resolution we were looking for. This is important because this is quite literally the point of these reunions – to bring resolution and to have the group reset ahead of the next season. But with West and Amanda clearly lying through their teeth about the timeline of their relationship, the depth of their feelings for one another, and whether he was actually in an exclusive relationship with Meija, business is still largely unfinished.

At one point during the production, all of this is brought to light by Lindsay, who returned to the couch from lunch to let Andy know how she felt – which was as if she hadn’t learned anything new. And I think that hit for a lot of audience members, too. Because there wasn’t a whole lot of new information. And that’s in part to the deceit, but also to the current function of reality TV.

The thing is, by the time these reunions air, months have passed from the scandal breaking, and even more time has passed since filming. Thanks to internet sleuths and reality TV blogs and social media pages and podcasts, ones where stars of the show often go to share their account of things, it’s getting easier and easier to learn everything there is to know between then and now. So reunions almost always fail to present new information – despite being promoted and teased as if there’s some sort of exclusive bombshell to drop. 

This is where reality TV finds itself at an interesting crossroads. I mean, you’ve got fans and sleuths doing full-on stakeouts, spotting and photographing West and Amanda all the way in Italy, FFS. And for the first time this season, we even dealt with a leak, which I wrote about here. So while the hype is certainly an integral part of the ecosystem of reality TV, it’s also costing these three-part grand finales their exclusivity and deflating a lot of the mystery of whatever might be exposed during any given reunion. 

On the topic of the leak, which was very much a first for the Bravo network and for a reality TV reunion, it’s rare that we get to venture into that kind of unchartered territory anymore.  This begs the question of how much of the current shock value we experience when scandals like Amanda and West’s affair break is actually sustainable? 

Every time a new reality show launches, there’s got to be something that makes us watch. Let’s take Real Housewives of Salt Lake City for example. The fact that Mary Cosby had married her step-grandfather was insane. And it was strategically used in the promotion of the show because it’s so outrageous. On Real Housewives of Rhode Island, we’re dealing with Rulla’s husband’s very obvious affair and the fact that some castmates are being accused of having multiple sex partners and one of them of having a literal sugar daddy, in addition to another partner. Over on The Valley, last season fans were sounding the alarm and expressing concern over what many felt was actual emotional abuse and manipulation playing out on screen at the hands of Jax Taylor. And we’re seeing similar concerns this season between Danny Booko and his wife Nia.

In moments like this, we realize that it’s becoming more and more difficult to just launch a show without some level of insane scandal. This is why In The City launched at the perfect time because it picked up right where Summer House left off. And had the season not ended with such a bang, there would have been so much less fan investment in the new show.

This brings me to my last point about the identity crisis reality TV shows often experience this long into their run. This is when we start to see the spinoffs like In The City or The Valley start to surface. Each of these shows came to us after their predecessors hit their tenth season.

This indicates that production knows that things are getting “stale” in a way that doesn’t necessarily reflect a lack of new material, but a lack of non-toxic new material. And when you’re ten years into chronicling a toxic marriage, like we see with Jax and Brittany or Kyle and Amanda, or ten years into anything, really, it’s harder to put on a front for the cameras. So we all just sit there and bear witness to everyone’s ugly truth, substance abuse issues, and in this case, infidelity starts to come to the forefront.

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I have to repeat that none of this will stop true reality TV fans from watching. We’ve just been handed a platter of new personalities to dissect and analyze and some of them have kids and have moved women to New York under the guise that they want actual partnership but are already giving us every indication that they, like Kyle, have no intention of giving up the frat boy lifestyle.

For all the toxicity that plays out on screen, you’d think it would be easier to recognize that perhaps, we, too, are in toxic relationships. But our aggressor is not so much a person, and instead a show, a cast and a long-standing love for using other people’s realities to escape our own.

Before the gossip, a word on OG Anunoby – because there are a lot of us here in Toronto who are thrilled for him. OG already has an NBA championship with the Raptors, and was a key contributor during the regular season, but he sat out our historic playoff run in 2019 after an emergency appendectomy right before the post-season. So it obviously must mean that much more to him now that he’s been on the court through this run with the Knicks and came up SO HUGE last night with that block on Wemby and then the craaazyyy tip-in to win, pulling off the biggest comeback in NBA finals history, putting the Knicks within one of the title, and making him an instant legend in New York City.

It was bedlam at MSG but if you were paying attention to OG in that moment, you’d think it was just an ordinary day. He was like that during the presser afterwards too, LOL.

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Now that we’ve given OG his due, let’s gossip, starting with this hilarious headline at the NY post about the seating arrangements at the game last night. Celebrity presence at the Knicks games has been an ongoing side storyline during these playoffs, especially for the finals as the stars and the billionaires have been competing for a very limited amount of spots. This is not about the money – we’re working from a baseline where all of them can afford it, even the jacked-up rates. This is about who gets preferential treatment among the already preferred. These are people who already live the most privileged life looking at what is essentially a rectangular ranking system that visibly determines, not just for them but for everyone in the arena, and for a global audience of millions who’s worthy of being courtside (per the Knicks seating concierges) and who isn’t. So – to go back to that headline…

Sydney Sweeney “pushed off” Knicks Celebrity Row, LOL.

Sydney was there with Scooter Braun, who is a New York native and also a billionaire, or close to one. For sure he would have the funds for a courtside seat. The issue is that none was available to him, which is why he and Sydney were seated four or five rows or so behind Taylor Swift. Still very, very exclusive, just not the MOST exclusive. Because whoever decides about these things … is a Swiftie? Nobody knows for certain and I’m sure, you know, the excuse will be that Scooter and Sydney only decided they were coming at the last minute. OK, whatever you say. But HAHAHAHA.

As for Taylor – it was reported a few hours before the game that she would be in attendance, I posted about this in our last article of the day yesterday. She was there with Alana and Este Haim, all of them in team colour punny t-shirts.

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I also wrote yesterday in that article that if Taylor was actually going to the Knicks game, she would likely be seated next to Mariska Hargitay, one of the most beloved Knicks fans and, really, one of the most beloved New Yorkers, period. Mariska was performing on Broadway last night but she was at the Garden during the second half. Because as if she would have missed this game.

For the unfamiliar, to give you some idea of Mariska’s devotion to the Knicks – and why she is Jalen Brunson’s idol, check her out after the game. She has been through it!

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Someone in the comments said that “she’s protected this city for 30 plus years” which is a joke but, like, not really? This is how they feel about her in NYC. And definitely NOT how they feel about that cursed piece of sh-t who showed up in game three. If there was any doubt, they definitely blame him for that loss.

But they did their voodoo at MSG, whatever cleansing needed to happen happened, delivering to New York faithful a wild comeback and so much good vibe energy that, well, even some beefs seemed to be cured. Winning is a powerful drug – the Knicks seemingly impossible win was so powerful it made possible this gift for gossip, so powerful it can begin to heal one of the most legendary celebrity feuds of the last two decades. Can we call it a reset?! Taylor Swift and Kylie Jenner hugging?!

@thesportsish Taylor + Kylie celebrating the Knicks win @ESPN ♬ original sound - Sports(ish)

It was Taylor who initiated that, btw. And this hug? It Is Important. Important to pop culture, to the study of it. We have to update the scrolls now, that’s how major the moment was. That’s the other miracle the Knicks pulled off.

Kylie, by the way, was courtside with Timothée Chalamet, two more people, in addition to Mariska, Taylor, Alana, and Este, plus Spike Lee, Adam Sandler, and so many others, who secured floor-level seats over Sydney and Scooter. Like Taylor, Alana, and Este, Timmy and Kylie also theme dressed, a Chrome Hearts couples outfit in Knicks blue and orange, you might also say Marty Supreme orange. Timmy’s basically a Knicks mascot at this point, perhaps looking to be the Spike of Gen Z for the Knicks.

Here he is celebrating after the game and ending it where I started, putting the respect on the person who deserves it the most: OG Anunoby!

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Dear Gossips,

It was reported yesterday that they’re making another Jump Street movie 14 years after the sequel, 22 Jump Street, was released. And the key on-camera talent involved in the originals will be coming back: Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, and Ice Cube. So is this just a money grab? I mean, it’s never not about the money. But that doesn’t necessarily mean it won’t be good, or that it doesn’t have the potential to be good.

When 21 Jump Street came out in 2012, it made over $200 million at the box office, pretty much guaranteeing a sequel. The sequel then went on to bring in over $330 million at the box office … with surprisingly decent reviews, overall. Because one of the main themes of the movie was mocking sequels and Hollywood’s shameless churn of sequels for profit over quality. One of the takeaways – that I remember anyway – from 22 Jump Street is that a third movie would be a f-cking joke…

But now here we are. Only they’re not calling it 23 Jump Street, they’re skipping the 23 and going straight to 24 which, no doubt, will be explained somehow and might even have something to do with the fact that they’re doing the very thing they seem to have been satirising.

Not sure we should write it off completely though. The creative team behind the previous movies will return along with the cast. Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who are coming off the mega success of Project Hail Mary, and who directed both 21 and 22 Jump Street, are producing. Rodney Rothman, who co-wrote the script for 22 Jump Street, and co-wrote 24 Jump Street with Jonah Hill, will now be directing it. These are all people who are, presumably, self-aware enough to address the expectations – or none – the audience might have about this new installment. That said, it’s been 12+ years, a full cycle of the Chinese Zodiac. It was already a stretch to believe they could play students back in 2014, there is no f-cking way now, LOL.

Looking back, though, how many of you remember that Dakota Johnson was in 21 Jump Street? Brie Larson, yes, but Dakota Johnson, never. I never associate her with that movie probably because she didn’t have much to do. But I wonder about the cameos in 24 Jump Street – there will definitely be cameos, and now it’s been long enough since the first one that they could cameo cast members from 21 Jump Street, the movie, and it would feel like a throwback.

You know who would be the best cameo though?

Cate Blanchett.

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Yours in gossip,

Lainey

Page Six reported just after 12noon ET today that they’d learned exclusively that Taylor Swift, who was just in LA last night for the Toy Story 5 premiere, will be at game four of the NBA Finals tonight with the Knicks up two games to one in the series against the San Antonio Spurs.

According to Page Six’s sources, she’ll be going with friends and not Travis Kelce? How many friends? Courtside Knicks tickets for the finals are mega-premium. It’s not that she couldn’t afford to buy up every courtside seat but, like, there are other celebrities and billionaires who want them too, and I wonder if there’s a limit to how many the special people can ask for/purchase. Maybe that doesn’t apply to Taylor Swift since she’s allegedly getting married there which, again, so many people find so hard to believe.

While we’re here though, let’s talk about the most beloved Knicks fan, at least for Jalen Brunson. Everyone in NYC, and probably everyone who watches ball, knows that Jalen loves Mariska and Mariska loves Jalen. And if you know ball, Jalen is an intense person, not exactly warm and fuzzy all the time – except when Mariska is in front of hm.

Ben Stiller loves it… but is also jealous.

Mariska was there on Monday night when that f-cking asshole insisted on attending and jinxed the home team. She was with her son and also Chris Meloni. Their show is a New York institution, and she is a New York institution. And, by the way, Mariska isn’t just a Knicks fave, Taylor Swift is also obsessed with her. One of her cats is called Olivia Benson. So if Taylor really is going tonight, it wouldn’t be a stretch to see her seated with one of her idols.

What else happened today…

I live in Canada, one of the three host countries of the FIFA World Cup 2026. Canada’s first game is on Friday in Toronto, not far from where I work. The tournament has become the main character in the media here. Here’s Brian Phillips’s primer on the World Cup, and all the discourse, and the impact of and on the beautiful game. (The Ringer)

This outfit! Hannah Einbinder brought the drama to London! (Go Fug Yourself)

What you learn about Lorne Michaels from his documentary is minimal. (Pajiba)

Glenn Close will finally receive an Oscar. (EW)

There’s a celebrity capybara who is missing and while we hope she’s been having fun on her adventures, she does have a sister who misses her, sob! (Celebitchy)

Tom Brady has a new drink called Good Nut and I don’t understand how this branding came to be. Tom has three teenagers, how did this pass quality control?

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Hot off her interview with an AI weapons company, Gwyneth Paltrow is representing a luxury apartment building in Israel (not linked below but easy to find online). She hasn’t posted it on her socials but it is on Instagram and this is not a simple photo. It’s a full, comprehensive ad with multiple outdoor shots in New York City. This would have taken a few days to film. Interesting that the trades (like The Hollywood Reporter, Variety and Deadline) and regular magazines like PEOPLE and US Weekly aren’t covering it.

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Our site manager Emily sent me this and she’s right, it’s kinda cute. Putting three charming people together works.

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The Knicks front row has become a crossover sports moment and it’s also kind of old school (Spike Lee IS the Knicks front row, and Jack Nicholson held it down for the Lakers for years). There is a performance to being a good courtside fan because you are really in on the action and on camera a lot. Embracing the attention is the only way to go.

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As daytime TV (and all talk shows) continue to take hits, CBS is considering a pilot from Jonathan Scott (one of the Property Brothers). Working title is Better! With Jonathan Scott (that could use some work) but I won’t bet against it because he has a really big audience from his HGTV days. Familiarity is a cornerstone of daytime TV.

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The conversation around Callum Turner over the last couple of weeks has been about his wedding. He and Dua Lipa officially got married last week in England, followed by a celebration in Italy this past weekend attended by all kinds of celebrities, like Elton John, Adele, Katy Perry and Justin Trudeau, Charli XCX, and more. Dua and Callum were photographed yesterday in Palermo with friends and family to wrap up the festivities.

For The Hollywood Reporter then, it was a good time to put him on the cover of their new issue this week. Callum has three upcoming projects releasing this summer – two independent films and a studio rom-com co-starring Monica Barbaro, One Night Only, directed by Will Gluck, and this movie is coming with some expectations. They’re hoping to capture the Anyone But You audience, with a slice of Easy A, two of Will’s previous projects with actors Callum is hoping to level up to.

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That’s the thesis of this THR profile: Callum Turner is making the case to join the current class of under 40 stars in Hollywood who can work in smaller, character-driven stories and box office friendly projects. And he has some solid endorsement – so many different directors pop up in this piece to basically cape for him, and also George Clooney (who directed Callum in The Boys in the Boat) goes on record in this article to say, emphatically, that Callum has it. 

I’m into Callum Turner, he’s hot, I enjoy watching him onscreen, and I definitely ship him with Dua. One Night Only, going by the trailer, is 100% my sh-t. So I’m paying attention, but that’s just me. I’m not convinced yet that Callum’s summer will have the impact, professionally, that is being strategised in this article. I’m not sure the audience is there, at least not yet. That said, in his favour, my question to those who remain neutral, even passive, about Callum’s prospects – if you can watch Glen Powell, why not Callum Turner?

And before you chafe at this comparison, this is the question Hollywood asks every day, a thousand times, about actors. These are the conversations happening at every meeting about casting and hype and ascent and potential. George Clooney pretty much confirms it in the first paragraph of the THR piece:

“Talk to any big-time producer or big-time director: They’re constantly going, ‘Who’s a leading man now? Who’s the one?’”

This is especially relevant because if we’re not talking about Callum in relation to Dua Lipa, we’re talking about his chances at becoming the new James Bond. Callum refuses to entertain any speculation with THR but, for what it’s worth, George Clooney is has made his vote known:

“I hope Callum ends up being the next Bond. I think he would be a great Bond,” Clooney says, unprompted. “He’s tall and handsome and charming and British, so he’s the perfect guy to do it.”

At this point, I wonder if Callum’s name coming up in almost every possible Bond conversation is actually hurting him – because should he actually get the role, would anyone be surprised? Casting Bond, of course, should depend on performance and not how a press release is received.

I don’t care either way whether or not Callum is Bond, but I am intrigued in one of his next confirmed roles, for which he’ll be moving with Dua to the US for several months. He’s signed on to star in The Comebacker with Tom Hanks who will play a pitching coach working with Callum, a major league baseball player. Callum Turner did not play baseball growing up in London but he definitely has an ideal pitcher’s build. I can’t wait to see him on the mound which… I just realised… why does that sound so dirty?

Click here for more on Callum in THR.

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In an excellent case of “great minds think alike”, Lainey texted me the trailer of Whalefall at the exact moment as I was opening the app to message her about the same thing.

What is Whalefall? It’s a movie about a whale accidentally eating a guy. It looks SICK. As in cool or gross, you decide:

Whalefall is directed by Brian Duffield, the screenwriter behind the Kristen Stewart underwater thriller Underwater, and the Babysitter duology (we will ignore the Divergent credit on his CV, sometimes, a toll must be paid). He also directed No One Will Save You, an offbeat sci-fi film starring Kaitlyn Dever (the once and future Loretta McCready). Brian Duffield has done enough interesting work for his next project to be Of Interest, but that he made a creature feature with a sperm whale is, frankly, rad as f-ck.

Whalefall is based on a novel by Daniel Kraus (Jaws, too, was based on a novel), and it’s about a scuba diver who is accidentally swallowed by a sperm whale. “Accidentally” is an important note, because I am not here for whale slander. I love whales, whales are awesome, they’re way too f-cking smart to actually eat people, even accidentally. Proof: it has happened more than once, and the whale always spits the person out (OF COURSE Cape Cod is involved. Widow’s Bay is a documentary).

But Whalefall is premised upon a sperm whale accidentally swallowing a diver while hunting a giant squid, so for the sake of the film, I accept the premise. I love that the trailer is almost entirely this sequence, because it is f-cking SCARY. I also love that it is not a malicious act, the whale is just minding its whale business and the diver got too close.

Whalefall is also a survival film, as the second part of the premise is that the diver, with limited air and also being stuck inside a whale’s gullet, must figure a way out before he dies. It’s “Jonah and the Whale” but the clock is ticking. It’s Pinocchio but there is no campfire in a whale’s belly. It’s a thalassophobic’s nightmare—that shot of the diver going over the underwater cliff is actual nightmare fuel.

As long as everyone is very clear that whales do not actually eat people and we pose far greater threat to them than they do to us (they pose no threat to us, we only pose threat to them), I am very into Whalefall as a concept. We also must be clear that the entire scenario is the result of human infringement upon the single most inhospitable, non-human environment on Earth. This wouldn’t happen if he wasn’t diving on a shelf. The ocean is not our business. No part of it was made for humans. We simply must stop going into the ocean! We are angering Poseidon!

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Taylor Swift’s appearance at the Toy Story 5 premiere in LA last night was not announced in advance but it’s probably not that big of a surprise that she showed up, considering how much of the marketing has revolved around her involvement since it was finally confirmed last week that she’d written a new song, “I Knew It, I Knew You” for the soundtrack. Two things can be true here: Taylor loves Toy Story, loves the newest movie in the franchise, loved the experience she had working on the song – and she’s also coming hard for that Best Original Song Oscar. At this point, even though we’re still half a year away, we can probably say she’s locked in for at least a nomination. And she should be, with how hard she’s been campaigning.

I reported last week after hearing from a good source that Taylor has been engaging with country radio on a level we haven’t seen in a while. If you follow country radio you would have seen over the last few days that was 100% accurate – and it’s paid off for her: every country radio station on the Mediabase panel has added “I Knew It, I Knew You”. Plus, I’m told she also sent country radio programmers and music directors a Jessie doll. So the country music and radio community is heavily behind this which will most certainly translate to even stronger chart performance.

The song’s ubiquity of course will serve the movie. Toy Story 5 opens next Friday 19 June and there is a world in which the film could top the box office while Taylor’s track tops the chart(s), two concurrent #1s in different mediums, potentially another bragging right for Taylor. And she is going for it, as she always does.

Nearly two decades into her career, Taylor Swift’s ambition is now legendary, this is clearly the next summit she wants to conquer – and I appreciate the hustle. She wasn’t just at the premiere to walk the carpet, she also performed “I Knew It, I Knew You” for the first time live ….

@pixar

Taylor Swift surprised the audience at the world premiere of Toy Story 5 with a performance of her new original song for the film “I Knew It, I Knew You”

♬ original sound - Pixar

…and then addressed the audience to thank the filmmakers before introducing Randy Newman…

@extra_tv “It means the world to me to be a small part of the universe of these films…” Taylor Swift gives a speech at the #ToyStory5 premiere after performing her song, “I Knew It, I Knew You.” ☁️🫶🎶 #taylorswift #toystory #iknewitiknewyou ♬ original sound - ExtraTV

… and joining him for a performance of “You’ve Got a Friend in Me”.

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Disney/Pixar is getting everything they hoped for with Taylor. Taylor is giving them the full Taylor Swift treatment. And then, on top of that, first reactions for the movie after it screened last night are overwhelmingly positive. Not that there was any doubt but people I talked to who were there have confirmed that we should all be prepared to cry which, as I’ve already said, I’ve been bracing for this, and I will not make the same mistake I made with Toy Story 3 when I watched it on a plane and ended up full on sobbing, like body-wracking heaves, on an international flight.

If Toy Story 5 lives up to all this advance hype, it will stay in the Oscar conversation for months and months and months. And, obviously, that means Taylor too. Which I’m already excited about. Because we’ve never really seen Taylor Swift on an aggressive and legitimate Oscar push. Even her fashion game has been elevated for the Toy Story campaign. And if you’re a regular visitor here at LaineyGossip, you know I don’t rate her style… but this Erdem is a serve. I LOVE THIS DRESS.

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It’s so flattering around her shoulders and how it bends across the chest. Plus the unfinished threads falling off the hem, with exactly the right amount of embellishment, and the way the green and brown stitching looks like a blurry landscape, kinda Monet, is gorgeous; the relaxed corseting opening up to the exaggerated hips… all of it is so f-cking good I almost can’t believe it. And the shoe choice isn’t offensive either.

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Attached - Taylor leaving the after party last night with her family. 

We're Squawking Swifty today, of course. Join us! (App link here.)

Dear Gossips,

Well I guess we know where Beyoncé will be on July 11-13, September 10^th, and October 23^rd. This is an anniversary year for Jay-Z. It was announced a couple of months ago that he would play two shows in July to celebrate the 30^th anniversary of Reasonable Doubt on the 11^th and the 25^th anniversary of The Blueprint the following night – at Yankee Stadium. And blue dot fever was not a problem for Beyoncé’s husband; tickets sold so fast a third show, “Extra Innings”, was quickly added. The demand is not surprising. Jay is a Rushmore rapper, his shows at Yankee Stadium are basically, for hip-hop, a royal jubilee event.

Yesterday Jay announced that there will be more – two additional concerts in Paris at the Stade de France and in Los Angeles at So-Fi Stadium.

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Also, he’s added the umlaut back to his name, which is how it was spelled back in 1996 when he released Reasonable Doubt. People were noticing this change a while back when he switched it on YouTube, an indication of what he was planning. This is considered not just one of the greatest hip-hop albums of all time but one of the greatest albums of all time, period. And, looking back, it was a manifestation, Jay foretelling that he would forge a path from the streets to the boardroom. After all, it was the first album released through Roc-A-Fella, the label he co-founded, establishing from the jump that he would always be the CEO of his own music.

This, then, is why we were all clowning ourselves when we were thinking that maybe Beyoncé might have something to say at the Met Gala about act iii. Probably not when Jay is doing his thing – and definitely not until at least October … if LA is really his final JAŸ-Z30 show.

But… like… isn’t it at least possible that she pops up on stage with him at least one time during these five concerts? Maybe not for Reasonable Doubt or The Blueprint, but Extra Innings? Also, the Queen LOVES Paris, she always gives the Paris crowd a little something extra. So… are we clowning again?

I mean, since we’re here, we might as well go all the way.

Celine Dion’s first show in Paris is two nights after Jay’s. Gossip Genie a Beyoncé special appearance, can we? 

Here's Jay leaving Roc Nation offices in NYC the other day.

Yours in gossip,

Lainey

I saw this video of Emily Blunt and John Krasinski last night at the NYC premiere of Disclosure Day and, honestly, my first thought was how she was working that dress but then when he comes into frame my second thought was about all that f-ckass lip-reading nonsense from the Golden Globes a couple of years ago when TikTok actually thought, with hundreds of cameras pointed at them on a red carpet, that he actually said “I can’t wait to get a divorce” when he was really saying “I can’t wait to get indoors”. It was freezing in LA that day.

I don’t have a lot of energy to put into what they say to each other this time but I’m pretty sure it’s not whatever TikTok thinks it is. Should we make something up though? “I better get an Oscar nomination for this.”

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Disclosure Day is a Steven Spielberg film and even though, yes, it’s intended to be a big action thriller summer blockbuster, since it’s Spielberg, considering how much the Academy loves him, you can never discount his influence… especially with all this hype about it being his best movie in 20 years.

The review embargo for Disclosure Day just lifted today – all the major outlets have now published their thoughts on the film, the last time I checked it was sitting at around 85% on Rotten Tomatoes, which is good. (We’ll have Sarah’s review up in a few days.) Right now the movie is projected to open between $35 million on the low side to $50 million on the high side, not exactly spectacular numbers but Disclosure Day also isn’t a known IP with a built-in audience or a movie being marketed to younger kids and families. So it’s the word of mouth that they’re hoping for in the second and third weekends. Will be interesting to see if that comes through.

To go back to Emily, there are some Oscar junkies doing early prognostication who are saying there is a chance, especially if Disclosure Day does well. The Spielberg endorsement is always a factor. Obviously this is totally premature, this is really just for the Oscar nerds out there, and the race always changes through the year, but just some threads to keep an eye on this weekend when the movie is playing in theatres. Also this Tamara Ralph dress is spectacular on her.

What else happened today…

Conan O’Brien and Patton Oswalt talk about movie promotion, goats, and geopolitics – naturally it’s hilarious. (Pajiba)

Katie Holmes and Joshua Jackson give the people what they want – so that they can get what they want. I don’t mind this transaction at all. I do, however, mind the shoes, a lot. Why these shoes with this dress, whyyyy? (Go Fug Yourself)

New York hated the person who is the president of the United States before the Knicks game last night, and they for sure hate him even more now that the game is over because… well… he broke the streak. Beyond all the inconveniences and his general toxicity, anyone who knows anything about sports knows that when you have a win streak going like the one the Knicks had (historic!), you don’t mess around, you keep it all the same. And in order to accommodate him, they had to change so many things. Which… well… the scoreboard told the story. (The Mary Sue)

Weddings in 2026 now include bridesmaid proposals – like a bride proposing to the person she wants in her bridal party, with sponcon. (The Cut)

Speaking of weddings, I wrote about the wedding of the year at The Squawk yesterday featuring a couple that has set a new wedding standard. No other wedding this year, or in the last ten years, can or has come close to what we saw last week. (The Squawk)

The Bear is a good case study in how quickly a show goes from hot to… OK. The trailer for the fifth and final season has been released and it’s pretty much been crickets.

If you think about shows like Severance, Wednesday and the Harry Potter series there’s so much anticipation. The Bear has lost that fire which is why it’s ending right on time.

Cloud 23 is Brooklyn Beckham’s hot sauce company and the marketing budget must be astronomical to be doing events like this. Brooklyn gets endless guff for being a nepo baby but a little hot sauce line seems like a fun use of the budget.

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You know who else has budget right now? Crocs. Chappell Roan and Pete Davidson are wearing those bad boys everywhere.

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This is such a meh cover. Bland, bland, bland. I don’t know how to put this delicately but Gracie Abrams does not have the magnetism to pull off such milquetoast art direction.

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Has Dua Lipa ended (or at least dented) the hyper-perfect Instagram wedding aesthetic? Obviously every detail of her wedding was planned (down to the cigarette buffet) but there’s also a lot of candid photos and videos that aren’t filtered or airbrushed, they look human. Glamorous, but human.

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Lainey wrote about corn and cheese and I’m laughing so hard at this promotional poster. “They said I couldn’t” – who is they? And what did they say you couldn’t do, tour? So, a pop star who has toured multiple times was told she can’t tour?

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Tom Cruise is the unofficial movie star ambassador of the theatrical experience. He only makes movies, no television. He only makes movies that are screened in theatres, preferably IMAX. He is known to have gone out of his way to ensure that his movies hit theatres first, never streaming.

It is now summer box office season, the most important season for theatrical business. And when Tom’s not promoting his own summer movies, he usually shows up for at least one other movie – last year he started early, hyping up Sinners in the spring.

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Then he actually attended the F1 premiere, posing for a photo with Brad Pitt for the first time in decades. The year before it was Twisters, since Glen Powell is his protégé. In 2023 he Barbeinheimed, bought tickets for both movies and saw them back-to-back. What will it be in 2026?

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I thought maybe it could be Disclosure Day, since he’s made two movies with Steven Spielberg (Minority Report and War of the Worlds) and also knows Emily Blunt well, but he wasn’t at the premiere last night, instead going out for dinner with James Corden. He still could help promote it though – it opens on Friday. Or maybe he’s waiting for The Odyssey since he’s definitely a fan of Christopher Nolan. It wasn’t just Oppenheimer for him, before that, in 2020, during COVID, Tom made headlines when he went to see Tenet in theatres with a mask on.

The next question is… who shows up for him when Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Digger comes out later this year? We’ve been speculating about this for a year – that Tom Cruise will be campaigning for an Oscar nomination for his performance in this film. Test screenings for Digger have been happening for a few weeks now and from what I’ve seen, it’s mostly positive. And, yes, Tom is unhinged as a billionaire who basically ruins the world and then decides that it’s his calling to save it. So which celebrities will report for duty to stump on behalf of Hollywood’s biggest movie star who’s yet to win an Oscar?

For now, Tom continues to maintain a low profile, as usual, and continues to remain off-set, which is unusual. He hasn’t worked in a minute – although they’re for sure moving ahead with Top Gun 3, with him attached, but that script looks like it’s not even close to being ready. He’s in LA though, and has been for months now, instead of England; this is a point I’ve made often over the last year and it’s worth noting because he spent over a decade living in the UK, away from Hollywood, and his return to the center of the entertainment industry does suggest that he’s willing to engage with the community again. Will it pay off in the form of a trophy?

Tinashe earned two of the biggest hits of her career over the past two summers. The first, “Nasty”, came at a time when she hadn’t scored a hit in close to a decade, not since her debut single “2 On”. Similar to Charli XCX, Tinashe has had a cult following but always remained somewhat under the radar. She’s still there to a degree, except now she has two extra hits under her belt, and is more determined than ever to score a third with her latest single “Too Easy”, a pop track, and the music video hints at an entire Hollywood popstar aesthetic. It’s all a part of Tinashe’s decades-long plan of becoming the popstar she was meant to be.

Tinashe has always blended between R&B and pop music, with the performance style of a Janet Jackson, where the choreography is intricate and high energy. The difference is that Janet’s songs were all major pop hits regardless of genre. By the time Tinashe came up,  anything that was considered R&B rarely crossed over. Now in the age of streaming, TikTok is blending every genre of music into one spot for the masses to take in what’s popular - just like TRL did 25 years ago. This allows an artist like Tinashe to flourish without anything holding her back. So when “Nasty” hit in 2024, it was like a comeback, and then last year’s “No Broke Boys” with Disco Lines took her to the next level. The dance world is where it’s at right now. Madonna is taking it old school with a nod to her dancefloor beginnings, Slayyyter is earning a viral hit for the first time in her career and now, Tinashe doubles as pop star and DJ. She recently performed a DJ set at Coachella this past April, putting her natural dance instincts to the test.

This is her version of being a popstar, and regardless of if she can keep the train moving on the charts, she still shines bright as ever. It was only a few years ago when she went independent and now, after sticking to her guns and believing in herself, she owns 100% of the career renaissance she is currently experiencing. Tinashe has been quiet for the last year as she’s been in the studio creating what is expected to be the follow-up to her last album Quantum Baby. This is supposed to be the third installment in a trilogy of albums that started with BB/3ng3l back in 2023. The star logo that is projected in her eye in the music video and on the single cover already paints a picture of the whole “popstar” look, so don’t be surprised if she drops the “baby” motif for a “star” themed title in the third installment of the trilogy.

Next week is Olivia Rodrigo’s big release week. I won’t even pretend like I’m not excited, I’ve loved both singles she’s released and I’m really into her current musical direction. Let’s get it. This week with Tinashe we also have new songs from Steve Lacy, Shaboozey, Bryson Tiller and Madonna. Plus, Slayyyter finally gets a hit after more than seven years in the game.

Listen on…

MC’s PICKS OF THE WEEK

“Too Easy” by Tinashe

The opening drums on this track are strong and set the intention for what we’re about to experience. The song is high-energy and the music video gives absolute beast mode. The fur, the choreography, the Hollywood glam, it’s everything that the gays want. I love when she brings out her alter-ego “nashe”. She’s a little wild and more unapologetic, and she lets it all loose in this song. You get so lost in the song and it passes by in a flash, and I mean that. A literal flash, because the song is so f-cking short. I won’t lie, it’s very hard for me to let go of that fact. At a lonely one minute 56 seconds, this feels more like an interlude than a full song. The music video version is around 2 minutes and 21 seconds, which although still acceptable, still needs a bit more. The song is a bop, it’s classic pop Tinashe, but the length (or lack thereof) of the song is definitely distracting. I’ll look at it like an intro to the full body of work. Christina Aguilera’s album intros we just about as long.  

“the feeling” by Steve Lacy

In the same vein as Ariana Grande, this song is very much going for sad boy summer. “the feeling” is emotional but still anthemic. Yelling “am I your baby?” on repeat is surprisingly satisfying. The song is about a guy who is so in love with his partner but is also aware of the issues that he faces in the relationship. Doubting every little thing, the usual sh-t that makes an artist put pen to paper. Except Steve also has a great voice, so that makes for a rarity in today’s crop of artists. He is one of the few artists who hasn’t succumbed to trimming songs to the length of interludes in exchanges for higher chances at streams and algorithm hits. No shade to my girl Tinashe, but I’m always going to appreciate a longer track (as long as the song calls for it). Complete with two verses and a bridge, it sits at 4:35, giving it room to breathe and truly have its own identity. This is the type of music I have been missing from the younger generation. Even if Steve’s new tune in not your style, there’s still something to be appreciated in an artist who still believes in the power of a well-written bridge. He’s also into trippy visuals that keep you on your toes. His head is floating in pitch darkness in the video, staying on brand with his psychedelic and experimental aesthetic. Steve blew up a few years ago with his hit “Bad Habits” even taking home a Grammy award the following year. That’s a lot to live up to, but this song is indicative of a promising album of R&B bangers. The lo-fi version of “the feeling” is about to slap, I know that for sure. While Tinashe can help you get outside and shake some ass in these streets, Steve can be the soundtrack for the nights where you just want to be in your feels. Balance.

“Cowgirl” by Shaboozey

Walk with me here… I think Shaboozey has a major hit on his hands with “Cowgirl”, like “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” level hit. For one, country music is taking over the charts right now, but the beauty of “Cowgirl” is that its catchy chorus and Shaboozey’s party-ready vocals are perfect to crossover to a non-country listening audience. The song has the same formula of “A Bar Song” – short and concise verses, a big chorus and a melody so catchy that even those who are completely checked out of the new music conversation could get on board. There’s something in there for everyone. The song is a little bit country, pop, hip-hop, and everything in-between. I must hand it to my friend Natalie for putting me on to this song, she went so far as to call this a potential “song of the summer”. Time will tell on that one, but I can certainly get behind the idea that this song is a f-cking banger. Plus, if it can knock Ella Langley off the top of the charts then even better. I’m sorry but that “Choosin’ Texas” song is about as bland as a Carrie Underwood performance. Then you have the video which co-stars Shaboozey and Summer House it-girl Ciara Miller. Shaboozey’s album itself is a concept album titled The Outlaw Cherie Lee & Other Western Tales, and from the looks of the video, it seems Ciara is Cherie. Ciara was born to be a cowgirl and even more so, born to be a star. Shaboozey is now two-for-two with the releases from this new project, and this now has me asking myself, do I need to go to a Shaboozey concert? I do still have my Beyoncé Renaissance Tour cowboy hat…

“Drop The Lo” by Bryson Tiller

Bryson Tiller wants you to let him know where you’re at. Khalid asked a similar thing in his 2017 breakout hit “Location”, but Bryson is shortening the text. Instead of Khalid’s “send me your location”, Bryson is saying to simply “drop the lo”. Fewer syllables but evidently just as effective. Sometimes sticking to what works is what’s best for the project and in this case, Bryson is following the same formula he did two albums ago: stick to the “trapsoul” sound. Anytime he strays too far on the R&B or too far in the rap lane, it doesn’t land. The sweet spot for him is somewhere right in the middle. Last year he released a double album that didn’t make much noise on the charts or on radio. “Drop The Lo” being the first single from his upcoming album shows that he is sticking to the R&B/trap blend. The song is fire, it’s perfect to use for an Instagram story when you’re feeling yourself and want to post a little thirst trap. For me that’s a very big factor in a song getting played in high rotation. The song has already been making the rounds on social media with influencers like Desmond Scott using it on their platforms with millions of followers. And if you like it, then you’re in luck, because Bryson is taking his new era on the road with an arena tour across North America later this summer. I have seen Bryson in concert before and what he lacks in stage presence he usually makes up for in vibes. Only issue is I’m not spending $300 on vibes, but I’ll spend $50! It’s the type of concert to take your situationship, have a drink and enjoy a summer evening. But just like a situationship, Bryson’s music is generally made to be enjoyed in the privacy of your own home, LOL.

“Love Sensation” by Madonna

Madonna has been all over the place this week from her surprise free concert in the heart of Times Square to the premiere of the Confessions II film. It’s at that Times Square concert last Thursday that Madge premiered her newest single “Love Sensation”, the third official release from the upcoming Confessions II album. The song was not featured in the accompanying film but a radio edit has been issued which points to the song being used as the next radio single after “Bring Your Love” with Sabrina Carpenter. It follows a similar sonic direction as “Bring Your Love” – think something you’d hear blasting on the speakers on a gay cruise or circuit party. This song is begging to be danced to in a dark room of flashing strobe lights and released inhibitions. Madonna had a fun moment with her producer and musical director Stuart Price during her Times Square performance where she takes over his DJ equipment. Some fans think she may have screwed with the equipment but either way it was cute. Also, simply put, the song is fun. Majority of Madge’s recent songs have been somewhat introspective, even the dance tracks from the new album. This song is all about feeling the vibes and dancing the night away. It’s an automatic smile and a perfect choice for the next single. On first listen the song feels like the little sister to “Get Together” from her last Confessions record, which is a high compliment for those who know the song. Fun fact: the song has already gotten the attention of fellow diva Ariana Grande who has included it on the pre-show playlist for her current world tour. A true diva recognizes taste - I don’t make the rules.

MC’s VIRAL PICK

“DANCE…” by Slayyyter

When I first explored Slayyter’s newest album WOR$T GIRL IN AMERICA a few months back, I liked what I heard and was excited to see if the public would catch on. I’m happy to report that they have and it’s thanks to a viral trend that keeps getting bigger. “DANCE…” was first released as a single in January, and just like the rest of her discography, the song fell under the radar. This album is her first official studio album to be released on a major label so with it comes another set of expectations and, let’s face it, resources. I’m not in those conversations but it’s safe to assume that TikTok has some sort of deal in place when it comes to showcasing artists from major labels given the fact that the platform is responsible for promoting a vast majority of the songs currently charting on the Billboard Hot 100. “DANCE…” has become a sleeper hit due to its viral status. It’s even on track to become Slayyyter’s first-ever charting hit.

Whatever’s going on behind the scenes, it’s working because she performed to a packed crowd at Governor’s Ball over the weekend.

The song is high energy and the trend revolves around it. It’s all about locking in, but in this trend you act like you’re sick, ate something bad or whatever your brain can come up with that would result in you locking the F-CK in afterwards like a “just kidding!” type move. I’m talking you pull a Demi Lovato on the camera - locking in like your life depended on it. As usual, people are getting pretty creative with it and you’d be surprised just how long you can be entertained by the various ways people “lock in”. The song is close to hitting a million streams a day on Spotify, easily a personal best for her. It has also amassed over a million sound uses.  Everyone from Lizzo to Nicole Scherzinger are hopping onto the bandwagon to help earn some engagement (as per usual, LOL). What a trippy feeling to go from fighting to get your songs heard to having people use it to boost themselves up. The gays have always been in Slayyyter’s corner though, so this song going viral during Pride month feels especially special.

@slayyyter LOL #YAY ♬ original sound - erika_kirk_stare1

@nicolescherzinger Had to hop on this trend 🤣 @slayyyter ♬ original sound - ☆

@grace.nakazawa.santos got a little cocky there #dance #slayyyter #morningcoffee ♬ original sound - ☆

The 2026 “MC’s MUSIC LOUNGE” Spotify playlist is live. You can add it here to keep up to date with my weekly picks throughout the year. 

With Love, 

MC

It had already been confirmed earlier this year that Emma Stone’s next project, shockingly, won’t be a film with Yorgos Lanthimos. Instead she’s finally making another rom-com, co-starring Chris Pine, and directed by her husband Dave McCary, called The Catch. Back in February, Deadline reported that as soon as Emma was attached, several actors expressed interest in the project with Chris ultimately landing the part. At the time, though, there weren’t all that many plot details, but yesterday there was an additional casting announcement that also came with more story.

Emma Stone + Chris Pine is already excellent casting. And in a rom-com? I’ve already bought a ticket, I don’t need to know what it’s about. Now Ashley Padilla has signed on, perhaps in the role of the best friend/sister/assistant (which Betty Gilpin just did SO well in Office Romance), plus we now know that Emma’s playing “the most hated woman in baseball”, something to do with the fact that she f-cks up an important play (by catching the ball?) during a game. Per The Hollywood Reporter, the film has been described as “Bull Durham meets Notting Hill”.

Bull Durham and Notting Hill? OK so Bull Durham because baseball – we love baseball! – and Notting Hill because she has to go into hiding and bunks down with an adorably awkward and unassuming normie?

Hurry the f-ck up and make this movie so we can watch it TOMORROW, PLEASE!

Here’s another reason to be excited about The Catch. The version of the script that they’re working with was co-written by Jen Statsky, the co-creator of Hacks, building off the original idea by Patrick Kang and Michael Levin. If you watch Hacks, you know what Jen can do.

I can’t wait to see Emma in this role. And it’s a smart role for her to play at this point in her career – because she’s been popular, even beloved, for so long. But around the time that she won her second Oscar for Poor Things, there’s been a subtle shift. Leaning into that by playing “the most hated woman in baseball” is a savvy move. Whatever f-ckass negativity there is on f-ckass TikTok can be directed towards a character and a performance. Not a full villain, but a person battling a villain label in a movie, but then longing and yearning looks in the rain and kiss and make it all better.