1. Hasan Minhaj says he's 'not a psycho' after 'misleading' New Yorker exposé
Two can play at that fact-checking game. Hasan Minhaj has released a 21-minute video doing a "deep dive on my own scandal" and rebutting a New Yorker exposé that accused him of lying in his standup. The comedian slammed the "needlessly misleading" article for depicting him as "a psycho," insisting "racism, FBI surveillance and threats to my family happened." He admitted to fabricating anecdotes about these topics but promised the "majority" of his stories are true and insisted he really was rejected from prom because of his race as he claimed. Though Minhaj apologized to anyone "betrayed or hurt," he defended his "artistic choices." He also released audio of his conversations with the reporter to argue she left out key details. A New Yorker spokesperson told The Week the outlet stands by its "carefully reported and fact-checked" piece, which included Minhaj's "perspective at length," and said his video confirms that "he selectively presents information and embellishes to make a point: exactly what we reported." Hasan Minhaj
2. The Beatles' 'last song' to be released
Here's something you don't hear every day: a new Beatles song is coming. "Now And Then," which is described as "the last Beatles song" and was written and sung by John Lennon, is finally set to be released. As an announcement explained, the song derives from a demo recorded at Lennon's home in the late 1970s. In 1994, Lennon's wife, Yoko Ono, gave this recording to Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. But the song was shelved because "technological limitations prevented John's vocals and piano from being separated to achieve the clear, unclouded mix needed to finish" it. This has now changed thanks to the team behind "Get Back," Peter Jackson’s Beatles documentary series. The same technology utilized in the movie was used to isolate Lennon's original performance. "In 2023 to still be working on Beatles music, and about to release a new song the public haven’t heard, I think it’s an exciting thing," McCartney said. The song drops on Nov. 2. The Beatles
3. John Stamos forgot he filmed 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2' because he was 'hammered'
My big fat Greek who now? On "The Howard Stern Show," John Stamos opened up about getting sober, revealing one of the moments he realized he had a problem with alcoholism was when he forgot filming "My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2." The "Full House" star recalled that when he was told he had to go to Toronto for the 2016 movie, he was confused. "I was hammered," he said. "I don't remember being on that set." When he returned from the film shoot, Stamos' sisters and agent confronted him about his need to get help, and he agreed. So he went to rehab for 30 days, and Stamos has now been sober for eight years. The actor also expressed shame over his 2015 DUI arrest in the interview, reflecting, "I could have killed somebody. It just makes me sick to my stomach." But he admitted that after he got home following the arrest, he "drank another bottle of wine by myself." The Howard Stern Show
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4. 'Deadpool 3' director cryptically teases surprise cameos
It wouldn't be a Marvel movie without breathless speculation about possible cameos. It's no different with the upcoming "Deadpool 3," and on the "Happy Sad Confused" podcast, director Shawn Levy made clear there are, in fact, some surprise appearances in store. When asked if there was one cameo he landed that blew his mind, he confirmed there was. "What blew my mind also is how easy some of those cameos have been," Levy said. "People love Deadpool." The biggest rumor is that Taylor Swift, a friend of "Deadpool" star Ryan Reynolds, will appear as a singer character from the comics called Dazzler. When host Josh Horowitz brought this up, Levy, who attended a football game with Swift, notably danced around it. The director simply said Swift playing Dazzler "sounds like a great idea." If this happens, it would mean both Swift and Harry Styles play characters in the MCU, which would practically make "1989" part of the Marvel canon. Happy Sad Confused
5. Critics are panning the 'Five Nights at Freddy's' movie
There aren't many five stars being handed out for "Five Nights at Freddy's." The reviews are in for the long-awaited video game adaptation, which has been in the works for almost a decade. But most critics don't feel it was worth the wait. The horror film, which like the game is set at a Chuck E. Cheese-style entertainment center where the animatronics come to life, currently holds a poor 31% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. "The ultimate result is a snooze" that "suffers from a lack of genuine scares," said The Hollywood Reporter's Frank Scheck, while Variety's Murtada Elfadl said the film is "rather empty and unexciting," and The Guardian's Benjamin Lee called it "surprisingly flat" and a "slog to get through." After the success of "The Last of Us" and "The Super Mario Bros. Movie," the year of the video game adaptation may have peaked early. Rotten Tomatoes
