By now, you're probably aware that Ariel Winter's Instagram is a treasure trove of bikini pics and risque selfies. Winter does an admirable job of keeping things fresh, forever finding new and inventive ways to bare her famous flesh. But even the most inventive artists can find themselves bereft of inspiration at times. At these moments, the true innovators dig deep and produce something that surprises even themselves. Perhaps this was the process that led to Ariel's latest video, which combines the dying art of twerking with the cinematic weirdness of a David Lynch fever dream. Allow us to break this thing down for you: For starters, Ariel is twerking, which is a practice that started falling off in popularity long before Miley Cyrus reinvented herself as Lurleen Lumpkin . We guess it's part of a marketing campaign to take the attention of Ariel's boobs and put on her … other assets. Anyway, the location and the spontaneity of the twerking is what's really strange, as it appears that Ariel was walking through a storage facility and randomly decided to break it down. Not surprisingly, Ariel's followers were a bit confused by the post, but she assured them there's really nothing to “get.” “People have a little humor…it’s supposed to be FUNNY,” Ariel wrote. Is it, Ariel? Or did you just singlehandedly reinvent American cinema?
Source: Christopher Polk / Getty You might want to think twice if you’re thinking about coming for Lil Uzi Vert — you might catch them hands. The rapper proved this in a video of him boxing. Granted, he’s sparring with a 12-year-old, but it’s clear through the video that Uzi knows how to dodge and swing. He unleashed his fury on young rapper Matt Ox. Sources close to the situation told TMZ it was a playful match. Apparently, Uzi likes to box in between recording sessions and Matt happened to be brave enough to take on the 23-year-old Uzi. Uzi is currently coming off the high of his just released album Luv Is Rage 2 , which is expected to hit big on the Billboard charts . The album was released last Friday and is a sequel to Uzi’s breakthrough mixtape Luv Is Rage (2015). You can watch Uzi unleash his rage on a 12-year-old here .
Bobbi Kristina Brown tragically died on the 26th of July, 2015. That's only two years ago. Realistically, no matter what her death certificate says, Bobbi Kristina's life ended in that bathtub, about half a year earlier. There's already a made-for-television biopic coming out, though. And you can watch the very emotional trailer below. It's hard to imagine anything good coming from this. You can't talk about Bobbi Kristina without talking about her death. Many people believe that Bobbi Kristina Brown's death, which hauntingly mirrored Whitney Houston's, came at the hands of Nick Gordon. The prevailing theory is that Nick Gordon was Bobbi Kristina's long-time abuser before he went too far and ended her life. (Though, to be clear, any abuse is “too far”) Nick Gordon has already been found legally liable for Bobbi Kristina's death , to the tune of $36 million . Criminal liability is another thing, though investigators say that they are working to build a case and compile evidence. (Rushing to prosecute a wealthy man in a celebrity case is a recipe for disaster, and it's not uncommon for homicide cases to be years in the making) Though the biopic trailer shows some frightening moments between Bobbi Kristina and Nick Gordon, we have to wonder exactly how their relationship will be portrayed. Over the summer, Nick Gordon was arrested for kidnapping and domestic battery . This arrest, which took place in Florida, is based upon accusations and testimony (plus physical and medical evidence) by Gordon's ex-girlfriend, Laura Leal. Allegedly, after an extended period of gradually escalating physical abuse (followed by the usual empty apologies), Nick Gordon had pinned Leal to the bed and was punching her in the face so hard that she was losing consciousness and covered in her own blood. She says that it was only because she was able to grab a candlestick and strike back at Nick that she was able to escape and flee to wake up Nick's mother, asleep in a different room in the house, to receive sanctuary. She then went to police. Nick Gordon was arrested. Laura Leal sees frightening parallels in the beatings and abuse she accused Nick Gordon of inflicting upon her and everything that she's now heard about Bobbi Kristina Brown. She said that, until that day when she thought that he might kill her and everything that she heard afterwards, she had dismissed past accusations against Nick Gordon as “rumors.” That is no longer the case. Laura Leal acknowledges that she could have died the same way. Given the obvious parallels, investigators who are looking into Bobbi Kristina's death stated that they consider Nick Gordon's arrest as evidence in their own investigation. Nick Gordon pleads not guilty , for whatever that's worth to public opinion. What does all of this have to do with the biopic? Well, we wonder what they'll show. Will they portray Nick Gordon as a violent, abusive monster? Will they show Nick Gordon ending Bobbi Kristina's life? Or … will they avoid potential lawsuits from Nick Gordon and show no abuse, let alone murder? Maybe limiting themselves to some awkward or tense exchanges or some implications of abuse but never showing anything for sure. The former option would seem like a huge legal risk that, um, no network would want to take. The latter … would strike anyone who believes that Nick Gordon is the monster responsible for ending Bobbi Kristina's life as just plain irresponsible and a gross misrepresentation. Either way, why make this movie now until after Nick Gordon's conviction? We guess that they just wanted to rush it out and be the first to make a Bobbi Kristina biopic, but … the judgment here is questionable. On Sunday, October 8th, we guess that we'll all find out together how good (or bad) of a job they did with this biopic. For right now, watch the trailer for yourself and decide if this is something that you want to see at all.
Folks who didn’t watch the VMAs on Sunday because they were too busy watching relatives bone on Game of Thrones or escaping rising floodwaters, answer this: What did you hear, after-the-fact, about Katy Perry? Katy Perry was the host, and she was just … not overwhelming. No huge controversies, sure, but not even Katy’s terrible opening monologue was especially memorable. That’s a problem for Katy, but it might be an even bigger problem for American Idol producers, who are reportedly very concerned that they’re paying $25 million to Katy Perry to be a judge only for her to flop. On Sunday, I had friends over, and they mentioned that traffic was especially slow near my home. Why? Because American Idol auditions were in town. Yes, in case you’ve managed to forget, American Idol is coming back, like some archetypal horde that people thought had been defeated. The biggest stir of publicity about it is Katy Perry’s salary of $25 million. Don’t get us wrong, she’s a big-time celebrity who’s hosted the Superbowl, which is probably what the American Idol producers and the network were thinking when they hired her. What they clearly weren’t thinking about: One, that Katy Perry was singing for her Superbowl Halftime show, which is very different from sitting at a table and talking and judging. Two, that Katy Perry was pretty famously upstaged at that show by Left Shark . You didn’t forget Left Shark, did you? Well now, RadarOnline is reporting that ABC higher ups and American Idol showrunners are worried that they made a mistake by hiring Katy Perry to be a judge. It sounds like they’re panicking, actually. RadarOnline ‘s source reports that her lackluster hosting over the weekend is what has them so concerned. “They are paying her $25 million and she was a total dud [on the VMAs].” You might be wondering how they didn’t catch it earlier, right? Here’s how: “No one ever auditioned her for the new Idol job and they are freaking out that they hired someone who is terrible on live television.” Oh dear! Usually, if you get a job without applying for it (or auditioning, in this case), it’s because someone who’s seen your work up close before (maybe a coworker or a former boss) is either doing the hiring or has vouched for you. It sounds like Katy was just offered the gig, sight unseen. ABC had already had concerns, RadarOnline had previously reported, that Katy Perry might upstage contestants. (Like Mariah Carey) Or that she might just need to tone down … not her look, but her very attention-grabbing personality. (As far as we can tell, that’s not a euphemism for her boobs) Judges are supposed to evaluate contestants, not overshadow them. Now, though, it sounds like ABC and American Idol are afraid that Katy’s just going to fall flat like she did at the VMAs. Just because someone is good at singing and performing doesn’t mean that they’re good at talking on camera. Similarly, like, just because someone’s great at giving interview or interviewing people doesn’t mean that they have a dazzling singing voice or would make an amazing performer. This should be a lesson to us all, we suppose: make sure that you hire the best and most highly recommended babysitter or dog-walker or whatever. Not just the one who happens to be hot. View Slideshow: MTV Video Music Awards Fashion: Who Looked Best?
If you’re a Teen Mom 2 fan, then by now, you’ve probably heard the news that Kailyn Lowry has welcomed her third child . In social media messages to fans, Kailyn has confirmed that she’s overjoyed by the news, but has also confessed that there’s a bittersweet quality to her life these days. For one thing, Kailyn is now a single mother of three, which is a daunting undertaking for anyone at any stage of life. Kailyn and Chris Lopez broke up shortly after she learned that she was pregnant, and to make matters worse, it seems Lopez has no interest in being a dad. There was a brief period of time when it seemed he’d had a change of heart, and Kailyn gleefully reported that Lopez would play a role in his son’s life . Now, however, sources close to Lowry say Lopez is already failing to fulfill his obligations as a father. To make matters worse, Kailyn doesn’t have much else in terms of a support system. She has a handful of close friends, but she’s long been estranged from her mother, whom she cut ties with after Suzi Irwin allegedly got drunk while babysitting Lowry’s son Lincoln. Suzi hasn’t really been a presence on Teen Mom 2 ever since her falling out with Kailyn, and naturally, many fans are curious as to whether she’ll play any role in the life of her newest grandchild. Sadly, Lowry says it doesn’t look as though her mother has any intention of changing her ways. Asked by a fan if Suzy has met Kailyn’s new baby (whose name remains unknown), Lowry tweeted simply: “Tried to contact her about her new grandson but I got nothing.” Yeesh. Several of the stars of the Teen Mom franchise have less-than-stellar parents, but refusing to even meet your baby grandson is a kind of coldness that we don’t even like to contemplate. Kailyn spoke of her past difficulties with her mother in a 2014 interview: “We don’t talk,” she said at the time. “I took Lincoln to her house and Javi doesn’t know about this so that’s why I don’t want to talk about it. I came back two hours later and she was trashed.” Kailyn says her mother’s alcoholism dates back to when she was a child, and that while she doesn’t blame her mother for her disease, she also sees her as a force of chaos and a potential danger to young children. “She would get drunk and drive with me and stuff,” Lowry said. “But she didn’t do it because she wanted to hurt me, she did it because she was sick.” Watch Teen Mom 2 online for more on the difficult life of Ms. Lowry. View Slideshow: Kailyn Lowry: Timeline of a Turbulent Teen Mom Life
Ed Skrein isn’t some big A-List actor. He’s best known as the bad guy from Deadpool , or maybe as the first, hotter Daario Naharis from Game of Thrones . But he just made a major power move that world famous actors like Tilda Swinton and Scarlett Johansson haven’t dared to do, earning serious praise in the process. To do that, though, Ed had to drop out of a major career opportunity. For years, millions of fans have been frustrated that studios haven’t allowed Guillermo del Toro to create any more Hellboy films. The cult favorite film series starring Ron Pearlman had two films, but the third always seemed out of reach. Finally, it was announced — to everyone’s collective disappointment — that Guillermo del Toro would not get to continue that series. Fans responded by protesting it online. Guillermo responded, it seems, by creating The Shape of Water , a film that fans were quick to point out strongly resembles a (legally distinct) origin story for favored Hellboy character, Abe Sapien. (Did you see the trailer about the mute girl who wnats to bang something that looks like the creature from the Black Lagoon? That’s the one) However, it was then announced that they were going to reboot the Hellboy trilogy, which — despite a lack of involvement by either Guillermo or Pearlman, was met with excitement for fans of the original films and also of the comics that preceded them. The first real bit of bad news about these films came when Ed Skrein was cast. He’s great, but … he was cast as a character named Ben Daimio. Ed Skrein is white. The character of Ben Daimio is a Japanese-American. (In fact, if I remember my teenage weeaboo phase correctly, “daimio” phonetically sounds like the word for a feudal-era Japanese lord, though don’t quote me on that) Whitewashing in Hollywood should be a thing of the past, but recently it has seemed to be out of control. From Tilda Swinton being cast as the Tibetan character of The Ancient One in Doctor Strange to Scarlett Johansson playing the decidedly Japanese protagonist of Ghost in the Shell (which flopped, at least), there seems to be no end to white actors taking representation from people of color. (And the less said about that abysmal and whitewashed Death Note movie, the better) Some of the responses to the ” Oscars So White ” controversy said that maybe people of color just weren’t as good. That’s … kind of absurd, but we’d ask those people how exactly actors of color can demonstrate their acting skills when they’re not even given the opportunity to portray people of color on screen. More importantly, there are the fans who mourn losing major representation on the big screen. Some people can’t relate, but those are the people who grew up always being able to see someone not unlike themselves on screen. They’ve never faced having their identities erased. Scarlett Johansson, despite making so much money that she could turn down any job, has never seemed to find a problem taking jobs that could or should have gone to someone else. Ed Skrein, however, is cut from a different cloth. Ed Skrein took to social media to publicly step down for the role after the backlash. For one thing, he says that he wasn’t initially aware of the character’s race. (Remember, the titular character in this franchise is named “Hellboy,” so if you don’t recognize “Daimio” as a Japanese word or name and you’re not already a fan of the series, you just wouldn’t know. We don’t even recall Ben Daimio making it into either of the two original films) “It is clear that representing this character in a culturally accurate way holds significance for people, and that to neglect this responsibility would continue a worrying tendency to obscure ethnic minority stories and voices in the Arts.” It’s so good that he’s calling this out so publicly. “I feel it is important to honor and respect that.” He is so right. And he adds a personal note. “Representation of ethnic diversity is important, especially to me as I have a mixed heritage family.” Part of his background is Jewish Austrian. Ultimately, we hope that this will be a net gain for Ed Skrein. The money and acclaim that he might have garnered for taking on this role will hopefully pale in comparison to what he gains in positive press coverage. A friend of mine pointed out last night that every time that someone talks about whitewashing for the next few years, they’ll point to Ed Skrein by name as the perfect counterexample to, say, Scarlett Johansson. And he’s earned no shortage of praise, from fans to other actors. (Scarlett, in the mean time, has become something of a joke; Rahul Kohli of iZombie once joked that ScarJo was originally cast to play his role) Possibly the best part of all of this is that the producers behind the new Hellboy trilogy say that they are taking this seriously. We hope to see them cast more appropriately in the future.
Olympic legend Michael Phelps and his wife Nicole are expecting their second child, the duo announced in dueling social media posts. Phelps and the former Nicole Johnson are already parents to a little boy named Boomer … who seems pretty hyped to be a big brother! The greatest swimmer ever wrote, alongside the photo above: “Number 2 on the way!!!! So excited!! Wonder if it’s a boy or a girl??” We too wonder this, but there’s no debating that Boomer is about as precious as it gets as he holds his mom’s pregnancy test. (Which we presume is positive, hence the post.) Added Nicole in her own Instagram post featuring the same photo of herself and her son, “Lil mans going to be a Big Brother!!!” The couple met in 2007, started dating in 2009 and temporarily broke up prior to the 2012 Summer Olympics before reuniting in 2014. Michael’s been with her through a lot of ups and downs in life, but never has he seemed happier than right here, right now. Not to be left out, Boomer, 15 months, says he’s looking forward to big brotherhood as well, according to his personal Instagram. “So excited to see what mama is having!! Do I get to have a brother or a sister?!?” Phelps and Johnson’s son “wrote” earlier. Nicole and Michael welcomed Boomer in May 2016, just months before he capped off his historic Olympic career in Rio that summer. They also got married last year – two times! Michael and Nicole, both 32, tied the knot in June and then wed again in late October during a larger event in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. Clearly, parenthood suits them, as he said earlier this year they were already thinking about number two in terms of when, not it. “Nicole has recently brought up that she would like a girl!” Phelps told People. “We definitely want more kids, it just depends on when.” “I’m sure I’m getting pressure.” Hey, at least she knows the swimmer’s boys can … sorry, that’s not even that funny at the end of the day, but we couldn’t resist. Phelps said Nicole’s pregnancy with Boomer wasn’t planned, but this time around revealed, “[We’re] trying to get moving on some things!” “We are so fortunate to have a healthy and happy baby and hopefully more coming soon, but we don’t know when,” Michael added. “We’re going through life everyday happy and blessed with what we have. But I hope to have more kids in the future,” he said. Now in retirement, the winner of an eye-popping 23 Olympic medals from 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016 combined is quite content. View Slideshow: Nicole Johnson: 19 Photos of Michael Phelps’ Fiancee! He may miss the competition sometimes, but having devoted his whole life to the sport, extra time at home with the kid is great as well. So many milestones, every day. “I think that is the coolest thing, watching him grow,” he said of his adorable young son. “Just watching him figure out new things.” Congrats to the whole family!
Thaddaeus McAdams/WireImage Here’s a little sneak peak at the cast of Love and Hip Hop’s anticipated Miami franchize. Does this look like something you’ll be watching?
