show biz

Rita Simons has admitted she would happily sit down with EastEnders bosses to discuss a return even though her soap character was killed off almost a decade ago

Rita Simons has admitted that she would consider a return to EastEnders. The actress, 48, became an instant fan-favourite on the BBC soap when she arrived to play Roxy Mitchell in 2007, turning up alongside Samatha Womack as her on-screen sister Ronnie.

The pair were involved in multiple dramas over their decade-long stay in Albert Square, but it all came to a fatal head on New Year’s Day 2007 when Roxy drunkenly jumped into a swimming pool, and Ronnie jumped in to save her, only to be weighed down by her wedding dress as they both drowned.

Despite being killed off, there have been rumours of a return in one way or another, and Rita initially made a brief reappearance as Roxy in the form of a hallucination in 2023, where she comforted her on-screen daughter Amy. But almost a decade since being axed, Rita, who recently enjoyed a stint in Hollyoaks as Marie Fielding, has admitted she is always asked about a comeback and would happily discuss the idea with soap bosses.

READ MORE: EastEnders icon Rita Simons marries best friend as famous pal gives her awayREAD MORE: EastEnders icon Rita Simons takes drastic action after getting ‘too many’ facial fillers

She said: “It just doesn’t, it doesn’t stop! Someone, I won’t name them, said to me the other day ‘the resilience of your fans is impressive. And it is. Listen, if it was a meeting, we’d be there. But no, I’ve been having lots of very sort of, I’m looking at the gritty dramas, the comedies, the gangster stuff.

“Of course, if EastEnders came knocking, we’d definitely have a conversation.” After leaving EastEnders, Rita starred in a UK tour of the musical Legally Blonde and then competed in the I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! jungle.

Speaking to The Sun, she added: “I think that’s kind of another reason I knew it was time to leave Hollyoaks because I knew that I always wanted to do more drama. And I think it’s easier to transcend when you don’t hang around too long,” before noting that she’d “hung around long enough” in the BBC soap that a comeback might be possible.

Rita’s on-screen sibling Samantha has also enjoyed a successful career on screen and stage since leaving EastEnders, and recently admitted during an appearance on Loose Women that she had been through “all sorts” personally amid her time on the soap and was “terrified” at the thought off leaving, but it altered her outlook on life, especially after facing a battle with cancer.

She said: “When you’re in a place for nine years and you’re playing that character every day, and you’re embedded in that family structure, so you believe that the people who are your sisters, brothers, uncles, cousins, whatever, then you believe that they really are because you see them every day.

“You go through all sorts of emotional things together, the birth of your children, funerals, and this is with the crew as well. You get to know such this wonderful group of people for such a long time and then Ronnie drowned in a pool.

“I thought it was shot beautifully. In retrospect, it’s very easy to hold onto safety, isn’t it? Particularly in our game, being self-employed is terrifying. I don’t know if it was a favour [killing me off], but my whole outlook on life has changed.”

“I got diagnosed with breast cancer and survived it for no,w but the beauty of everything that happens to you, the ups, the downs, is the beautiful chaos of it all and what you’d miss if you weren’t here.”

Earlier this year, the former Mount Pleasant star admitted that she started saying no to a lot of opportunities after her treatment, but knew she needed to do something to get back to earning a sustainable income. She told The Mirror: “After my year-and-a-half of treatment, I started turning down a lot of stuff – and I didn’t have the bank balance to match that confidence, trust me.

“It was me saying the word ‘no’ and my bank account creaking. But there was empowerment in that because I thought, ‘OK, I need to go through this, spend time with myself and figure out stuff that I’ve never figured out – maybe stuff I’ve buried under a rug.’”

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

PETE Davidson has welcomed his first child with his girlfriend, Elsie Hewitt, and shared the baby’s gender and special name.

Elsie revealed the happy news on Instagram on Thursday.

The model shared photos capturing the moments after the little one’s arrival, including the pair bonding with the newborn.

She announced in her caption that they welcomed their daughter, named Scottie Rose Hewitt Davidson, on December 12th.

“My best work yet, i am absolutely overflowing with love and gratitude and disbelief. – elsie

“Wu tang forever. – pete,” Elsie added in her caption.

Read More on Pete Davidson

CHOPPY WATERS

Pete Davidson & Colin Jost’s Staten Island Ferry ‘wreaked havoc’ on marathon

The baby’s name is a sweet nod to Pete’s New York City firefighter father, Scott Davidson, who died on September 11, 2001.

Fans took to the comments to congratulate the new parents and gush over her family moniker.

Elsie, 29, revealed her pregnancy in July with a funny Instagram post featuring ultrasound photos.

She humorously wrote in her caption, “Welp now everyone knows we had sex.”

An insider previously told The U.S. Sun that Elsie and Pete, 32, hoped to one day have a family together, and that the supermodel envisioned a life with the Saturday Night Live alum.

Pete had been vocal about wanting to become a father sooner rather than later, although he sympathized with his girlfriend for going through her pregnancy in the public eye.

During an August appearance on The Breakfast Club, the comic admitted that he “felt bad” for Elsie, who had to deal with many things in the limelight because of their relationship.

Pete has had a spotlight on his personal life since his string of high-profile romances.

They included a brief engagement to Ariana Grande in 2018, and a months-long relationship with Kim Kardashian, following her messy split from her ex-husband, Kanye West.

Pete has also made headlines for his impulsive purchase of a massive Staten Island Ferry with his former SNL co-star, Colin Jost.

The duo has faced numerous delays in their renovation plans since buying the ferry four years ago.

The U.S. Sun exclusively revealed in October that the $280,000 vessel is currently sitting decrepit and abandoned in a New York City harbor, and that both Pete and Colin have expressed regrets over the extravagant purchase.

TikTok has finalized a deal with Oracle and two other investors that will allow the popular social video platform to continue its business in U.S.

The deal, expected to close on Jan. 22, will be 50% held by a new investor consortium that includes tech giant Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX, a technology fund in the United Arab Emirates (with each holding 15%). The rest of the group is made up of ByteDance owning 19.19% and affiliates of existing ByteDance investors holding 30.1%, TikTok said in a memo to employees.

“With these agreements in place, our focus must stay where it’s always been — firmly on delivering for our users, creators, businesses and the global TikTok community,” TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew wrote in his memo.

The company’s future for many years in the U.S. had been uncertain, amid security concerns among legislators about ByteDance’s ties to China. TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance had been under pressure to divest its ownership in the app’s U.S. operations or face a nationwide ban, due to a law Congress passed that went into effect in January. President Trump has signed orders that have allowed TikTok to keep operating in the country and in September signed an executive order outlining the new joint venture.

The venture, which would oversee U.S. data protection, algorithm security, content moderation and software assurance, would be governed by a seven-member board that is majority American, Chew said in his memo. Oracle will be the security partner responsible for “auditing and validating compliance with the agreed upon National Security Terms,” Chew wrote.

Oracle Chief Executive Larry Ellison is also a party in effort to buy Warner Bros. Discovery.

Oracle did not return a request for comment. Silver Lake declined to comment. The White House on Thursday referred questions about the deal back to TikTok. In September, Trump said that Chinese President Xi Jinping had approved the deal.

“These safeguards would protect the American people from the misuse of their data and the influence of a foreign adversary, while also allowing the millions of American viewers, creators, and businesses that rely on the TikTok application to continue using it,” Trump stated in his executive order.

The announcement will come as a relief to some creators and businesses who rely on TikTok to entertain and reach fans and customers.

“I hope it just stays true to the platform and the independence we get from it,” said Yasmine Sahide, who posts comedy videos on TikTok and has 2.4 million followers. “I hope we’re still able to monetize our videos the same way because without that, I think a lot of people would leave or feel uninspired.”

Keith Lee, a TikTok creator who posts videos about food, said he expects the algorithm to change.”I just hope that we can still stay connected with our community and reach an audience the same way as before,” said Lee, who has 17.3 million followers.

Many TikTok creators are based in Southern California, close to TikTok’s office in Culver City. Over the years when TikTok’s future appeared uncertain, some of those creators diversified, posting their content to other platforms like YouTube and Instagram.

“It’s a smart way to avoid ownership and data issues,” said Ray Wang, principal analyst at Constellation Research, of the deal.

If finalized, the deal would remove a persistent issue in Beijing-Washington relations and signal progress in broader talks. But it would also deprive China’s most valuable private company of total control of an American social media phenomenon.

ByteDance’s coveted algorithms are considered central to TikTok’s business. Under the the deal proposed by Washington, ByteDance will license its AI recommendation technology to a newly created U.S. TikTok entity, which will use the existing algorithm to retrain a new system that is secured by Oracle, according to Bloomberg. The algorithm will be retrained on U.S. user data by the U.S. joint venture, according to TikTok.

Some industry observers questioned whether the deal addresses the larger concerns surrounding TikTok in the law Congress passed.

“While these executive orders positively have allowed the platform to operate and maintain the venue for speech, they do not resolve the underlying concerns about the law, which could be applied to other platforms in the future and raise questions about executive power,” said Cato Institute senior fellow in tech policy Jennifer Huddleston in a statement.

“Just because TikTok remains available under such orders does not mean that the policy concerns about the underlying law have been resolved.”

Bloomberg contributed to this report.

Thomas Skinner is reportedly suing the BBC as it’s claimed he has proof the organisation rigged Strictly Come Dancing voting to ensure he left the competition early

Former Strictly star Thomas Skinner appears to be the latest to stick the boot in to the BBC. The reality TV star is reportedly suing the organisation with claims suggesting he believes the dance show’s voting was rigged.

It’s said he believes he has proof that there was foul play in order to eliminate him as soon as possible. The star of The Apprentice and his professional dance partner Amy Dowden were given their marching orders at the start of the series.

The show saw scores from the judges from the first two weeks added together, along with results of a public poll. While the BBC never revealed exactly how many public votes each star got, Thomas is said to think he has proof they deliberately downplayed his total.

READ MORE: Kevin Spacey returning to TV for first time since ‘House Of Cards’READ MORE: I’m A Celeb’s Angry Ginge and Alex Scott reunite at SPOTY after star missed his jungle crowning

A source claims he is now following in Donald Trump’s footsteps and suing the organisation. Speaking to The Sun, an insider said: “Thomas is adamant he got a larger share of the public vote and believes he has the evidence to prove it. He is determined to see it through, but there’s no way the BBC will take this sensational claim lying down.”

They went on: “They’ll robustly defend any kinds of claims that the voting was rigged or fixed.”

Asked to comment on the allegations, a BBC spokesperson told the Mirror: “Strictly Come Dancing’s public vote is robust and independently overseen and verified to ensure complete accuracy.”

Sources at the corporation also told the Mirror it hasn’t received any legal complaint or paperwork in relation to this matter. .

The Sun’s source also added that while Thomas was supposedly asked to return for the final this weekend, there was no chance he’d accept the invitation.

They claimed he has been “locked in rows with bosses ever since he was sent home”. “He’s convinced the BBC was hell-bent on getting him out as soon as possible — no matter how many of his fans got behind him,” they said.

Despite the source’s allegations, it’s reported Thomas’s no-show this weekend is simply down to a prior commitment. Amy will be back to dance with her fellow ballroom stars, though.

Other stars who appeared on the series this year included Geordie Shore legend Vicky Pattison, Emmerdale’s Lewis Cope and Doctor Who actress Alex Kingston.

And it’s expected that they will all make a return to the dancefloor, alongside other former contestants like drag queen La Voix, showbiz guru Ross King and Gladiator Harry Aikines-Aryeetey amongst a host of others.

There has been speculation following Thomas since his initial inclusion in the series. He stirred up a storm over his behaviour off the dancefloor before the show started.

He faced backlash over his social media posts, notably a selfie with Vice US President JD Vance and later stormed out of the press launch for Strictly and snatched a journalist’s phone. Then, an affair was uncovered as Thomas admitted to cheating on his wife just weeks after their wedding.

The Mirror also revealed one of his firms hasn’t paid back a £50,000 Covid bounce back loan.

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

IT was the year when those noisy Mancunian brothers brought the Britpop Nineties back to packed stadiums everywhere.

It was the year when Pulp made a charming first album in 24 years, with Jarvis Cocker singing about getting older with a wry smile on his face.

But I contest that one band from the era has been the most forward-facing, the most creative and the most kick-ass – Suede.

Which is why their vibrant, visceral, unflinching and wildly adventurous Antidepressants is our Album Of The Year.

Back in September to mark its release, frontman Brett Anderson told me: “We’ve fallen in love with being a rock band again.” And this week I caught up with him again to impart some good news . . . 

Congratulations! Antidepressants is the SFTW Album Of The Year. Does that make you happy?

FAIRYTALE ENDING?

Woke BBC bosses could thwart bid to get Fairytale of New York to Xmas No1

NAME ROW

Simon Cowell’s December 10 facing new legal battle from Brit rock band

Thank you. Very!

In all the years of Suede, where does 2025 rank?

Right up there. Somewhere between 2024 and 2026.

What have been the highlights of the year for you?

The South Bank takeover gigs in September were great – playing those new songs live for the first time was special.

I particularly enjoyed the Clore Ballroom show where we just did post-reformation stuff.

I thought that was an exciting and fairly unique thing to do for a band of our generation.

Also, I just love the South Bank. Walking over the footbridge from Embankment tube and looking at the skyline always gives me a sense of awe, a feeling of London being this big, beautiful, living thing.

Which of the new songs have you enjoyed singing live the most?

June Rain has a nice dynamic and slow sense of build which works great live. Plus the first half is spoken-word so I get to sit down a bit.

I personally think the album’s opening song Disintegrate should be the Christmas No.1 . . . do you agree?

Ha! Yes, love it. A kind of resolutely unseasonal Christmas song full of dread and fear.

Which album, aside from Suede’s, has been your favourite this year and why?

I liked Sprints’ All That Is Over. It was sharp and shouty and brainy and brash. (Sprints are an Irish garage punk band).

You told me that Suede are “the anti-nostalgia band”. What keeps you facing forwards rather than reflecting on the past (unlike some of your peers)?

Hmmm, huge question. I’ve always thought the point of any artist was to create rather than to repeat and consolidate.

That search for the next great song, the next great album, the next great moment has always been the carrot I’ve chased.

I come from a fiscally poor but culturally rich family background. My mum was an artist and a dressmaker and my dad was a classical music-obsessed taxi driver who made our furniture.

When I was a kid, we didn’t have any money, so if you wanted something you made it yourself.

I’m much less interested in what I wrote 30 years ago than in what I’m going to write next.

Have you started work on the third album of Suede’s “black and white” trilogy, following Autofiction and Antidepressants?

Yes, we’ve written a handful of songs already. I want it to be harder and more extreme than Antidepressants, a relentless onslaught, incessant and uncompromising and very rhythmic.

I already have a title which I’m keeping secret.

You also spoke to me of the importance of family relationships. Does that mean Christmas is a special time for you?

My family and my band are of course so, so important to me and in many ways they feed into each other. It’s hard to write about family without coming across as schmaltzy but luckily I can find the cloud in any silver lining.

Among my favourite songs I’ve ever written are Life Is Golden and She Still Leads Me On which have both been inspired by fatherhood and family.

And yes, Christmas is especially great when you have kids.

Happily though, now my son is older, there’s less pressure for me to dress up in a Santa suit.

What are your hopes for 2026 – for you, your family, the band, and for humankind?

For the band to write a great follow-up to Antidepressants and for humankind to stop scrolling. My hope for myself is always the same – to be a good husband and father.

2. ROSALIA

Lux

THE Spanish star known for her reinvention of ­folk and flamenco turned her attention to more bombastic, classical genres on this fourth album.

Backed by the London Symphony Orchestra it was a lavish production sung in a variety of languages. Bonkers but brilliant. JS 

People Watching

WITH its widescreen ambition, driving intensity and visceral lyrics, songs about “the human experience” couldn’t fail to draw comparisons with Fender’s “biggest hero”, Bruce Springsteen.

But it also marked the Geordie’s coming of age as a major artist in his own right. SC 

4. ROBERT PLANT with SUZI DIAN

Saving Grace

FOR six years, Led Zeppelin legend Plant has surrounded himself with acoustic musicians who live near his Worcestershire home, singer Dian among them.

Together, they gave us a ravishing mix of trad and contemporary covers. Rarely has he sounded so sublime. SC 

5. BIFFY CLYRO 

Futique 

A REFLECTIVE album shaped by friendship, family and loss, it captured Biffy Clyro at their most emotionally open.

Goodbye explored mental health, while A Thousand And One and Two People In Love delivered some of the most moving moments. JS 

6. MARGO PRICE 

Hard Headed Woman

FURTHER proof that Price tells it like it is. This was a stirring return to her country roots, following the trippy rock textures of Strays.

It drew comparisons with her beloved debut, Midwest Farmer’s Daughter, but was inspired by another decade of life experience. SC 

7. TURNSTILE

Never Enough

THIS fourth album from the hardcore punks from Baltimore, known for their energetic live shows, crossed into the mainstream.

The title track had a catchy chorus and melodic guitar breaks while at its heart there was still an uncompromising mandate to rock out. JS 

8. THE DIVINE COMEDY

Rainy Sunday Afternoon

WE’VE long been intrigued by Neil Hannon – not just because he once wrote a song called Something For The Weekend.

These 11 tracks assumed a reflective tone, with love and loss prominent themes, and featured some of Hannon’s most sumptuous tunes. SC 

9. YUNGBLUD

Idols

THIS album sees Yungblud questioning hero worship and identity after a life-changing encounter with a fan.

Inspired by Britpop, it’s his most confident work yet, opening with a nine-minute rock opera and driven by limitless self-belief and ambition. JS 

10. LADY GAGA

Mayhem 

GAGA proved why we loved her in the first place, returning to her dance-pop roots.

She recalled the vibe of her 2008 debut The Fame yet delivered an album for the here and now.

It was marked out by strong singles Abracadabra and Disease. SC 

11. GEESE

Getting Killed

THIS was a case of do believe the hype. With mesmerising singer Cameron Winter at the helm, Brooklyn’s indie rock saviours might channel The Strokes, The Stones, or even Nirvana, but they’re too weird and original to be slaves to their influences.

On the brink of greatness. SC 

12. JACOB ALON

In Limerence

FEW debuts arrived so perfectly formed as this one featuring the tender storytelling of Scottish singer Alon.

With an impossibly pure voice which sat somewhere between Bon Iver and Thom Yorke, it was full of fragile hope.

Vulnerable and haunting ambient soundscapes. JS 

13. PULP

More

JARVIS and Co’s first album in 24 years was dedicated to dear departed bassist Steve Mackey – and it summoned the old mischief. “I am not ageing.

No, I’m just ripening,” cried the singer on Grown Ups, a song filled with lyrical twists and turns. SC 

14. CMAT

Euro-Country

WITH songs about Teslas and Jamie Oliver, there was a quirky, kitsch element to Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson’s third album.

It also plumbed deeper depths of emotional pain but was allied to soft pop melodies.

Issues tackled included social media and objectification. JS 

15. MATT BERNINGER

Get Sunk

TALL, elegant, blessed with a sumptuous baritone, The National’s frontman and lyricist is an, er, National treasure.

But he managed to save wonderfully evocative songs for his second solo outing, including the intoxicating ebb and flow of opener Inland Ocean. SC 

16. DAVE

The Boy Who Played The Harp

HIS first album in four years found Dave drawing on the power of his biblical namesake King David to explore vulnerability and masculinity.

With James Blake’s ghostly production on Selfish and Chapter 16 (ft. Kano), it struck a reflective mood. JS 

17. JASON ISBELL

Foxes In The Snow

THE Alabama-born artist recorded his latest offering without his ace band, the 400 Unit, but with an old acoustic guitar for company.

“This is the first time I’ve done an album with just me and a guitar,” he told SFTW of the exquisite, stripped-back song cycle. SC  

18. BILLY NOMATES 

Metalhorse 

METALHORSE emerged from a personal, tumultuous period for Tor Maries.

A loose concept album set in a dilapidated funfair it featured radio hit The Test, while Strange Gift offered hope.

Closing song Moon Explodes was especially moving, written after Maries’ MS diagnosis. JS 

19. BIG THIEF

Double Infinity

FEW vocalists could handle the word “incomprehensible” like Adrianne Lenker on this LP’s fuzzy joy of an opening track.

Though the indie darlings have contracted to a three piece, there was nothing shrinking about their fearless, exilharating sonic adventure .SC  

20. OLIVIA DEAN

The Art Of Loving

MELLOW and sumptuous, the second album from the stylish Londoner was smooth soul to relax into.

Tracks such as Nice To Each Other and Lady Lady were warm and all-enveloping, exploring affairs of the heart with a particular emphasis on self-care. JS 

21. LILY ALLEN

West End Girl

LILY’S fifth album, the first in seven years, was also her most vulnerable and intensely personal.

It came after her split from actor husband David Harbour and the songs laid it all out in heartbreakingly painful detail.

Infidelity and betrayal were constant themes. JS 

22. BON IVER

Sable, Fable

DIVIDED into two distinct halves, the first was an understated return to the folky stylings of Justin Vernon’s wintery debut album, For Emma, Forever Ago.

The second blossomed into more upbeat territory, primed for glorious spring sunshine. SC  

23. THE WATERBOYS

Life, Death And Dennis Hopper

MIKE Scott took us on a wild ride with this 25-track album celebrating “one of the great American lives”, actor and hellraiser Dennis Hopper.

He summoned a blizzard of musical styles and included cameos from Bruce Springsteen, Steve Earle and Fiona Apple. SC  

24. AFRICA EXPRESS 

Bahidora 

EVEN before Blur completed their reunion gigs, Damon Albarn headed to the Mexican jungle with a dizzying array of 70-plus artists from four continents.

The result? A thrilling mash-up of African rhythms, electronic textures, Latin soul, rock, hip hop – everything! SC  

25. MAVIS STAPLES

Sad And Beautiful World

SHE bears one of the greatest living voices . . .  and it remained in towering form.

Well into her Eighties, Staples tackled our uncertain world with unerring compassion.

Guests included Buddy Guy, Bonnie Raitt, Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy and Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon. SC  

26. BRANDI CARLILE

Returning To Myself 

THIS record found Brandi in an introspective, stripped-back mood after a landmark year.

Working with Aaron Dessner, Andrew Watt and Justin Vernon, the album reconnected her with loneliness, self-belief and politics, from the reflective title track to the powerful Church & State. JS  

27. WOLF ALICE

The Clearing

THE fourth album from the Brit award winners was a grandiose affair, a bold and confident leap forward.

Tracks like Bloom Baby Bloom incorporated all their strengths with bombastic choruses and lush melodies, showcasing Ellie Rowsell’s exceptional rock vocal range. JS 

28. STEREOLAB

Instant Holograms On Metal Film

A STRONG return after 15 years from the much-loved Anglo-French combo.

Led, as ever, by Tim Gane and Laetitia Sadier, the album revisited their distinctive blend of art-pop and motorik beats, really hitting the mark on the effervescent Electrified Teenybop! SC  

29. RICHARD ASHCROFT

Lovin’ You

ASHCROFT’S first album of new music since 2018 arrived after he supported Oasis on tour.

From the Joan Armatrading-sampled Lover to the title track, which sampled Mason Williams’ 1968 Classical Gas, it was a vocally focused, emotionally wide record. JS 

30. WET LEG

Moisturizer

MORPHING from duo to fully-fledged band, the follow-up to their debut album was still as oddball as ever, but it came with a tighter focus.

Tracks like Davina McCall and Jennifer’s Body were heartfelt, kooky love songs backed by ragged, punky basslines. JS  

31. SOMBR

I Barely Know Her

A SPECIAL debut full of heartbreak from the bedroom pop star who quit school to make music.

His melancholy voice accompanied by his own guitar, bass and keyboards and drums, made this magical, with Dime and disco-tinged 12 To 12 emerging as standouts. JS 

32. MOLLY TUTTLE

So Long Little Miss Sunshine

THE Grammy-winning singer forged her reputation at the forefront of the bluegrass revival.

Now she has spread her wings with this ravishing work of myriad styles. It also provided her with the confidence to be open about her alopecia. SC  

33. TOM GRENNAN

Everywhere I Went, Led Me To Where I Didn’t Want To Be

THE down-to-earth singer from Bedford laid his feelings bare on this reflective fourth album shaped by growth, friendship and vulnerability.

It balanced anthemic pop with emotional depth, from Shadowboxing to Boys Don’t Cry. JS 

34. TAYLOR SWIFT

The Life Of A Showgirl

RECORDED in stolen moments during the record-shattering Eras tour, it found Swift reflecting on love and life in the spotlight after falling for NFL star Travis Kelce.

Working with Max Martin and Shellback, it was polished, theatrical pop with self-aware glamour and emotional insight. JS 

35. JOHN FOGERTY

Legacy: The Creedence Clearwater Revival Years

FOGERTY celebrated the recent end of his decades-long fight to get his publishing rights back.

It meant he could belt out timeless hits Proud Mary, Born On The Bayou, Bad Moon Rising and Up Around The Bend with unbridled joy rather than lingering bitterness. SC  

36. MIDLAKE

A Bridge To Far

BEST remembered for their second record, 2006’s The Trials Of Van Occupanther, these enduring Texans rekindled their love of melody-rich folk rock. Two decades on, A Bridge To Far might just have been their best since that hallowed album. SC 

37. TATE MCRAE

So Close To What

THE Canadian singer’s third album was slick and polished futuristic pop and highlighted her journey from teenage dancer to arena-selling pop princess.

Tracks like Purple Lace Bra were multilayered with beats, synths and strings, and created a sultry, sizzling mood. JS 

38. BEIRUT

A Study Of Losses

FOLLOWING Zach Condon’s sortie to the Arctic Circle for 2023’s exquisite Hadsel came this work of unerring beauty.

The 11 songs and seven instrumentals, spanning nearly an hour, struck a melancholy tone but they left a lasting and profound impression. SC 

39. ALISON KRAUSS & UNION STATION

Arcadia

TO Robert Plant’s duet pal Krauss, her latest project was “like stepping into an old pair of shoes”.

Her first album with her virtuoso bluegrass band since 2011 evoked bygone times, while still connecting with 21st Century listeners. SC

40. TOM SMITH

There Is Nothing In The Dark That Isn’t There In The Light

AFTER 20 years fronting Editors and two records with Andy Burrows, Tom Smith stepped out on his own.

His first solo album stripped everything back to the core of his songwriting, capturing the honesty, anxiety and hope that shaped this new chapter. JS 

41. FKA TWIGS 

Eusexua 

THE album title was a made-up word taken from euphoria and sexual to describe “a feeling so intense it transcended the human form”. 

And it lived up to its name.

On the arty, left field side of electronica, this third record was her most complete and satisfying. JS 

42. THE DELINES

Mr Luck & Ms Doom

WHEN ex-Richmond Fontaine frontman Willy Vlautin (lyricist/guitarist in this band) is involved, you tend to get songs with disturbing narratives about people from the wrong side of the tracks.

This firmly ticked that box – and then there was Amy Boone’s enriching, expressive vocals. SC 

43. DAVID BYRNE

Who Is The Sky?

THE world may be going to hell in a handcart, but at least Talking Heads legend Byrne kept a smile on his face.

That was the vibe you get from his latest effort, most notably on rousing opening track Everybody Laughs, which came with a cameo from longtime collaborator St Vincent. SC 

44. BLOOD ORANGE

Essex Honey

ECLECTIC and imbued with an aching sense of loss and nostalgia, Dev Hynes’ fifth album as Blood Orange was an exploration of his upbringing in London.

A collection of memories recalled through spindly indie, jazz, chunky beats and evocative soundscapes. JS 

45. DAMIANO DAVID

Funny Little Fears

FOR Maneskin’s Damiano David, this felt the right moment for a solo album, revealing a more personal, previously hidden side.

It was less rocky than Maneskin, confronting fear and identity through piano-led pop inspired by Keane, The Killers, and Elton John. JS 

46. RON SEXSMITH

Hangover Terrace

THE Canadian has assembled a fine body of work, marked out by sumptuous melodies and perceptive lyrics.

He returned with one of his strongest collections.

Recorded in London, the album visited his childhood, his current concerns and much more in between. SC 

47. MY MORNING JACKET

Is

SINGER Jim James hoped the band’s genre-hopping tenth album would help people “navigate the chaos in the world”. 

If the overall vibe was psychedelic rock with plenty of reverb, MMJ employed elements of pop, country, soul, reggae, you name it. SC 

48. ETHEL CAIN

Willoughby Tucker, I’ll Always Love You

FEW artists have been able to express the intimate, sometimes painful, feelings about first love as well as the singer from Florida.

Evoking a haunting, Southern gothic atmosphere, her ambient rock sound-scapes framed a raw, heartfelt song cycle. SC 

49. CAR SEAT HEADREST

The Scholars

THE career trajectory of Will Toledo is nothing short of breathtaking.

He started out making lo-fi DIY albums in his parents’ car and now, as frontman of a fully fledged band, he made this crazily ambitious rock opera in the vein of Tommy or Ziggy Stardust. SC 

50. ADDISON RAE

Addison

THE debut album from the former TikTok star, who rose to popularity with her dance videos, broke the code.

Stepping confidently beyond influencer fame, she moved into sleek, self-aware pop.

Playful hooks and glossy production balanced vulnerability and attitude. JS 

New documents in a lawsuit against Priscilla Presley’s son include claims that Elvis Presley’s granddaughter Riley Keough is the biological parent of John Travolta and the late Kelly Preston’s youngest child, Benjamin.

Priscilla Presley’s former business partner Brigitte Kruse and associate Kevin Fialko filed an amended complaint against Navarone Garcia in Los Angeles County Superior Court on Tuesday. Included in the allegations are claims that the “Daisy Jones & the Six” actor, daughter of the late Lisa Marie Presley, gave her eggs to Travolta and Preston in exchange for “an old Jaguar” and “between $10,000 – $20,000.”

According to the complaint, “the entire Presley family clamored for control of the estate and for pay-outs” immediately after Lisa Marie Presley’s death in 2023. Among those who allegedly approached Kruse was Lisa Marie’s ex-husband Michael Lockwood, with whom she shared twin daughters Harper and Finley Lockwood. Kruse and Fialko were allegedly tasked with acting as negotiators and mediators amid the “family chaos.”

The document details how Lockwood said Travolta and Preston had “previously used Lisa Marie’s eggs to get pregnant” because Preston “had been unable to bear her own children.” It was unclear whether Presley’s eggs produced a child. Preston died in 2020 at age 57 after a two-year battle with breast cancer.

Lockwood also allegedly said the couple had approached the Presley family again “in or around 2010” but Travolta “no longer wanted to use Lisa Marie’s eggs because they did not want ‘eggs with heroin’ on them.” According to the filing, a deal was “orchestrated” in which “Riley Keough gave her eggs to Travolta so that Kelly could give birth to their son, Ben Travolta” and “Riley was given an old Jaguar and paid between $10,000 – $20,000 for the deal.”

Included in the filing is an image of a handwritten note that features the words “Kelly Preston carried baby,” “medical bills paid” and “old Jaguar 1990s-ish,” as well as a screenshot of messages presumably exchanged with Priscilla Presley that describe Ben Travolta as her “beautiful great-grandson.”

Lockwood further allegedly claimed that “the entire arrangement required a ‘sign off’ from the Church of Scientology, which heavily involved Priscilla’s oversight.” According to the document, Lockwood “demanded” the information be used “to orchestrate a settlement for him and his daughters,” whom he said were “financially destitute.”

Kruse and Fialko’s amended complaint against Garcia alleges that he “threw a tantrum, demanding [they] keep Riley’s and Travolta’s son out of the press, since Priscilla [had] promised him that he would be the only male musician in the family and would now be the ‘king.’” The document also claims “Priscilla’s love for Navarone was, and always has been, incestuous.”

The filing is the latest in the legal feud involving Presley and her former business partner. Presley previously filed a lawsuit against Kruse and her associates alleging fraud and elder abuse. Kruse and Fialko, meanwhile, are suing Presley for fraud and breach of contract.

“After losing motion after motion in this case, and unsuccessfully seeking to have Presley’s counsel of record, Marty Singer, disqualified from representing her in this matter, Brigitte Kruse, Kevin Fialko, and their co-conspirators have demonstrated that there is no bar too low, no ethical line that they are unwilling to cross in an effort to cause further pain to Priscilla Presley and her family,” Presley’s attorneys Singer and Wayne Harman said in a statement to TMZ.

“In a completely improper effort to exert undue pressure on Presley to retract her legitimate, truthful claims, Kruse and her co-conspirators have also sued Presley’s son, cousin, and assistant,” the statement continued. “These recent outrageous allegations have absolutely nothing to do with the claims in this case. The conduct of Kruse, Fialko, and their new lawyers (they are on their fourth set of attorneys) is shameful, and it absolutely will be addressed in court.”

Representatives for Keough did not respond immediately Thursday to The Times’ request for comment.

Richard Gadd has made £2 million from the success of Baby Reindeer, almost two years on from when the hit series became a global sensation on streaming service Netflix

Richard Gadd has made £2 million from the success of Baby Reindeer. The Scottish actor, 36, wrote and starred in the Netflix miniseries that he said was based on his real life experiences of being stalked.

In the hit drama, Richard stars as aspiring comedian Donny Dunn, who is spotted by a woman called Martha (Jessica Gunning) and he becomes the object of her obsession. The concept of the series was initially a one-man show at the Edinburgh Fringe, but once commissioned as a seven-part series by Netflix, Richard quickly found global fame and the show seen more than 250 million times around the world.

The programme was released in April 2024, and, almost two years on, the latest accounts on the writer’s company RRSG have revealed the fortune he has made from it all.

READ MORE: Baby Reindeer star Jessica Gunning speaks out about ‘real Martha’ ahead of BAFTAsREAD MORE: Netflix star teases ‘difficult’ role in Suranne Jones thriller Hostage

The total assets declared for 2025 came to £2,462,405, and that figure incorporated money held in both a bank account and property portfolio. Figures also show funds of shareholder funds of £1,875,649, a number that has more than doubled over the course of the last year.

The company was set up in 2018, shortly after the one-man show premiered, and the comedy writer is the sole director, meaning that he owns all the shares in it. The name of the firm is derived from the writer’s full name of Richard Robert Steven Gadd and he has listed ‘artistic creation’ as the nature of the business.

The series was also critically lauded on both sides of the Atlantic and won six Emmys two Golden Globes, and actress Jessica Gunning scooped a BAFTA earlier this year after taking on her starring role.

After Baby Reindeer became a viral hit, Richard reached millionaire status by 2024 as he found new heights of success with his writing.

However, despite his stellar success, the actor revealed he has had some “daunting times” since the show was released due to people writing hurtful comments online or shouting at him in the street.

Reflecting on why he decided to delve into his personal experiences for the series, he said: “I guess I was bored of artistic narratives where the central person is nothing but good. Life is very complicated, and people are a mixture of positive and negative. I wanted to show that, to bring that out in the world.

“I think we live in an age of almost moral enlightenment right now, where everyone is terrified of saying the wrong thing. So, to put my hand up in that age of moral enlightenment and be like ‘Oh, yeah, I made these f****** stupid mistakes’ was very daunting, and it’s still daunting in the aftermath in a lot of ways. But I think, at the same time, it has led to an appreciation of bringing the nuance back to the discussion about people, and people not being either good or bad, but being a little more nuanced than that.”

He added that he believes it would be a “good thing” if more people in the public eye are more honest about the struggles they are living through. Gadd also revealed he has had some “daunting times” in the past few months since the show was released due to people writing hurtful comments online or shouting at him in the street.

He said: “I realise I’m twinned with this now. And that’s fine, because the majority of people are really kind and understanding, but there is definitely a section of society that has splintered off. They don’t want to hear about this stuff anymore, they can’t accept the nuances of it, and they think that I was, I don’t know, asking for it. That’s very hard to live with.”

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.

IF the Beckhams expected a heartwarming reunion with their oldest son for Christmas, they could be disappointed.

Recent efforts to reach out to estranged Brooklyn — who has been missing from all the family’s milestones this year — appear to have been met with a frosty reception.

It is fast approaching 12 months since the rift began, but David and Victoria remain optimistic that their icy relationship might still thaw.

The couple had plenty to celebrate in 2025, including David’s long-awaited knighthood and 50th birthday, and Victoria’s Netflix documentary and booming fashion and beauty brand.

However, 26-year-old Brooklyn was absent from them all. In fact, he has not been pictured with his family since Christmas last year.

This week, his brother Cruz, 20, tried to bridge the divide by sharing throwback snaps on Instagram. One showed Brooklyn with an arm around his youngest sibling on a beach in Brazil when they were little.

And last month, their grandmother Jackie left a sweet comment with a heart emoji under one of Brooklyn’s social media posts.

Overnight, David also shared an old snap of him winning the MLS Cup when he played for LA Galaxy.

But so far, Brooklyn has failed to respond. And his most recent online post made no mention of the rest of the Beckham clan.

He was the only member of the family not celebrating last week when David lifted the MLS Cup again — this time as co-owner of Inter Miami.

If the chance to hang out with the squad’s superstar striker Lionel Messi did not tempt him to turn up, few things will.

David and Victoria are not giving up on reconciling with Brooklyn and his wife Nicola Peltz, 30.

Speaking exclusively to The Sun, a Beckham insider tells us Victoria, who is also mum to Harper, 14, and Romeo, 23, is still struggling to make sense of the fallout.

But ever the showwoman, she is focusing on keeping things merry and bright for the rest of the clan.

We are told: “Victoria is determined not to let the argument with Brooklyn ruin Christmas, even though she is absolutely heartbroken by it.

“It’s been a year since they last all saw each other and it’s something she will never come to terms with.

“But she won’t let it get her down over the festive period as she needs to be strong, especially for Harper, as well as her parents and David’s parents.

“They have done nothing in all of this, but it seems like they’re the ones being punished the most.”

Last month, Victoria shared a photo of her mum Jackie’s fireplace adorned with stockings. Each bore the name of one of her grandchildren — including Brooklyn, who has reportedly cut his grandparents out of his life, too.

Victoria is determined not to let the argument with Brooklyn ruin Christmas, even though she is absolutely heartbroken by it

Insider

Days later, David’s mum Sandra left a comment under a festive social media post Brooklyn had shared. In it, he was seen wrapping up a bottle of his own hot sauce brand, Cloud23, to which Sandra replied, “That for me” alongside a heart emoji.

Her question went unanswered, but followers flocked to the comment section begging Brooklyn to reach out to his family before it’s too late.

One raged: “Go and see your parents . . . you only get one set and that’s it,” while another simply said, “Ring your mother!”

Victoria may be famous for not smiling, but now, in a bid to keep the family’s spirits up, she’s plastering on a big one.

Our source said: “Brooklyn spent so much time with her parents Jackie and Tony for the first few years of his life and they had such a special bond, while Sandra looked after him so much growing up. It’s awful they no longer have that close relationship.

“Harper really misses her big brother and Nicola. Victoria is hoping that Brooklyn at least calls his grandparents over Christmas. She’s given up on him calling her.”

We are told that, as usual, the family will spend Christmas Day surrounded by loved ones at their £12million Cotswolds pile.

“They feel it’s a case of the more, the merrier, as it’s then less obvious that Brooklyn isn’t there,” our source revealed.

It’s safe to say that no one could have predicted how bitter things would get this time last year. Granted, there had been simmering tensions between Brooklyn and Nicola and his family since their wedding in 2022.

At the time, there was confusion over Nicola’s decision to wear a Valentino gown instead of one designed by her mother-in-law. It was later claimed Victoria offered to dress her son’s bride, then backed out.

Deafeningly silent

Nicola was also apparently devastated at the reception when the Beckhams’ pal, singer Marc Anthony, referred to Victoria as “the beautiful woman in the room”.

Despite the rumoured tension that followed, Nicola and Brooklyn continued to represent the family brand for a while. But that support is gone.

In May, Brooklyn and Nicola — who live in a $16million Los Angeles mansion — failed to attend David’s birthday celebrations or even acknowledge his 50th online.

She won’t let it get her down over the festive period as she needs to be strong, especially for Harper, as well as her parents and David’s parents

Insider

Brooklyn also did not wish his mum a happy birthday a month earlier, but posted gushing tributes to Nicola, including the pointed comment: “I always choose you, baby.”

Likewise, he stayed deafeningly silent when David was finally awarded his knighthood in June, and snubbed November’s investiture.

Brooklyn also failed to give a nod to Victoria’s Netflix documentary, Victoria Beckham, which came out in October. That month, she debuted her spring 2026 collection at Paris Fashion Week, again without her eldest son’s backing.

But by all accounts, Brooklyn’s biggest two-fingered salute to his parents had to be his very lavish, very loud, vows renewal in August.

According to insiders, he did not even tell them about the event, which was held at his in-laws’ mega-mansion in New York.

Nicola’s billionaire father Nelson Peltz presided over it, and the bride wore her mother Claudia’s wedding dress. The message was clear: They’ve officially jumped off the Beckham bandwagon.

To that end, there have even been whispers in recent weeks that Brooklyn and Nicola — who both go by double-barrelled Peltz-Beckham — are planning to drop the Beckham from their surname.

Nepo baby Brooklyn has long capitalised from his famous family name — and Nicola, who was not that well known before marrying him, has benefitted from it, too.

They don’t need the Beckham name any more and they would like any future babies to be Peltzes

Insider

Her family’s wealth, estimated at $1.7billion, may eclipse the Beckhams’ £500million fortune, but her in-laws’ social cache in showbiz circles has opened myriad doors to the aspiring actress and model.

But now it is feared they are determined to cut ties for good.

‘Ultimate insult’

An insider told Heat magazine: “They both feel their double-barrelled name is associated with the feud and they want to move on.

“They don’t need the Beckham name any more and they would like any future babies to be Peltzes.

“Obviously, it would be the ultimate insult to David and Victoria — they’ve spent nearly 30 years building up Brand Beckham and, if Brooklyn dropped the family name, there would be no going back.

“It feels like he’d be making their current estrangement permanent.”

Ironically, despite the documentary, plus TV and podcast chats, showing Victoria’s more authentic side, she is having to stay tight-lipped about her personal anguish.

However, amid the turmoil, she has been wowing the US, popping up on late-night talk show Watch What Happens Live and featuring on podcast Call Her Daddy.

The Beckhams famously lived in LA when David played football there but, while well received by the celebrity jet-set, they never fully found their footing, with Victoria still carrying the mantle of a WAG.

Now, though, the US is taking her seriously as a fashion designer, beauty impresario and a pop icon with a wicked sense of humour, which she would no doubt love to celebrate with her whole family.

After Christmas, we are told the Beckhams will head to Bath for Holly Ramsay and Adam Peaty’s wedding on the 27th.

They are long-time pals with the bride’s family — Gordon Ramsay, and his wife Tana, plus their six children. But while the Ramsays were all there to see Brooklyn and Nicola say “I do”, it’s unlikely they’ll return the favour.

The fact Olympian Adam’s mum Caroline is banned from the nuptials amid a fallout will no doubt resonate with David and Victoria.

Still, some Beckham fans reckon there is still hope of a reconciliation. Firstly, Brooklyn’s stocking on his grandma’s fireplace proves that he will always have a place in the family.

Then, Cruz’s memories of the siblings as kids may hint he is mellowing after backing his parents and, along with brother Romeo, unfollowing Brooklyn on Instagram.

He has also lashed out at whispers the row erupted as Romeo was dating Brooklyn’s ex, Kim Turnbull — rumours she strongly denied.

Still, the question remains: Will Brooklyn take his cue and bury the hatchet for good? All signs so far point to a stubbornness that’s set to continue into the new year.

Brooklyn has made it clear that Nicola is his priority and, with her also showing little interest in a reconciliation, Victoria knows rooting for a reunion could be futile.

Then again, there’s always hope of a Christmas miracle.

Therapy often gets mined for comedy but we don’t often see comedy treated as sincere therapy. “Is This Thing On?” from director and co-writer Bradley Cooper, makes the case that glum dad Alex (Will Arnett), new to Splitsville after he and his wife of 20 years, Tess (Laura Dern), mutually agree to separate, may have figured out an ideal coping mechanism by signing up for open mic night.

Not that we see this by-day finance guy reject professional help in favor of some untapped passion. (Vamping for five minutes in front of strangers negates the cover charge.) But in bringing his marital woes to the stage and getting some chuckles, Alex believes he’s hit upon something: a talking cure that comes with a fresh identity, new friends, an acceptable level of risk and a way out of unhappiness.

It’s such a frisky, alluring idea for a character study — meeting failure with the potential for more failure (and night after night to boot) — that when the movie proves to actually be about whether the marriage can be saved, instead of the granular, temperamental world of stand-up newbies, it almost feels like a bait and switch. Fortunately, the divorce saga is interesting too, featuring Dern at her best, and is plenty intelligent about the nuances of couples who have built something solid (stable lives, nice 10-year-old twin boys, etc.) at the same time they’ve grown apart. “Is This Thing On?” is that rarity: a perfectly worthy dramedy that sometimes feels off because it’s trying to cram two good movies into one.

The confidence comes from Cooper, who, after only two films in the director’s chair (“A Star Is Born,” “Maestro”), has shown himself to be not only a powerful chronicler of artistic lives but especially couples in the showbiz sphere. This time, he tantalizes us with the milieu of nightclub self-expression and a group of regular amateurs Alex gets comfortable hanging with. But over two hours Cooper makes it clear he’s simply followed his protagonist into a safe space of encouragement (featuring Amy Sedaris as a helpful veteran comic), not necessarily a complex world of personality types to be navigated. It’s codified by Cooper’s visual approach, a handheld intimacy reminiscent of European movies, in which Matthew Libatique’s camera rarely strays from tight shots of Arnett’s face, looking for change — circling it, centering it, trailing it when Alex is on the move.

Though Alex is earnest if a tad hacky with his relationship jokes, Arnett (credited as a co-screenwriter with Mark Chappell, from a story they created with John Bishop) captures a fizzy, awkward energy of midlife discovery. Invariably, the movie is unconcerned with whether Alex might be any good as a stand-up because soon it’s about how this new pep in his step registers with Tess, who’s struggling with her own sense of personal fulfillment as a former volleyball legend turned mom and how it affects their on-the-brink married friends, Christine (Andra Day) and Balls (Cooper, hilarious as a spacy actor). Christine Ebersole and Ciarán Hinds, as Alex’s parents, humorously weigh in too on what long-term togetherness entails.

After a narrative coincidence that’s entertainingly handled, “Is This Thing On?” aims to be a more serious-minded, less rom-com-ish “It’s Complicated,” with Tess and Alex seeing if there’s a new way for them to acknowledge where they went astray. The actors sell it, especially when Dern is unafraid to mix revitalized pleasure with pushing for answers. But the stand-up storyline, so promising, is dropped and it feels like a missed opportunity. Still, the highs and lows of marriage aren’t merely a punch line in “Is This Thing On?” — and that’s good.

The once-celebrated star fell out of favour with Tinseltown after he was hit with multiple accusations of sexual assault. After being off screens since leaving Netflix in 2017, he is now set to in a 10-part comedy series.

Hollywood actor Kevin Spacey has shared that he is returning to television screens after he was acquitted of sexual assault in 2023.

The Oscar winner, who was fired from Netflix in 2017 following multiple accusations of sexual assault, has landed a role in an Italian comedy series playing himself. It marks his first television performance since his removal from House of Cards.

The comedy show is called Minimarket and follows shop worker Manlio Viganò who dreams of becoming an actor. Starring Filippo Laganà as the lead, Kevin appears as his imaginary friend, offering guidance and advice.

According to Variety, Spacey is Viganò’s “artistic conscience and unpredictable mentor,” and the comedy comes from their relationship of “bickering, misunderstandings and mutual teasing.” The 10-episode series will be available to watch on RAI’s RaiPlay on 26th December.

In the lead-up to the show airing, Laganà has been sharing multiple posts featuring Kevin. Next to a black and white snap of the two actors, the 31-year-old wrote: “Thank you, Mr Spacey, it’s been a true honor.”

In another post, Laganà capitalised on Kevin’s recent comments about having nowhere to live, joking: “He’s not homeless. He’s living in MiniMarket! Minimarket is coming.”

In November, Kevin said in an interview with The Telegraph that he was homeless after being frozen out of Hollywood in the wake of sexual assault allegations first made against him seven years ago.

The 66-year-old actor, once one of the most powerful figures in the film industry, said he has been forced to give up his house and place all of his belongings in storage as a result of what he described as “astronomical” legal bills. He said the financial strain of defending himself in multiple cases dating back to 2017 has wiped out his savings and ended his ability to maintain a permanent home.

Instead, the actor explained that his work requires him to move around constantly, saying he stays in hotels and Airbnbs and travels wherever jobs take him. He said he doesn’t currently have a permanent base, but later addressed the comments in a video shared on Instagram to clarify that he was not homeless in the traditional sense.

He stressed that he was not comparing himself to people experiencing genuine housing or financial hardship, including those forced to live on the streets or in their vehicles.

Spacey, who was found not guilty on nine sexual assault charges at London’s Southwark Crown Court, won Academy Awards for American Beauty and The Usual Suspects and was widely regarded as one of the finest actors of his generation.

His career imploded after he was accused in 2017 of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old boy in 1986. He denied the allegation and fought the case in civil court in New York, where he was cleared in 2022.

Following his interview, it was revealed by the BBC that the 66-year-old has been hit with three more claims of sexual assault that will go to court next year. According to the broadcaster, Spacey has denied all allegations of wrongdoing and has formally denied two of the claims and is yet to file a defence with the court in the third.

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

ANNE-MARIE has vowed to shake things up for her upcoming fourth album – her first since 2023’s Unhealthy.

The Ciao Adios singer told The Sun that she’s determined not to return with a record that’s a copy-and-paste job of her first three albums.

Speaking backstage at Capital Jingle Bell Ball with Barclaycard, after she put on an intimate gig in Barclaycard’s Out Of The Blue area for lucky fans, Anne-Marie said: “Next year there will be new music.

“I think I need to switch it up a bit… Will I be rapping? Who knows.

“I am definitely switching it up.

“I need to make it exciting again, you know.

BACK FOR MORE

Pop star lined up for ‘amazing’ return to Brit Awards as career skyrockets

FIVE:30 AM

Inside Five’s wild tour finale as they party until 5.30am & tease big 2026 plans

“I can’t just come back as the same Anne Marie I have been for ten years.

“I am going to do a little spice.”

Since the release of her last record, the singer has welcomed two children, a daughter and a son, with her musician hubby Slowthai.

She says she’s turned to longtime friend Ed Sheeran – who co-wrote her 2018 hit 2002 – for advice on juggling being a popstar and a parent.

Anne Marie explained: “Be a parent, it’s hard.

“It’s like everyone says.

“It’s the best thing ever and the hardest thing at the same time.

“I think working is definitely hard.

“I find it harder than I thought I would, but they are beautiful little aliens.

“It does make you want more even though you are in hell.”

She continued: “I go to Ed for a lot of advice really.

“About kids but also about everything really.

“Now that we have kids he is like the perfect person to speak to.”

In September Anne-Marie released a teaser of what’s to come with her new track Depressed.

Admitting Christmas time isn’t always easy for people, Anne-Marie said: “I am very aware that people feel alone at this time of the year which makes me sad.

“But I think as long as you get through it and think of the next year and all of your dreams and plans that you want to achieve next year, you will be okay.

“Also just snuggle up on the sofa and watch a movie with some chocolate.

“Just take care of yourself and give yourself some love.

“Next year we start afresh.

“My go-to film at any time of year is Liar Liar with Jim Carey.

“Anything Jim Carey is my go-to.”

Director Paul Feig has proved himself to be the preeminent purveyor of the finest high-camp trash one can find at the movie theater these days — and that’s a compliment. If he’s serving up the trash, then call me a raccoon, because I’m ready to dive in.

Feig’s special sauce when it comes to these soapy, female-driven thrillers like “A Simple Favor” and now “The Housemaid,” adapted by Rebecca Sonnenshine from a “BookTok” sensation by Freida McFadden, is clearly his comedy background. The filmmaker understands exactly the tone to deploy here; you can feel his knowing winks and nudges to the audience with every loaded glance, stray graze or wandering camera movement. It’s as if he’s saying to us and all the tipsy ladies in the audience: Check this out — LOL, right? LOL indeed, Mr. Feig.

“The Housemaid” is an erotic crime thriller that deploys silly sexual stereotypes and fantasies like the naughty maid and then flips them on their head. In the opening scene, the drably dressed, bespectacled Millie (Sydney Sweeney) interviews for a live-in maid position with the warm and friendly wife and mother Nina Winchester (Amanda Seyfried) in her gorgeously appointed Long Island mansion designed by her wealthy husband, Andrew (Brandon Sklenar of “Drop”).

But all is not what it seems, for applicant and employer. Both are hiding dark secrets but Nina hires Millie nevertheless. Millie, without any other options, gratefully accepts.

When Millie moves into the maid’s quarters in the attic, she discovers that the Winchester home isn’t as picture-perfect as it seemed. Little things are off: She can’t open her window, the groundskeeper, Enzo (Michele Morrone), glowers at her constantly, items go missing and CeCe (Indiana Elle), Nina’s daughter, is exceedingly cold.

Then there are the big things that are off, like Nina’s wild mood swings and the vicious gossip about her mental health among the other Stepford wives of the area. Millie realizes she’s in over her head with Mrs. Winchester, but her saving grace is the warm and handsome Mr. Winchester. Is that where this is going? Of course it is, we all groan together, happily.

“The Housemaid” is like “Gaslight” meets “Jane Eyre,” with a dash of “Rebecca,” and all the various roles are lightly scrambled, infused with a much sexier, nastier streak than any of those mannered mindbenders. Feig stylishly waltzes us through this steamy, twisty mystery with ease, but not necessarily sophistication — this is the kind of frothy entertainment that you can still enjoyably comprehend after a glass or two (which in fact might enhance the experience).

But it doesn’t fly without an actor of Seyfried’s caliber, who can summon unpredictable mayhem from her fingertips. Nor would it function without Sweeney, who works best in a register somewhere between ditzy blond and tough little scrapper. Both actors exude an element of the unhinged that simmers right below the doe-eyed blond surface and we know we should be a little (or a lot) afraid of these women. The film also doesn’t make sense without a heartthrob like Sklenar, since we need to fall in lust with his gorgeous exterior and intoxicatingly cuddly aura for this all to eventually make sense.

There’s not much more to say without giving it all away, so prepare to titter, gasp, scream and cheer for this juicy slice of indulgent women’s entertainment. Go on, you deserve a little treat this holiday season.

Katie Walsh is a Tribune News Service film critic.

The series should offer a fresh take on a beloved classic character

Fans have been given their first looks at a ‘crazy’ period drama meets fast-paced action prequel series based on a series of classic novels and an iconic literary character.

The new show comes from the acclaimed writer and director Guy Ritchie. He is known for creating Netflix hit The Gentlemen, which in turn was based on his film of the same name. He also helmed British comedy gangster films Snatch and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrells to name a few.

Ritchie is now returning to the world of Sherlock Holmes, which he previously visited in 2009 and 2011 with Robert Downey Jr as the renowned detective. His new series, set to premiere on Prime Video next year, will examine the character’s origins.

Young Sherlock will be streaming on the platform from March 4 and promises the same kind of wit and charm of found in Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes feature films. According to the synopsis provided by Prime, Young Sherlock follows the origin story of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s beloved detective in an explosive re-imagining of this iconic character’s early days.

Sherlock Holmes is a disgraced young man, raw and unfiltered, when he finds himself wrapped up in a murder case that threatens his liberty. His first ever case unravels a globe-trotting conspiracy that changes his life forever. Unfolding in 1870s Oxford and adventuring abroad, the series will expose the early antics of the anarchic adolescent who is yet to evolve into Baker Street’s most renowned resident.

Hero Fiennes Tiffin, who has previously appeared in Harry Potter, will star as the 19-year-old Holmes. Joining him in the cast are Joseph Fiennes as Silas Holmes, Sherlock’s father, Natascha McElhone as Sherlock’s mother and Colin Firth as Sir Bucephalus Hodge. Dónal Finn takes on the role of a young James Moriarty, Sherlock’s future arch-nemesis

The show’s first trailer was released and gives viewers a taste of what they could expect. It seems that the action will be full throttle from the beginning and even some younger versions of Sherlock’s classic villains on the way.

It didn’t take long for fans to react to the announcement and the trailer. Sharing their thoughts on social media, one person posted: “Guy Ritchie doing Sherlock? Sounds wild, cant wait for March.”

Another replied: “The origin story we didn’t know we needed.” While a third commented: “It’s crazy…. but it looks good! Nice surprise.”

Many are excited at the prospect of Guy Ritchie returning to the world of Sherlock Holmes and what he can contribute to the lore and period genre. One person said: “Guy Ritchie directing an origin story means we are 100% getting fast-paced dialogue, bare-knuckle boxing, and stylish editing.

“It sounds like he’s treating this less like a detective show and more like The Gentlemen in the 1870s. The ‘globe-trotting’ aspect suggests this is going to be way more action-heavy than just sitting in Baker Street.”

One person agreed: “Guy Ritchie’s style could reshape Sherlock’s origin story, but period accuracy often clashes with fast pacing.”

Young Sherlock is streaming on Prime Video from March 4.

BROOKS Nader has left very little to the imagination in a sexy ensemble while on a night out with pals.

The reality star and model bared all in a totally see-through black dress on a wild night in Hollywood, while looking sensational in the process.

The former Dancing with the Stars starlet, 28, donned a tiny minidress made of an incredibly flimsy fabric.

The black minidress was made of an extremely sheer chiffon.

Brooks risked it all by going completely braless for the occasion, which meant her breasts and nipples were on full display.

She wore her blonde locks down and in a sleek style, with her makeup glamorous yet natural.

Brooks completed the look with a red clutch bag and some gold earrings.

On the night out, Brooks was seen beaming beside Jeff Bezos’ wife Lauren Sanchez.

Lauren was seen rocking all navy in the form of a lace top and oversized long-line double-breasted coat.

This isn’t the first time Brooks has bared all.

Back in October, Brooks showcased her bare breasts once again in an entirely see-through top while leaving a talk show appearance in New York City.

Photos obtained by The U.S. Sun captured the reality star donning the sexy ensemble.

Brooks paused to acknowledge the cameras, showing off her sheer black top, exposing her boobs, and a short black skirt.

She completed the look with a black blazer, pointed-toe black high heels, and her blonde hair flowing straight down.

Brooks became a household name after winning the Sports Illustrated Swim Search competition in 2019, which skyrocketed her modeling career.

Dancing With The Stars fans would also remember her from last season, when she competed with her pro partner, Gleb Savchenko – who she struck up a romance with on the show.

The pair were eliminated after reaching ninth place, but their names continued to circulate in the media due to their romance.

However, their relationship ended not long after when Brooks accused Gleb of cheating on her, which he vehemently denied.

Brooks is now romantically linked to Spanish professional tennis player Carlos Alcaraz.

In addition to her modeling career and stint on DWTS, Brooks stars on the new reality TV series, Love Thy Nader, which premiered on Hulu earlier this year.

The show follows Brooks and her sisters —Mary Holland, Grace Ann, and Sarah Jane —as they navigate building careers in the Big Apple.

CBS News is moving forward with a series of town hall and debate telecasts with a major advertiser backing them, the first major initiative under editor-in-chief Bari Weiss.

The news division announced Thursday it will have a series of one hour single issue programs under the title “Things That Matter” done in collaboration with the digital platform the Free Press.

CBS News parent Paramount acquired the Free Press which was co-founded by Weiss, in September.

Bank of America will be a major sponsor of the series.

The town hall participants include Vice President JD Vance, who will discuss the state of the country and the future of the Republican Party, OpenAI Chief Executive Sam Altman on artificial intelligence and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore on the future of the Democratic Party.

The debate subjects include “Should Gen Z Believe in the American Dream?,” “Does America Need God? and “Has Feminism Failed Women?” The debaters include journalist Liz Plank, New York Times opinion writer Ross Douthat, and Isabel Brown, a representative for the right-wing organization Turning Point USA.

No dates have been set, but the programs will air in the current 2025-26 TV season which ends in May.

CBS tested the town hall format Saturday with a telecast that featured Weiss sitting down with Erika Kirk, the widow of slain right-wing activist Charlie Kirk. The program taped in front of an invited audience and averaged 1.9 million viewers according to Nielsen data, on par with what CBS entertainment programming has delivered in the 8 p.m. hour in the current TV season.

The town hall format where a news subject takes questions from audience members has long been a staple of cable news channels. Broadcast networks have typically only used it with presidential candidates.

“Things That Matter” is less of a play for ratings than a symbol of the new vision for CBS News under Weiss.

“We believe that the vast majority of Americans crave honest conversation and civil, passionate debate,” Weiss said in a statement. “This series is for them. In a moment in which people believe that truth is whatever they are served on their social media feed, we can think of nothing more important than insisting that the only way to get to the truth is by speaking to one another.”

Weiss hosted the town hall with Kirk. CBS News has not announced the on-air talent for the “Things That Matter” series.

Weiss was recruited by Paramount Chief Executive David Ellison to pull the news division towards the political center where he believes most of the country stands.

The Free Press gained popularity for its criticism of DEI, so-called woke policies, and strong support of Israel. The site is often described as “heterodox” and has been critical of numerous actions of the Trump administration. But its biggest fans tend to be in the business community who disdain high taxes and big government.

The former This Morning guest shared how Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan treated her off-camera, following a “disastrous” moment on the show

A former This Morning guest has revealed how her appearance on the show ended in disaster. Hosted by Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan at the time, podcast host Louise Boyce said she was invited onto the show as a teenager for a live haircut, though was mortified by the outcome.

Joined by Richard and Judy’s daughter Chloe Madeley on her podcast, she told her: “Your mum and dad, it [This Morning] was the first TV show that I went on when I was 15. And, I really want to find the footage, it must be in the archives somewhere, but I went on there to have my haircut, a live haircut.

“I was 15 years old, I was still at school and very aware of how I looked and the haircut was disastrous.”

Recalling her immediate reaction, she said she instantly knew it was “horrendous” but politely told the hairdresser she “really liked it” with a shaky voice.

“But, your mum and dad were so kind to me because they must’ve seen or felt that I was just like, ‘I hate what you’ve just [done to me’]’,” she continued on the No Parental Guidance podcast.

“‘You have just violated my hair live on TV, my first ever TV [experience]’. And they were so, your mum and dad, even off-camera they were like, ‘Hair grows, it’s okay’.”

In response, Chloe gushed: “I can’t say it enough how kind he is and how fair of a man he is and how unbelievably good his values and [morals] are. I get really angry when people go for him because I’m like, ‘You don’t know how good this person is’.”

The fitness guru continued by revealing she’d also picked up valuable lessons from her mum, especially regarding being “a calm” and “well adjusted” parent.

Richard and Judy presented the ITV programme from 1998 to 2001. When previously asked about their decision to leave the show, they said it felt like the right moment to move on and explore new ventures.

The duo went on to front their own programme, Richard and Judy, which was broadcast during early evening slots on Channel 4.

Richard remains a familiar presence on ITV as a presenter on Good Morning Britain, while Judy has stepped away from the public eye.

The former broadcaster was most recently spotted on television during their daughter’s ITV documentary, Chloe Madeley: A Family Affair.

However, after running for just one series, it didn’t return following Chloe’s split from rugby player James Haskell.

The pair, who are parents to two-year-old daughter Bodhi, announced their separation in 2023 after five years of marriage.

During her recent podcast chat, Chloe revealed that the former couple are still navigating a “stressful” divorce.

Providing an insight into her love life situation, she said she’s content with being single after having a disliking her experience on dating apps.

FOR years Molly-Mae Hague was the influencer who up-and-coming social media stars aspired to be like – she had the huge brand deals, the hunky fiancé and millions in the bank.

But fast forward to today and the 26-year-old’s aesthetically pleasing life is no longer top of the wish list. In her place are a host of ‘real’ women with some serious career goals and leading the way is social media star Meagan Wells. Here, insiders tell us how being the so-called ‘anti-Molly’ has helped the rising mogul, the truth behind rumours she’s ‘sold out’ and what really happened with her former bestie, Asher Mary Lou.

More than half a million fans have been closely watching Meagan’s every move since she burst onto the scene in 2021 – sharing her Slimming World journey.

She describes herself as “Your Midsize Geordie bestie,” who puts confidence for curvy women at the forefront of her brand.

It saw many young girls flock to her as a source of inspiration as she shared her fashion hacks and body battles with her fans in her typical down-to-earth manner.

If she wants a boob job then she’s more than entitled too.

Insider on her changing look

In a surprisingly bold move just last month, Meagan made her intentions clear as she declared: “In a world full of Molly-Mae’s be proud to be a Bridget Jones.” 

The post raised eyebrows with her fans, and one of Meagan’s followers told The Sun: “She has always advocated for positivity but her Bridget Jones and Molly-Mae comment felt seriously misguided.

“There was such a clearer way she could have compared herself to a Bridget Jones-type without having to discourage anyone from following in Molly-Mae’s path.

“Many of us have been speculating in our group chats if she was simply using Molly’s name as she knows it will get her attention and likes.”

Meagan was quick to explain herself, telling her followers: “This isn’t shade to Molly-Mae. It’s the Molly-Mae effect on social media which is the side of social media that is all about perfectionism, clean girl, minimal aesthetics and if you feel you don’t sit in that (me), you are seen also.”

But behind the scenes things were really changing for Meagan and as her fame rose, she started to shed her girl-next-door image.

One fan questioned how honest her posts are, writing: “You’ve posted before about all the face/hair editing software you use on your face.”

While her weight has always been a hot topic on her socials, suddenly Meagan seemed slimmer than ever and then in September she shocked people when she decided to get a boob job. 

There were also trips to aesthetic clinics and getting her lips done and suddenly she looked a far cry from the girl who started off desperate to lose weight. She was a size 18 at her biggest and a 10 at her smallest.

Whilst no one could fault Meagan wanting to get fit and healthier as she embarked upon her own personal journey – the loyal fans who were with her at the start have now admitted to feeling “cheated”, accusing her of turning into everything she proclaimed she would never be.

Over the summer she posted a video in her bikini showing people how to pose on the beach but her followers were quick to point out that of course she looked good – with a full face of glam.

“I’m fairly certain any pose will work for you. Simply because you are a goddess,” remarked one.

And someone else added: “It helps that she is absolutely gorgeous anyway.”

But insiders tell us Meagan would be horrified by the suggestion that  it’s all a bit of an act, explaining: “There has never been any secret about her wanting to look her best – and if she wants a boob job then she’s more than entitled too.

“People need to remember she is growing up in the public eye and of course her style will evolve.

“She knows people were surprised by her new boobs, but she’s engaged now and just wants to look and feel her best. She’s got big plans for the future.”

Another source speculated: “Influencers will often do what it takes to stay relevant, and when they are offered  things it’s hard to turn it down. She might be allowed to change and grow, but it’s understandable why people might feel let down.”

Having seen her fame soar over the past few years, Meagan decided to launch a podcast with close pal and growing influencer Asher Mary Lou – Talking Thirty.

It started in November 2023, to much fanfare, and over the course of the year they bashed out three series by September 2024.

“They don’t even follow each other now – it was a real cut off.”

Insider on her fall out from Asher

During their last episode of the series, they joked it would be their last one ever, which turned out to be foreshadowing because it then disappeared without a trace – and even their Instagram has now been removed. 

They claimed to be too busy to record it any more, but the urgency with which they removed it from their bios suggested something much deeper going on.

Insiders tell us: “The girls grew close very quickly and decided to do the podcast pretty soon after meeting.

“But they realised they don’t actually have the same values and there was one row in particular, which they now both refuse to talk about, which made them end the friendship.

“They don’t even follow each other now – it was a real cut off.”

Meagan’s foray into podcasting might not have lasted long, but she has now set her sights on transitioning into the traditional celebrity world of TV, like many of her fellow Instagram influencers and TikTok stars.

Just this month, she shared a reel about her dreams of landing a spot on This Morning as part of a “Manifesting Morning TV” post.

Meagan told her followers how she’d undertaken a TV presenter course in the hopes of honing her skills.

Our insider added: “She’s very clear about what her goals are – like with everything she’s been very honest about what she wants career-wise.

“She’s not necessarily taking the traditional influencer route like Molly did and she’s determined not to lose herself along the way.”

Despite the worries and concerns, Meagan has long provided a safe space for her fans who have struggled with body image issues.

She has never shied away from showing off her body hang-ups which is far more than can be said for many Instagram influencers.

And while there may be questions about if she’s sold out and become skinny, she’s forging her own path – reaping the rewards of her fame and followers.

The Sun has contacted Meagan Wells’ representative for comment.

In the latest episode of The Envelope video podcast, Oscar Isaac opens up about the connection he forged with director Guillermo del Toro for “Frankenstein” and Wunmi Mosaku reflects on the way her own heritage informed her work in “Sinners.”

Kelvin Washington: Hello, everyone, and welcome to a new episode of The Envelope. Kelvin Washington here, and you know who we have: We have Yvonne Villarreal, we have Mark Olsen, and you as well, so thank you for being here. Happy holidays to the both of you. First off, the green memo [gestures to Villarreal].

Mark Olsen: I feel like you guys have left me off the group text again.

Washington: We did.

Olsen: I’m not getting these messages.

Washington: By the way, tomorrow will be Christmas trees — but we’ll talk about that later. Don’t worry about that. Quickly, Christmas list. One thing you’re looking for.

Villarreal: A break. …. Sorry, I answered before you even finished.

Washington: You know our bosses and producers are looking at us right now. You deserve one. Mark, you?

Olsen: That sounds good, sure.

Washington: All right, that was it, thank you for watching this episode of … All right, let’s get into it. Yvonne, you had a chance to speak with Oscar Isaac, who’s taking on the role, of course, as Frankenstein in Guillermo del Toro’s adaptation of this classic. Tell me a little bit more.

Villarreal: He plays the brilliant but egotistical scientist Victor Frankenstein, who creates life with this monstrous experiment, and the result is the Creature, played by Jacob Elordi. It was really nice speaking with Oscar about some of the themes that the film explores, the father-son dynamic and breaking cycles of generational trauma. And he was talking a lot about where he pulled from, the conversations he had with Guillermo about what they wanted to delve into. And it was really fun also hearing him talk about the rock star inspiration, for his take on Victor. So it was fun.

Washington: All right, we’re looking forward to that. We’ll get there in just a moment. Mark, I swing to you. You had a chance to speak with Wunmi Mosaku, who in my mind was the kind of the breakout star of Ryan Coogler’s vampire thriller “Sinners.” I want to hear more about what you had to talk about.

Olsen: Exactly. I mean, this has been such a breakout role for her. Obviously, the film was a huge hit when it came out earlier in a year. And she, you know, she’s been acting for years now. I think a lot of people know her for when she was on “Lovecraft Country,” another sort of horror-themed story. Here she plays Annie, the former partner of Smoke, one of the two characters by Michael B. Jordan in the film. And just on a practical level, it was great to hear her talk about working with Michael, where he’s playing these two parts and the way he made it seem so effortless to shift back and forth between them. But then also on an emotional level, you know, she was born in Nigeria, raised in England, lives here in Los Angeles, and yet she just forged such a deep personal and emotional connection to this character from 1930s Mississippi. And so to hear her talk about that, there was just something really wonderful in the conversation. It was really terrific.

Washington: This happens all the time, as you all know, that moments like this, scenes like those in the movie, like she’s gonna become someone that’s, “Hey, you know what? We need to look into her more.” So I’m happy for her to have that breakout moment. All right, without further ado, here’s Yvonne and Oscar.

Oscar Isaac in “Frankenstein.”

(Ken Woroner / Netflix)

Villarreal: Oscar, thanks so much for being here.

Isaac: Very happy to be here.

Villarreal: I have to say, driving down the 110, I came across buses with your face wrapped around them.

Isaac: I’m so sorry.

Villarreal: It was a pleasant sight in L.A. I know you encounter a level of this with each project, but this does feel a little bit different. How you’re feeling in this moment with “Frankenstein”? How do you take stock of the small moments in this big production?

Isaac: There aren’t too many small moments with this, to be honest. Everything’s very big-sized. In a way, it’s the most I’ve really done to support a movie. I’d say even more than “Star Wars” to a certain extent, because it straddles so many things. It’s a big fun popcorn movie. It’s also an intense emotional drama. It’s a platform release, a few theaters then the streaming platform itself. So there’s been a lot of things to do for that. And it can be tiring, but the thing is when it’s in service of Guillermo [del Toro, the director] and his vision and it’s his love letter to cinema, it’s the story he’s always wanted to tell — that’s an energizing thing. Being able to do it with him. And with Jacob [Elordi] and Mia [Goth].

Villarreal: Have you come across a bus with your face on it yet?

Isaac: Maybe not a bus. I’ve seen billboards. I’ve seen bus stops, but the actual moving thing itself, no, I haven’t yet.

Villarreal: I know Guillermo has said that he has long seen you as the person to play this role of Victor, even before there was a screenplay. What do you remember about that lunch you had with him? What did he say that he saw in you for this?

Isaac: I wish I could really go back and like just parse it all out. We just immediately started speaking as friends, as fellow Latinos, as immigrants trying to navigate our way through this industry, as both having very intense relationships with our fathers and the way that’s changed over time, both becoming fathers and wanting to not necessarily follow in some of the same footsteps, but also recognizing what an incredible source of of life our fathers have been. But all the pain that came from that, and forgiveness. We talked about those things without any relation to a movie in my mind. It wasn’t until after that where he started talking about this project and he said, “I think you need to play Victor Frankenstein.”

Villarreal: I feel like Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” is so steeped in the culture because the creature, the monster, is such a part of pop culture. When did you first encounter the book? Did you have to read it in high school?

Isaac: I encountered it a little later. It was shortly after high school. I wanted to have a read because it’s such a famous, legendary, iconic book. I enjoyed it, but it didn’t really hit so hard for me. When I left that that meeting, Guillermo gave me Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” and the Tao Te Ching. He’s like, “Read these two books.” Going back to the book again, reading it, really hearing her voice, really hearing her voice in all of the characters — I thought that was very interesting, that everybody kind of sounds a little bit like her. And I love that Guillermo took that idea and did the same thing with his movie. He made it very autobiographical.

Villarreal: For “The Card Counter,” you also had to read a book about the way that we store trauma. Did you find yourself returning to that at any point?

Isaac: “The Body Keeps Score.” That’s right. Incredible book. I did, very much. Also, parts therapy. This idea that we’re all these different parts and different voices and we’re not any one thing. And gestalt therapy, this idea of, like, being able to hold that child-self of you that’s broken. For me, that was a very big one in thinking of the Creature. The Creature is a reconstruction of Victor’s broken child that has to chase him down to forgive him — to make him look at him, face him and forgive him.

Villarreal: Did you find that you wanted to understand both Victor and the Creature?

Isaac: Guillermo and I spoke very explicitly about the idea that they’re one and the same. That there are two halves of one full person. And that actually was really helpful in the playing of it, particularly in that one scene when the Creature comes back and demands a companion. That scene in particular was played on my part as if that’s his voice, his inner child, his addict, that darkness within him that he’s trying to suppress.

Villarreal: How did you both discuss Victor in terms of, is he a reliable narrator telling the story?

Isaac: We spoke that he’s very much an unreliable narrator. It is his remembrance. It’s a memory play. Did Elizabeth really look like his mom? Probably not, but that’s how he remembers it. That’s who he saw. And the sets are these massive archetypal Jungian visions that feel very much like they’re part of his inner conscious, his subconscious, and not so much objective reality.

Villarreal: I want to talk about the the look and vibe of Victor. I know that you’ve talked before about looking to some rock icons for inspiration, whether it’s Prince or David Bowie. I think Guillermo mentioned Mick Jagger at one point. How did you both arrive at that and what were the videos or the performances that you locked in on?

Isaac: That first meeting that we had, it wasn’t so much like he saw me and he’s like, “You’re my Victor.” It’s a conversation. And out of that conversation, inspiration starts to happen. That is what ultimately led for this thing to happening between us. And that conversation just keeps going. As he writes it, he has a few ideas, I look at a few scenes, I see where he’s going with it, we start talking about it more. He starts talking about the way he wants Victor to occupy space, especially in his memory, that he remembers himself like conducting a concert, like a rock star, like holding court and having this punk rock, iconoclastic energy. He’s like Mick Jagger. And suddenly “like Mick Jagger” becomes, “well, like a rock star.” Well, how does he move? What is it about Mick Jagger? What is it about these other musicians, these artists that that’s the form of expression to think about? Not so much the scientist or the mad scientist, but the passionate artist. Then those ideas mix with the incredible genius Kate Hawley, who does these costumes, who also is bringing in all of her ideas of punk rock in London in the ’60s and Jimi Hendrix and those bell-bottoms and those hats that have a bit of a Gothic-Romantic thing going for it. Then these little boots. And then suddenly I see these boots and I see this hat, but for me that looks more like prints to me. All these things are just conversations and pieces and things being put together that create a character. It is this amazing collaboration that happens, this collage that gives the impression of a character, and that’s really special.

Villarreal: You’re working opposite Jacob Elordi, and I think a lot of people come in with preconceived notions about maybe who he is as an actor based on his past work. He’s such a revelation in this film in terms of the work and prep that he did to get here. First, talk to me about seeing him as the Creature for the first time, but also what he was like as a scene partner.

Isaac: We only met briefly in Guillermo’s office at one point, and he seemed like a nice young fella. He had his little 35mm camera, was taking a lot of analog pictures, which was cool. And the first scene we shot was the last scene of the movie. That was the first time I saw him in the full getup. So he walked in and immediately I was really moved by how graceful he was. I remember him coming in, like, fingers first; his hands were like animals, like [a] sea anemone. There’s just like incredible movements that were happening and I found it really lonely and heartbreaking. I thought it was an amazing coincidental, if you believe in those, opportunity that that was the first scene that we were going to get to do together — the last scene, the time when these characters finally actually see each other for the first time. He was amazing and then so graceful and gentle and very emotionally available.

In between takes, I’d see this big lumbering monster taking photos with his little camera, which was incredible. What was incredible about that too is that he was loose. He was just taking everything in. And that’s a very hard thing to do in those high-pressured situations. People can kind of get, like, tunnel vision and narrow in and try just to do the thing that they want to do, but he was [operating from] open awareness, which is a place that we all hope to start from as artists.

Villarreal: Did you both have an idea of, “Do we need to approach this a certain way to be true to these characters, with the friction or tension that they have, or can we turn that off in between takes?”

Isaac: There was no need to do any of that. That would have been just extra work, more like an ego idea. It was very free on set, and that’s Guillermo; that comes from the top down. He’s ebullient, he’s joyous, he’s loud, he’s inclusive of everything. So there’s no secrets. If he likes something, everybody knows it. If he doesn’t like something, everybody knows it. Whatever he’s working on, everybody knows it. And so it feels like a team. There wasn’t really space for this kind of sheltering away or trying to manufacture some kind of dynamic.

Villarreal: Did your view or perspective on Victor shift over the course of making this film? As a son and as a father, how did you see him in the beginning and how did it change by the end?

Isaac: It’s funny because I have a lot of friends that have kids that have texted me saying, “Wow, man, that made me feel really guilty watching you do that,” because we can all think of those moments where we lose our patience and we yell or we get angry at these very innocent beings that didn’t ask to be here and yet they’re being forced to conform to these rules. And the idea that what we think is right trumps everything and that our children are just extensions of ourselves, accessories, things to be judged in relation to us, as either prideful or shameful. That horrible cycle that happens and those patterns that we fall into. So that became more and more evident, especially in those scenes with Jacob as the Creature, with the shaving and the washing and the being tired and all things that were additions from Guillermo that are not in the book. Because in the book, Victor leaves right away. But this is more of like a slow retreat from the responsibilities of bringing somebody into the world.

Villarreal: I want to unpack that more, because it’s been interesting to see the discourse online of people very much relating to this element of Guillermo’s take, the themes of generational pain and a father’s desire for redemption. Obviously, Victor is physically and emotionally abused by his father, and we see how the cycle repeats itself with the Creature. This idea of breaking generational trauma, like you said, it’s something that we try to be mindful of in how we work every day. Did you find yourself unpacking some of those emotions in the process, or is it just something that you’re sort of reflecting on now that it’s over?

Isaac: We spoke about those things at that first meeting, so that was actually like the touchstone of the whole thing. That’s what kept everything grounded. It’s a very heightened performance. It’s not naturalistic. It’s meant to be quite expressive. It also brings in modalities and forms of telenovelas and and Mexican melodrama. We watch those things very carefully to bring some of those elements out in this kind of fever dream that is this film. But we were only able to do those kinds of things knowing at the core it is about this generational trauma and this idea of what we inherit from our fathers or from our parents. And as much as we try to run away from them, we get blinded often by our own constructions of ourselves and our own egos and our own desires and are blind to repeating these exact same things again. And especially as artists — I can definitely relate to the idea of “Well, if I can just figure out this one thing, this character, this piece, if I can find the breakthrough here, then everything will make sense. Everything will be worth it, all the limbs that I’ve cut off, all the villages I’ve burned. The trail of debt I’ve left behind me will will mean something if I can figure this thing out.” Then you get to the other side of that and that’s not the answer. We very much were conscious of that.

Villarreal: I guess I ask because the interview I was referencing before, your interview with Terry Gross, which was around the time of “The Card Counter,” I was so struck by you talking about your [father and] upbringing in an evangelical household and this feeling like doom was around the corner. And I was so struck by how you talked about that. And you talked about your home in Florida being demolished by the hurricane. In my rewatch of “Frankenstein,” being focused on you and your character in particular, I was thinking about how much of that was playing in your head, especially in the scene where the place is burning down. Like, do you go directly to those kind of moments? How was it playing in your head?

Isaac: I don’t necessarily try to summon that specific moment. I think part of the preparation is reading and feeling; as I read through the script and as I think about it, where I connect with it emotionally. And sometimes if something feels far away, I do have to be like, “OK, well, how do I bridge the gap to this thing? How can I relate to it? Oh, well, I guess, yeah, I had to deal with this in my life. And how did I respond to it? Well, how would Victor respond to it? How would I respond to it if I had Victor’s circumstances?” That is some of the fun of meditating on the piece and thinking about what all the possibilities are. But with this, I didn’t find myself, like, literally reaching to stories in my past. I just allowed that to be available.

I did a bit with the last scene, thinking about, “When was the last time I was at a deathbed with a loved one?” And what was that like and what do I remember physically of that, what was the energy and what was the tone of that and how is it appropriate with this and how is it different? You use whatever’s available, and sometimes just the other person across from you is enough and sometimes you need to kind of summon it from the ancestors or from wherever to get through that performance ritual.

Villarreal: When you’re channeling those intense emotions, is it, like, hard to keep them under control sometimes for the good of the scene?

Isaac: Well, actually, that happened with this last scene. I’d spent a a day getting into that mode and summoning, and we did the scene and it was quite volatile sometimes. A lot of the emotions would come through and Guillermo would say, “OK, let’s do another one, but maybe tamp that down a little bit.” It’s like, “OK, let’s try that again.” We did it a bunch of different ways. And funny enough, even though it was a great day and everyone was happy, we ended up coming back and reshooting it. And it was done last minute. I didn’t have time to do all of this preparation, and we just went and that’s actually what ended up being in the movie. Because I wasn’t expending any energy trying to reach for something. It just was more reactive and it was a bit more sober and less an idea. It’s that balance sometimes between wanting to get to something, explore something, but also letting it go and allowing something to emerge that is not willed.

Villarreal: I want to talk more about the collaboration with Guillermo. What does that look like in practice? What is a note from him like? I saw another interview where you mostly spoke in Spanish with each other. How did that allow you to understand what he’s after more easily?

Isaac: That first meeting we only spoke in Spanish. So it set the tone. And my Spanish is good, but it’s like maybe seventh-grade vocabulary.

Villarreal: I feel a kinship.

Isaac: I would speak in Spanish to my mom. That was the person that I would only speak in Spanish to. And then when she passed eight years ago, I kind of lost that. I have my aunts and I talk to them, but it kind of starts to go away. So to suddenly have Guillermo show up, and that was the way that we really first interfaced. And with him, even though he could hear me sometimes, doing it in Spanglish or trying to get to it, he just was committed. It’s like, we speak in Spanish. He didn’t have to say it. That’s just what it is. It just created this real, almost, like, subconscious intimacy because it’s the mother tongue. That is the first thing that I heard. Even though when I learned to speak, it was in the United States, it was both always at the same time, then the English took over. But it just hits something different to have to communicate, to have to try to find a way to express myself in Spanish to Guillermo, talking about really difficult things. What would be great about it is it forced me to be simple and just, like, get to the f— point, and not like all this intellectual stuff around all these definitions and acting terms and all this. That was a really special thing.

Villarreal: We’ve talked a little bit about we’re working through, for lack of a better term, some daddy issues during the making of this. I know that “Hamlet” is such a seminal text in both your personal life and in your career. And obviously, this is a film that has parallels. With the passing of your mom, and working on this, especially with that last scene, how did you feel your mother while working on this project?

Isaac: Wow, that’s a very kind question. So, so, so much. She would have loved this movie. The last movie we saw actually was “The Handmaiden.” Super erotic too. I was like, “Mom, we’re sorry; close your eyes, Mom.” But it was so beautiful and kind of dark and opulent — she loved that stuff. She was always incredibly, incredibly present. Even the Elizabeth character — my mom had red hair as well. And this is in Mary Shelley’s text about the feminine and the masculine and those warring kind of energies. And for Victor, ironically, really tapping into more of the feminine energy with him in some ways. What he does is obviously — the penetrating nature, is a masculine thing, but at the same time, that freedom and the liquidity of that femininity was very important too. That last scene, it was interesting. That first time we did the scene, there was a lot of my mom there. Then when I had to let it go and I had to just respond, suddenly dad showed up. And that was really wild. There’s a bit of that warring energy with Victor all the time, and that was really surprising.

Villarreal: There was also the the detail that people really picked up on, which was the drinking of the milk. How did that inform you as you played Victor?

Isaac: Once his mom dies, he gets stunted. He never grows from that point on. His body grows. What he’s doing, his intellect grows, but emotionally, he stays that little boy that’s been hit in the face by his dad and rejected. And rejected by his mom because she died. It’s not rational, but that’s what it is. He’s orphaned. That’s also why mom feels so present. He’s just always looking for her. He’s always looking for her everywhere, everywhere, everywhere. The milk is just looking for her. It’s just comfort. La lechita. It’s also very funny because it’s so simple too. He likes playing with the saint-sinner thing, this guy that paints himself as the victim. He’s not a drug addict. The only thing he does is milk. And milk’s good for you, right? He starts off as Jesus Christ and ends up as Charles Manson. That’s what that milk does.

Villarreal: Do you have a sense — especially with a little bit of hindsight now, though I know you’re still in the whirlwind of it — what the character of Victor has done for you?

Isaac: What was surprising is that he is a sadist, but in like the Marquis de Sade kind of way. That wasn’t something that I thought about, but as it progressed, what was surprising to me was the pleasure that the character was giving me. For someone that is so dark and has such capacity for cruelty, the fact that he just felt so good, it was so free and so energized and kind of joyful. And I asked Guillermo at one point, I was like, “Maybe something’s wrong here? Because, like, shouldn’t it be a little darker and heavier?” He’s like, “The movie tells you what it needs.” You listen to the movie, and this is somebody that doesn’t have any doubts. And that feels pretty good to not have any doubts, until he crashes. He wakes up from this dream, this fever dream of no consequences. There’s no consequences, nothing matters, the rule of nature is dominance and cruelty, and actually pain is the same as pleasure. And the more perfect the crime, which is against something that’s virtuous and innocent, the more perfect an act that is, philosophically, nihilistically. So that is pure freedom. Pure freedom and pure pleasure, it’s like f— it. To play somebody like that, and to allow myself to be blind to the feeling of consequence and to just shoot like a rocket, that was incredibly freeing and pleasurable. Then suddenly to stop back and look back and be like, “Oh, what an awful thing. What awful things he did. He couldn’t see what he was doing.” But in the moment, that was unexpected.

Villarreal: We talked about the intensity of filming that last scene. What was the scene where you just felt so free and happy or excited?

Isaac: Creating the creature. Creating the creature was just like the rain coming down, the running up and down the stairs in the little high-heeled boots, the screaming at Christoph Waltz, you know, and his body flying down and him being like, “f— it, gotta throw him in the freezer, gotta keep this thing moving.” That energy, you know, climbing up the tower, putting the spear up there. He’s like a Gothic hero, a Gothic superhero. That kind of mutability within the character — it’s kinda like what I was saying about the artist. It’s like, “This I know; I know how to do this, and if I can do this, everything will make sense.” So that moment of just purely going for that thing, that was a really exciting moment. And also in that set, in Tamara [Deverell’s] incredible set, with Dan [Laustsen’s] lighting and Guillermo sitting there in the corner like this little crazy Mexican Buddha, just wanting more, more, more, that was electrifying. Pardon the pun.

Villarreal: I’ve wondered what it’s like walking into one of his creations, those sets. I can’t imagine. It feels like you’re in a dream.

Isaac: You do, and what’s the most incredible thing is that he’s surrounded himself with people for the last 30 years that are like an extension of himself. Through a process of elimination, he’s gotten these people that are just as passionate, just as detailed, and have ownership of the movie. The set decorator, the painter, the greens person that puts the moss in is like, “Do you see where I put the moss right there? You see the moss right there?” That kind of artisanal passion over it. So you walk in, sure, it’s inspiring for the imagination, but it’s also inspiring as a crafts person to be like, “OK, how do I bring the same amount of detail and passion and love for it?”

Villarreal: I’m asking this teasingly, but what’s the worst thing about Guillermo as a director? Is it that he wants so many takes, or is it that he just thinks you can do anything?

Isaac: I was gonna say what was challenging was to have somebody quilting the movie as we were shooting it. So that you would do a take and sometimes it would go straight into the edit and he could show you it in the movie itself. And as an actor, that could be tough because you’re like, “Oh, I’m not ready to see that yet.” But he was making it as it goes because the camera was always moving, so he needed to see that it was always connecting to the next thing. I had never experienced that before. For instance, that last scene, we did it, the next day he came in, and it was all edited with some temp score on it and I saw it, I was like, “Oh no, I don’t think that’s… “ But in that case, it was good that I saw it and had that reaction because we got to have another go at it. But it is dealing with like, “How much do I want to see? How self-conscious am I?” But it’s his openness. He’s not afraid.

Villarreal: Was he open with Jacob having his dog Layla on set?

Isaac: Yeah. That’s the thing. He was just free. He was really free. He’s like, “Whatever you need, man. Whatever anybody needs, that’s it.” He would embrace everything. Every mistake, he’d embrace.

Villarreal: Before we wrap things up, we’ve talked about swirling in this space of loss and renewal. In addition to tapping into that with “Frankenstein,” your wife, who’s a filmmaker, Elvira Lind, has this documentary, “King Hamlet,” where she documented a very transformative period in your life as you dealt with the loss of your mother, but also the birth of your child, while working on a staging of “Hamlet.” How has it been to sort of live in this space and have these parallel moments between these two projects?

Isaac: In a way, it’s like the father and the mother of these projects here. And the strange synchronicity of when they’re coming out at the same time, it’s kind of a beautiful thing, because “Frankenstein” is this massive thing, it’s very expressive, it has a lot of people, so much energy behind it. Having to do that and then flying to New York and showing a small group of people this tiny little movie made by just a handful of people, mostly my wife, this incredible documentary filmmaker, but made by her again by hand about this really small, quiet time of a play that we did that maybe a few thousand people saw, there is something quite grounding about that. It also feels generous because it’s about something that she’s made. But also it’s about showing a little peek for anybody, but also for artists as well, at what it costs sometimes and what it takes and how this particular family dealt with all this happening and the desire and the need to process it and create something out of it.

Wunmi Mosaku in “Sinners.”

(Warner Bros. Pictures)

Mark Olsen: “Sinners” obviously opened earlier in the year, and it’s really just hung in there. It’s a movie people are still talking about. What does it mean to you that the movie has already had such an enduring life?

Wunmi Mosaku: Oh, it means so much to me. I feel like you take a job because you believe in it and you trust the filmmakers and you’re excited, and then you get on set and you do your best and then all of a sudden you remember that it’s going to be out there and people are going to judge it and they might not like it and they may not like you and they might not respond to it. And we would turn to each other sometimes and be like, “Do you think they’re going to feel how we feel about this? I really hope so.” Because we really felt like it was so special. And so seeing the reaction has been so affirming and pretty magical because it’s not always the case that it translates the same as how it feels for you, that the audience feels that too.

Olsen: And what do you think it is that audiences are responding to? Mosaku: I think Ryan Coogler, his way of creating art is always based in truth and connection and honoring the people on the screen and the people that they represent in and around his life. And so I feel like people are responding to the fact that it feels truthful. Even though it’s got horror aspects and a musical aspect, it really just has heart and depth and it’s about community, it’s about freedom, it’s about the price of freedom. It’s about so many things that affect people every day. Capitalism, selling out, cultural appropriation. It’s deep and it’s layered, and it’s all rooted in truth.

Olsen: And now when you say that as you were shooting the movie, it felt special to all of you — can you describe that for me? What do you think you were feeling as you were shooting the movie?

Mosaku: I felt a deep connection to my ancestry, to my purpose, to how what I do today will reverberate in the future. My lineage, my child’s future. I just felt the film links the past to the present. It links West African traditional spirituality and it connects it to hip-hop and blues and all these different types of dance and culture. It feels kind of sprawling and encompassing of the Black diaspora experience. And it makes you feel connected to everyone in the diaspora. I felt really awakened to my position in that web of creativity. And artists like Ryan, who have this visionary, revolutionary way of creating, they just kind of feel like guiding lights, diamonds, in this web of us. It feels like, “Oh wow, he really is this jewel to be cherished, and I’m connected to that now.” So it was very multilayered, the connection I felt.

Olsen: That does sound like more than just a typical day at work. Mosaku: There was nothing typical about it. It felt like, vibrationally, it changed all of us.

Olsen: As I understand it, when you auditioned for the film, you were given this seven-page scene that introduces your character of Annie. It’s you and Michael B. Jordan’s character of Smoke, and from that scene you thought the film was a romantic drama. What did you make of it when you found out what the movie was really about?

Mosaku: Ryan explained the movie to me in and around the scene, and my mind was blown because it made complete sense, but it came completely out of left field for me. I had the themes that we see in the movie of the evolution of blues to modern-day music and ancestors and future ancestors, they weren’t quite there when he was explaining it to me, but it was there in the spirit of what he was explaining to me. So I knew it was epic and that there was depth, but then there was also vampires. I can’t explain how he explained it, but I felt the weight of all of the themes and messages, and it seemed to work with the idea of vampires coming in and taking blood. It was a surprise, but it made sense. I was completely hooked and in from the first scene, but his description, I was like, “This is genius.”

Olsen: I like the idea that you were still able to process your story in the movie, Annie’s story, as that of a romance. Even with everything else that’s happening in the film, there still is that story at the core of it. Mosaku: Because he only works with truth. Even in a fantastical world of vampires and spirits, he still works within the truth of relationships and character dynamics, and so their love is the community, the love and the bond between all of the characters, that is the heart of the movie. Sammie’s desire to leave the plantation and see the world, that’s the heart of the movie. These two people who love each other dearly and are insatiable for each other but can’t be together because of racism and the color of their skin, that heartbreak is the heart of the movie. A woman who just wants to sing and is young and is married to this old church type — that line I think is cut from the movie, but Jayme [Lawson]’s character says he’s older, church type — and she just wants to be completely free on the stage. That she gets to explore and to have this thrilling night in the community in the juke joint, I mean that’s the heart of the movie too. These relationships are the beating heart.

Olsen: But there’s something I’ve heard you talk about, that Annie relates to the character that most of us know as Smoke, as both Smoke and Elijah, his given name. Can you untangle that for me? It’s really compelling to think that she is relating to both sides of his personality. Mosaku: Well, everybody has a representative, right? Like, this is my representative. And then there’s Wunmi at home without the glam, the truth. So yes, she met Smoke. She fell in love with Smoke, but she knew Elijah. In Yoruba, we have your given name and then you get given an Oriki name, and the Oriki name is a pet name that your grandmother or your mom would call you and when they call you by that name, when you hear someone speak your Oriki name, you can’t say no. It’s like, “That person knows me like no one else, and they’ve used this name for a purpose.” So almost like Elijah is his Oriki name because everyone knows him as Smoke. He has his defenses up, he has his heart guarded, Smoke’s been through war, Smoke’s been through the gangster stuff in Chicago, but Elijah lost his daughter. So when she calls him by his name that’s like calling his Oriki. Olsen: You’ve spoken as well about how much you feel you’ve learned about yourself in playing this role, that it changed you. How so? Mosaku: I mean, even the fact that I can talk about Oriki names. I didn’t have an Oriki name. I didn’t understand the meaning of the Oriki name until I really just kind of immersed myself more in my culture that I feel like I had no choice in not being a part of. I came to England when I was 1½, and you try and assimilate, you try and fit in. And that is at the expense and the tax of your birth culture. And that’s something people don’t really pay attention to, what’s lost in order to feel safe in another culture. Researching Annie, I had to look back at where I’m from, because she’s a hoodoo priestess and hoodoo is a derivative of Ifa, and Ifa is the traditional Yoruba religion. That is where my people come from. That is part of my survival, that’s why I’m here. Their knowledge, their belief systems, that is why I’m here. And so having to research that just opened up a whole treasure trove of truth for me and inquiry and self-reflection and self-love and admiration of all the people that came before, the difficult decisions my parents made, and then the difficult decisions I’ve had to make in navigating being an immigrant in another country.

Olsen: What does it meant to you to connect with that part of yourself?

Mosaku: I’m unable to put it into words. It’s changed me profoundly. It’s changed my relationship to the world, my culture, my home. I feel inspired in so many different ways to reconnect, feel connected. I’ve been doing Yoruba lessons for five years, and only in the last year has it really stuck. And I think the sticking is because of the exploration, the real exploration, not just an intellectual “trying to learn a language.” It’s unlocked something emotionally in me. The language is sticking.

Olsen: “Sinners” is rooted so specifically in the world of the Jim Crow South here in America. Was that still something that you could relate to? Were there aspects of the story that still felt familiar to you?

Mosaku: Yeah, I can relate to being Black in America, I can relate to being Black in a different culture. But there’s a lot of research that has to be done. A lot of people in the cast were pulling upon the people that they knew in their history and their ancestry, whether it was Ryan and his uncle James who inspired the movie or Miss Ruth [E. Carter, costume designer, who] said my dress, the velvet dress was inspired by a picture of her grandma in a velvet dress on the stairs with her grandfather. They have different things they can pull on that are really from the time and the people. I do research in a different way, because I don’t have that same history to pull from, but I have an admiration and a love of the African American culture. My daughter’s African American. So I feel I have a respect and a duty to do my research, not just for my character work but for my family. I can relate to aspects, but I don’t have that shared cellular memory that the rest of the cast do.

Olsen: So what did you draw on for research? Mosaku: I spoke to hoodoo priestesses and that was really my main research, was kind of the faith, because that is who she is. That’s her foundation. And that’s her power. So that was my main research. Obviously, researching the era, Prohibition, Jim Crow South, the Great Migration. For me it’s about respect and honoring as truthfully as I can, if someone has trusted me with this role. And also I’ve said no to roles that I don’t think should be played by Black Brits or Nigerians. I’ve said no to roles that I think should be specifically for African Americans. There’s something about Annie that feels really close to me and really important to me, and I think she’s like a bridge, and I do think of myself sometimes in that way, of in the middle. I’m someone who was born in Nigeria but was never raised there, someone who was raised on a land that has never felt like my own, and then someone who’s come here and has, not inherited, but I have a daughter with this inherited history. And so I have a responsibility for her to understand all three aspects, and then I’m sure there are more aspects of her history that I am yet to figure out what they are. It’s my responsibility to understand that and guide her with it.

Olsen: When you’re shooting these kind of stories or dealing with sort of heavy topics, do you have anything that you like to do at the end of the day to pull yourself out of it?

Mosaku: I talk to my husband and I spend time with my daughter. I speak to my family. I go home.

Olsen: And I don’t think I’m spoiling anything, but I want to be sure to ask you about your last moments in “Sinners.” It’s deeply moving. You reappear in the film as a vision to Smoke. You’re nursing your infant daughter. Can you talk to me about that moment in the film and what it means to you?

Mosaku: It’s purity. He drops his representative, he drops Smoke. He has to drop Smoke in order to join us. The initial cost of this never-ending life as a vampire, it sounds like there’s a glamour to it, there’s a capitalism to it. Stack and Mary are still young and beautiful but there is such a great cost. They never get to see the sun, they never get to hold their loved ones again. And actually they’re not truly free. Whereas Smoke and Annie have chosen true freedom that fully incorporates everything that they love truly. It’s not money, it’s not eternal life, it’s not eternal darkness. They are basking in the sun with their ancestors and it’s purity, it’s love, it’s freedom.

Olsen: I have to ask you about the musical number where sort of the past and the future sort of collapse in on themselves. What did that read like in the script? And what was it like to be on set that day?

Mosaku: It read very much like it felt when you watched it. I had read a version without the future and past ancestors, where it was just about the two brothers and their women and reconnecting and it was beautiful. I loved it. And then before the read-through, we got given another draft, and it had the ancestors and the roof going on fire, and I threw the script down and I ran into my living room and was like to my husband, “Oh, my God, oh, my God, it’s amazing, it’s amazing. I think this is the most amazing thing I’ve ever read. I think it’s the most amazing thing that’s ever going to happen onscreen.” That’s how it felt. And on the day filming it, it very much felt magical. Sammie and Delta Slim have this scene where Delta talks to him about his gift and where it comes from. It comes from the homeland, it comes from your ancestors, it comes from home, Africa. And it’s such a powerful gift and to really guard it with all he has. Then Miles [Caton], who plays Sammie, is talking to the the older guy, Papa Toto, who plays his past ancestor. Who has the little guitar behind him, I don’t know what it’s called, like the original guitar. And he’s behind him in the scene, and then I kind of wander over to them, and Papa Toto basically does the exact same speech, never having read the script, to Miles about his gift and where it comes from and like how he should cherish it and keep it protected. That’s what they’re both talking about, protecting their gifts. And I was just like, “Oh, my gosh, this is magical. He doesn’t even know that this is the scene in the script.” It was a really special day.

Olsen: I’m going to ask this as politely as I can, but I found “Sinners” to be a much bawdier movie, it’s a much more sensual and sexy movie, than I expected. I’m curious how you found those scenes in the script and in particular what it was like for you shooting your scene with Michael.

Mosaku: It explores so many different emotions and feelings. It feels palpable, it feels tangible, it feels like it’s pulsing. It also feels kind of inevitable. Again, it just felt true, and it wasn’t difficult because we created such a safe space for everyone, and there’s no nudity in it, and it just feels really sensual and safe.

Olsen: What was it like shooting scenes with Michael where he’s playing both Stack and Smoke? I would imagine just him having to switch out for the scenes, how did that impact the rhythm and the momentum for the rest of you? Mosaku: It was pretty easy for us, honestly. We didn’t have to do anything. Michael had a stand-in, Percy Bell, and both would learn both twins’ lines, and then Michael would shoot as Stack, and Percy would do Smoke, and we would lock this, we would rehearse it, rehearse it, rehearse it, and then shoot it, shoot it, shoot it, find the one we liked and lock it. So then, if this is Percy and this is Stack, what they would do is he would go get changed, be Smoke, and we would kind of mime the scene. It was really harder for Mike, I don’t know how he did it. We would kind of mime the scene. They would play the scene back so he was responding to us in the real time of the scene that they had chosen. That was it. That was the only scene that we were going with. And then he would trace Percy’s steps and physique to make sure he wouldn’t step on Stack or whatever. So it was very easy for us. Like, we just had to play the scene. And I honestly don’t know how Mike did it. I have no idea how he did it.

Olsen: What has the response to the movie been like for you professionally? Do you find that you’ve gotten some offers? Are you finding yourself in rooms that maybe you wouldn’t have been in before? Mosaku: Everyone has been so complimentary and lovely about the movie. I think work has come from it, and I was in a room at the Governors Awards with Tom Cruise and Debbie Allen and Phylicia Rashad. I was like, “Well, this is new.” Me, Jayme [Lawson], Hailee [Steinfeld] got awarded one of the Elle Women in Hollywood awards yesterday, which was again really surreal, like, “Oh, hey, Jennifer Aniston. Hey, Rose Byrne. Hey, everyone. Hi, we’re in this room with you. Cool.” So a lot of really lovely things have come of it. Very grateful.

Olsen: And what does it mean to you that it’s for this movie in particular? Mosaku: This is the movie that just keeps on giving. I loved it from the first time I read those seven pages and I have grown as a person, as an actor, as a mom, as a wife. And now I’m experiencing this, which is really lovely, really nice. Olsen: You also have an upcoming role in “The Social Reckoning,” Aaron Sorkin’s sequel to “The Social Network.” Is there anything you can tell us about your role in the movie? Mosaku: I have no idea what I’m allowed to say about it. I’ve not been prepped on press for that yet, so I’m sorry. Olsen: You shot your part? Mosaku: I’ve shot a lot.

With Christmas just around the corner, it’s going to be a busy time in the Radford household as mum-of-22 Sue has opened up about festive dinner plans

22 Kids and Counting star Sue Radford has revealed her Christmas food shop and fans are floored.

The proud mama of 22 children, Sue became a household name with the rest of the family back in 2012, when she let cameras into her home with husband Noel for the very first time.

Sue and Noel are parents to Christopher, Sophie, Chloe, Jack, Daniel, Luke, Millie, Katie, James, Ellie and Aimee, as well as Josh, Max, Tillie, Oscar, Casper, Alfie, stillborn in 2014, Hallie, Phoebe, Archie Bonnie and Heidie.

Since shooting to fame over 10 years ago, the Morecambe-based family have rarely remained off screens, with the latest series of Channel 5’s 22 Kids and Counting airing earlier this year.

And with Christmas just around the corner, it’s fair to say it’s going to be a busy time in the Radford household. In a clip from the latest episode, Sue revealed that she is hosting Christmas dinner for her entire family. And this includes Father Chloe, her partner Jake and their two-year-old daughter Mila.

During the instalment, Sue headed to her local Asda to stock up on food for her large family in the festive season. Piling her trolley high with groceries Sue said: “We’ve got pigs in blankets, so there’s 60 there.”

Sue added: “We’ve got 3kg of Brussels sprouts. I absolutely hate Brussels sprouts, but everybody else loves them.” She then picked up 4kg of carrots, 7.5k of potatoes and with it being Christmas, Sue stocked up on two large turkeys. Heading to the freezer aisle, Sue said: “Think I’ll probably try and get about 60 Yorkshires.”

Reacting to Sue’s food shop, one person on Facebook said: “I would just do beans on toast, would stress me out.” A second added: “Me too imagine cooking for them all, be my worst nightmare.” A third said: “So much food.” Another penned: “I can’t imagine cooking all that.”

It comes after Sue and Noel introduced their new four-legged family member in October – and fans were left gushing over the update.

Taking to their joint Instagram, the pair shared several photos of their adorable new dog. In the caption, they wrote: “Hi everyone I’m Mavie I’m a cream long-haired miniature Dachshund I’m settling in really well and everyone loves me.”

Animal lovers Sue and Noel have owned several dogs over the years. They have a border collie Lola, three French bulldogs Bluebell, Ivy and Mabel, and three miniature dachshunds Cookie, Minnie and Dolly.

22 Kids and Counting airs on Channel 5.

COPS investigating the deaths of Hollywood director Rob Reiner and his wife have shared more details about the scene that greeted them at the couple’s sprawling home. 

Reiner, 78, and Michele Singer Reiner, 70, were allegedly murdered by their 32-year-old son, Nick, on December 14.

Both deaths have been ruled as a homicide by Los Angeles County medical examiners.

And, both died from multiple sharp force injuries. Only one cause of death has been listed on their reports.

Cops on the Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners spoke briefly about the scene at the $13.5 million Brentwood home. 

Dominic Choi said the couple were found in the master bedroom of the home. 

“Officers conducted a thorough search of the residence to determine whether there was any additional victims or suspects,” he said.

“No one else was located.”

Los Angeles Fire Department was among the first agencies to rush to the Reiner home. 

The first call was made at 3:30pm and a unit was requested to respond to a Code two situation, as per dispatch audio obtained by People. 

A code two situation is where trucks respond with lights flashing and no sirens.

This was then upgraded to code three, where crews respond with sirens and flashing lights. 

The Reiners died on December 14, according to the medical examiner’s report.

A masseuse called the couple’s 27-year-old daughter, Romy, on Sunday when they weren’t let into the home. 

She found her dad’s dead body before suddenly charging out of the home, as reported by the New York Times.

Romy didn’t see her mom’s body before learning that she was also dead.

The legendary career of iconic director Rob Reiner

FAMED actor, director and producer Rob Reiner, 78, died on December 14 alongside his wife Michele Singer, 68, in an apparent homicide.

Here is a look at the prodigious list of achievements the Hollywood powerhouse earned before his tragic and sudden death.

Director’s Beginnings

• Reiner was born in New York City on March 6, 1947, to legendary comedy writer Carl Reiner and singer Estelle Reiner
• He studied at the University of California, Los Angeles film school before breaking into the entertainment industry

Hollywood Career

• Reiner first found fame as an actor playing Michael “Meathead” Stivic on the iconic sitcom All in the Family from 1971 to 1979
• In 1984, he directed his first film This Is Spinal Tap – a mockumentary following a fictional heavy metal band
• Reiner went on to direct cult classic films like The Princess Bride in 1987 and When Harry Met Sally… in 1989
• Other notable movies made by the director include Misery, The American President, and A Few Good Men, which earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture
• The production company he co-founded, Castle Rock Entertainment, has also produced hits like Seinfeld and The Shawshank Redemption
• Reiner didn’t halt his acting career either, recently starring in The Wolf of Wall Street in 2013 and The Bear in 2025

Personal Life

• Reiner married actress Penny Marshall in 1971 and adopted her daughter, Tracy, from a previous marriage. The couple divorced in 1981
• He met photographer Michele Singer while shooting When Harry Met Sally
• They married in 1989 and had three children: Jake, born 1991, Nick born 1993, and Romy born 1997)
• Nick opened up about his struggle with drug addiction in 2016. The movie Becoming Charlie, directed by Reiner, was based on Nick’s story
• Reiner was an outspoken Democratic activist and a fierce critic of Donald Trump

Nick was arrested near the Expo/Vermont metro station in the Exposition Park area of Los Angeles at around 9:15pm – around six hours after Romy rushed to the scene. 

Around one hour before he was arrested, he bought a Gatorade from an Arco gas station.

He was reportedly fidgety before buying the drink and kept looking behind him.

At around 4am on Sunday, he checked into the Pierside Santa Monica hotel – located around four miles from the family home.

Nick has been charged with two counts of first degree murder. 

Prosecutors are still considering the death penalty. 

Nick made his first court appearance on Wednesday and wore a blue suicide vest. 

He had been on suicide watch while in custody, according to reports.

In the court hearing, he waived his right to a speedy arraignment, and his next scheduled appearance is January 7.

Timeline of Rob and Michele Reiner’s death

Rob Reiner and his wife of Michele Singer Reiner were found dead in their Los Angeles home on December 14, 2025.

Timeline:

• December 13, 2025: Reiner and his wife Michele attended a holiday party on the evening of December 13 with their son, Nick.
• Sources conveyed to The U.S. Sun that the couple and their son were engaged in a heated public argument while at the event.
• December 14, 2025: Reiner and Michele were found dead in their Brentwood home in Los Angeles at around 3:30 pm PST.
• The couple’s daughter, Romy, reportedly discovered her parents’ bodies.
• Online police records show Reiner and Michele’s 32-year-old son, Nick, was arrested at 9:15 pm PST on December 14.
• December 15, 2025: Authorities in Los Angeles announce that Nick Reiner was arrested and charged with murder.
• Nick was booked into a Los Angeles jail at 5:04 am and was being held on $4 million bail, which was later revoked.
• December 16, 2025: Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman formally charged Nick Reiner with two counts of first-degree murder.
• Hochman said his office would consider the death penalty in Nick’s case.
• Nick’s scheduled court appearance on December 16 was postponed due to what his attorney said was a procedural issue.

Nick did not enter a plea at the court hearing.

His lawyer, Alan Jackson, told the lawyer it was “too early” to enter a plea.

Outside court, Jackson later told reporters the case involves “complex and serious issues” that needed to be dealt with “thoroughly and carefully”.

Nick’s siblings, Jake and Romy, described the deaths of their parents as a “horrific and devastating” loss.

“Words cannot even begin to describe the unimaginable pain we are experiencing every moment of the day,” they told TMZ.

“They weren’t just our parents; they were our best friends.”

Jake and Romy didn’t mention Nick in their statement.

Nick allegedly killed his parents after attending a Christmas party held on December 13.

But at the shindig, Nick and his dad reportedly had a bust-up, family sources told TMZ. 

Nick also had a tense moment with Bill Hader at the party, according to Page Six.

He reportedly stared at the ex-Saturday Night Live star before storming off.

Nick also quizzed A-listers at the bash, reportedly asking if they were famous.

At the party hosted by Conan O’Brien, Reiner expressed concern for his son’s well-being. 

ADDICTION BATTLES

Nick has been candid about his battles with drug addiction.

His stints in rehab facilities began when he was just 15. 

Nick, also a producer, co-wrote the 2015 film Being Charlie and the inspiration behind it was his relationship with his dad during his addiction.

Charlie, played by Nick Robinson, becomes addicted to drugs and his dad in the movie urges him to get help.

The movie follows Charlie’s battle as he fails at different rehab programs.

“It was very, very hard going through it the first time, with these painful and difficult highs and lows,” Reiner said.

“And then making the movie dredged it all up again.”

Reiner said making the movie with Nick helped the two become closer.

“I said it to his face. I’ll say it on the air: He was the heart and soul of the film and any time I would get an opportunity to work with him I would do it,” he told NPR.

Gil Gerard, the actor who became a childhood hero to many for his lead performances in the 1979 movie “Buck Rogers in the 25th Century” and its subsequent TV incarnation, died early Tuesday, his wife announced on social media. He was 82.

“Early this morning Gil — my soulmate — lost his fight with a rare and viciously aggressive form of cancer,” Janet Gerard wrote Tuesday evening on Facebook. “From the moment when we knew something was wrong to his death this morning was only days.”

She was by Gerard’s side when he died in hospice care, she added as she placed another post — a pre-written message from the actor to his family, friends and fans — on her husband’s Facebook page.

“If you are reading this, then Janet has posted it as I asked her to,” the actor wrote. “My life has been an amazing journey. The opportunities I’ve had, the people I’ve met and the love I have given and received have made my 82 years on the planet deeply satisfying.”

The post was followed by myriad comments in which fans spontaneously recalled Gerard’s work as Buck Rogers and shared the influence he had on their lives.

“Your time as Buck Rogers was way too short but it has stayed with me in my childhood memories for 45+ years,” one man wrote. “Your hero was brave, macho, but also kind, compassionate, and fair. I feel as if that was representative of the man you truly were. Thank you for being the kind of ‘make believe’ hero that we should all want to be in real life.”

Another fan replied, “[H]aving met him, I can say he was all that. On and off the screen.”

Wrote another, “Like many here, I grew up watching Gil as Buck Rogers. He was cool… and he was funny… and he was nice. I was happy to find him here after all these years… still cool… still funny… still nice. It was a highlight when he ‘liked’ one of my comments. We’ll keep an eye out for you… 500 years into the future!”

Gerard discussed the allure of “Buck Rogers” with The Times in 2010.

“With our show, the reason people liked it was the humor and the fact that it was colorful and upbeat and it had heroes in it,” he said, chatting at a comic convention in Anaheim. “It was family entertainment. I think it’s great to deal with more serious issues, but you can do it with humor — look at what ‘All in the Family’ dealt with. You can be serious without being relentlessly dark and heavy.”

He also had wishes for the future direction of sci-fi projects, which at the time he observed were “very dark, almost hopeless.” And, he said, “wet.”

“Have you noticed how much rain they get in the future now? Everything is rainy and muddy. I don’t understand, either, how come everybody is so dirty when there’s so much water around everywhere,” Gerard observed with what seemed to be a healthy sense of humor. “Look at ‘Waterworld’ — they live in a place with no land and everyone’s covered in dirt. I don’t get it. You think they’d fall overboard and get clean once in a while.”

Gilbert Cyril Gerard was born Jan. 23, 1943, in Little Rock, Ark., and trekked to New York City in 1969 to give acting a shot, studying at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy.

He drove a taxi to pay the bills and, according to his website, one day a fare told him to show up on the set of the movie “Love Story.” Ten weeks of work on the film followed and his career took off. At first Gerard appeared primarily in commercials, representing companies including Ford, Coca-Cola and Proctor & Gamble until he landed the role of former POW Dr. Alan Stewart on NBC’s “The Doctors.” He put on the white coat and stethoscope for more than 300 episodes of that daytime drama from 1973 to 1976.

Then an agent lured him to the West Coast, where auditions got him noticed by NBC. NBC’s interest led to his casting in the title role in Universal Pictures’ “Buck Rogers in the 25th Century,” starring alongside Erin Gray as Col. Wilma Deering and Pamela Hensley as Princess Ardala.

As William “Buck” Rogers, Gerard played a 20th century astronaut who had come out of suspended animation 500 years in the future, only to discover a planet in ruins. In 1979 dollars, the film earned more than $21 million worldwide, or about $100 million when adjusted for inflation.

His career outside of “Buck Rogers” included appearances on mainstream shows abundant in that era — “Baretta,” “Hawaii 5-0,” “CHiPs” and “Little House on the Prairie” among them — as well as more obscure TV movies with delightful titles: “Reptisaurus,” “Nuclear Hurricane” and “Bone Eater.” “Sidekicks” in the mid-1980s, a couple of years after the release of the Oscar-nominated 1984 movie “The Karate Kid,” saw him playing a cop who becomes the guardian of a pre-teen martial-arts expert. A stint on the short-lived 1990 series “E.A.R.T.H Force” earned him some light snark from The Times’ then-critic Howard Rosenberg.

But Gerard also appeared in successful mainstream films including “The Nice Guys” starring Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling and “The Big Easy” with Dennis Quaid and Ellen Barkin.

Gerard was married and divorced four times before exchanging vows with Janet Gerard in the 2010s. Among his wives was model and actor Connie Sellecca, whom he was married to from 1979 until their divorce was finalized in 1987. They had one child, a son.

In addition to addictions to alcohol and drugs, the actor battled his weight starting in the 1980s, with the once-trim leading man eventually seeing his health suffer as he topped 300 pounds, according to a 1990 interview with People. He later chronicled his 2005 mini gastric-bypass surgery in the 2007 Discovery Health special “Action Hero Makeover.”

“Gil likely saved my life. I was badly in need of weightloss surgery. I was resistant…then i saw a documentary on Gils weight loss journey. It was the impetus I needed as Gil was a hero of mine growing up,” a fan wrote Tuesday on Gerard’s posthumous Facebook post. “I thanked him via email several years ago and he was gracious and kind. I will miss him.”

Gerard appeared to be quite grateful and gracious at the end of his life.

“It’s been a great ride, but inevitably one that comes to a close as mine has,” he wrote in that final prepared post. “Don’t waste your time on anything that doesn’t thrill you or bring you love. See you out somewhere in the cosmos.”

“No matter how many years I got to spend with him it would have never been enough,” Janet Gerard said in closing in her own message on Facebook. “Hold the ones you have tightly and love them fiercely.”

In addition to his wife, Gerard is survived by actor Gilbert Vincent “Gib” Gerard, 44, his son with Sellecca.

The Strictly Come Dancing cast have rallied around judge Shirley Ballas after she shared some heartbreaking news online

Strictly Come Dancing judge Shirley Ballas has been flooded with support after she shared a family death.

The dancer will be back on screens on Saturday (December 20) for the show’s epic final. Remaining stars like Amber Davies, George Clarke and Karen Carney will be battling it out to take home the iconic Glitterball trophy.

However, just days before the final, Shirley has been dealt some major heartbreak. Taking to her Instagram on Wednesday evening (December 17) Shirley confirmed her beloved aunt – who was like a “second mum” to Shirley – had passed away.

The TV star shared several photos of her and her aunt and paid a heartbreaking tribute to her in the caption. She wrote: “My dearest Auntie Mavis … where do I begin.

“How I’ll miss you so very much. I’ll miss all your sayings of ‘you’re right love’, ‘do you know what I mean like love’, ‘yeah I know’ and l’d say ‘no you don’t know Mavis’. That one was my favourite.”

Shirley continued: “Mavis was always there for me and my family, she had been like a second mum to me. Mum and I are sad you’re not here with us any more, Mavis. We will treasure the memories. Mum has many that’s for sure. Her best friend of over 65 years.

“The bond between Mavis and my mother was absolutely unbreakable. We will miss every minute of every second not chatting with you, talking with you and you making us laugh with all your antics. May you rest in peace now with your beautiful daughter Helen and your wonderful husband.

“We will celebrate you often, talk about you often, laugh often with all the things that you and my mum got up to. I truly thought that you would live forever, Mavis.”

Shirley finished off the emotional post and said: “Thank you for always being there for me through the ups, through the downs and through all the parts of my life. Thank you for tuning into @bbcstrictly and then switching off after you’d seen my dress. That always made me smile.

“I’ll treasure every single memory I ever had with you. Rest in peace beautiful Mavis. Hugs and love, Shirley and Audrey. X.”

Shirley’s fellow showbiz pals and fans quickly rushed to the comments section to send their support. Claudia Winkleman penned: “Sending all my love,” while Neil Jones commented an orange heart emoji.

One fan said: “So sorry for your loss. Your mum has lost her beautiful friend.” Another follower chimed in: “Aw bless you all, so sorry for your loss….. Sending so much love to you all and may Mavis rest in peace.” A third penned: “Sorry for your loss, sending love to you both rest in peace Mavis.”

Strictly Come Dancing airs this weekend on BBC One.