The daily gossip: Jeremy Strong asked for bathroom directions in character, Barbie gets arrested in latest 'Barbie' trailer, and more

1. Jeremy Strong asked for bathroom directions in character

Jeremy Strong just can't flush his method acting instincts away. Bowen Yang shared a story about the "Succession" star's infamous method acting process on the "Las Culturistas" podcast, claiming he stays in character even when asking for directions to the bathroom. Yang stars on "Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens," which was shot at the same studio as "Succession." So Yang said Strong once walked into the "Nora from Queens" production office and asked, "Excuse me, do you know where the bathroom is?" He was given directions and proceeded to leave. But 10 minutes later, Yang recalled, a "Succession" production assistant walked in and asked if Strong was just there looking for the bathroom. "He has a scene today where he has to ask someone where the bathroom is," the PA revealed, suggesting his inquiry was simply part of an effort to get into character for that scene. Just don't ask how he prepared for the episode where Kendall accidentally kills a guy.

Variety

2. Barbie and Ken get arrested in latest 'Barbie' trailer

Greta Gerwig's "Barbie" is less than two months away, so the marketing has finally gotten around to revealing what the heck it's about. A new trailer for "Barbie" has dropped that's a lot less vague about the plot than the previous ones, showing how Margot Robbie's Barbie begins questioning the world around her when strange things start happening, and there's a literal record scratch after she asks, "Do you guys ever think about dying?" So Barbie is told she must go to the real world to learn the "truth about the universe," which is where those set photos of her and Ken rollerblading factor in. We also see Barbie and Ken get arrested after she punches a man for slapping her butt, and the trailer closes with a bit of the song "Barbie Girl." Meanwhile, Rolling Stone revealed the soundtrack will include artists like Dua Lipa, Ice Spice, and Ryan Gosling himself. Eat your heart out, "City of Stars."

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Warner Bros. Pictures

3. Quentin Tarantino's last movie is about a film critic for a 'porno rag’

Quentin Tarantino's final movie will apparently be a feature adaptation of the phrase "I read 'Playboy' for the articles." The director told Deadline his upcoming film "The Movie Critic" is set in California in 1977 "and is based on a guy who really lived, but was never really famous, and he used to write movie reviews for a porno rag." Tarantino noted he had a job as a teen that involved loading porn magazines into a vending machine, and he said there was "this porno rag that had a really interesting movie page." So the film will be based on the critic who wrote for it, who was "very funny" but "very rude." Tarantino will be looking for somebody "in the 35 year-old ball park" for the role, who will "be a new leading man for me." But he doesn't "want to cast a Brit," as he's tired of British actors constantly "pretending to be Americans" in movies. The man's putting his foot down.

Deadline

4. Britney Spears reportedly reunites with her mom

Vin Diesel and The Rock aren't the only ones ending a family feud. Britney Spears has reunited with her mom for the first time in years, according to TMZ. The report says Lynne Spears flew to Los Angeles to see her daughter on Wednesday, and they spent about 30 minutes talking at the singer's home. "The ice between mother and daughter is thawing," and they have even been texting recently, TMZ adds. Spears previously criticized her mother amid her conservatorship battle, saying in 2021 that "my dad is not smart enough to ever think of a conservatorship," and "what people don't know is that my mom is the one who gave him the idea." She also claimed her mother "abused me" and hid coffee from her. Last year, though, Britney wrote, "After no coffee for 15 years … Mom we can go have coffee together now !!!"

TMZ

5. Elizabeth Olsen: 'I am so unemployed' because 'everything fell apart'

Wanda-ing what Elizabeth Olsen has coming up? Not much! The actress said on the "Happy Sad Confused" podcast she is currently "so unemployed" with "nothing on the upcoming resume," and not by choice. "I don't really want to be, it's just that everything fell apart," she said, jokingly adding, "My career's falling apart at the seams." According to Olsen, one project "didn't work out" because of an actor's availability, then another project fell apart due to scheduling and financing issues, and then the writers strike added more uncertainty into the mix. "It's just an odd time, I think, for our industry to make things happen right now," she said. As far as what she might want to do next, Olsen noted she's not interested in joining another big franchise in addition to Marvel. But she said she's "learning a lot" during her time off, adding, "It's constructive time." Besides, there are worse times to be unemployed than after a new "Zelda" game drops.

Happy Sad Confused