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Meagan Good Once Gave Her Co-Star Dennis Quaid a Safe Word in ‘The Intruder’

Antonio Stallings — Mon, 08 Jul 2024 20:59:47 +0000

Actor Dennis Quaid co-starred alongside Cousin Skeeter star Meagan Good in the 2019 horror thriller The Intruder. Given how intense and intimate the movie was, Good asserted that scenes could be a bit extreme between herself and her onscreen partner — so much so that she joked that she needed to establish a safe word.

What Meagan Good thought about working with Dennis Quaid in ‘The Intruder’

Meagan Good | Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic

The Intruder was a callback to older thrillers. Good starred in the 2019 feature alongside Michael Ealy as a young couple being stalked and harassed by their house’s previous homeowner. Good had already worked with Ealy before. But Intruder marked the first time the actor teamed up with Dennis Quaid, whom she was a huge fan of growing up.

“With Dennis, it’s something a little different because I grew up watching him, and he’s absolutely incredible,” Good once told Brief Take. “When I get into scenes with him, there’s something about movie stars from the ’80s, ’90s, there’s not a lot of movie stars, so the way that you approach a scene and you’d be willing to try anything, no matter how crazy it was, because that’s where the magic was – that was very inspiring to me. Also, he would say to me, ‘Yeah, let’s go find the magic. Let’s just go there and see what happens.'”

Quaid played the obsessive villain in the thriller, which required him and the Shazam star to go to some potentially dark places while filming. Although Quaid was cautious when collaborating with Good, she reassured Quaid that he could push her to her limits. And if he went too far, she’d let him know.

“There’s some pretty intense scenes, and I was like, ‘Just go for it. I’ll give you a safe word,'” Good said in a resurfaced interview with 5 On Your Side.

Dennis Quaid insisted that Meagan Good spit on him during one ‘Intruder’ scene

The Intruder filmmaker Deon Taylor wanted Good and Quaid to watch past thrillers that inspired the film. One frame of reference Taylor used was Fatal Attraction.

“Deon brought up early on that he wanted us to watch the scene from Fatal Attraction where Glenn Close and Michael Douglas had this love scene where she had her hand in the sink, and then she started wiping the water on their faces while they were making out,” Good once told The Young Folks.” Deon wanted us to have that creativity and freedom and see whatever happens because that’s when the magic happens.”

Quaid took Taylor’s advice to heart and insisted he and Good improvise this critical scene in the movie.

“So as Dennis and I are doing our scene, he whispers to me, ‘Spit on me.’ I was like, ‘I’m going to act like he didn’t say that,'” Good recalled. “So as we kept doing the scene, he said it again, with a little more voice. I’m just like, ‘Oh my God, what is happening?'”

But Good eventually acquiesced after Taylor agreed with Quaid’s idea.

“Now just imagine Deon in the room watching the camera yelling, ‘Spit on him!’ So I just end up doing something light, but Dennis is like, ‘No, get a good one!’ So I did it, and it was cool because that type of freedom allowed us to see what worked and how to make it as creepy as possible,” Good said.

Meagan Good once shared what made doing horror movies different from other genres

Good was always a fan of horror films and even starred in a few scary movies herself, like Venom and The Unborn. The Intruder also fell into this category; it just took a more grounded approach to the genre. What Good enjoyed about starring opposite Quaid was that she could tap into emotions she couldn’t in other film genres.

“People go, ‘Oh, horror movies are just … you know.’ And I’m like, ‘No. In every other movie, you go through experiencing whatever the character is going through,” she said in an interview with Roger Ebert. “But in this genre, you go through experiencing, ‘How do I survive? How do I live? At what point does this kick in? At what point do I feel like I’m not going to make it? At what point do I decide that it doesn’t matter if it’s life or death?'”

This allowed Good to truly put herself in the position of her character in horror flicks.

“To even be on set and to go there, it just reminds you that you’re living life,” she continued. “And it just makes you think whether you’re in that situation, and the you start asking yourself, ‘What would I do?'”

How ‘Castle’ Creator Wanted the Show to Be Different From ‘Law & Order’

Antonio Stallings — Sat, 06 Jul 2024 20:09:00 +0000

The Law & Order series is one of the most successful franchises on television, so much so it even spawned a few successful spin-offs. Despite its success, however, the Castle creator was unimpressed with the series’ quality. And he set out to make a show that had everything he believed Law & Order didn’t.

‘Castle’ creator Andrew Marlowe felt ‘Law & Order’ was very dry

Nathan Fillion | Nicole Wilder/Getty Images

Castle creator Andrew Marlowe was already a successful screenwriter before creating his hit television series. He wrote films like Air Force One and End of Days. But it was his experience with writing films that made him want to tackle doing a television series instead.

“Well, I was primarily a feature writer, and I was stuck in my ten-by-ten room, and I thought, wouldn’t it be great to get out of the room and actually do some of the things I was writing about? Just translating that notion to Castle seemed relatively friendly,” Marlowe once told Assignment X. “What is it like to have a writer who has all this book information actually have to go out into the real world? There is also a part of me where I love the old murder mysteries.”

But Marlowe didn’t want Castle to be like the procedurals he saw on modern television. To him, these shows didn’t have enough focus on character, which he hoped to remedy with his own project.

“The recent procedurals like CSI and Law & Order are a little too dry for me, because it doesn’t really focus on the character, it focuses on the minutia of the law or the minutia of the evidence that I like to call ‘evidence porn,’ because they show it in beautiful light to the music montage,” Marlowe said. “What I was missing were the characters that I loved growing up on the shows like Rockford and Columbo, Moonlighting, all those great mysteries.”

“So between me wanting to get out in the world and do stuff and projecting that onto Castle and wanting to be part of a show that had great characters that felt like the shows that I loved growing up, I just came up with this idea,” he added.

Similarly, one of the reasons why Fillion was drawn to Castle was because of its humor. The Rookie star felt his show’s lighthearted nature was a stark contrast to more serious shows like Law & Order.

“If people are like me and watch a crime drama, and they say, oh that would have been a really good joke there if he only went for it,” Fillion once told My Take On TV. “There was a call back, all you have to do is say that would have been a good joke. On Castle, we go for it. The humor in life. On Castle, we try to find the life. We’re not all dark, driven, and haunted. It’s people doing their job, going out there. There’s comedy in life. On Castle, we find it.”

Andrew Marlowe felt Nathan Fillion’s ‘Firefly’ connection helped ‘Castle’

Although he crafted the character, Marlowe felt Fillion’s performance had a huge influence on the role. He credited Fillion for a lot of the show’s humor.

“Nathan’s brought Castle to life in such a unique and specific way that it all has to be filtered through that brand of humor, that irreverent attitude, and to be able to play it with charm, given that we’re dealing with dead bodies, so he doesn’t come across as being insensitive. And I think that Nathan’s really able to walk that fine line, and we’re able to write to it,” Marlowe said about Fillion.

But Marlowe also believed that Fillion’s Firefly roots played another part in Castle‘s overall success. Fillion might’ve cultivated such a devoted fanbase with the sci-fi series, that they followed the actor on his Castle journey.

“I think that they’ve been very helpful,” Marlowe said. “His Firefly fans are very devoted to him and we appreciate being able to share the same universe as them.”

It helped that Castle featured quite a few references to Firefly. There was one Halloween-themed Castle episode where Fillion even dressed up as his Firefly counterpart Malcolm Reynolds.

“It was actually the writer of the episode, Terry Miller, who brought the idea to us, because it was a Halloween episode and she felt it would be a natural way to honor Nathan’s fans,” Marlowe remembered. “And we took it and ran with it, and Nathan was very excited, I was very excited by it, but that came from one of our writers [saying], ‘You know what would be cool?'”

Jennifer Lopez Knew Aspiring Actors Wouldn’t Be Successful if They Said These Words

Antonio Stallings — Sat, 06 Jul 2024 01:31:00 +0000

Jennifer Lopez knew what it took to be successful in the entertainment industry. So when aspiring actors and singers asked her for this one piece of advice, she felt that it showed they weren’t ready for the spotlight.

Jennifer Lopez felt these types of aspiring actors weren’t going to make it

Jennifer Lopez | Marleen Moise/Getty Images

Lopez seemed to take no shortcuts as she pursued Hollywood success. She initially started her career as a dancer, ending up on Keenen Ivory Wayans’ In Living Color as a Fly Girl. The sketch comedy show helped launch several actors’ careers, including Lopez’s, who would pursue film roles after leaving In Living Color. Some of her earlier film roles were Mi Familia, Money Train, and Serena, which earned her critical acclaim and more opportunities.

She was also able to enjoy a successful music career, having released the record On the 6 in 1999. Her film success could only be matched by her musical accomplishments at one point, as On the 6 went on to sell eight million copies. Since then, she’s released nine studio albums, establishing herself her singing career.

Lopez has often cited her tireless work ethic as the source for her success. But she’s also conveyed an incredible amount of passion for all the work she’s done.

“I’ve never been motivated by money. I’ve always been motivated by – I wanna be a great actress; I wanna be a great singer, a great dancer. I wanna make movies; I wanna make music. And the money came along with that,” she once told GQ.

Lopez felt in order to make it in the entertainment industry, aspiring artists required a similar amount of passion and resilience. Which was why Lopez often wrote off artists who asked her this one question.

“When people ask me, ‘How do I do this? How do I get into this?’ I think to myself, ‘You’re not going to do this,’” Lopez said in a 2021 interview with Elle. “Because if you’re going to do this, there is a drive within you that will find a way and you don’t need anybody to tell you, ‘You should do this, or you should do that.’ That’s not how it goes. It’s just knocking on the wall and finding a way. When people ask that question, I go, ‘This person probably is looking for a shortcut.’ There is no one sure way to become an actor or start making music. People fall into it in different ways, in their own time.”

Jennifer Lopez loved being a mentor

Although Lopez would offer some tough love to her younger peers, she asserted that she really did enjoy being a mentor. She’s seen less experienced actors in the same position that she might’ve been in during her younger years, and didn’t hesitate to offer sage advice.

“I like sharing the experience that I have. When I work with younger actors and I see them banging their head up against the wall, really trying to make this moment work, it’s just like: The most important thing you can do right now is relax. Let’s just be, let’s just live,” Lopez said. “You start off and you have all of these ambitions: ‘I’m going to be the greatest actor of all time and I’m going to do this and I’m going to do that.’ You can and you will, but how you become that is to relax into it and understand that you know what you’re doing and that you’ve put in the work. The more relaxed, the more aware I can be, the better.”

What Jennifer Lopez would’ve done differently as an actor

On the surface, it seemed that Lopez had little to regret when it came to her career. But there were a few decisions she would’ve tweaked if she could go back in time. When she was starting out, Lopez would try to accept too many movie offers. This was because diverse roles for Latina roles were scarce. But when Lopez became a bigger actor, she still found herself not as particular with her film roles as she should’ve been.

“I didn’t get called in for everything someone who wasn’t Latina would get called in for. I got called in for very specific things,” she said. “As I started getting more leads here and there, I should have pulled back. I took that mindset with me instead of going, ‘I should only work with certain kinds of directors that I really want to work with. I should choose this material in a different way.’ I just wasn’t as particular as I could be, I think. And if I [could] start over, I think I would’ve done that. I would’ve known that the director is really the helm of the project when you’re acting. Just like in singing, the producers you work with are very important. I knew that with music, but I didn’t quite understand it as much when I was younger about directors.”

Idris Elba Questioned if He Was Really ‘Acting’ in Some of His Intense Roles

Antonio Stallings — Fri, 05 Jul 2024 03:33:00 +0000

Actor Idris Elba has played a wide variety of roles on his rise to movie stardom. But when portraying some of his more extreme characters, Elba wondered if what he was doing could really be considered acting.

Idris Elba | Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images

Elba has gone out of his way to play characters that are different from his previous roles. He gained momentum by portraying the iconic Stringer Bell in the hit television series The Wire. After leaving the show, it would’ve been easy for Elba to do similar characters. But he chose to branch out instead.

“Playing Stringer Bell put me on the map as an actor in America. I had worked in England and I had done decent work, but getting a role on The Wire expanded me into the US in a way that I couldn’t have hoped for,” he once said on The Talks. “And after that, I continued to get better, bigger roles; I got to work with some really good people.

“So The Wire really shifted my career massively. But I should be adapting and trying different things, and I think throughout my career, I’ve dodged the bullet of, ‘Oh, you were great as this role, we would love to see you play that role again.’ I have been offered roles that feel very similar to other work I’ve done, and I have definitely tried to avoid those. It can be difficult for my fan base, they are always surprised! And whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing, I’m not sure.”

Elba’s strategy paid off, allowing him to add even more diversity to his film career. Although he set out to play many different characters, he always looked for a few common traits in his roles.

“The roles I take tend to have that complexity, and I enjoy diving into them, because, yeah, this is therapy time. A lot of times I read something in a script and I think, ‘I’m secretly dealing with that,’” Elba once told The Guardian.

But Elba channeled so much of his real emotions doing these characters, that he wondered if he was cheating a little when performing them.

“If you’re only dealing with certain facets of your own personality, is that really acting? People sometimes tell me, ‘You were good in this or that role’, and I think, ‘You don’t realize. I was dealing with that s*** for real,’” he said.

Idris Elba once felt playing villains was therapeutic

Perhaps the roles that offered him the most catharsis were movie villains, which Elba had portrayed quite a few times in his career. The Wire, Beasts of No Nation, and The Suicide Squad saw Elba explore some morally questionable and downright despicable characters. But Elba felt these types of personalities offered a kind of release that other roles didn’t.

“These people get to say things that we only think in the deepest, darkest recesses of our brains,” Elba once told Wall Street Journal. “They say horrible things and scream horrible things and get to be completely socially unacceptable. As an actor, that’s sometimes a gift, sometimes a bit of therapy.”

But Elba also gave credit to the people who came up with these villainous characters to play in the first place.

“When you see a really interesting bad guy, you’re going to think about the actor, but think about the writer,” he said. “It’s the writer who’s dark. You’ve got to give him or her a hug.”

Idris Elba revealed he went to therapy because of his unhealthy work habits

As much therapy as acting might provide Elba, the Beast star recently confided that he sees an actual therapist for another reason. Speaking on the Changes With Annie MacManus podcast, Elba shared how he used therapy to combat being a workaholic.

“I’ve been in therapy the last… about a year now. It’s a lot right? In my therapy I’ve been thinking a lot about changing… like neuropaths being shifted,” Elba said. “It’s not because I don’t like myself or anything like that. It’s just because I have some unhealthy habits that have really formed. And I work in an industry that I’m rewarded for those unhealthy habits. I’m rewarded for them. I’m an absolute workaholic. And that isn’t great for life, generally.”

Nathan Fillion Once Joked That He Was the Poor Man’s Green Lantern Before Being Cast in ‘Superman’

Antonio Stallings — Fri, 05 Jul 2024 02:43:00 +0000

Superman will be heading into theaters with a new movie directed by filmmaker James Gunn. Gunn gathered a large cast for his upcoming DC superhero feature, including his frequent collaborator Nathan Fillion. Fillion will play Green Lantern in the superhero flick, who was a character that Fillion already had a lot of experience with.

Nathan Fillion once thought he’d be looked at as the poor man’s Green Lantern in hindsight

Nathan Fillion | Jamie McCarthy/WireImage

Fillion may be playing a live-action version of Green Lantern in 2025’s Superman. But Fillion already has an extensive history with the superhero in animated form. He voiced the Green Lantern Hal Jordan in several DC animated movies like Emerald Knight and Flashpoint Paradox. But even before Fillion was cast as the character, he’d had practice playing Green Lantern in his childhood years. According to Reel Life with Jane, Fillion explained why it was easier pretending to be Green Lantern as a kid versus other superheroes.

“As a child, when you’re pretending you’re different superheroes, Green Lantern was the easiest because all you needed to light the fire in the imagination was the ring. Superman, you need a cape; Spiderman, you need a full face mask. That wasn’t tough to come by in a winter town like where I’m from, but they’re just too hot to wear in the summer. So to be Green Lantern, all you needed to do is suck a lifesaver down to the right size — make sure it’s a lime one – slip it on your finger, and you were good,” Fillion said.

He’d played Green Lantern so many times already that Comics Worth Reading joked that Fillion had full equity in the character. But a modest Fillion joked there were too many other Green Lantern actors for him to take sole ownership of the role.

“I don’t think I can take full equity in this character — too many people have a chunk. Ryan Reynolds gets the right-of-way on this one. Right now, I feel pretty Green Lantern-ish. But sooner or later, I think I’ll be a poor man’s Green Lantern,” Fillion said.

What Nathan Fillion has said about playing a live-action Green Lantern

It’s been a long time coming, but Fillion was finally cast as a live-action Green Lantern in Gunn’s Superman. Although he won’t be playing Hal Jordan, he’ll be portraying another Green Lantern by the name of Guy Gardner. The news of his casting may have come just as a surprise to Fillion as it came to certain fans. In an interview with Collider, Fillion confided that Gunn gave him the news at a party.

“We were actually at the premiere party after Suicide Squad and he was in a huge crowd of people. We saw each other in the crowd and I congratulated him, ‘Oh, my God, that was amazing. It’s so great.’ He goes, ‘Hey, did Peter [Safran] tell you what we’ve got for you next?’ I said, ‘No, he hasn’t said.’ He looked around like someone was gonna be listening. We were in a throng of people, but he leaned over and said, ‘You’re gonna be Guy Gardner,’” Fillion recalled.

The Rookie star also gave a little taste as to what to expect from his role as Guy. Guy has been characterized as one of the more abrasive Green Lanterns in other media. It seems that Gunn’s and Fillion’s take on the character might align with Guy’s traditional personality.

“The reality is that people have flaws. We all have quirks,” Fillion said. “We all have vulnerabilities. You could have the most wonderful family, but be like, ‘Oh, my God, my dad drives me nuts. He’s got this one thing.’ Everybody’s got something, and I love to lean into those faults and flaws. It’s what makes people real and what allows audiences to relate, because we all know what that is. We all have our own. We witness it in other people. Guy Gardner is 90% flawed and doesn’t care. That’s one of his flaws. I think there’s a real freedom in playing that. So, for a guy who likes to play flaws and flawed people, Guy Gardner is a gold mine.”

Mariska Hargitay Once Revealed the Special Meaning Behind Her Son August’s Name

Antonio Stallings — Fri, 05 Jul 2024 01:22:00 +0000

Law & Order: SVU star Mariska Hargitay looked forward to becoming a mother. When she gave birth to a son, she and her husband, Peter Hermann, put a lot of thought into his name.

Mariska Hargitay explained where the name August came from

Mariska Hargitay | Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images

Hargitay gave birth to her oldest son, August, in 2006. But the name she gave her son wasn’t something she and Hermann picked on a whim. The month August already held a lot of significance for Hargitay and her family.

“Everyone is assuming it’s because we were married in August, which is part of it,” Hargitay once explained to TV Guide. “Peter’s birthday is also in August and it is our favorite month, but it’s also a name that has been in Peter’s family for 200 years. We wanted to give him a European name, something literary and artistic, like the Swedish playwright August Strindberg and the French sculptor Auguste Rodin. It’s a strong name that means ‘majestic’ and ‘revered’ and ‘noble,’ like a peaceful ruler.”

“We wanted to give him something different,” Hargitay added. “Not crazy weird, like Burlap.”

Similarly to her husband, Hargitay also allowed her son August to have more than three names. In this instance, August would’ve been following in his father’s footsteps. But Hargitay didn’t want her son to have quite as many names as Hermann’s.

“My husband has five names — Karl Peter Frederic Albert Hermann,” Hargitay said. “He wanted to do that to our kid, but I’m a big fan of first, middle and last, so I said he could have one extra.”

August’s full name is August Miklos Friedrich Hermann.

How August inspired Mariska Hargitay to stay in shape

As is the case after most pregnancies, Hargitay had to go through a careful training and diet regimen to reclaim her figure. But after August was born, her motivation for maintaining a fit body wasn’t for aesthetic purposes. She did so in order to keep up with her children.

“It’s not about being fat or thin. I’m a full-figured woman. It’s about how am I going to keep up my energy,” Hargitay once told People.

“If I’m supporting myself, I’m supporting my kid. If I’m happy and healthy, I can be a better wife and mom, I can do a better job,” she added.

Keeping fit meant avoiding certain foods like sugars and wheat, while drinking wine in careful moderation. At the time, Hargitay also wanted to maintain her energy in case she expanded her family. Although she wasn’t sure she’d have more kids.

“It’s hard. I think a lot of it is up to God and nature and we’ll see what happens,” she said.

Mariska Hargitay revealed August thinks adoption was his idea

Hargitay and Hermann eventually did end up expanding their family through adoption. They adopted daughter Amaya Josephine Hermann and Andrew Nicolas Hermann in 2011.

“I was really letting the chips fall as they might, because I do think so much is up to God. I always said, ‘I don’t know how this is going to end up. I don’t know if I’m going to get pregnant and have twins. I don’t know…if somebody’s going to leave a baby on my doorstep.’ But I really did think that down the line, Peter and I would adopt a child. That was always part of the plan,” Hargitay once told Good Housekeeping.

Hargitay confided, however, that August took credit for the adoptions due to timing.

“August thinks this was all his idea,” she said. “He said, ‘I want a baby sister,’ and Amaya came. Then he said, ‘I want a baby brother,’ and Andrew came. August is feeling pretty good and pretty powerful!”

Meagan Good Wanted to Become an Actor After Seeing ‘Halloween 5’

Antonio Stallings — Thu, 04 Jul 2024 03:32:00 +0000

Actor Meagan Good was known for starring in lighthearted projects like Cousin Skeeter at the start of her career. She has since branched out to include a variety of movies in her resume. But she might be understated as a horror movie star as well, having starred in her fair share of slashers and paranormal films. This made sense, however, as it was the Halloween franchise that inspired Good to be an actor in the first place.

How ‘Halloween’ star Danielle Harris made Meagan Good want to become an actor

Michael Myers | Kevin Winter/Getty Images

As is the case with many actors, Good knew that she wanted to be involved in the film industry as a child. But she told Cigar & Spirits that it was all a matter of how badly she wanted to pursue a career in film.

“I knew very young that I wanted to be an actress. I just didn’t know how seriously I wanted to take it. It was a hobby. Other kids went to ballet practice or soccer, and my sister and I went to auditions. I started when I was about four, doing extra work on Doogie Howser and Amen. I think I was around 12 when I realized, ‘I genuinely love this. I want to do this. I want to be a serious actress.’ That next year, I booked my first speaking role in a movie–Friday. Then the following year, I booked my first leading role,” she said.

That leading role was perhaps one of her most well-known features Eve’s Bayou, where she co-starred alongside Samuel L. Jackson.

Goode also starred in her fair share of horror movies as well. The Unborn, Saw V, and Venom all saw her at the center of her own sinister stories. But this made sense, as she was a huge fan of the Halloween movies and its star Danielle Harris.

Harris was the face of the Halloween franchise for a while after Jamie Lee Curtis’ era. She portrayed Michael Myers’ niece and new target in Halloween 4 and 5. Given her age at the time, Good felt an immediate connection with Harris after watching the horror flicks.

“My all time favorite scary movie was Halloween 5, and it had a little girl who just a year older than me [Danielle Harris]. She’s the reason I wanted to become an actress,” Good once told 5 On Your Side.

Meagan Good once had a paranormal experience straight from a horror movie

The Halloween films weren’t Good’s only go-to horror flicks. She was also into movies even more supernatural than Michael Myers.

“The Exorcism of Emily Rose is one of my favorite scariest films. Just because it doesn’t play in the realm of something that more than likely isn’t possible, but plays completely in the ‘not only that could happen, but something that did happen,'” she once said according to Black Film.

Ironically, the Shazam star had an experience that could’ve been a scene right out of Emily Rose. She recalled a time when she might’ve stayed in a real-life haunted apartment.

“Strangely enough at Sundance. It was my first year there and I had this apartment to myself and I was already freaked out because I was there alone and I couldn’t get to sleep,” she continued. “And finally just when i started to fall asleep, I had this dream of two of my girlfriends staying in my room saying ‘Don’t wake me up’. And I dreamed that one of them threw a cell phone above where I was sleeping to try to wake me up. I woke up right then and I thought the dream was for real and when I looked in the mirror in my room I could [see] a black figure crouching in my bed where my friends would have been if it was real. The room was not dark because the TV was on and you could see everything around you. You could see reflections and then all of a sudden, it stood up really quick and ran out.”

She was so crept out by the incident that Good immediately contacted one of her parents.

“I called my mom, told her the story and she was telling me to call the manager of the festival. She wanted to come and I told her I would have to open the door and if I do, I’ll make a run for it. So I ran out the room, got another one, and was still freaked out. I never saw it again,” she remembered.

Denzel Washington Once Told Himself That He’d Never Go Hollywood

Antonio Stallings — Thu, 04 Jul 2024 02:44:00 +0000

Actor Denzel Washington became one of the biggest stars in Hollywood. But he didn’t see himself achieving this A-list status in his younger years. Back then, his plan didn’t go beyond just making a living as an actor.

How Denzel Washington became an actor

Denzel Washington | Tibrina Hobson/WireImage

Washington didn’t start out wanting to be an actor. He explored a few potential occupations before realizing that acting was something that he wanted to do. In college, he was a pre-med major before focusing on becoming a lawyer. In the end, he earned a degree in Journalism from Fordham University in 1977.

He revealed that it wasn’t until his stint at a summer camp that he considered a career in acting. But even then, he didn’t see himself becoming the movie star that he turned out to be.

“I worked as a creative arts director at an overnight YMCA summer camp. As a camp leader, we had to put on a talent show, so after our show one of my fellow camp leaders’ told me I should get into acting. So, after the camp I went back to New York and enrolled at Lincoln Center and began studying acting. Then I studied at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. I was a theater snob, and wanted to jet back to New York as soon as possible. I remember saying to myself that I will never go to Hollywood,” Washington once said according to Odyssey.

Washington stuck with theater for a while, doing plays like Coriolanus and A Soldier’s Play. He found himself following in the footsteps of other actors who came before him that didn’t really have a superstar career.

“As a kid, I’d wanted to be a football player. Then, after I got into theater at age 20, I saw James Earl Jones do Oedipus the King at St. John the Divine on 112th Street in Manhattan, and I was like, Wow,” Washington once told Oprah. “I sneaked into his dressing room and looked at his props and his rings while he was meeting people. I thought, ‘One day I’ll make $650 a week and work on Broadway.’ It was never my master plan to go to Hollywood.”

Denzel Washington once revealed the movie that changed everything

Washington would slowly make the transition into the world of television and film. He made his onscreen debut in the 1981 feature Carbon Copy. The film didn’t do too well, but he found success in the medical drama St. Elsewhere. He starred in all six seasons of the series, with the show bringing a lot of eyes to his performance. What made St. Elsewhere even more convenient, however, was that it gave Washington the freedom to pursue film projects outside of the show.

”I remember early on my agent talked to me about not getting caught up in television. She convinced me not to do The Jeffersons, which I’d read for. But St. Elsewhere had so many characters, you could get sort of lost in the sauce and be able to sneak out and do films. And it was a great show,” Washington once told Entertainment Weekly.

But to Washington, it was the feature Cry Freedom which was the game-changer. The 1987 film saw Washington portray South African activist Steve Bitko. It was also a huge opportunity for Washington, earning him his first Oscar nomination. But his career could’ve easily gone in a different direction.

“Sidney Poitier told me the first three or four films you make will determine how you’re perceived in this business. Later on, I was offered another comedy, but it wasn’t funny to me — I thought it was quite racist. I didn’t take it, and I waited about six months and I got Cry Freedom That movie changed everything. I could have taken that bad comedy and had a totally different career,” he said.

Bruce Willis’ Daughter Had a Crush on Ashton Kutcher That Turned Awkward After He Dated Demi Moore

Antonio Stallings — Thu, 04 Jul 2024 01:44:00 +0000

Ashton Kutcher’s relationship with Demi Moore was a huge adjustment for their families. Things were made a bit more complicated when Moore’s daughter with Bruce Willis already had a strong celebrity crush on Kutcher.

How Rumer Willis reacted to Ashton Kutcher dating her mom

Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher | Amanda Edwards/WireImage

Moore already had a full household by the time she was dating Ashton Kutcher. She and Willis shared three children in Rumer, Scout, and Tallulah Willis, with Rumer being the oldest. When Kutcher began seriously dating Moore, he felt prepared to take on the responsibilities of fatherhood.

“I was twenty-six, bearing the responsibility of an eight-year-old, a ten-year-old, and a twelve-year-old,” Kutcher once told Esquire. “That’s how some teen parents must experience their twenties.”

But fortunately, Kutcher asserted that he had no problems with kids back then. Which might’ve made taking on the responsibility of fatherhood a bit easier.

“I love kids,” Kutcher said. “I wouldn’t have gotten married to a woman that had three kids if I didn’t love kids.”

But Kutcher’s relationship with Moore was initially an awkward situation for Rumer. This was partially because Rumer considered Kutcher one of her celebrity crushes.

“It was strange when mom, who is 15 years older than Ashton, started seeing him [in 2003]. I was 15 and he was a heart-throb to me – I had pictures of him on my wall,” Rumer once said according to Contact Music. “I remember mom saying her new ‘friend’ was going to hang out with us. I said, ‘What’s his name?’ and she said, ‘It’s Ashton’. And I said, ‘Whoa – Ashton Kutcher?’ I freaked out a bit and blushed.”

The awkwardness between Rumer and Kutcher was only short lived, however, after seeing Kutcher’s positive affects on her mom.

“I realized I’d never seen my mom happier. It was like watching two sixteen-year-olds going to the prom,” she said.

Why Rumer Willis was once upset with Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore

Kutcher and Moore would eventually try to give birth to a child of their own. Moore became pregnant in 2003, but experienced a miscarriage six months afterwards. It was a very challenging time for the couple, who handled the situation in different ways.

“Losing a kid that you think you’re going to have, and that close to thinking you’re going to have a kid, is really, really painful,” Kutcher said. “Everyone deals with that in different ways.”

As devastating as the moment was for Kutcher, Kutcher asserted that he wouldn’t change a thing.

“The idea of having another kid would have been incredible,” he said. “For whatever reason, I had to have that experience.”

But Moore’s pregnancy at the time also had an affect on Rumer. Rumer admitted that the attention on Moore’s and Kutcher’s new child made her feel cast aside.

“With Ashton, I was so angry because I felt like something that was mine had been taken away,” Rumer said on Red Table Talk (via HuffPost). “When she wanted to have another baby and then it wasn’t happening, and there was so much focus on that, it was like ‘Oh, well we’re not enough.’”

Rumer had a change of heart after seeing older pictures of Moore pregnant. That, and her maturity, made her feel like she was being very inconsiderate towards her mother’s situation at the time.

“I think after you had a miscarriage, I literally was just like, ‘Why are you so desperate to have another kid?’ I couldn’t stand the idea,” Rumer told Moore herself. “But then I found these pictures, and I was like, ‘Oh my god.’”

“‘Oh my god, I was so insensitive,'” Rumer remembered thinking at the time. “I never once went to you and said, ‘I’m so sorry,’ ‘Are you okay?’”

Star-Studded Spectacle at Wimbledon 2024: David Beckham, Rebel Wilson, and More Shine Courtside

Ali Hicks — Wed, 03 Jul 2024 19:40:37 +0000

Wimbledon 2024 has attracted many celebrities, adding extra glamour to the prestigious tennis tournament. Among the notable attendees is David Beckham, known for his passion for tennis and frequent appearances at the event. Bridgerton stars Golda Rosheuvel and Martins Imhangbe were spotted enjoying the matches from above. Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl looked polished and preppy, cheering alongside his wife in the Royal Box. See them and the rest of the celebrity guests at Wimbledon 2024:

Jordyn Blum and Dave Grohl at Wimbledon on July 02, 2024 in London | Karwai Tang/WireImage

Dave Grohl is known for his rocker status and rather grunge-forward looks. However, the 55-year-old attended day two of Wimbledon in a full navy suit, mustard-colored tie, and suede slippers. Grohl brushed his hair back into a ponytail, complementing his wife Jordyn Blum’s chic sky blue ensemble.

David Beckham at Wimbledon at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club | Karwai Tang/WireImage

Soccer star David Beckham was mobbed by fans as he walked the Wimbledon grounds. The 49-year-old brought his mother, Sandra, along for day one of the prestigious tennis tournament. Beckham paused to sign autographs before watching Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz defeat Estonia’s Mark Lajal.

Golda Rosheuvel and Martins Imhangbe on July 01, 2024 | Neil Mockford/GC Image; Tristan Fewings/Getty Images for American Express

On day one of Wimbledon, Golda Rosheuvel and Martins Imhangbe enjoyed the American Express box with stunning views of the court. The Bridgerton stars, though both born in other countries, call England home as they expand their acting resumes.

Jameela Jamil at Wimbledon on July 01, 2024 in London | Dave Benett/Getty Images for evian; Karwai Tang/WireImage

Eagle-eyed fans of The Good Place noted that Jameela Jamil rewore one of her character Tahani Al-Jamil’s outfits to day one of Wimbledon. The actor and activist looked cool and classy in the navy midi dress with white accents and chunky white heels.

Hannah Waddingham celebrates Wimbledon on July 3, 2024 | Karwai Tang/WireImage; Dave Benett/Getty Images for Champagne Lanson

Hannah Waddingham stunned in a purple floral gown during day three of Wimbledon. The Ted Lasso star sipped on Champagne Lanson and socialized with other celebs as she cheered on NAME. Wimbledon took to its official account to recognize the beloved Brit, tweeting, “A delight to see you at #Wimbledon again, @hanwaddingham.”

David Attenborough at day one of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London | Karwai Tang/WireImage

Sir David Attenborough sat near David Beckham on day one of Wimbledon. The British broadcaster and biologist inspired the International Tennis Federation to switch from white to yellow tennis balls in the ’60s. At the time, the BBC was transitioning to color television, making white balls harder to see on screens, reports AP News. Since then, Attenborough has been an avid supporter of the sport, often attending Wimbledon in his home country.

Rebel Wilson at day two of Wimbledon | Karwai Tang/WireImage; Dave Benett/Getty Images for Emirates

Rebel Wilson attended day two of Wimbledon just months after sharing about a “situation-ship” with a female tennis player. In Rebel Rising: A Memoir, the Bridesmaids actor didn’t name the athlete. But Wilson did share that the relationship was extra special.

“I describe it as cracking open my heart,” Wilson told People. “Like you could open a fresh can of tennis balls…that’s what it did to me. And, I guess, when I saw people write love songs or poetry about love, I was like, ‘Oh, that’s nice’. But I don’t think I’d ever understood that until I felt that for a person.”

Kim Cattrall attends The Championships, Wimbledon 2024 on July 03, 2024 in Wimbledon, England | Tom Dulat/Getty Images for AELTC

Kim Cattrall attended Wimbledon 2024 wearing a chic pink pantsuit paired with a pastel blouse and bubblegum pink purse. The last time the British and Canadian actor attended iconic tournament was 2013.

Tallulah Le Bon and Simon Le Bon at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club | Karwai Tang/WireImage

You may know Simon Le Bon as the lead vocalist of the band Duran Duran. The 65-year-old new wave rocker sat with his youngest daughter, Tallulah, during day two.

Alexander Gilkes and Maria Sharapova at day three of Wimbledon | Karwai Tang/WireImag

Twenty years after Maria Sharapova defeated Serena Williams at Wimbledon to win her first Grand Slam, the retired tennis star is back. This time, Sharapova opted for Burberry over Nike. The 37-year-old wore a tailored khaki jumpsuit, burgundy leather pumps, and green and yellow plaid mini bag — all by the British fashion house. She sat alongside fiancé, British auctioneer Alexander Gilkes.

Alison Hammond at the Pimm’s station | Neil Mockford/GC Images; Antony Jones/Getty Images for Pimm’s

British TV personality Alison Hammond sipped on a Pimm’s cup as she took in the scene at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. The Great British Baking Show host wore a playful oversized polka dot dress and matching hat for the occassion, bringing whimsy to the intense tournament.

Lucy Boynton at Wimbledon 2024 on July 1, 2024 | Dave Benett/Getty Images for evian; Karwai Tang/WireImage

Lucy Boynton got really into the action at Wimbledon day one. The British/American actor, a regular Wimbledon attendee, debuted pink hair and a cute Celine mini dress for the occassion, giving an animated play by play of the competition from the Royal Box.

Mel C at day three of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships | Karwai Tang/WireImage

Mel C snapped selfies with fans as she walks the grounds at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships. The former Spice Girl, 50, went smart casual, wearing a slim white suit, casual tank top, and sneakers.

Grace Jones on July 02, 2024 in London, England | Karwai Tang/WireImage

Grace Jones also donned a utilitarian jumpsuit for day two of Wimbledon. The Jamaican-American singer laughed with friends as she watched the action from beneath her aviator-style hat and sunnies.