Month: July 2024

Police in the United Kingdom confirmed that a third young girl has died after a 17-year-old male went on a brutal stabbing spree at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in the U.K.

Officers responded just before noon on Monday to reports of a stabbing at the Hart Space in Southport, a seaside town about 20 miles north of Liverpool. The local community center was holding a Taylor Swift-themed yoga and dance workshop for children ages 6-11 when the incident occurred, according to Merseyside police. Two girls, 6-year-old Bebe King and 7-year-old Elsie Dot Stancombe, were killed, and nine other children were injured, police said. The Merseyside Police confirmed Tuesday that a third girl, 9-year-old Alice Dasilva Aguiar, died on Tuesday morning in the hospital.  Five other children and two adults remain in critical condition at local hospitals.

The 17-year-old male suspect was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and murder, and a knife was seized after the attack, with BBC News reporting that the suspect was born in Cardiff, Wales and moved to the Southport area in 2013.  Authorities are working to determine a motive in the rampage in Southport in northwest England.

In a message posted on social media Tuesday, Swift said she was “completely in shock” and still processing “the horror” of the attack, while expressing her sympathy at the loss of life: “The horror of yesterday’s attack in Southport is washing over me continuously, and I’m just completely in shock. The loss of life and the innocence, and the horrendous trauma inflicted on everyone who was there, the families, and first responders. These were just little kids at a dance class. I am at a complete loss for how to ever convey my sympathies to these families.”

As of Tuesday morning, a group of Taylor Swift fans had raised the equivalent of tens of thousands of dollars to support the victims of the attack and their families. The fundraising page says the group is working with the regional Alder Hey Children’s Charity, “and raising funeral funds for the two young Swifties who have tragically passed.”

Police said the attack is not being treated as terror-related, and they are not looking for any other suspects. Merseyside Police Chief Constable Serena Kennedy said (per the Associated Press):  “We believe the adults who were injured were bravely trying to protect the children who were being attacked,”

U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the stabbing spree “horrendous and deeply shocking..my thoughts are with all those affected. I would like to thank the police and emergency services for their swift response. I am being kept updated as the situation develops.”

Prince William and his wife Catherine said that “as parents, we cannot begin to imagine what the families, friends and loved ones of those killed and injured in Southport today are going through.”

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Warner Bros. shares the trailer for their new psychological thriller film, Trap, from director/writer/producer M. Night Shyamalan.

Trap, produced by Ashwin Rajan, Marc Bienstock alongside Shyamalan, stars Josh Hartnett and Ariel Donoghue as a father-daughter duo who attend the pop concert of singer Lady Raven, where they realize they’re at the center of a dark and sinister event. A previous trailer showed Hartnett’s character, Cooper, learn police are using the concert to try and trap the serial killer known as “The Butcher.” Unbeknownst to them, Cooper is the killer and is holding another victim hostage.

In addition to Harnett and Donoghue, Trap also stars M. Night’s eldest daughter Saleka Night Shyamalan, as well as Hayley Mills, Marnie McPhail, Vanessa Smythe, and Allison Pill.  The film also features original songs written, produced and performed by Saleka Night Shyamalan as Lady Raven.

Trap drops in theaters on Aug. 2; check out the trailer: here.

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Marvel Studios’ Deadpool & Wolverine just arrived in theaters, and the film’s 18-song soundtrack was also released, available digitally, on CD, and as a 12″ 2-LP vinyl.

The Deadpool & Wolverine Original Score digital album, with music by composer Rob Simonsen, is available alongside the digital deluxe edition soundtrack, which includes both songs and score. The vast array of artists across multiple music genres on the soundtrack include:  Stray Kids, Fergie, Huey Lewis & The News, Waylon Jennings, Patsy Cline, Avril Lavigne, Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta, Eric Carmen, Aretha Franklin, and even Wolverine himself, Hugh Jackman.  The soundtrack also features hit songs from: *NSYNC’s “Bye Bye Bye,” The Goo Goo Dolls’ “Iris,” and Green Day’s “Good Riddance (Time of Your Life.)”

Shawn Levy directs “Deadpool & Wolverine,” which stars Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin, Morena Baccarin, Rob Delaney, Leslie Uggams, Karan Soni, and Matthew Macfadyen.

To order Marvel Studios’ Deadpool & Wolverine Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, head HERE.

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Lady Gaga and her longtime boyfriend, entrepreneur and tech investor Michael Polansky, are engaged.

The news was revealed in a TikTok video posted by French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, which shows Gaga, 38, introducing Polansky as her fiancé. Attal wrote in the video’s caption: “Thank you Lady Gaga for your stunning performance at the opening ceremony. It was breathtaking.”

Lady Gaga, surrounded by pink feathers, performed a rendition of Zizi Jeanmaire’s “Mon true en plumes” (translated to “My Feather Thing”) during the Opening Ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. Gaga later shared an Instagram post regarding her performance: “Although I am not a French artist, I have always felt a very special connection with French people and singing French music — I wanted nothing more than to create a performance that would warm the heart of France, celebrate French art and music, and on such a momentous occasion remind everyone of one of the most magical cities on earth — Paris. We rented pom poms from Le Lido archive-a real French cabaret theater. We collaborated with Dior to create custom costumes, using naturally molted feathers. I studied French choreography that put a modern twist on a French classic.”

Polansky and Gaga were first linked as a couple after they were spotted at a NYE party in 2020. They made their relationship public a few months later after attending the Super Bowl together in Miami, after which Gaga shared a photo on Instagram of the pair cuddled up on a yacht, writing, “We had so much fun in Miami.”

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Marvel Studios announced from San Diego Comic-Con that Robert Downey Jr. – who famously portrayed Iron Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (‘MCU’) — is returning to the MCU in an entirely new role. Downey Jr is returning to the Marvel Universe as Victor Von Doom – aka Doctor Doom — in the Russo Brothers’ Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars.

Downey’s return was revealed just moments after Joe and Anthony Russo, who directed “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Avengers: Endgame,” were tapped to direct the next two superhero crossover movies in “Avengers: Doomsday” and “Avengers: Secret Wars,” which are expected to be released in May 2026 and May 2027, respectively. Downey shared of his return: “new mask, same task .. What can I tell you? I like playing complicated characters.”

“Doomsday” replaces “The Kang Dynasty” as the fifth “Avengers” film, and Doom will seemingly take over villain duties for Kang the Conqueror, who was previously played by Jonathan Majors. Marvel cut ties with Majors after he was found guilty on charges of assault and harassment in December.

Downey Jr. has been part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe since 2008’s Iron Man, and appeared in numerous films in the franchise before his character was presumably killed off in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame. More recently, Downey Jr. won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for Oppenheimer earlier this year.

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Deadpool & Wolverine is the No. 1 movie in North America at the box office, earning $205 million in its opening weekend. The Ryan Reynolds-Hugh Jackman action comedy beat out 2016’s Deadpool (at at $133.7 million) to rank the highest grossing R-rated movie of all time.

Deadpool & Wolverine, directed by Shawn Levy in collaboration with Reynolds, also landed the eighth biggest opening of all time among any film.  The movie also shattered records for an R-rated pic on a global scale, opening to $233.3 million internationally from 55 materials markets for a worldwide start of $438.3 million. Premium format screens contributed 18 percent of the gross, led by $36.5 million in Imax ticket sales, a July and R-rated record for the large-format exhibitor.

Domestically, the film is the biggest opening ever for Reynolds, Levy and Jackman, and the fifth-biggest superhero launch. Globally, it’s the biggest opening since Avatar: The Way of the Water.

Coming in at No. 2 this weekend is Twisters with $35.3 million, followed by Despicable Me 4 at No. 3 with $14.2 million, Inside Out 2 at No. 4 with $8.3 million and Longlegs at No. 5 with $6.8 million. Rounding out the Top 10 are A Quiet Place: Day One at No. 6 with $3 million, Bad Boys: Ride or Die at No. 7 with $1.3 million, The Fabulous Four at No. 8 with $1 million, Fly Me to the Moon at No. 9 with $750,000 and Raayan at No. 10 with $453,000.

Editorial credit: Fred Duval / Shutterstock.com