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(Warning: This post contains spoilers for Wednesday’s episode of “The Masked Singer.”)
“The Masked Singer” Season 5 returned Wednesday with an episode featuring Group B’s second performances and the show’s second “Wildcard” round. And just like last week, the night’s surprise contestant came in and managed to steal the slot from an existing competitor. In this case, it was newbie Crab who got more votes than Grandpa Monster, who was thus eliminated from the competition and unmasked at the end of the episode.
Following last Wednesday’s inaugural “Wildcard” round for Group A — which now consists of Russian Doll, Seashell, Robopine (f.k.a. Porcupine) and Orca (who ousted Raccoon) — Group B’s remaining contestants Grandpa Monster, Chameleon, Black Swan and Piglet took the stage again.
They each gave their second performances in front of panelists Jenny McCarthy, Ken Jeong, Robin Thicke and Nicole Scherzinger, as well as guest host Niecy Nash (filling in for Nick Cannon, who is recovering from COVID-19).
Once those four were done, the “Wildcard” round began, with crashing contestant Crab making their grand entrance by singing Bill Withers’ “Ain’t No Sunshine.”
Then it was time for the judges and at-home audience to cast their votes for Wednesday’s top contestant.
The performer who came in last was Grandpa Monster, who sang Joan Jett’s “Bad Reputation.” Before Grandpa Monster was unmasked, Thicke guessed the contestant was Johnny Manziel, Scherzinger picked Jake Paul, Jeong said Kevin Hart and McCarthy thought The Miz. Grandpa Monster turned out to be YouTube star Logan Paul.
Read TheWrap’s interview with Paul about his time on “The Masked Singer” here.
“The Masked Singer” Season 5 began with 10 scheduled contestants, broken into two groups. After last week’s elimination of Danny Trejo’s Raccoon and addition of “Wildcard” contestant Orca, and the prior episodes’ cuts of Phoenix (Caitlyn Jenner) and Snail (Kermit the Frog), there are now eight remaining contestants, due to the fact that Crab took over Grandpa Monster’s slot in Group B via Wednesday’s “Wildcard” round.
Per Fox, “The season five contestants boast a combined 26 Grammy nominations, nine multi-platinum singles, four Academy Award nominations, three Super Bowl appearances, six gold medals and two world records.”
“The Masked Singer” airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on Fox.
Since the interview first aired, it has become understood that William, 38, is not pleased with his brother and sister-in-law, who also made mention of William's wife, Kate Middleton, during the interview.
Now, a source has told Us Weekly that the Duke of Cambridge wants to publicly share his side of the story.
Prince William is reportedly 'struggling' to hold back sharing his side of the story following Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's recent tell-all interview. (WireImage)
"The queen is insisting that the royals handle the matter privately," said the insider
Furthermore, they also said that Queen Elizabeth II "thinks that retaliating will only add fuel to the fire and make the situation worse."
That doesn't mean William isn't antsy about responding to the claims, however.
"William is struggling to hold back," shared the source. "He wants to get his side out there."
The insider said that the mention of Middleton is his priority for wanting to speak out, as he's reportedly felt "very protective" over his wife since Markle claimed Middleton made her cry around the time of her wedding to Harry.
Additionally, the royal would like to "clear the racial allegations," said the source.
Prince William reportedly wants to speak out to defend his wife Kate Middleton, who has been accused of making Meghan Markle cry. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)
Reps for Kensington and Buckingham Palaces did not immediately respond to Fox News' requests for comment.
He added that, at the time, he had not yet spoken to Harry about the contents of the interview. Gayle King recently reported that the brothers have since spoken, but conversations were "not productive."
Britney Spears’ fans have speculated that a new Instagram post — in which she says she was “embarrassed,” by the NY Times’ “Framing Britney Spears” documentary and “cried for two weeks” — was not entirely written by the pop star.
Now, her former makeup artist Billy Brasfield is adding to the chorus, claiming to Page Six he personally spoke to Britney and that she told him she had no control over the caption.
In a post showing Britney dancing, the caption from her own Instagram states, “I didn’t watch the documentary but from what I did see of it I was embarrassed by the light they put me in … I cried for two weeks and well …. I still cry sometimes !!!!”
Brasfield, who has also worked with Mariah Carey, Beyonce and Christina Aguilera, contends of Britney, “The content is her, but … the words are NOT how she feels.”
Brasfield posted on his Instagram claiming that Britney told him that, “Of course watching certain things that are now so far in HER past … circumstances that she has already lived through, and has moved beyond, that are now being brought up over and over, can be #emotional. She ‘deals’ with it, and frankly very well … she is not ‘fragile’.”
Brasfield — who worked with Britney on “The X Factor” in 2012 through her 2013 video “Scream and Shout” — tells Page Six of the post, “I immediately knew it was not her,” alleging, “I texted her about it and she texted me back last night.”
“What was upsetting [about the post] — it was basically a narrative denouncing her fans and the Free Britney movement and people now taking a very conscious look at the facts and what is going on,” he tells us.
“Although it might be complicated for her, of course she is invested. It’s her life. She does not like being a victim, she never wanted to be a victim and doesn’t see herself as a victim. She sees herself as a survivor and has navigated this with patience and strategy.”
Brasfield believes that the post was meant to distract people from what is currently happening in court with Britney’s financial matters and conservatorship.
On Tuesday, Page Six reported that Britney’s father Jamie, who functions as her conservator, filed legal papers seeking to have the “Toxic” singer’s estate pay more than $3 million in legal fees — including nearly $2 million to his own lawyers.
“If approved by the judge, this money would come from Britney’s estate, meaning she essentially would be paying her own father’s lawyers to fight her in court,” a source told Page Six.
Jamie has also requested to continue receiving $16,000 per month for his role as co-conservator of the estate — as well as $2,000 per month for an office space.
Britney Spears and Jamie SpearsFilmMagic; AP
Fans have been speculating Britney did not write the social post, with one tweeting “There is not a single chance that Britney wrote this #FreeBritney.”
But Cassie Petrey, who runs Spears social media for the company Crowd Surf, in February commented on the rumors, insisting, “Britney creates her own posts and writes her own captions for Instagram.”
“She finds the Google images, Pinterest images, quotes, memes and everything else herself. Nobody is suggesting any of that stuff to her.”
Continuing, “Britney is not ‘asking for help’ or leaving secret messages in her social media. She is literally just living her life and trying to have fun on Instagram. My work on Britney’s social media does not involve her conservatorship in any way. That’s a court and lawyer thing … These are facts.”
A separate source close to Britney’s camp insists that the superstar wrote the social media post and alleged of Brasfield, “If he thinks he is speaking with Britney, he is not. He has no relationship with her. Maybe he is being catfished by someone pretending to be her.”
Jamie controlled Spears’ estate from 2008 until 2019 when he stepped aside due to health problems. Licensed fiduciary Jodi Montgomery temporarily replaced Jamie and has since taken steps to permanently succeed him at the star’s request.
Reps for Britney declined to comment, and her lawyers didn’t respond to us. Crowd Surf did not comment further.
SPOILER ALERT: Do not read ahead if you have not watched Season 5, Episode 4 of “The Masked Singer,” which aired March 31 on Fox.
Logan Paul admits his experience on “The Masked Singer” got off to a rough start. Paul, who was the next celebrity to be unmasked on Wednesday’s episode of “The Masked Singer,” said learning to sing and dance at the same time for the show wasn’t exactly what he expected.
“I can barely sing, I’ve never performed in this way, let alone adding dancing to this,” said Paul, who performed as Grandpa Monster. “This is a nightmare. And it was at first, until I crossed that hump and really started falling in love with the show.”
But he recalled being “scared and hesitant” early on. “My PR team got the angry call, I was like, ‘this show is not for me I’m not good at it. They’re having me dance, I thought I was gonna sing!’” Paul said. “And they’re like, just trust the process, believe in yourself.”
So Paul did, and his tune changed after his first episode. “I was like oh my gosh, this really is fun,” he said. “Once you just like open up and let go, this is a great place to be vulnerable and get a fresh start, if you will, because you’re anonymous. And the moment I fell in love with the show then I got eliminated in round two!”
He then joked, “And that’s just the way it works, man. When you get attached to things, you get screwed over! Never fall in love, kids. That’s the lesson.”
Paul also fell in love with his costume, the elderly Grandpa Monster, precisely because it felt like the opposite of his energetic self. “I loved him,” Paul said. “So I didn’t I didn’t really need choices. I thought he’d be a fun misdirect in his geriatric nature, and then me like a kid, teeming with life on the inside like busting out of a grandpa costume. I thought that’d be funny and provide a nice little juxtaposition.”
Indeed, he managed to fool the show’s panelists. Nicole Scherzinger got close (but not quite) by naming Jake Paul — Logan Paul’s brother. Meanwhile, Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg went with Michael “The Miz” Mizanin; Ken Jeong thought it was Kevin Hart; and Robin Thicke thought it was Johnny Manziel (“Johnny Football”).
“I was stumped at the feedback and how many people did not guess me,” Paul said. “I was certain, like I think I even called my manager after the first performance and I was like, my voice is so identifiable, there are so many clips of me screaming, yelling, singing online. People are going to guess that it’s me, not to mention I’m jumping and sprinting and kicking across the stage. But few people guessed it was me. Which I guess proves the whole model of the show is that the anonymous singing is harder to predict than one would think.”
For his second song, Paul sang “Bad Reputation” by Joan Jett. Prior to that, he had performed “Mambo No. 5 (A Little Bit of…),” by Lou Bega. Had Paul continued, he was prepping Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” for his next song.
“I was convinced that I was gonna make it to round three,” he said. “I even said in the post-performance interview, I was like, there’s no way I’m going home tonight, I felt like I crushed it. I felt like the energy was there, I felt like my performance was fine.”
Meanwhile, this isn’t Paul’s only high-profile TV appearance this week; he’s also set to guest star on Friday’s episode of “WWE Smackdown” — also on Fox — as the guest of Sami Zayn. “I just doing stuff,” Paul said. “I like working and I like putting on big shows. Masked Singer blessed me with the opportunity to be on the show and WWE invited me.”
As for whether he wants to explore more singing, Paul said, “I would if I also didn’t have a million other things going on. It was tough to fit it in the schedule, they’re pretty demanding days. And I’m in a full training camp to fight Floyd Mayweather right now so the takeaway I had was just that I really do love performing and if I can continue to do that on a scale that big like I definitely will.”
Meanwhile, guest host Niecy Nash continued her run on Wednesday’s show, as the fill-in for regular host Nick Cannon, who was unable to return for the first several episodes of this season due to a COVID-19 diagnosis.
Also new this season, “wildcard” contestants will be introduced into the competition and join the battle for the golden mask trophy. Season 5 celebrity contestants will be split into two groups of five (A and B), but then all-new masked celebrities will jump into the “wildcard” rounds and compete as well. Additionally, the show has added a new character, a rooster named “Cluedle-Doo,” who promises to add some mischief to the proceedings and share additional clues to viewers.
This season’s costumes include Raccoon, Seashell, Black Swan, Snail, Grandpa Monster, Phoenix, Chameleon, Russian Doll(s), Porcupine, The Piglet and the wildcards. Paul as Grandpa Monster Trejo joins previously unmasked celebrities Danny Trejo (as Raccoon), Caitlyn Jenner (as Phoenix) and Kermit the Frog (as Snail).
The Season 5 contestants boast a combined 26 Grammy nominations, nine multi-platinum singles, four Academy Award nominations, three Super Bowl appearances, six gold medals and two world records.
The show’s panelists are also once competing for a “Golden Ear” trophy based on their first impressions of each masked performer (which McCarthy won last time). Jeong and McCarthy Wahlberg each had a point so far, heading into this episode. This week, for Grandpa Monster, McCarthy Wahlberg went with Morgan Freeman; Jeong went with Emmitt Smith; Thicke’s was Jonny Manziel; and Scherzinger went with Cam Newton. None of them got a point.
Here were the other contestants and their performances on episode two, “Group B Wildcard Round — Rule of Claw”:
Piglet, “The Masked Singer” Courtesy of Fox
Piglet
Song: “Good to Be Alive (Hallelujah),” by Andy Grammer Piglet’s 1st crush: Meg Ryan. “I’m a romantic, she’s the queen of romcoms, it’s a match made in heaven.” Panel guesses: JC Chavez, Austin Mahone, Jonathan Knight Voice-over: “Making my debut on this stage with four days notice was a wild ride. But I countered my nervious energy with a love song that made me feel right at home. When you’ve got your eye on the prize, no pain, no tears and no archnemesis can stand in your way. I always had the chops. But it was my competitive nature that made me a hometown hero. When I got to the big leagues, I never anticipated a lifetime of competition with my archrivals. But that only made me train harder. Because I never throw in the towel. Tonight, when those lights come on, it’s Friday night all over again, even on a Wednesday. Clear eyes, full belly, can’t lose.” Previous song: “Speechless,” by Dan + Shay Previous panel guesses: Adam Lambert, Charlie Puth
Black Swan, “The Masked Singer” Courtesy of Fox
Black Swan
Song: “In My Blood,” by Shawn Mendes Black Swan’s 1st crush: D’Angelo. “His voice and talent, he plays every instrument, he’s just the one for me.” Panel guesses: Demi Lovato, Lindsay Lohan, Ashlee Simpson Voice-over: “I might have seen confident while I was singing, but I was terrified. So hearing all the love from the panel felt amazing. It made me want to put into words how thankful I am to the person who brought me to life and gave me the confidence to start this journey. It hasn’t always been an easy journey for us. The higher I flew, the harder it became for them to keep up. I saw their heartbreaking, so I had to let them go. It was the hardest decision of my life. Over time, I realized I was only able to soar because of the wings they gave me. Eventually we were able to fly back into each others’ lives, just like birds of a feather do. I’m thankful we never gave up on each other, and I hope this performance shows them how much they mean to me.” Previous song: “Barracuda,” by Heart Previous panel guesses: Anya Taylor-Joy, Camilla Cabello, Leona Lewis.
Chameleon, “The Masked Singer” Courtesy of Fox
Chameleon
Song: “21 Questions,” 50 Cent feat. Nate Dogg Chameleon’s 1st crush: Salma Hayek. “I have a thing for hot ladies. And the chick right here is smokin’.” Panel guesses: Iman Shumpert, Dwyane Wade, 2 Chains Voice-over: “I knew if I was going to hold my own against these powerhouse singers, I couldn’t just blend in. I had to stand out and let my flow shine. My whol life has been about embracing what makes me unique. And I’ve made it my quest to help others shine too. When I was young, someone inseperable from me was constantly attacked for who she was. It was hard to witness, but I helped lift her up until she was ultimately able to embrace what made her unique. But then tragedy struck, and she was taken from me. It was the most difficult thing I think I ever faced. Now I honor her memory by fighting for those who don’t feel accepted. Because I want everyone to feel proud showing their true colors.” Previous song: “Ride Wit Me,” by Nelly Previous panel guesses: Dwight Howard, Redfoo, Nick Cannon
WILDCARD: Crab
Song: “Ain’t No Sunshine,” by Bill Withers 1st crush: Janet Jackson. “We grew up together on ‘Good Times.’” Panel guesses: Lenny Kravitz, Bobby Brown, Johnny Gill Voice-over: “All my life I dreamed of being a star. And I was blessed that my dream came true in a flash. Everyone around the globe wanted to be like me. I felt like a King Crab. But with every blessing, tragedy seems to follow. It’s been a struggle dealing with the darkness that has followed me and my family. We’ve endured so many twists, turns and traumas. But through the pain, it’s the strength of my family that allows me to stand and be a star again. My song tonight is a tribute to that love and the family members who have gone before me. Because after all the darkness, it’s time to finally let the light back in.”
Another week, another truly unpredictable and somewhat upsetting Masked Singer reveal.
Some fans had figured out that the Grandpa Monster was famous/infamous Youtuber Logan Paul, but it became extremely clear with this week's installment. He revealed his love of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and his love of fighting, and sang about his "Bad Reputation" before being voted off the show. He also, for some reason, started a feud with Piglet.
After he took off his mask, there was one element of his latest clue package that felt, in retrospect, a little...unwise. The package showed Grandpa Monster giving his clues in a forest, which immediately might remind you of the controversy that landed Paul in many headlines in early 2018 after he posted a video from Aokigahara, known as the "suicide forest." The video appeared to feature a dead body.
Logan deleted the video, apologized profusely and pledged to donate $1 million to suicide prevention organizations after a three-week break from YouTube, so it feels like a strange choice to bring up anything that might remind people of that controversy three years later.
Lauren London paid tribute to her late longtime partner, Nipsey Hussle, in a moving Instagram post Wednesday, which marked the second anniversary of his death.
The actor posted a photo of Hussle, who was fatally shot on March 31, 2019, outside of Marathon Clothing, the store he founded in South Los Angeles. He was 33.
London wrote in the post’s caption that the day Hussle was killed “changed the course of my life forever. ”
″[Two] years, and it feels like yesterday and eternity all at the same time,” she added. “Grief and Healing have been constant companions on this journey.”
Hussle, born Ermias Asghedom, was widely celebrated for his longtime efforts to revitalize his South Los Angeles community. The rapper’s first studio album, “Victory Lap,” earned him a Grammy nod in 2018. He won two posthumous Grammys last year and earned a nod for his feature on Big Sean’s song “Deep Reverence” at this year’s show.
London’s Instagram post dedicated to Hussle on Wednesday also included the following touching tribute:
In Honor of His life and demonstration... May all of Heaven exalt Your name for all You did on Earth and beyond. Brave and Beloved Soul, Ermias. You are missed deeply. You are loved immensely. You will forever be.
The actor honored Hussle in an Instagram post on Valentine’s Day last month, sharing a slide of photos featuring a photo of herself looking up at the sky as well as a picture of the late rapper.
″‘Look Up Boogie’ God Is Love,” she captioned the post.
The fourth episode of “The Masked Singer” on March 31 showcased the four acts from Group B who had won enough votes to stay in the competition after their debut on St. Patrick’s Day. They again took to the stage covered from head to toe in cumbersome costumes that disguised them as the Black Swan, Chameleon, Grandpa Monster and Piglet
As much fun as we have watching these celebrities sing, we get even more enjoyment out of figuring out who they are. Keep reading for “The Masked Singer” spoilers, including the real name of the famous fellow hidden inside the Piglet costume. He wowed the crowd and the four judges (Ken Jeong, Jenny McCarthy, Nicole Scherzinger, Robin Thicke) on March 17 with his cover of the Dan + Shay hit “Speechless.”
We aren’t buying the judges guesses that the Piglet is singers Adam Lambert or Charlie Puth. And he certainly isn’t Aussie actor Liam Hemsworth.
We think that the Piglet is Nick Lachey, the 98 Degrees boy band singer who at one time was even more famous for being married to Jessica Simpson. Disagree with us? Well consider just how well the clues offered up by Piglet match details of Nick’s life.
The clues package is themed “Love in the Mud” and told in the style of “The Bachelor.” The Piglet readily admits that while he hasn’t always been lucky in love, he remains a hopeless romantic. Indeed, he has given away a few roses in his time. And he reveals that the whole world saw his heart break; Nick and Jessica split at the height of their fame in 2005.
Lachey admits that he was smitten with Vanessa Minnillo, the beauty queen turned TV reporter, when she appeared in his 2006 video for the song “What’s Left of Me.” Like the Piglet he told Vanessa that he was in love with her on their second date. The pair have been married since 2011 and have three children. They host the Netflix reality dating competition series “Love is Blind.”
Just like the Piglet, Lachey sports several tattoos.
Nick was raised in the suburbs of Cincinnati, home to the Flying Pig marathon.
Cluedle-Doo told us that “Piglet knows how to stay cool, even in the heat.” Wouldn’t you agree that 98 degrees is certainly a hot temperature?
98 Degrees had four chart-topping albums and sold 10 million discs; as a group, this season’s contestants have racked up sales of 55 million.
The group’s self-titled first album went gold while each of the next three reached platinum status; collectively the contenders for the Golden Mask have 25 gold and platinum records.
We’ll only find out if we are correct about our guess that the Piglet is Nick Lachey when he is unmasked. That will happen when he loses a vote or wins the show. Do you think we nailed the true identity of Piglet? Sound off in the comments section with your best guesses.
Be sure to make your predictions to influence our reality TV racetrack odds. You can keep changing your predictions until just before the next episode airs on Fox. You’ll compete to win eternal bragging rights and a spot on our “The Masked Singer” Season 5 leaderboard. See our contest rules and sound off with other fans in our reality TV forum. Read more Gold Derby entertainment news.
'The Masked Singer' Season 5: Clues, guesses and spoilers
The woman’s sister told police she had not heard from Evelyn Sakash, who was described as a "heavy hoarder," since October 2020.
The sister had recently come to New York to find Sakash and hired a cleaning crew to clear out the woman’s house in College Point on 123 Street to see if she was inside, cops said.
At first glance, HBO Max’s Made For Love looks like a Black Mirror episode in the disguise of a half-hour comedy series. In short, it’s the story of Hazel Green (Cristin Milioti) who runs away from her 10-year marriage to tech mogul Byron Gogol (Billy Magnussen) after she learns he’s implanted her with his latest innovation: A device that allows him to know her every thought. But Made For Love—adapted from Alissa Nutting’s novel of the same name—is about more than the horrors of technology’s potential, it’s also about love in the grandest sense: How we feel it, how we show it, and how our culture has warped our idea of what love even is.
“We’ve been conditioned to feel like that’s the dream,” Milioti told The A.V. Club, “that someone comes in and is like, ‘Guess what? You never have to worry about money again, you’re going to not want for anything, you’re going to live in a nice house.’ But then it’s hell on Earth!” That’s certainly what Hazel comes to realize in Made For Love’searliest chapters, and that’s what we dug into with Milioti, Magnussen, and their co-star Ray Romano during the series’ virtual press day. The trio shared which of pop culture’s depictions of love have had a lasting impact on their lives, and then we turned our attention to Made For Love’s unexpected musical numbers, including a creepy take on “Love Is Strange” and Romano’s spoken-word rendition of Beyoncé’s “Crazy In Love.”
Made For Love’s first three episodes premiere on April 1 on HBO Max.
On the two-year anniversary of Nipsey Hussle's death, Lauren London took to Instagram to pay tribute to her partner.
She wrote, "The Day Of Ermias’ transition changed the course of my life forever. 2 years, and it feels like yesterday and eternity all at the same time. Grief and Healing have been constant companions on this journey.
"In Honor of His life and demonstration... May all of Heaven exalt Your name for all You did on Earth and beyond.
Brave and Beloved Soul, Ermias.
You are missed deeply.
You are loved immensely.
You will forever be.
I love you eternally.
The true-ish story of a road trip gone to hell and back gets the big-screen treatment with Zola, a wild, provocative film from director Janicza Bravo. Taylour Paige plays a dancer who meets another woman, played by Riley Keough, and gets talked into going along on a trip to make some serious money. But nothing goes according to plan, and things go from bad to worse and then downright crazy. Watch the Zola trailer below.
Zola Trailer
On October 27, 2015, Aziah King, using the Twitter handle @_zolarmoon, took to social media and asked: “Y’all wanna hear a story about why me & this bitch here fell out???????? It’s kind of long but full of suspense.” What followed was a wild and crazy thread that went viral, telling the tale of how King went on a road trip with a cast of characters who could best be described as “eccentric.” The story was indeed based on true events, although King changed some things around here and there.
Now, that Twitter thread has become a movie – Zola, a dark comedy from director Janicza Bravo. Here’s the synopsis:
“Y’all wanna hear a story about why me & this bitch here fell out? It’s kind of long but full of suspense.”
Thus began the odyssey of one A’Ziah King, aka ZOLA. From acclaimed writer/director Janicza Bravo, Zola’s stranger than fiction saga, which she first told in a now iconic series of viral, uproarious tweets, comes to dazzling cinematic life.
Zola (Taylour Paige), a Detroit waitress, strikes up a new friendship with a customer, Stefani (Riley Keough), who seduces her to join a weekend of dancing and partying in Florida. What at first seems like a glamorous trip full of “hoeism” rapidly transforms into a 48-hour journey involving a nameless pimp, an idiot boyfriend, some Tampa gangsters and other unexpected adventures in this wild, see-it-to-believe-it tale.
In addition to Paige and Keough, Zola also stars Nicholas Braun, Ari’el Stachel, and Colman Domingo. I caught Zola at Sundance 2020, and it exhausted me. It’s a sensory overload of a movie, and it’s going to wow some viewers while turning others off. One thing is for sure: Taylour Paige is phenomenal in the lead, and she needs to become a huge star, immediately. As I wrote in my review:
It’s the performances that keep Zola afloat. Keough can play this type of gum-snapping, slang-slinging character in her sleep, and she’s quite funny as the babyish Stefani, who isn’t as clueless and innocent as she makes herself out to be. But this is Paige’s show. As Zola, Paige’s comic timing is electric, and she brings a much-needed amount of sympathy and empathy to the proceedings. If this movie doesn’t make her a huge star, something is seriously wrong.
"Framing Britney Spears," which aired in February, profiled the singer's traumatic life in the spotlight and delved into the court-sanctioned conservatorship that gives her father, Jamie Spears, power over her finances and personal affairs.
Responding to the film on Tuesday night, Spears told her 29 million Instagram followers that she had "cried for two weeks" following its broadcast.
"My life has always been very speculated ... watched ... and judged really my whole life !!!" she wrote, alongside a video of her dancing to the Aerosmith song "Crazy" in her home.
The 39-year-old continued: "I have been exposed my whole life performing in front of people!!! It takes a lot of strength to TRUST the universe with your real vulnerability cause I've always been so judged... insulted... and embarrassed by the media... and I still am till this day!!!! As the world keeps on turning and life goes on we still remain so fragile and sensitive as people!!!
According to Spears, she didn't watch the documentary in its entirety but was "embarrassed" by how she was portrayed.
"I didn't watch the documentary but from what I did see of it I was embarrassed by the light they put me in ... I cried for two weeks and well .... I still cry sometimes!!!!"
Samantha Stark, the director of the New York Times-made documentary, told Entertainment Tonight last month that her team "tried everything" to secure an interview with Spears but got nowhere.
After touching on the documentary, Spears said in her Instagram post: "I do what I can in my own spirituality with myself to try and keep my own joy ... love ... and happiness!!!! Every day dancing brings me joy!!! I'm not here to be perfect ... perfect is boring ... I'm here to pass on kindness !!!!"
CNN has reached out to Spears' representatives for further comment.
The singer has been subject to a court-ordered conservatorship since 2008, following a series of personal issues that played out publicly.
At a hearing on the conservatorship in November, her lawyer, Samuel D. Ingham III, asked a Los Angeles judge to permanently remove the elder Spears from his role, saying the singer would not be returning to the stage while he remained in control of her fortune.
Prince Harry and Meghan were legally married at Windsor Castle, the Archbishop of Canterbury has said.
During her interview with Oprah Winfrey, Meghan said the couple exchanged vows three days before their official wedding in May 2018.
Justin Welby said he would have been "committing a serious crime" if he had signed the marriage certificate on the actual day, knowing it was false.
But he met the couple "in a private and pastoral setting" beforehand, he said.
Harpo Productions/Joe Pugliese
During a revelatory two-hour interview earlier this month, Meghan told Oprah: "You know, three days before our wedding we got married."
She said: "No one knows that. But we called the Archbishop, and we just said, 'Look, this thing, this spectacle is for the world, but we want our union between us'.
"So the vows that we have framed in our room are just the two of us in our backyard with the Archbishop of Canterbury."
The Most Reverend was speaking to a group of European newspapers when he was asked to address Meghan's remarks.
He told Italian newspaper La Repubblica: "I met the Duke and Duchess of Sussex several times in a private and pastoral setting before the official ceremony on Saturday 19 May 2018. That day was the day of the marriage.
"If I had signed the certificate on a different day, I would have been committing a serious crime. The marriage was celebrated on the 19 May. But I won't say what occurred in our other meetings."
NEW YORK (AP) — Historians estimate that 1 in 4 American cowboys were Black but you would be hard pressed to find a movie genre whiter than the Western. “Concrete Cowboy,” an urban Western about African American riders in Philadelphia starring Idris Elba, is about an often unseen — and persisting — Black cowboy culture.
“Concrete Cowboy” is a father-son drama set around Fletcher Street Stables, one of the oldest and last-remaining of Philadelphia’s hardscrabble inner-city stables. It dates back more than 100 years to when horse-drawn wagons were used to deliver produce, laundry and milk. But through tenacity and improvisation, Fletcher Street has remained a cherished refuge and an ardent pastime for both kids and adults on the streets of Philadelphia’s Strawberry Mansion.
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“That’s a tough neighborhood but if you’re on top of horse, people literally look up to you,” says Gregory Neri, author of the novel “Ghetto Cowboy,” the basis for the film directed by Ricky Staub.
Neri first heard about the stables in 2008 when a friend sent him a link to a Life magazine article about Fletcher Street.
“The first image I saw was this Black kid on the back of a horse in the middle of the inner city in North Philly,” says Neri. “I had the reaction most people have, which is: ‘What is this? What’s going on here?’”
“Concrete Cowboy,” which premiered last fall at the Toronto International Film Festival and debuts Friday on Netflix, shines perhaps the brightest light yet on an abiding community of Black cowboys now facing an uncertain future. It was shot in the vacant lots Fletcher Street cowboys ride in, and its co-stars -- alongside a cast of Elba, Caleb McLaughlin, Method Man and Jharrel Jerome -- include many of the stables’ actual riders.
In a genre that’s been perpetually drawn to American myth and open plains, “Concrete Cowboy” is urban, contemporary and authentic.
“My dad was a big Western fan. I grew up sort of watching them with a side eye,” says Elba, also a producer. “It didn’t occur to me until the Bob Marley song ‘Buffalo Soldier,’ which opened my interest about Black cowboys. And it occurred to me: I’ve been making films forever and I’ve never been offered a Western. You realize there’s a deep history that spans America and Africa over decades, centuries in fact, that you’ve never seen in film.”
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As film historian Mia Mask, introducing a series on Black Westerns for the Criterion Channel, has noted: “Hollywood definitely whitewashed the image of the frontier.” The word “cowboy,” itself, was a racist term for a Black ranch worker. (A white one was a cowhand.) John Wayne’s character in John Ford’s “The Searchers” was based on a Black man.
For the actors, encountering and enmeshing with the community was an eye-opening experience. McLaughlin, the 19-year-old “Stranger Things” star, plays Cole, a wayward 15-year-old sent by his mother to live with his estranged father, Harp (Elba).
“It was all a new experience,” says McLaughlin. “Being in Philly, there are actually horses that live in people’s homes there. It’s not just two blocks of people with horses. It’s a whole community. There are people with cowboy boots walking around. There are babies riding ponies. I was like, ‘Wow, this is different.’”
Staub, making his directorial debut, had initially planned to shoot the entire movie with local non-professional actors.
“Obviously, when Idris Elba shows interest in being in your movie, you pivot,” he says, chuckling. “When I was talking with Idris, it was probably a little brazen, I said, ‘I don’t want this to feel like Halloween, like you’re playing dress up. To me, you need to do the most work to fit into this world and not vice versa.’”
Staub first learned about Fletcher Street while living in Philadelphia. One rider that he befriended, Eric Miller, introduced him around and they began to conceive, a little quixotically, of a movie. Miller, who had once been set to play Harp, was shot and killed just a week before prep began on the film. “Concrete Cowboys” is dedicated to him. Still, Miller’s vision helped guide the production.
“Eric echoed something to me that really had a lot of impact. When he was growing up, he loved cowboy films. These guys even played cowboy videogames on their phones. Everything was about that cowboy life,” says Staub. “But he didn’t have a film growing up where cowboys looked like him. What Eric wanted to leave was essentially a Western reimagined with the Black community.”
On set, Staub was flanked by riders looking over his shoulder on the monitor or shouting lines to Elba. “I recognized this was their story to tell,” Staub says.
For Elba, who’s also to star in the upcoming revenge Western “The Harder They Fall,” it was more like making a documentary.
“I’m very open to telling stories that have a common truth but a unique perspective,” Elba says. “People in London, in Hackney where I grew up, will watch ‘Concrete Cowboy’ thinking it might be a Western and go, ‘Oh man.’”
The Fletcher Street Stables are also imperiled. The vacant lot its riders had long used -- and which they’re seen riding through frequently in the film -- is currently being developed. To survive, Fletcher Street needs a more permanent home. To facilitate that, the filmmakers have helped organize a nonprofit, the Philadelphia Urban Riding Academy, and a GoFundMe. They’re trying to raise money for an equestrian center and to convince Philadelphia government officials that the Fletcher Street heritage is worth preserving.
“We’ve been losing these stables one by one to gentrification. Fletcher Street is one of the first and last. It’s kind of like our history is being erased,” says Erin Brown, director of the Philadelphia Urban Riding Academy.
Brown, who served as a consultant, extra and stunt rider on the film, first started riding as a 6-year-old. She vividly remembers, as a kid, watching the cowboys riding down the street from her great-aunt’s porch. Since then, Fletcher Street has been her home.
“You come to the stables and you feel this love,” says Brown. “It builds you as a person.”
