The daily gossip: Daisy Ridley is returning to Star Wars, William H. Macy hit with $600,000 lawsuit after allegedly cutting down neighbor's trees, and more

1. Daisy Ridley is returning to 'Star Wars' for new film set after 'The Rise of Skywalker'

She's taking her first step back into a larger world. Lucasfilm has announced three new Star Wars movies are in the works, one of which will see Daisy Ridley return to play Jedi Master Rey Skywalker. Directed by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, the film will be set 15 years after 2019's Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and see Rey building a new Jedi Order. "I'm very thrilled to be continuing this journey," Ridley said in a surprise appearance at the Star Wars Celebration convention. Logan's James Mangold was also revealed to be directing a "biblical epic" about the first Jedi and the "dawning of the Force" set 25,000 years in the past, while Dave Filoni will helm a film set to "close out" the story threads of The Mandalorian and its spinoff shows. No release dates were confirmed, though, and given Lucasfilm's track record of abruptly canceling projects, the odds we'll see all three of these movies are roughly 3,720 to 1.

StarWars.com

2. William H. Macy hit with $600,000 lawsuit after allegedly cutting down neighbor's trees

If a tree is cut down by William H. Macy, does it make a lawsuit? Apparently so, as the Shameless star is being sued for $600,000 for allegedly "knowingly and intentionally" having landscapers cut his neighbor's trees down in 2021, People reports. The neighbor, Pierce Brown, alleged Macy's workers "destroyed and removed or seriously damaged several healthy, decades-old mature pine trees and other vegetation from the Brown Property," and that they also "damaged the gate that connected the two properties," as well as "the hillside itself." Macy reportedly acknowledged that his workers didn't have permission to do this and that they damaged Brown's "trees and vegetation," and Brown is alleging "loss of property value, loss of use and enjoyment of his property, a loss of privacy, an increase in noise, as well as emotional distress, irritation, annoyance, and discomfort." We'll have to see whether a judge feels this neighbor is barking up the wrong tree.

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People

3. Drake's new song samples Kim Kardashian talking about divorcing Ye

He's a certified troll boy. Drake has dropped a new song that samples a clip of Kim Kardashian talking about her divorce from Kanye West. The song is called "Search & Rescue," and roughly a minute in, Kardashian can be heard saying, "I didn't come this far just to come this far and not be happy." The clip is from an episode of Keeping Up With the Kardashians where Kim describes realizing she needed to divorce Ye. This sample comes despite the fact that Drake and Ye seemed to squash their beef in 2021. The cover photo for the song also features a woman who looks similar to Kardashian. But Drake's dad insisted in an Instagram comment that his son "is not trolling anyone" and "it's just a song," adding, "Why try and create a Kanye and Drake beef again???????????????" If we know anything about Ye, we assume he will react to this very calmly with no online meltdown whatsoever.

Spotify

4. Lance Reddick's family denies he died of heart disease

The cause of actor Lance Reddick's sudden death has reportedly been revealed — but his family isn't buying it. According to The Wire star's death certificate, the cause of death was ischemic heart disease and atherosclerotic coronary artery disease, TMZ reported Thursday. But such an assertion was disputed in a statement from attorney James Hornstein on behalf of the Reddick's family, which said "no autopsy was performed on Lance" and "no medical examination of Lance during his lifetime ever indicated such conditions." Further, Hornstein said Reddick was the "most physically fit person I've ever known," and the "information appearing on the death certificate is wholly inconsistent with his lifestyle," which included "extensive cardio work" and dieting. "The death certificate information is not corroborated and is inconsistent with the facts known to the family," the statement concluded. Reddick's publicist previously said the actor "passed away suddenly" at age 60 from "natural causes."

Entertainment Weekly TMZ

5. 'The Super Mario Bros. Movie' set for record-breaking opening weekend

Mamma mia, that's a lot of money. The Super Mario Bros. Movie is set to rake in all the gold coins at the domestic box office this weekend, with current estimates suggesting it will gross more than $150 million over five days, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Despite receiving mixed reviews, word of mouth has been strong so far, with audiences polled by CinemaScore giving the movie an A grade — and Elon Musk just had to weigh in, accusing critics of being "disconnected from reality." Mario has a solid chance of becoming the biggest movie of the entire year, and in two days, it has already made more domestically than Shazam! Fury of the Gods has to date. It's also pretty much guaranteed to set a new record for best opening weekend for a video game movie, snatching the title from Sonic the Hedgehog 2, which made $72 million over three days. So much for Sega does what Nintendon't.

The Hollywood Reporter