Monday, December 22, 2025
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HBO’s Satirical “White Lotus” Comes to a Surprising, Shocking Yet Satisfying Ending

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I will try not to give anything away but STOP reading now if you don’t want any details at all of the “White Lotus” finale.

One person from the cast did wind up in the coffin, and it wasn’t who I expected. Nor any of you who thought it would be Rachel, Shane’s unhappy wife. She lived. What her future will be remains unclear, but she didn’t end the vacation dead.

Sadly, I doubt any of the cast will be seen again in the next installment of “White Lotus,” although I’d like to see Belinda again. I’d hate to think of her just being a lifer at the Maui White Lotus, getting nowhere.

The Mosbacher family gets a happy/unhappy ending. I think Mike White copped out a little bit because one of their endings is unrealistic. It’s really a fantasy. But the fate of Kai, who stole the jewels from their safe, is the saddest part of the saga. He was used by Paula, who will just move on now with this wreckage a fading part of her history.

As for the Jennifer Coolidge-Jon Gries story, all that coughing is not a good sign. Jon Gries’s Greg is obviously not going to live long. Tanya meant well with Belinda, and thinks her big cash payout will assuage all guilt. I hope Belinda uses the money for something important, like starting her business.

And Armond: Murray Bartlett turned that character into an opera. A self destructive one, to be sure. I’m sorry Armond won’t be in the next series. But Bartlett’s stock has gone through the roof. He’s been made to do the most awful things ever seen on a TV series. The worst. Beyond. But it looks like he had a lot of fun in the process. Some viewers of the soap “Guiding Light” may recall Bartlett on that show in its last season or so. You could never have guessed he had this in him.

Mike White took a while to get the rhythm of the show right, and to put all the pieces in place. But he picked up speed in Episode 4, and kept it going to a satisfying and shocking end. He helped everyone get through a difficult summer.

Box Office UPDATE: “The Suicide Squad” Dead With $42 Mil Total, “Respect” Gets None on $8.8 Mil Opening

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Two bombs, two different kinds of movies.

Box office experts will be Monday morning quarterbacking “The Suicide Squad” for  a long time to come.

Well reviewed, well made, and dead dead dead. James Gunn did a great job making a very witty, entertaining movie. Maybe it was too smart for its audience. Anyway, “The Suicide Squad” cost $200 million, and has brought in a total of $42 million. The party is over.

What the heck happened? Warner’s is having problems, certainly, even with HBO Max. “In the Heights” just failed in June, and that had high expectations.

“TSS” will be blamed for its title, its rating, and so on. But I think it will come back down the line as a cult hit. But that won’t help anyone now. What a shame. But when a movie goes cold, it’s freezing, and this one has been iced by the moviegoing audience.

And now to “Respect”: the prediction was $9.1 million, it came in under at $8.8 million. Jennifer Hudson can still get an Oscar, and she deserves a special award for throwing herself into the promotion like no other. I am in awe of how much work she put into this.

But “Respect” has middling reviews. It’s just not a great movie except for her performance. The direction is muddled, from a bad script. They should have stuck with Callie Khouri, but changed screenwriters. Tracey Scott Nelson just made up her own story and information. No one took any time understanding Aretha Franklin, except for Jennifer Hudson.

I’ve written about the various people who were left out of the movie. So key to a biography of Aretha at Atlantic Records was Ahmet Ertegun and his wife, Mica. Ahmet and his brother Nesuhi created Atlantic. Aretha loved them, and vice versa. They represented Society to Aretha, something she was keenly aware of. Whenever she needed them or they needed her, even after the Atlantic heyday, they were there for each other. Atlantic also connected Aretha and Ray Charles, and so on. There were so many missed opportunities in “Respect.” But the music lives on.

On the good news side, “Free Guy” is a HIT. Ryan Reynolds and his video gamers scooped up $28.4 million for the four days (three in trade talk). They’ve got over $50 million in the bank worldwide. For Reynolds this should wipe away the stink of “The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard,” which died a slow and painful death. So the lesson here is, all Ryan needs is an actual script and he’s good to go.

PS to United Artists Releasing, you’d better put “Respect” on streaming sooner rather than later. If no one’s coming to the theaters, don’t wait around. And maybe get a better publicist.

A Real Soap Opera: General Hospital Star Steve Burton Diagnosed with COVID, He Says After Testing Negative

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“General Hospital” star Steve Burton, who’s played Jason for about 25y ears or more, says he’s been diagnosed with COVID.

Burton says in a video that he tested negative, but tested positive right before he was supposed to get on a plane for Boston for a promotional tour.

Coincidentally, outspoken “GH” actress Nancy Lee Grahn had recently complained on Twitter about some cast members not being vaccinated. She was not happy about that, although it’s unclear if Burton was vaccinated or who she was talking about.

The whole issue of unvaccinated actors has been a soap opera not just for daytime but also for prime time casts. Their union doesn’t require vaccinations, or at least hadn’t until recently. Many New York casts and crews were upset about this because the crews must vaccinate and didn’t want to work with actors who weren’t. I was told that the only show insisting on vaxxes for everyone was the “Sex and the City” reboot. The cast members demanded it.

Looking at the daytime soaps, it’s hard to understand how they’re even filming those shows. At first there was talk of using doubles and human dolls, and editing together actors who stood far away from each other. But now they all look they’re right up in each other’s faces. With Delta here, and Lambda coming, and who knows what’s next, these shows are creating their own cliffhangers.

Burton says he has no symptoms. Other soap actors have tested positive and took time off. I’m told Burton’s scene partner on the show, Kelly Thiebaud, also tested positive a few weeks ago. I hope they remember “General Hospital” is not a real facility. Back in the 80s, the doctors lost most of their patients!

Music News: Tony Bennett Retires at 95, Nanci Griffith Dies at 68

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Tony Bennett has basically retired at age 95. LOL. First of all, how many people live to be 95? Then, how many performed at Radio City Music Hall on their 95th birthday, and then two nights later? Um, no one.

So really, what can you say? Tony’s devoted son and manager, Danny, says that’s it, and that’s it. Tony has Alzheimer’s, but he can still do a little singing, see friends, enjoy his life.

His album with Lady Gaga comes out on October 1st. Everyone should have the accolades of Tony Bennett. What a life! What a career! He doesn’t need to be shlepping around airports and hotels touring.

On a sadder note, folk-country performer Nanci Griffith was not that lucky. Her death at age 68 was announced yesterday, no reason was given. Griffith had a wonderful career, was incredibly talented, and beloved. She was a singer’s singer.

Nanci recorded “From a Distance” before Bette Midler, who had the hit with it. Such was her story. Here she is from the original David Letterman show. Rest in peace.


 

Friday Box Office: Ryan Reynolds’ “Free Guy” Opens Bigger than Expected, “Respect” Sings the Blues

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The week’s new movies came in Friday night with baggage good and bad from Thursday previews.

Ryan Reynolds’ “Free Guy” whipped up $8.5 million on Friday, more than expected. Add that to the $2 mil it made Thursday in previews and they’ve got $10.5 million for an opening. Reynolds and crew are looking at $26 million for weekend, about $10 million over expectations.

That’s amazing considering who knows what this movie is even about? It’s a video game comedy. Top critics on Rotten Tomatoes didn’t like it, but bloggers and the NY Post did, giving it a total 81 rating. A second week success seems doubtful, but if people are bored, and it’s hot weather, who knows?

Despite Jennifer Hudson’s incredible promotional efforts, “Respect” is singing the blues. Total Friday including Thursday’s $680.00 comes to $3.6 million. Not terrible, but not great. Predictions were around $9.1 million, and that’s where it should pan out by tomorrow. Somehow United Artists Releasing has to keep this thing afloat long enough to get awards attention. I would have released it as an Oscar special in December, but no one asked me (that’s for sure!). JHud’s good will should keep her in the Oscar race.

Horror sequel “Don’t Breathe 2” came in lower than expectations maybe because it’s the same movie as the first one. Without too much oxygen, the total will be around $1 million less than predicted, at $10 million.

Basically dead but still breathing: “Stillwater,” and “Green Knight.” Amanda Knox didn’t kill her Italian roommate but she murdered the former. “Stillwater” is terrific, and Matt Damon gives one of his best performances. Go see it, and tell Amanda arrividerci!

 

Watch Jennifer Hudson’s Spectacular Performance of Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” on Colbert

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I have a lot of misgivings about the overall movie, “Respect.” But watch Jennifer Hudson perform the famous song on Colbert last night. This is Triple AAA plus. Jennifer has outdone herself promoting this movie, tirelessly. Of course, she has a producer’s credit so the movie’s success is good for her, too. But her whole heart and soul is in this project. Forget the screenplay. Revel in JHud. Aretha would be very proud of her for this — and it’s in the Ed Sullivan Theater, the last place where Aretha appeared on TV, on Letterman. (She sang “Rolling in the Deep.”)

Netflix Drops Four New “Grace and Frankie” Episodes and a Message from Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin

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Overnight, without warning, Netflix dropped four new episodes of “Grace and Frankie.”

Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin are currently filming the seventh and final season of Netflix’s longest running original show. So there are 12 more to go with these, which will come in 2022.

In the meantime, these four were completed before the pandemic stopped everything. In the video, Jane and Lily joke about this little gift. “It was either this or Del Taco gift cards,” quips Lily.

Perfect timing in hot August for some cool comedy.

No “Respect:” Daughter of Aretha Franklin Producer Speaks Out on Missing Movie Characters: “Very little historical accuracy yet again”

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Tom Dowd was one of Aretha Franklin’s three main producers/arrangers at Atlantic Records. But like the great Arif Mardin, he is also entirely scrubbed from the new movie, “Respect.”

Dowd and Mardin worked for and closely with Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun, a legend in the record business and the man who put Aretha on the map after Columbia Records’ John Hammond made 9 mediocre albums with the future Queen of Soul.

In “Respect,” none of them exist, only Jerry Wexler (in large part, I think, because he left behind a book, “Rhythm & Blues,” that the screenwriter could lift anecdotes from).

This excising doesn’t sit well with the late producer’s daughter. Dana Dowd, who writes on Facebook:
“Not at all knocking the stellar performances of the actors/actresses in this film. It is however very unfortunate that Hollywood relies so heavily on music to assist in making films but does not have the “respect” to properly tell the story of the making of the music when “re-creating” films about an industry and fellow form of artistic expression they rely so heavily on.
P.s. – my father nor Arif were just “Producers” of Aretha’s most well known era but also contributed their engineering and/or arranging skills and conducted the musicians on 99.9% of those songs. Ahmet was co-writer of one of Aretha’s hits (“Don’t Play That Song”). It was also not Jerry Wexler who discovered the Aretha sitting at the piano nuance of her vocal range, but my father. So there is very little historical accuracy yet again.”

Tom Dowd was memorialized in a great documentary easily found on YouTube and Amazon called Tom Dowd and the Language of Music.

Comedian Jim Gaffigan’s Mostly Unsold Radio City Shows Blocking Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall

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Well, this is weird.

The special Tony Awards event set for September 26th won’t be in its usual home, Radio City Music Hall.

The Tonys instead will be held at the cavernous but much smaller Winter Garden Theater. Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster will bring the very high priced ticket “Music Man” revival there in December.

The Tonys are usually in June. But the pandemic postponed the last two Junes. The Broadway League has never given out the 2019-2020 Tonys, so they chose September 26th for a return. The show will be live on CBS from 9 to 11pm after a two hour special on Paramount Plus.

But the reason the awards can’t be at Radio City on the 26th is the weird part. Comedian Jim Gaffigan is book for four nights in a row at the fabled theater. Gaffigan is very funny, but four nights at Radio City? Really?

Indeed, except for the final show on September 25th, Gaffigan’s shows are mostly unsold. According to Ticketmaster, there are hundreds of seats at every price level.

But the Tonys could never load in for the Sunday show or have rehearsals in that situation. Also this way they don’t have to deal with 5,000 people and COVID restrictions. The Winter Garden seats 1,500, meaning two thirds of the regular Tony audience will have to wait until June 2022 for the next Tony show at Radio City.

This round of Tony Awards is unusual anyway. The only actor nominated for lead in a Musical is Aaron Tveit, of “Moulin Rouge.” Presumably, he’ll win since he has no competition. Adrienne Warren, who plays the title role in “Tina: The Musical,” would seem the likely winner of Best Actress. Most of the other nominations are for shows that closed long ago.

Britney Spears’ Father Backs Down, Will Step Aside as Conservator After “Orderly Transition”

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TMZ reports that Jamie Spears, Britney’s dad, will step down as her conservator “after an orderly transition.”

Jamie was winning in court, but losing in the court of public opinion. The world has turned against Jamie and supports Britney being “free” even if she squanders all her money on nonsense.

Jamie Spears’s lawyer says in papers filed today: