1. Ellen DeGeneres tearfully says goodbye as her talk show ends
Ellen DeGeneres has ended her talk show with one last dance. The comedian's daytime show aired its last episode Thursday after almost 20 years on the air, and she tearfully bid farewell in a final monologue. DeGeneres reflected that when the show began, "I couldn't say gay," nor could she say the word wife. "Now, I say wife all the time," she said, drawing applause from her wife, Portia de Rossi, who was in the audience. She closed the show by saying she hopes she's "inspired you to be yourself, your true, authentic self." The final episode came about a year after The Ellen DeGeneres Show was embroiled in scandal over allegations of a toxic workplace culture there, leading multiple producers to be fired. DeGeneres told The Hollywood Reporter in an exit interview the scandal was "eye-opening," but "I just trust that that had to happen."
People
2. Winnie the Pooh goes on a rampage in new horror movie
Here's ... Winnie! A new horror movie in the works, called Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey, will see the beloved cartoon bear made into a horrifying slasher villain. In one still image released from the movie, a woman is chilling in a jacuzzi while a blood-thirsty Pooh and Piglet stand behind her, preparing to go in for a Jason-like kill. Director Rhys Waterfield told Variety the film involves Pooh and Piglet "going on a rampage" after Christopher Robin abandons them, leading them to "become feral." Obviously, Disney has zero role in this project, which is legal because the original Winnie the Pooh stories became public domain this past January. On a related note, Mickey Mouse is currently slated to enter public domain in 2024, at which point we're anticipating R-rated Mickey movies will just become an entire, disturbing subgenre.
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Bloody Disgusting Variety
3. Jude Law joins the 'Star Wars' universe for new Disney+ show
We have a bunch of late-breaking news coming in from the galaxy far, far away. The Star Wars Celebration convention kicked off Thursday with several announcements about upcoming projects. For one, Jude Law will star in a new Disney+ show from Spider-Man: No Way Home director Jon Watts titled Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, which revolves around a "group of kids who are about ten years old who gets lost in the Star Wars universe." Watts said it "stars four kids but it's not a kids show." We also learned the third season of The Mandalorian will debut in February 2023, and the first trailer for the Rogue One prequel Andor was revealed. Despite this event being titled Star Wars Celebration, we also got our first look at Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones 5, though there was no news about any upcoming Star Wars films — assuming the franchise does, in fact, plan to actually release some dang movies again at some point.
The Hollywood Reporter Deadline
4. 'Abbott Elementary' creator slams people asking for 'a school shooting episode'
The creator of Abbott Elementary will thankfully be ignoring fans' absolutely awful idea for an episode. Quinta Brunson, who created and stars in the uplifting ABC sitcom set in an elementary school, said on Twitter it's "wild how many people have asked for a school shooting episode" of the show in the wake of the horrific massacre that left 19 children and two teachers dead in Texas this week. "People are that deeply removed from demanding more from the politicians they've elected and are instead demanding 'entertainment,'" Brunson wrote, and she shared a bizarre message she received from a fan suggesting the series should end with a shooting in order to "get our government to understand why laws need to pass" — something real tragedies can't even accomplish, let alone fictional ones. "We're not okay," Brunson concluded. "This country is rotting our brains."
People
5. Tributes pour in for 'Goodfellas' star Ray Liotta
Hollywood is paying tribute to a very good fella. Ray Liotta, the actor best known for his lead role as Henry Hill in Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas, has died at 67. Liotta's death was first reported Thursday by Deadline, which said he died in his sleep in the Dominican Republic, where he was shooting a movie. Lorraine Bracco, who played the wife of Liotta's character in Goodfellas, said she was "utterly shattered" by the news, reflecting that when she's asked what the best part of working on the movie was, "My response has always been the same … Ray Liotta." Goodfellas star Robert De Niro said he was "very saddened" by Liotta's death, writing that he was "way too young to have left us." Jennifer Lopez, who worked with Liotta on Shades of Blue, also recalled the way he was "so was kind to my children" and the "epitome of a tough guy who was all mushy on the inside."
The Week Variety
