March 5, 2021 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Walt Disney Television/Yolanda Perez(NEW YORK) — Alec Baldwin, who perhaps should know by now to stay off social media, has deleted his Twitter account for a fifth time, after he was flamed for seemingly shading Golden Globe-winning star of The Crown, Gillian Anderson. 

Baldwin retweeted a CNN story about Anderson’s accent; while she is American, she was raised both in the States and the U.K., and not only can perform a flawless British accent as a result, but occasionally drifts into it during overseas interviews.

When she accepted her Golden Globe via remote last week, some on Twitter were surprised to hear The Crown‘s Margaret Thatcher speaking with her normal American accent.

Baldwin snarked in a now-deleted post, “Switching accents ? That sounds…fascinating,” obviously referring to his wife Hilaria’s Spanish accent swapping flap — the outcry over which, of course, led her to come forward to explain she is both white and hails from Boston, not Mallorca, as had been repeatedly reported. 

The response to Baldwin’s tweet earned him another rake over the online coals, with fans coming to Anderson’s defense, and taking renewed swipes at Hilaria’s cultural appropriation fiasco.

One said, “At least she ACTUALLY lived in both the US and England! It would make sense…..um….and she is an actor. Your wife lived in Boston her whole life and took a vacation or two in Spain. Comparing apples to how do you say…” following that with a cucumber emjoi — the vegetable Mrs. Baldwin insisted she couldn’t remember the English name for during a Today show cooking segment.

Baldwin explained his decision to leave Twitter yet again, during a mid-drive Instagram post.

“Of course you can’t do any irony on Twitter,” Baldwin said. “Of course you can’t do any irony in the United States anymore, it’s such an uptight…unpleasant place right now.” 

Baldwin insisted he’s a “huge, huge fan” of Anderson’s — without mentioning her name. He also lamented “haters” on Twitter, saying the social media platform, “is one-third interesting posts…one-third..puerile nonsense…and then it’s one-third, or more, of abject hatred and malice.”  

Earlier this week, Baldwin’s posting a family Instagram post — featuring the couple’s new baby, to which he captioned “mi vida” — also sparked online snark.

By Stephen Iervolino
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

March 5, 2021 • No Comments • Entertainment News

ABC(LONDON) — While there are secrets in the finale of WandaVision, which just dropped today — and which we won’t reveal — star Paul Bettany admits hype over an earth-shaking cameo in the last episodes was on him. 

Quite literally. 

Last month, he told the Black Girl Nerds podcast, “There’s stuff that I can’t talk to you about, where I get to work with an actor that’s going to be a surprise for everybody. I get to work with an actor that I’ve been wanting to work with forever, who is just unbelievable. We have some real fireworks together.”

Naturally, the hints got fans guessing. Would it be Doctor Strange? Professor Xavier from the X-Men films? 

But on Thursday, Bettany told Good Morning America that the “secret” cameo amounted to Bettany working with…himself: an alternate version of Vision seen in the show’s penultimate episode. 

“You know when you think something is going to be funny, and you say it? And then you actually panic about it? Because that’s what I did,” a slightly embarrassed Bettany admitted to GMA via a remote interview.

He added, “Fans started guessing about who it might be, and they were guessing people like Benedict Cumberbatch or Patrick Stewart. And I was thinking, ‘…that’s a good idea!’ And they’re going to be so disappointed when they find out it’s me!”

When pushed for some actual tea on the finale, Bettany flexed his trolling muscles again, by saying he’d love to spill secrets — only to freeze on camera, pretending his Internet service was dodgy.

The Marvel movie veteran wouldn’t answer various fan theories about the finale, responding to each of Michael Strahan’s questions with “Hmmm” — except one. When pressed whether Vision would “survive the finale,” Bettany allowed, “Well, my bank manager certainly hopes so,” cracking up the GMA team. 

By Stephen Iervolino
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

March 5, 2021 • No Comments • Entertainment News

ABC/Paul Hebert(LOS ANGELES) — Following Chris Harrison’s apology Thursday on ABC’s Good Morning America for comments he made in defense of current Bachelor contestant Rachael Kirkconnell, former Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay is reportedly ready to forgive the franchise’s embattled host.

Following the interview, Lindsay told TMZ that she has accepted Harrison’s apology “because it’s what [she] needs to do to move forward with [her] life.”

Rachel tells the gossip website that she and Chris haven’t spoken directly since his GMA interview, but she watched it.

Kirkconnell’s past social media posts showed her “liking” a photo containing a Confederate flag, as well as photos of her attending an “Old South” plantation-themed party in 2018.

Harrison found himself at the center of a controversy, when, in a February 9 interview with Lindsay on Extra, he claimed that Kirkconnell was a victim of cancel culture.

In his GMA interview with Michael Strahan, Harrison walked back the comments, saying, “Antebellum parties are not O.K. Past, present, future, knowing what that represents is unacceptable.”

Harrison, who previously announced he was “stepping away” from The Bachelor, also made it clear he wants to return to show next season.

TMZ cites “sources close to Rachel” as saying she doesn’t believe it’s up to her to decide when he’s ready to come back, suggesting the final decision rests with him and the franchise.

In the meantime, author and TV personality Emmanuel Acho has been announced as Harrison’s “After the Final Rose” replacement, which airs March 15.

By George Costantino
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

March 5, 2021 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Billy Porter in “Pose” – FX(NEW YORK) — Pose is returning for a third and final season on May 2, co-creator and executive producer Steven Canals announced Friday on Good Morning America. The series finale will air June 6.

“It was a very difficult decision for us to make, but this has been an incredible journey and we have told the story that we wanted to tell the way that we wanted to tell it,” Canals told GMA.

“I, along with my incredible collaborators, never intended on changing the television landscape. I simply wanted to tell an honest story about family, resilience and love.”

The FX series, created by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Canals, premiered in June 2018 and followed a group of queer and transgender people of color in the ballroom scene of New York City in the late 1980s and early 1990s at the height of the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

“To go from the beginning of my career in the late ’90s when it was nearly impossible to get an LGBTQ character on television to Pose — which will go down in history for having the largest LGBTQ cast of all time — is a truly full circle moment for me,” he said.

“Pose” made history for having the largest cast of trans actors — all of whom were women of color — including Rodriguez, Dominique Jackson, Indya Moore Angelica Ross and Hailie Sahar. Also, part of the main cast is made up of cisgender actors of color who identify as queer, including Billy Porter, Ryan Jamaal Swain and Dyllón Burnside.

Trans talent has also been featured behind the camera, as Janet Mock has directed and either written or co-written numerous episodes. Our Lady J has also written or co-written several episodes to date. The two also serve as producers on the series.

By Carson Blackwelder and Eric Jones
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

March 5, 2021 • No Comments • Entertainment News

“A Quiet Place Part II” — Jonny Cournoyer/Copyright © 2019 Paramount Pictures. All Rights Reserved(NEW YORK) — The COVID-19 pandemic continues to wreak havoc on the movie industry.

Deadline reports Paramount has changed the release date for A Quiet Place Part II to May 28, marking the fifth change for the movie’s opening.

Paramount originally scheduled the sequel for March 20, 2020. From there it was pushed to September 4, 2020, then April 2021 and, finally, September 17.

The first installment of A Quiet Place was a major hit for Paramount in 2018, delivering $188 million here in the states and over $340 million worldwide.

Meanwhile, Universal Pictures has also delayed the the theatrical release dates for two of its blockbusters

The ninth installment in the Fast & Furious franchise, slated for a May 28 release, won’t hit theaters until June 25.  Despite New York City reopening theaters on Friday and Los Angeles expected to follow suit in the near future, Universal is waiting for overseas markets to lift restrictions, in hopes of having the film opening as many markets as possible, according to the entertainment website.

The Fast & Furious franchise has made over $5 billion around the world.

Additionally, Minions: The Rise of Gru, set to open July 2, will now open a year later on July 1, 2022.

Minions has been the studio’s most profitable franchise.  The four films have have combined for more than $3.7 billion worldwide.

By George Costantino
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.