The daily gossip: Stranger Things star Noah Schnapp comes out as gay, Rolling Stone draws protesters after Celine Dion best singers snub, and more

1. 'Stranger Things' star Noah Schnapp comes out as gay

Stranger Things fans are still waiting for Will Byers to finally come out, but Noah Schnapp is way ahead of him. The actor came out as gay in his latest TikTok, writing over the video, "When I finally told my friends and family I was gay after being scared in the closet for 18 years and all they said was 'we know.'" He also lip-syncs to a clip saying, "You know what it never was? That serious. It was never that serious." It was an example of life imitating art, considering Schnapp's character on Stranger Things has been implied to be gay. "I guess I'm more similar to Will than I thought," Schnapp wrote on TikTok. In July, he confirmed that after the most recent season, it's now "100 percent clear that [Will] is gay," so his character will presumably come out in the final season … and maybe, just maybe, finally get a less horrible haircut.

TikTok

2. 'Rolling Stone' draws protesters after Celine Dion best singers snub

Their rage will go on. Rolling Stone's recent ranking of the 200 greatest singers of all time has grown so controversial, it's now sparking actual protests in the streets. A video shared by TVLine executive editor Andy Swift showed fans of Celine Dion protesting outside the magazine's office, as the "My Heart Will Go On" singer was completely left off the best singers list. "How can you forget Celine," one protester's sign read, while another sign demanded "justice for Celine" and still another declared "Rolling Stone is stoned." Based on who made the list, the snub indicated the magazine is saying Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish are among the 200 people who are better singers than Dion, and that's not even to mention controversial placements like Kelly Clarkson being all the way down at 194. Even stranger was the decision to declare the number one greatest singer of all time is Jeanne Dielman.

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3. 'Real Housewives' star Jen Shah sentenced to over 6 years in prison

She's going from real housewife to big house-wife. The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Jen Shah was sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison on Friday after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Prosecutors said the reality star was a "key participant" in a "wide-ranging telemarketing scheme that defrauded hundreds of victims," many of whom were elderly. Judge Sidney Stein noted she was a "leader" in the scheme, and U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said that with this sentencing, she has finally faced "the consequences of the many years she spent targeting vulnerable, elderly victims." Prosecutors recommended Shah receive at least 10 years in prison. Her attorney told Page Six she "deeply regrets the mistakes that she has made and is profoundly sorry to the people she has hurt," presumably just talking about the fraud victims and not everyone unfortunate enough to have watched RHOSLC.

Page Six Vulture

4. Bam Margera: 'I basically was pronounced dead' last month

Viva la Bam. Jackass star Bam Margera opened up on Steve-O's podcast about being hospitalized in December, claiming "I basically was pronounced dead" on Dec. 8. TMZ reported at the time he was "battling a very serious case of pneumonia, complicated by COVID-19," and it got serious enough that he had to be put on a ventilator. Margera now says he had "gnarly COVID, my body was shutting down, and I went into four seizures, each one lasting 10 to 20 minutes." On the fourth seizure, he continued, "I bit my tongue so hard, it was nearly falling off. It got so swollen and puffy, it wouldn't fit in my mouth, and I was drinking the infected blood, which gave me pneumonia, as well." He then had a fifth seizure and "couldn't breathe without a tube down my throat" — and it still might not be one of the top five grossest or most life-threatening situations he's been in.

Variety

5. James Cameron is now 'gonna have to' make the other 'Avatar' sequels

It's official: we have another decade of insufferable "Avatar has no cultural impact" tweets to look forward to. Director James Cameron confirmed that Avatar: The Way of Water has been successful enough that his plan to make at least three more sequels is good to go. "It looks like just with the momentum that the film has now that will easily pass our break even in the next few days, so it looks like I can't wiggle out of this, I'm gonna have to do these other sequels," he told Chris Wallace. "I know what I'm going to be doing the next six or seven years." Cameron has written scripts through Avatar 5 and even shot the third movie already, though he previously admitted the fourth and fifth films wouldn't happen if The Way of Water bombed. But he won't have to worry about that, as the sequel has already grossed over $1.5 billion — or nearly $1 for every minute of runtime.

The Hollywood Reporter