The daily gossip: John Cusack shuts down Barstool Sports, Timothée Chalamet is in a Willy Wonka origin movie for some reason, and more

1. John Cusack obliterates blogger who confronts him over supporting both Chicago MLB teams

Chicago native John Cusack humiliated Barstool Sports on Sunday night when a blogger for the company attempted to confront the actor at the Chicago White Sox game about not being "allowed" to root for both Windy City teams. "White Sox Dave," as Barstool's Dave Williams is known, took issue with the fact that Cusack also roots for the Cubs — but, as the actor pointed out, "You can't tell me where I can go. I can like whoever I want." When Williams continued to quibble, Cusack began to quiz him about White Sox players from previous years, leaving Williams at a loss. Williams attempted to defend himself by pleading that he's younger, to which Cusack replied: "That proves your ignorance." Cusack later landed his death blow on Twitter: "He's not a Sox fan — he knows nothing about the Sox I asked him," he tweeted. "He's a clickbait a--hole."

The Wrap Barstool Chicago

2. Timothée Chalamet is going to play a young Willy Wonka, and people want to know … why

Just call him Timothée Cadburée. This weekend, actor Timothée Chalamet shared the first photo of himself as Willy Wonka, whom he'll portray in a forthcoming origin story about the chocolatier. Chalamet looks "as if he were plucked straight from England's Victorian era, clad in a maroon velvet jacket and a brown top hat," the New York Post wrote in an article about the photo headlined, "Twitter slams Timothée Chalamet's 'sexification' of Willy Wonka." Many seemed inclined to agree the whole prequel endeavor is … unnecessary. "Call me old-fashioned," tweeted writer/director Jessica Ellis, but "I grew up in an era where a movie told us 'here's an old weirdo with a chocolate factory designed to murder children who transgress' and we were like 'no further questions.'"

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New York Post

3. Paul McCartney blames John Lennon for the Beatles' split

Sir Paul McCartney is tired of being the second-most-blamed person for the Beatles break-up. "I didn't instigate the split. That was our Johnny," McCartney says in an interview for a forthcoming episode of BBC Radio 4's This Cultural Life. According to the songwriter and bassist, the band was still writing "pretty good stuff" by the time of their final album, Let It Be, in 1970. Asked about subsequently going solo by interviewer John Wilson, McCartney interrupted: "Stop right there. I am not the person who instigated the split. Oh no, no, no. John [Lennon] walked into a room one day and said, 'I am leaving the Beatles.' Is that instigating the split, or not?" McCartney added that Lennon's exit was "rather like a divorce," and that the other three members were "left to pick up the pieces." Conveniently, Lennon is unable to respond to his bandmate's allegations.

The Guardian

4. Superman will come out as bisexual in new comic

It's a bird, it's a plane, it's ... a significant moment in the history of DC Comics. The publisher announced Monday that its new Superman, Jon Kent, is set to begin a same-sex relationship in an ongoing series from writer Tom Taylor, The New York Times reports. In the comics, Jon is the son of Clark Kent and Lois Lane. DC has revealed the character is bisexual and, in an upcoming issue, will become romantically involved with reporter Jay Nakamura. "The idea of replacing Clark Kent with another straight white savior felt like a missed opportunity," Taylor told the Times, observing that "for so many people having the strongest superhero in comics come out is incredibly powerful." Artist John Timms told IGN that this development is a "pretty big deal," while adding, "I hope this kind of thing will not be seen as a big deal in the future."

The New York Times The Week

5. Kim Kardashian earned surprisingly good reviews for her SNL debut

The reviews are in: Kim Kardashian West was a "great sport" during her hosting debut on Saturday Night Live, according to Vulture's Alexis Pereira. Kardashian reportedly enlisted the help of comedy greats — like, uh, James Corden and Ellen DeGeneres? — and managed to deliver "a terrific monologue that unloads on every single part of her life," Pereira writes. The Atlantic's Sophie Gilbert was a little less impressed, observing that while Kardashian was "charming to watch," her appearance on the whole "played into her brand, and did nothing to challenge it." Still, while some critics prematurely skewered Kardashian for the seemingly unearned hosting gig, The Washington Post pointed out that Saturday Night Live is not exactly a bastion of brilliant comedy in 2021 and, "as it turns out, Kardashian West was the defibrillator the show needed."

Vulture The Washington Post