Welcome to Screen Gab, the newsletter for everyone who would rather reflect on the year in pop culture than look at their current bank statement.
Santa wasn’t the only one making lists this year. As the final days of the year come to a close, we’ve gathered several of our key year-end TV and film lists for 2025 in one handy place for easy browsing while you wait in return lines, prepare to board flights or zone out on the couch.
We also threw in some other recent lists, unbound to 2025 but still useful this time of year when our brains need all the help they can get to winnow down viewing choices.
Enjoy!
From left, Tessa Thompson in “Hedda”; Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman in “The Roses”; Michael B. Jordan and Miles Caton in “Sinners.”
(Photo illustration by Josep Prat Sorolla / For The Times; photos from Amazon Prime, Searchlight Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures )
The 10 best movies of 2025 — and where to find them: The best movies of 2025 include “Sinners,” “Hedda,” “One Battle After Another,” “Eddington” and “The Naked Gun,” according to our critic Amy Nicholson.
The 12 best needle drops of 2025: These songs made their scenes indelible, from classic rock and dance pop to old-timey blues and thrash. There’s even a former Beatle on here.
Best of 2025: Television — from left, Anna Lambe in “North of North,” Ethan Hawke and Michael Hitchcock in “The Lowdown,” “Women Wearing Shoulder Pads.”
(Photo illustration by Josep Prat Sorolla / For The Times; photos by Netflix, FX and Warner Bros.)
The best TV shows of 2025: The TV series on this list delivered real surprises with new directions and original formats, while others just had good old-fashioned storytelling, according to our critic Robert Lloyd.
The 16 best documentaries of 2025: The documentary films and series that captured our attention this year feature famous people and ordinary people, as well as new ideas and perspectives.
The best reality TV of 2025: Scandals, competitions and breakups are par for the course on reality shows, but this year also brought some tender moments that made for must-see TV.
The 33 best comedy specials of 2025: Specials by Frankie Quiñones, Andrew Schulz, Jordan Jensen, Sebastian Maniscalco, Bill Burr, Atsuko Okatsuka and Gabriel Iglesias make our list.
15 must-watch British crime drama series: Whether with an old-fashioned one-case-per-episode or a more sprawling multistrand story, quaint or violent, historic or modern, the birthplace of Agatha Christie understands that we all need stories that make sense of seemingly senseless acts.
Twisting and tying shoelaces into a knot became a formidable task for Justin Herbert in the days following hand surgery.
Every time the Chargers quarterback leaned over to tie his shoes, his cast would nudge in the way, complicating a once-menial task.
For Herbert, it became a constant reminder of the broken bone he suffered during a 31-14 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders on Nov. 30 — a helmet-to-hand hit from Raiders safety Jeremy Chinn that required surgery on his non-throwing hand the next day.
And while the 27-year-old, who earned his second Pro Bowl honor Tuesday, has been far from perfect since the injury, the Chargers (11-4) have managed to win four consecutive games, including two against last season’s Super Bowl teams.
“The days went on, and as I got better and more mobility with (the left hand), I think it’s become more normal, and it feels a bit better, so that’s also a positive,” Herbert said earlier this week.
Eking out wins against the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs, Herbert increased his yards-per-pass attempt from 5.3 yards to 7.2 yards. His completion percentage improved from a season-low 46.2% against the Eagles to a respectable 65.5% against the Chiefs.
Against the Dallas Cowboys, Herbert recorded a 132.8 passer rating, his best since December 2021 in Week 14 against the New York Giants. He passed for 300 yards and three touchdowns in a 34-17 win over the Cowboys that led to the Chargers clinching a playoff berth Monday with San Francisco’s win over Indianapolis.
“To me, that’s just a test of the type of person, type of player he is,” said wide receiver Quentin Johnston, who made a spectacular, one-handed touchdown catch and finished with 104 receiving yards against Dallas. “I mean, shoot, still playing and executing at a high level — I’m really happy to be on the team with him. I would rather be with nobody else but him.”
The Houston Texans (10-5) on Saturday at SoFi Stadium will allow Herbert the chance to build on his impressive season, and exorcise at least some of his playoff demons.
Herbert’s nightmare performance against the Texans in the wild-card playoffs last season remains seared into his memory. He threw a career-worst four interceptions in a 32-12 defeat that dropped him to 0-2 in career playoff games.
“No one felt worse than I did,” Herbert said. “I think it’s important to continue to move forward and realize that it’s what happened, and it would be crazy of me to deny the truth of what happened and to live in this reality where, if I tried to block it out, I don’t think that’s gonna be any good.”
Plenty remains at stake for the Chargers. They remain in the hunt for the AFC West title and the AFC’s top playoff seed. If the Chargers beat the Texans and follow with a win over the Denver Broncos in Week 18, they’ll win the division. The Chargers need to win out and hope the Jacksonville Jaguars and New England Patriots both lose at least once to secure the No. 1 seed.
While coach Jim Harbaugh says the team is approaching the next two weeks one game at a time, the Chargers’ defense — inspired by Herbert’s efforts — sees the path to continuing their red-hot run.
“It’s a hell of a statement he’s making throughout the building, and everybody can feel it,” outside linebacker Khalil Mack said.
RAIL passengers can expect travel chaos as the UK’s busiest train station closes until the new year.
Commuters will have to take alternative routes as a number of services are impacted by the closure.
Sign up for the Travel newsletter
Thank you!
Liverpool Street Station in London will close until the new year as major engineering works get underway (stock image)Credit: Alamy
With less people commuting to and from work, the festive period has become a popular time for rail companies planning major engineering works.
However, closures at this time of year still cause a fair amount of bother for those that are still forced to rely on these services.
From those working through the festivities to people planning a visit to friends and family, there are still a lot of passengers hoping to take their train as normal.
However, anyone planning to travel through Liverpool Street Station between now and the new year will want to rethink their route.
Network Rail has revealed Liverpool Street will remain closed until Friday, January 2.
The closure will impact services like the Weaver line and Stansted Express, as well as routes operated by Greater Anglia and c2c.
Liverpool Street previously shut for eight days between Christmas and the New Year in 2024.
According to London transport expert IanVisits, the engineering works being carried out at the UK’s busiest train station will strengthen the Bishopsgate tunnel.
The station itself will see panelling replaced above the concourse over platforms 1-10.
And the drainage system at Liverpool Street will also be improved as part of the works.
Greater Anglia lines, including the Stansted Express as well as Great Eastern and West Anglia mainline services will be rerouted as a result of the closure.
From now until January 2, the routes will run from Stratford.
Meanwhile, c2c services will run from London Fenchurch Street via West Ham.
And Weaver line trains will run from London Fields to Chingford, Enfield Town, and Cheshunt.
London Underground impact
Underground services operating from Liverpool Street will also be affected by the closure.
Liverpool Street closure dates 2025
December 25 2025 (Christmas Day)
December 26 2025 (Boxing Day)
December 27 2025
December 28 2025
December 29 2025
December 30 2025
December 31 2025 (New Year’s Eve)
January 1 2026 (New Year’s Day)
The Elizabeth Line will have no service between Liverpool Street and Stratford from December 27 to January 1.
Meanwhile, the Central Line will still run between Liverpool Street and Stratford, but a ticket acceptance arrangement will be in place.
This means you can use your ticket on the Central Line to get between the two stations.
And other parts of the Tube network, including the Circle, Hammersmith & City, and Victoria lines, will operate normally with some closures.
Tube passengers are advised to check the TfL Journey Planner for specific details.
Welcome back to this week’s Lakers newsletter, where we’re making our interview lists and checking them twice. I have something to share: I never celebrated Christmas growing up. We didn’t do presents, trees, decorating or any of that.
What we did was basketball.
From spending Christmas Day eating my mom’s home-cooked meals and watching the NBA, I will now be at Crypto.com Arena covering the game my parents will inevitably ask about later. Talk about a special holiday gift.
All things Lakers, all the time.
LeBron James rounds into form
At this stage of LeBron James’ career, it’s not enough to just evaluate the Lakers superstar’s performance in a vacuum. So when coach JJ Redick was asked in Utah before James played his 10th game of the season whether the 21-time All-NBA honoree was “looking more like himself,” Redick didn’t have a straightforward answer.
“Well, I think you have to contextualize it,” Redick told reporters. “[He’s] ‘looking like himself’ as a 41-year-old coming off [a knee injury] and sciatica.”
Redick is premature in calling James a 41-year-old — his birthday is not until next week — but James is at least back to a version of himself. About a month since his season debut, James is starting to round into form, moving past the informal training camp and preseason period after sciatica kept him out all offseason.
James is averaging 27.6 points, 6.2 assists and 7.2 rebounds in the last five games during which the Lakers (19-8) went 3-2. His shooting percentage improved to 53.8% compared to 41.3% in his first six games.
But James is in a new era of his play. His usage rate is the lowest it’s ever been. Redick commended the superstar’s willingness to play off the ball more with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves emerging as the team’s primary ballhandling options.
There are moments when James’ age is showing. A second jump that isn’t as quick as it once was. A dunk that looks more deliberate than explosive. Then he turns back the clock by bulldozing Luke Kornet on a vicious one-handed dunk. James, always one of the league’s best in transition, still leads the Lakers with 6.4 transition points per game.
Lakers star LeBron James dunks over San Antonio Spurs center Luke Kornet at Crypto.com Arena on Dec. 10.
(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
“The thing about LeBron — it’s why he’s so great — is he can play with anybody,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “So it doesn’t matter who’s on the floor, but he’s always going to be effective.”
James showed he can still carry the team for stretches when Doncic suffered a left leg bruise during the first half against the Clippers, and the shorthanded Lakers, who entered the game without three starters, still chopped the Clippers’ 22-point lead to seven in the fourth quarter.
Doncic (leg) will remain out for Tuesday’s game against Phoenix, along with Rui Hachimura (groin) and Gabe Vincent (back). Reaves (calf) is questionable as his absence has surpassed one week.
The Lakers have been short at least one player for almost every game this season, Deandre Ayton pointed out Monday after practice as he prepared to return from a two-game absence because of an elbow injury. The injuries, highlighted by James’ 14-game absence, has made Redick feel like this team’s primary identity at the quarter mark of the season is “chaos.”
Yet leadership from players such as James has helped the Lakers find calm amid the confusion.
“This is not a quiet team,” Ayton said. “… We communicate. That’s what brings closure, where you know the guy might not be out there, or superstars might not be out there, but they with us in spirit.”
James was a vocal leader even while injured. When he returned to the court, his energy was infectious in practice, Reaves said, who often marvels at how James, despite playing in a record 23rd NBA season, still feels like one of the biggest kids in the gym.
So a month after his return, when asked in Utah about how James looked in the context of his age and recent injury history, Redick didn’t hesitate to follow up.
“Pretty damn good,” Redick said.
Holiday spirit
Lakers star LeBron James stands on the court during player introductions before a game against the Utah Jazz at Crypto.com Arena on Nov. 18.
(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
While the NFL tried to use Beyoncé to take over Christmas last year, the games were all laughers. The NBA, meanwhile, planted its flag with a thrilling slate that had four of five games decided by six or fewer points.
“I love the NFL,” James said into the ABC camera last year after the Lakers won a 115-113 nail-biter over the Golden State Warriors. “But Christmas is our day.”
The Lakers are playing on Christmas for the 27th season in a row. James is slated for his 20th Christmas Day game, but even he’s grown tired of his personal tradition.
“I’d much rather be at home with my family,” James said. “But it’s the game. It’s the game I love. It’s the game I watched when I was a kid on Christmas Day, watching a lot of the greatest to play the game on Christmas. It’s always been an honor to play it. Obviously, I’m going to be completely honest, I would like to be home on the couch with my family all throughout the day. But my number is called, our numbers are called, so we have to go out and perform. And I look forward to it.”
The Lakers are 25-26 on Christmas Day. This year’s lineup is delicious. The Lakers at home against Houston — the only team in the league besides Oklahoma City ranked in the top five in offensive and defensive rating — is the prime-time entree. The 11:30 a.m. PST appetizer between San Antonio and Oklahoma City could be the star of the night.
Outside of James’ slightly Grinchy mood about playing, the Lakers were getting into the holiday spirit last week. Doncic gifted e-bikes to everyone in the organization, 103 in total. Jarred Vanderbilt and Jaxson Hayes held charity events. Vanderbilt and his foundation held a holiday giveback at the Boys & Girls Club last Friday while Hayes had giveaways in Compton and his native Cincinnati.
“Stuff like that just fills my heart up and makes me feel better,” Hayes said. “… Stuff like that, I just feel like it’s why God put us here, we’re here to help others.”
On tap
Records and stats current entering Monday’s games
Dec. 23 at Suns (15-13), 6 p.m. PST
Nine days after the Lakers barely survived a dramatic fourth-quarter Phoenix comeback attempt, the Lakers and Suns run it back. In the midst of a challenging portion of their schedule that featured games against Western Conference front-runners Oklahoma City, Denver and Houston, the Suns have lost seven of their last nine games, including three of their last four.
Dec. 25 vs. Rockets (17-9), 5 p.m.
Entering Monday’s game against the Clippers, the Rockets lost three of their last four games. All the losses — to Denver, New Orleans and Sacramento — came in overtime. Kevin Durant is averaging 25.3 points while center Alperen Sengun is putting together a career year with 23.2 points, 9.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists.
Dec. 28 vs. Kings (7-22), 6:30 p.m.
The Kings scored an improbable victory over the Rockets to break a six-game losing streak but remain in the Western Conference cellar. The Lakers needed a career-high 51 points from Austin Reaves to survive against the Kings on Oct. 26 without Doncic or James.
Status report
Lakers star Luka Doncic controls the ball during a loss to the Clippers on Dec. 20. Doncic sustained a left leg contusion in the game.
(Jae C. Hong / Associated Press)
Luka Doncic: left leg contusion
Doncic suffered the injury when he was kneed in the leg by the Clippers’ Bogdan Bogdanovic. He sat out of the second half and was seen on the practice court Monday with a wrap around his left calf. He is out for Phoenix, but is day to day.
Austin Reaves: left calf strain
Reaves was a partial participant in practice Monday and remained day to day. He passed the initial estimated one-week mark since being diagnosed with a mild left calf strain on Dec. 12.
Deandre Ayton: right elbow soreness
The center appeared to suffer the injury when he got tangled up with Phoenix’s Mark Williams on Dec. 14 and missed two games but will return against the Suns on Tuesday.
Rui Hachimura: right groin soreness
Redick said Hachimura started feeling pain in his hip after the game at Utah on Dec. 18. The coach expects Hachimura to be sidelined for three to five days, which leaves a Christmas Day return possible.
Gabe Vincent: low back soreness
Vincent will not be reevaluated until at least Christmas after a back issue first popped up before the game at Utah.
Favorite thing I ate this week
A meal worth savoring at Santa Monica’s Elephante: (clockwise from top) the pizza bianco, vodka sauce pasta and squash agnolotti.
(Thuc Nhi Nguyen / Los Angeles Times)
I finally crossed an essential L.A. dining experience off of my list this week. I visited Elephante in Santa Monica and very much understand the appeal.
Everyone talks about the whipped eggplant, which we got, but the vodka sauce pasta was my favorite because the pasta was perfectly cooked and the sauce had a slight smoky kick from the Calabrian chile. We also ordered the pizzo bianco, which is finished with a drizzle of hot honey and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. An order of the squash agnolotti pasta that features sage, brown butter and walnut pesto completed the spread.
Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert runs with the ball against the Dallas Cowboys on Dec. 21.
(Julio Cortez / Associated Press)
Saturday, 1:30 p.m. TV: CBS, NFL Network.
Line: Chargers by 1½. O/U: 39½.
Houston has been a hard matchup for the Chargers, and can turn up the heat on Justin Herbert. But Jim Harbaugh’s team has found new ways to win, and is capable of outscoring the Texans, who are really struggling in the red zone. Low-scoring and physical.
Herbert, receiving Pro Bowl recognition for the second time, is the third player in NFL history to begin a career with six consecutive seasons with at least 3,000 yards passing and 20 touchdowns.
James, a five-time Pro Bowl pick, is the only defensive back in the NFL this season to collect at least 80 tackles (five for loss) with multiple sacks and interceptions.
Dicker is the most accurate kicker in NFL history and the team’s Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year club winner. He leads all AFC kickers with 36 made field goals and 141 points scored.
Tulipulotu, a former USC standout, is ranked third in the NFL with 13 sacks, and has a career-high 20 tackles for loss.
The only surprise in that group is Alt, who made the transition from right to left tackle after left tackle Rashawn Slater suffered a season-ending injury in training camp. Alt was a stalwart on the line for the first three weeks of the season before sustaining an ankle injury 10 snaps into the Week 4 game against the New York Giants. He returned in Week 8 to face Minnesota, but was carted off in Week 9 at Tennessee an injury to the same ankle, this time requiring season-ending surgery.
Nonetheless, he’s an outstanding tackle and earned his first Pro Bowl honor, which is determined by the consensus votes of fans, players and coaches.
Four more Chargers were named Pro Bowl alternates: outside linebacker Khalil Mack, linebacker Del’Shawn Phillips for special teams, cornerback Donte Jackson and fullback/defensive lineman Scott Matlock.
The year was 1923, and thousands of people a month were flooding into Los Angeles in hopes of finding a job in the nascent film business.
Many planned to start as background actors, dreaming they’d be discovered by a director and finally get their big break. These behind-the-scenes actors would wander from studio lot to studio lot, lining up in hopes of being cast.
But the chaos of aspiring actors searching for jobs eventually became too much. Even silent screen star Mary Pickford took to warning wide-eyed newcomers that they should save enough money to survive for five years before coming out to Hollywood.
Out of calls to create safeguards around this fledgling business, and more order around background acting opportunities, emerged the Central Casting Corp.
Central Casting — now so eponymous that its name has become a cultural phrase — celebrated its 100th anniversary earlier this month.
I recently spoke with Mark Goldstein, president and chief executive of the Burbank-based company, to talk about changes in the industry, including the threat of artificial intelligence, runaway production and the role of a background actor in 2025.
Goldstein acknowledged the tough environment for background performers, also commonly known as extras, who populate restaurants, parks and other film and TV scenes to make the environment seem more realistic — all without saying a word.
After the lows of the pandemic, and then the explosion of content during the peak TV era, one of the main challenges for Central Casting’s members is just finding new roles, he said.
“There’s been a little bit of a pullback in production over the last year,” said Goldstein, who serves as president and CEO of Central Casting as well as production finance and management tools firm Entertainment Partners, which owns the agency. “It’s really just constantly finding the right roles for people.”
In Southern California, of course, jobs have been more scarce as production has flowed to other states and countries offering steeper film incentives.
Then there is the advent of computer-generated imagery, which has lessened the need for massive crowd scenes that were once standard.
“Before [CGI] technology, we may fill up an arena, like we may fill a 5,000-person shoot or a 10,000-person shoot,” Goldstein said.
Remember the long lines for casting calls?
No more.
More recently AI has been a key concern for background actors, though Goldstein said he doesn’t think the new digital tools and the rise of synthetic characters will eliminate the need for background actors.
“There’s a lot of conversation [about] is it human or technology? And we kind of view it as human and technology,” he said. “The consumer wants believability, and so there’ll be situations where it’s really important to have the human role involved, but there may be other situations where AI and technology can be helpful.”
He added: “We have legendary people that started their career because they wanted to follow their dream to become an actor in Hollywood,” he said, ticking off the names of famous alumni such as Clark Gable, Carole Lombard, Eva Longoria, Will Ferrell and Brad Pitt. “And we don’t see that changing.”
Despite the challenges, aspiring actors still register with Central Casting every day, Goldstein said. The company has 200,000 background actors in its database, with more than 20,000 new names added a year. About 3,000 are placed in roles each day, the company says.
One of those is Jaylee Maruk, 38, who signed up with Central Casting in 2009 and has worked steadily ever since.
Maruk works often on “Grey’s Anatomy” and has credits on Hulu’s “Paradise” and Apple TV’s “Shrinking.” She once stood in for Greta Lee in Apple TV‘s “The Morning Show.”
You’re reading the Wide Shot
Samantha Masunaga delivers the latest news, analysis and insights on everything from streaming wars to production — and what it all means for the future.
“What I love about doing background is it really gives a solid foundation about what it’s like to be on set and what the expectations are,” Maruk said.
But she worries about her future, especially with the rise of AI and the migration of production.
“Productions will pack up and leave,” she said. “They’ll go somewhere cheaper, and it’s becoming harder and harder for us. That’s really the biggest concern, trying to entice and support productions staying here.”
Towns in far-off countries like Hungary and Turkey can be made to look just like places in America, she says. And they can cast local residents instead of U.S.-based performers like Maruk. After all, background actors don’t have speaking roles, so not speaking English isn’t a problem.
“We want our work to be here,” said the Lake Balboa resident. “Our families are here, our lives are here.”
Last year, I got a glimpse into the world of background acting when I covered the annual Los Angeles Union Background Actors Awards. Though tongue-in-cheek at times — the awards themselves are called Blurries — the ceremony and winners’ speeches also highlighted these actors’ key roles in Hollywood.
I met background actors who had done the job for years, including one who got his first role as a 12-year-old in “Hello, Dolly!” Many talked about the difficulty of the last few years and the desire for respect for their professional work. Some were full-time background actors; others did the work part time. All were passionate about what they did.
“It really is just preparedness and luck, as they say,” Maruk said. “And also just having a lot of motivation and resilience.”
Stuff We Wrote
Film shoots
Number of the week
James Cameron’s “Avatar: Fire and Ash” brought in $89 million in the U.S. and Canada during its opening weekend. Globally, the film made $346 million, with big hauls in China and France.
That opening total came in at the lower end of box office analysts’ expectations and is also less than the massive opening weekend for its predecessor film, 2022’s “Avatar: The Way of Water,” which grossed $134 million in its domestic debut. But “Avatar” films tend to build momentum at the box office over subsequent weekends, so the Na’vi aren’t vanquished yet.
In addition to “Avatar,” this past weekend also saw strong performances from Angel Studios’ animated “David,” as well as Lionsgate’s thriller “The Housemaid,” pushing the year-to-date domestic box office total a slim 1% above the same time period last year. That’s helpful for theaters but doesn’t bode well for the box office’s overall performance this year.
Finally …
My colleague Josh Rottenberg looks at what movie stardom will mean in an age of AI. In that story, he has an interview with the creator of Tilly Norwood, the AI-generated character that recently sparked a furious debate in Hollywood about the role of synthetics in film and TV.
Rams coach Sean McVay worked with Ben Kotwica for three NFL seasons in Washington when McVay was the team’s offensive coordinator and Kotwica was the special teams coordinator.
“I know his capacity, I know the accountability, I know the core belief that he has,” McVay said of Kotwica, who has been a Rams assistant this season after working as the Denver Broncos defensive coordinator the previous two. “This late in the year, you’re not naive to, you’re going to keep a lot of the foundational things.
“But I think there’s some things that we want to have reflected in our style of play, and the way we go about our overall approach that I think will be improved.”
Ben Kotwica will oversee special teams for the Rams moving forward, coach Sean McVay said.
(Associated Press)
Matt Harper, the San Francisco 49ers’ assistant special teams coach from 2021 to 2024, will join the staff to assist Kotwica, McVay said.
Kotwica assumes a leadership role as the Rams (11-4) prepare to play the Atlanta Falcons (6-9) on Monday night at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
Blackburn’s departure marked the first time in McVay’s nine seasons with the Rams that he fired a coach during the season.
McVay said he informed Blackburn of his decision Friday morning, the day after Rashid Shaheed of the Seahawks returned a fourth-quarter punt for a touchdown that sparked a comeback from a 16-point deficit and helped send the Rams to defeat.
It was the latest in a series of costly special teams miscues that included several blocked field-goal and extra-point attempts early in the season, which resulted in losses to the Philadelphia Eagles and the San Francisco 49ers.
In early November, the Rams signed kicker Harrison Mevis to replace Joshua Karty, who is on the Rams’ practice squad, and signed veteran snapper Jake McQuaide to replace Alex Ward. Mevis made his first eight field-goal attempts — including three against the Seahawks — before missing from 48 yards in Seattle.
McVay said that as head coach he was ultimately responsible for the special teams’ performance. But he made the move to change leadership for that unit.
“There’s been some things that we need to be better at in critical moments,” McVay said. “It was just what we thought was best for the collective. … As simple as it gets.”
After the Rams play the Falcons, they will conclude the regular season at home against the Arizona Cardinals.
“I do think this is an opportunity that gives us a chance to be able to use the last couple of weeks, and then leading into the playoffs, to be able to establish some of the things that we want,” McVay said of special teams.
Etc.
It would be “hard” for offensive lineman Kevin Dotson, who left the game against the Seahawks because of an ankle injury, to be ready for Monday night’s game, McVay said. Receiver Davante Adams (hamstring), who sat out against the Seahawks, is making progress toward returning but he will be monitored this week before determining his status for the game against the Falcons, McVay said. … Tight end Tyler Higbee and offensive lineman Rob Havenstein will remain on injured reserve this week, McVay said. “They’re not quite ready yet,” he said.
Jordan Eberle scored the tiebreaking goal midway through the third period and added an empty-netter in the final minute, and the Seattle Kraken beat the Ducks 3-1 on Monday night.
Frederick Gaudreau also scored and Kaapo Kakko had two assists for the Kraken. Philipp Grubauer stopped 39 shots.
Matty Beniers set up the go-ahead goal when he slid the puck past defender Radko Gudas and onto the stick of a wide-open Eberle, who snapped a shot from the left circle into the upper-right corner of the net for a 2-1 Kraken lead with 9:56 left.
Eberle then sealed the win with an empty-netter with 36 seconds remaining.
Grubauer had 16 saves in the second period and 15 in the third.
Seattle took a 1-0 lead 4:49 into the second when Gaudreau gathered the rebound of Shane Wright’s shot and flipped the puck into a near-open net for a power-play goal.
The Ducks tied it with 4:20 left in the second when Granlund battled Vince Dunn for position in the slot and redirected Jacob Trouba’s shot from above the right circle past Grubauer for his fourth goal in four games.
Granlund, who has missed 18 games because of injuries, has seven goals and four assists in his last 13 games.
The Ducks played without leading scorer Leo Carlsson, who missed his first game of the season because of a lower-body injury. Seattle played without top defenseman Brandon Montour, who underwent hand surgery Monday and will be out for four weeks. Montour was injured in last week’s fight against Colorado.
Linesman Ryan Gibbons departed with 53 seconds left in the first after tripping in front of the Seattle bench and hitting the back of his head on the ice. He did not return.
Up next for the Ducks: vs. Kings at Crypto.com Arena on Saturday.
Reece James (Chelsea): We have had Reece in the team a few times and, ahead of the World Cup, he looks the real deal. We have never questioned his ability, but he falls into the ‘if he is fit’ category. At the moment he has not had an injury for a year and touch wood that continues. His free-kick in the draw at Newcastle was a pearler.
Piero Hincapie (Arsenal): Slightly going under the radar for Arsenal. They brought him in late, when other people were looking at him, and he has been excellent. A solid performance against Everton.
Joachim Andersen (Fulham): For years he has come with class for Fulham. He hits that lovely raking diagonal pass and his organisational skills also help. He organises and marshalls that defence, and did so again against Forest. He is very astute.
Antonee Robinson (Fulham): It is good to see him back. A big season with a World Cup coming up and he is vital for the United States. He had some tough times with injuries but is starting to show he is getting back to his best.
The Chargers will be without starting linebacker Denzel Perryman for the remainder of the regular season.
The NFL on Monday suspended Perryman without pay for two games for repeated violations of playing rules designed to protect player health and safety, including an incident during Sunday’s game against the Dallas Cowboys.
In the second quarter, Perryman was penalized for unnecessary roughness after delivering a forcible blow to the helmet of Ryan Flournoy while the Dallas Cowboys’ receiver was on the ground following a catch. The play violated an NFL rule prohibiting the use of any part of the helmet or facemask to initiate forcible contact to an opponent’s head or neck area.
Perryman will be eligible to return to the Chargers’ active roster on Monday, Jan. 5, following the team’s Week 17 game against the Houston Texans and Week 18 game against the Denver Broncos.
Under the collective bargaining agreement, Perryman may appeal the suspension. Any appeal would be heard and decided by one of three jointly appointed and compensated hearing officers: Derrick Brooks, Ramon Foster or Jordy Nelson.
Barry Manilow has been diagnosed with lung cancer and will be postponing his January concerts.
“I’m very sorry that you have to change your plans,” the “Mandy” singer wrote in a statement posted to Instagram on Monday revealing his diagnosis. According to Manilow, his doctors had discovered “a cancerous spot” on his left lung that he will have surgically removed.
“As many of you know I recently went through six weeks of bronchitis followed by a relapse of another five weeks,” Manilow wrote in the statement. “Even though I was over the bronchitis and back on stage at the Westgate Las Vegas, my wonderful doctor ordered an MRI just to make sure that everything was OK.”
The “Copacabana (At the Copa)” singer said it was “pure luck” that the cancer was found early and that his doctors “do not believe it has spread.” He added that he is taking additional tests to confirm that diagnosis.
“[N]ow that the Christmas A Gift of Love concerts are over I’m going into surgery to have the spot removed,” Manilow continued in his statement. “So that’s it. No chemo. No radiation. Just chicken soup and I Love Lucy reruns.”
The January arena concerts have been rescheduled because recovery from the surgery will take a month, said the 82-year-old singer, whose hits also include “Could It Be Magic,” “I Write the Songs” and “Weekend in New England.” The new dates, starting in late February and continuing through April, were included in the Instagram post. Ticketholders for the canceled shows will be able to reschedule to the new dates.
Manilow also noted his next scheduled performances will be over Valentine’s Day weekend back at the Westgate Las Vegas, where he has a lifetime residency.
“Something tells me that February weekend is going to be one big party,” Manilow wrote, before wishing his fans “a wonderful Christmas and New Year.” “And remember, if you even have the slightest symptom… get tested!”
It’s difficult to overshadow a game in which two touchdowns were negated by the officials in the last 30 seconds, enabling the Pittsburgh Steelers to hang on for a 29-24 victory over the Detroit Lions on Sunday in a Week 16 game with significant playoff implications.
Offensive interference penalties erased both Lions scores, including one of the wildest plays ever seen as time expired. What possibly could steal a headline from that?
How about Steelers star wide receiver DK Metcalf reaching into the stands and swinging at a fan with seemingly more force than the contact by Lions receivers that prompted the offensive interference flags?
Multiple videos captured Metcalf approach a fan wearing a blue wig at the first row of seats behind the Steelers’ bench at Ford Field. The fan leaned over the rail to say something and Metcalf reached up, grabbed him by the shirt or wig with his right hand before turning and walking away.
What would prompt Metcalf, one of the NFL’s top receivers in each of his seven seasons, to lose his temper and allegedly engage with a fan in a way strictly forbidden by the league?
Well, the fan, who identified himself as Ryan Kennedy from Pinckney, Mich., to the Detroit Free Press, said he called Metcalf by his full given name — DeKaylin Zecharius Metcalf — and that apparently touched a nerve.
“He doesn’t like his government name. I called him that and then he grabbed me and ripped my shirt,” Kennedy said. “I’m a little shocked. Like everyone’s talking to me. I’m a little rattled, but I just want the Lions to win, baby.”
Kennedy didn’t get his wish thanks to Lions receivers getting too pushy themselves, albeit on the field of play.
The play that will be replayed countless times came as time expired. Lions star wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown was stopped after catching a pass at the one-yard line, but before the whistle St. Brown underhanded the ball back to quarterback Jared Goff, who barreled into the end zone for what appeared to be a miraculous game-winning touchdown.
However, St. Brown had given Steelers cornerback Jalen Ramsey a shove before breaking free to make the catch and a flag had been thrown before Goff crossed the goal line. The officials announced after a lengthy huddle that St. Brown had committed offensive pass interference and that the game was over.
The applicable NFL rule reads: “If there is a foul by the offense, there shall be no extension of the period. If the foul occurs on the last play of the half, a score by the offense is not counted.”
Fewer than 30 seconds earlier, Lions rookie wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa set an illegal pick that enabled St. Brown — a former USC and Mater Dei High star — to break free in the end zone and make a nine-yard scoring catch.
The Steelers sideline erupted in joy after the second call resulted in a victory that put them in control of their destiny for the AFC North title. They need one win or a Baltimore Ravens loss in the last two weeks of the regular season to clinch it and secure a home playoff game.
The Lions, meanwhile, had their playoff chances reduced to 6% after the loss.
DeKaylin Zecharius Metcalf, it can be presumed, has a near 100% chance of being fined and suspended by the NFL for taking the swing at Kennedy.
Nothing but dirt and dry, brown chaparral rolled beneath skis and snowboards dangling from a chairlift at Big Bear Mountain Resort on Friday, as forlorn adventure seekers joked they should rename the place “Big Bare.”
Unseasonably high temperatures even left the impressive array of high-tech artificial-snow makers below mostly useless, their fans spinning idly in the warm breeze.
“The word I’ve been using is “abysmal,” said Cameron Miniutti, 29, who was riding the lift in a light cotton shirt, with the hot sun glinting off his ski goggles. “This is, for sure, the toughest start [to a season] I’ve seen.”
Similarly bleak panoramas can be found at ski areas across the American West so far this year, but especially in California, where a wet November gave way to one of the driest Decembers in recent memory.
People visit Big Bear Village on Sunday, with no snow in sight.
As of Friday, the state had only 12% of the snow that’s normal for this time of year, and only 3% of what water managers hope for in an average year, according to the California Department of Water Resources.
Which is why water managers — and skiers — are hoping for a Christmas miracle as an enormous atmospheric river takes aim at California this week. The soaking rains may threaten coastal cities with flash floods and nightmarish traffic, but they promise sweet relief for snow-starved thrill seekers from Lake Tahoe to the San Bernardino Mountains in Southern California.
Mammoth Mountain, the tallest commercial ski resort in California, could get up to 7 feet of snow this week, according to On the Snow, a website that tracks conditions at ski areas.
Resorts on the north end of Lake Tahoe could see up to 5 feet, and even Big Bear could get 3 feet, assuming the temperature stays below freezing, according to the website.
That’s important to everyone, even nonskiers, because roughly a third of the water California relies on each year for drinking, farming and fighting wildfires accumulates as snow in the mountains during the winter and then gradually melts through the spring and summer, when the state can otherwise be bone dry.
Many California ski areas were forced to delay opening this year, and even those that got the lifts spinning have had to confine skiers to only a handful of runs, often on man-made snow.
That has been this case at Big Bear, where a thin strip of artificial snow snakes from the 8,440 top of the Bear Mountain Express chairlift to the base at just over 7,000 feet. While crews worked diligently to rake the fake snow over exposed rocks and patches of bare dirt on Friday, skiers and boarders scraped by like traffic on the 405 Freeway.
“It’s crazy,” Miniutti said, “I mean, I can’t even imagine what this is like on a weekend.”
And the range of abilities of people crammed onto the same run creates its own, unique kind of “obstacle course,” Miniutti said.
You have to concentrate on not crashing into people in front of you — many of whom are absolute beginners, tumbling to the snow for no apparent reason — while praying the very good skiers and snowboarders you can hear racing up behind you will somehow avoid mowing you down.
People ski and snowboard at Big Bear Mountain Resort on man-made snow on Sunday.
“There’s, like, the best snowboarders in the world and people on their first day right next to each other,” Miniutti said.
But under the circumstances, Miniutti had nothing but admiration for the mountain staff for keeping the run open despite the seemingly impossible weather.
“I’m still having a blast,” he said, “it’s absolutely worth coming up.”
Devon James, 24, from Pasadena, felt the same way. He was warm in long sleeves, which he took to wearing after wiping out in short sleeves a week ago and “getting cut up.”
One day lift tickets at Big Bear cost more than $150 this season. At fancier resorts, like Mammoth Mountain, they can easily climb to more than $200 per day. So most serious skiers buy season passes for just under $1,000 that are good at many mountains across the country and around the world.
But that means they feel compelled to get their days in, no matter the conditions.
“I mean, that’s kind of the whole game, right,” James laughed. “I’ve got to get at least eight or nine days to get back to even.”
Skiers and snowboarders navigate bare areas at Big Bear Mountain Resort.
Miniutti, who is originally from Massachusetts, and learned to snowboard on the freezing, icy hills of New England, still prefers the alpine experience on the West Coast.
Even when there are legitimate winter conditions at Big Bear, he loves hopping in his car at the end of the day and driving home to Los Angeles, where it’s seemingly always 70 degrees and sunny.
“I can’t really beat that,” he said, “I’m not complaining.”
WITH Christmas this week, you more than likely already have a few things in the diary – but for those odd days around the big day itself, here’s some inspiration for when you need to get the kids out the house.
Whilst a lot of places are closed on the big day itself and Boxing Day, many attractions, destinations and events are still open the rest of the week.
Sign up for the Travel newsletter
Thank you!
Despite it being Christmas this week, there are still a number of things you can do for free across the UKCredit: GettyIn Mayfair in London, you can see a sculpture of a Triceratops skullCredit: Unknown
And some even on Christmas Eve.
So here’s a round up of some of the best free things to do across the UK between December 22 and 28.
Britain’s Bayeux Tapestry, Reading Museum
Located at Reading Museum, just two minutes from Reading train station, visitors can see Britain’s Bayeux Tapestry – a full-size replica of Normandy’s Bayeux Tapestry.
This is ideal to see ahead of the Norman Bayeux Tapestry coming to the British Museum in autumnnext year – though, this will be a paid-for experience.
Britain’s Bayeux Tapestry is a full-size replica of the Norman one and is permanently located at Reading Museum, which is free to visit.
The tapestry measures 70 metres long and depicts the Norman conquest of England.
In the late 19th century, Britain decided it should have its own tapestry and so a group of Victorian embroiderers recreated the tapestry in full.
There are two main differences between the British tapestry and the Norman one – the Victorian embroidered underwear on the naked people in the British one and the ladies who embroidered the British one added their names to the end of the tapestry.
Head to the museum between December 22 and 24 to catch a glimpse of the tapestry before the museum closes for Christmas.
Paul Vanstone x David Aaron – Carrara Triceratops Skull
From now until December 31, you can see a marble life-sized skull of a Triceratops in Mayfair, London.
Created by British artist Paul Vanstone, the sculpture has been created in collaboration with the David Aaron gallery.
The sculpture can be found in Berkeley Square, Mayfair.
Wallace & Gromit in A Case at the Museum Exhibition, Preston
At The Harris in Preston, visitors can explore a hands-on exhibition of Aardman’s Wallace and Gromit.
Named A Case at the Museum, the exhibition marks the reopening of The Harris and showcases 35 years of Wallace and Gromit.
The exhibition explores the life of the creator of Wallace and Gromit – Nick Park – from growing up in Lancashire to the influence the region had on his characters and films.
Through the exhibition, visitors get to see original sets and models, storyboards, concept art, early sketches and even strike a pose in Wallace’s living room.
The museum and exhibition are both free to visit, with the museum only closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.
Though on Christmas Eve, The Harris is only open until midday.
There is a Wallace and Gromit exhibition at The Harris in Preston with original modelsCredit: Alamy
Christmas Bauble Trail, St Albans
Until December 28, families can venture on a Christmas bauble trail around St Albans.
There are 12 baubles in total to spot, and you could even win a prize.
Boxing Day Swims, Various
A number of locations across the country host a Boxing Day Swim each year, where brave souls run into the chilly water for a dip.
A lot you have to either pay for or pre-book, but there are still a number that are free to participate in.
Though, most swims are for charity so donations are encouraged.
For example, you could head to Ventnor Bay on the Isle of Wight, where swimmers often wear pyjamas before running into the water.
The swim takes place on Boxing Day at 12pm.
Or head to North Norfolk Beach for the Runners’ Boxing Day Dip, where there is both a run starting at 11:30am and a splash in the sea at 12:30pm.
To find out if there is a Boxing Day Swim near you, just search your location and ‘Boxing Day Swim’.
Many people head on a Boxing Day Swim, with many destinations offering the experience for freeCredit: Getty
Christmas Lights, Various
Before they disappear for another year, make sure to check out the Christmas lights near you.
Whether that be Regent Street‘s iconic angels or the houses decked out in your nearby village, spotting Christmas lights makes the ideal festive walk.
Snoopy in the City, London
Until January 16, if you live in London you can still explore the Snoopy in the City sculpture trail.
Dotted around London’s Fleet Street Quarter, there are 12 Snoopy sculptures, all decorated by different artists, to find.
The trail celebrates 75 years of the Peanuts comic strip, created by Charles M Schulz.
Those trying to follow the trail can download a map on Wild in Art’s website.
Snoopy in the City sculpture trail is stilling running in the capitalCredit: PA
Ikea events, various
In the lead up to Christmas, Ikea is still running its events including free ‘present hunts’ at IkeaCardiffuntil December 23.
Or at Ikea Lakeside, visitors can make Christmas cards with the last session taking place on December 23.
Also tomorrow, from 10am to 11am, head to Ikea Southampton to have breakfast with Santa.
Justin Carter’s Liquid Light at the BottleWorks, Newcastle
Artist Justin Carter, who has showcased his work in Europe, Japan, China, Australia and America, has an exhibition at the BottleWorks in Newcastle.
The exhibition ‘Liquid Light’ showcases how important location can be to Justin and features a number of watercolour artworks.
You can visit on December 23 from 10am.
Ice skating, Blackpool
Ice skating at Christmas usually costs you an arm and a leg for just one person.
And then by the time you calculate how much it will cost for a family of four, you are nearing the £100 mark.
Up until January 4, you can head to the outdoor skating rink inBlackpoolat the Christmas by the Sea village.
It sits below the iconic Blackpool Tower and is free to visit, with free skate hire as well.
The ice rink measures 20 metres in total and is open each day between 12pm and 9pm (apart from Christmas Day).
You don’t need to book, just turn up.
There is a free ice rink near Blackpool TowerCredit: Getty
Christmas Rave, London
On Christmas Eve in the capital you can head to a free rave.
Located at Club Makossa in East London, ravers can head underground for some techno before the big day.
Whilst entry is free, there is a £1 donation to New Horizons Youth Centre in King’s Cross.
You can also enter a raffle at the rave and could win numerous prices from a £30 bar tab to event tickets.
The rave starts at 5pm and ends at midnight.
For more inspiration on what to do during the Twixmas period, here are 50 things to do between Christmas and New Year across the UK – including free activities and immersive experiences.
Former Australian Prime Minister John Howard attends the National Day of Reflection vigil and commemoration for the victims and survivors of the Bondi Massacre at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, 21 December 2025. Photo by Dean Lewins/EPA
Dec. 21 (UPI) — Seven days after a mass shooting devastated Bondi Beach, Australians gathered on Sunday for a national day of reflection.
The commemorations come as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese faces intense public scrutiny and has ordered an urgent investigation into the nation’s intelligence and police frameworks.
The tragedy, which claimed 15 lives during a Hanukkah seaside event, is the deadliest mass shooting Australia has seen in nearly three decades.
Authorities have officially classified the massacre — which killed a 10-year-old girl, a British rabbi and a Holocaust survivor, among others — as a terrorist act aimed at the Jewish community.
As the clock struck 6:47 p.m., marking the exact moment the first shots rang out the previous Sunday, a minute of silence was observed. Mourners at Bondi Beach and across the country stood in unison to honor the fallen, according to the BBC.
The atmosphere in Sydney was one of high alert, NBC News reported, with a massive security detail involving rooftop snipers and water patrols.
The Sydney Opera House also paid tribute, illuminating its iconic sails with candle projections to mark the day of mourning.
Despite the somber occasion, Albanese met a hostile reception, NBC News reported. Sections of the crowd booed the prime minister upon his arrival, a sign of the growing friction between the government and the grieving Jewish community.
The BBC also reported that one protester shouted, “Blood on your hands,” while security personnel had to intercept an individual attempting to approach the prime minister.
In an acknowledgment of the criticism, Albanese said during the observation that he accepts his share of responsibility as the nation’s leader.
Addressing the crowd, David Ossip, president of the New South Wales Jewish Board of Deputies, delivered a eulogy.
“Like the grass here at Bondi was stained with blood, so, too, has our nation been stained,” Ossip said, per NBC News. “We have landed up in a dark place.”
Ossip also shared a message of resilience from Ahmed al-Ahmed, a Syrian-Australian shop owner who was injured while heroically disarming one of the gunmen.
From his hospital bed, al-Ahmed’s message to the mourners was, “The Lord is close to the broken-hearted. Today I stand with you, my brothers and sisters.”
Unlike Albanese, New South Wales Premier Chris Minns was met with applause, the BBC reported.
Minns offered a blunt apology for the state’s inability to prevent the shooting, stating, “The government’s highest duty is to protect its citizens. And we did not do that one week ago.”
He further warned that the tragedy exposed a “deep vein of antisemitic hate” that the country must now confront.
After the ceremony, the federal government pivoted toward legislative action.
Albanese announced a comprehensive review of federal intelligence and law enforcement to determine if current powers are sufficient for the modern security landscape. He characterized the “ISIS-inspired” attack as proof of a shifting threat environment.
Additionally, the government has committed to a massive national gun buyback initiative, the scale of which has not been seen since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre.
From a Russian air strike in Zaporizhzhia in Ukraine to demonstrations calling for the removal of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement from Minnesota, here is a look at the week in photos.
Just a little over a year after an all-time performance as “Saturday Night Live” host (one of the best of that season, truth be told), Ariana Grande returned again to show off some of her talents: mimicry and comic timing, dance moves, and, of course, a spectacular singing voice.
But she also showed a lot of grace by ceding the spotlight to her “Wicked” co-star Bowen Yang, who confirmed before this week’s episode that he is exiting “SNL” midway through his eighth season. At several turns of this week’s show, particularly in a closing sketch about a retiring Delta Sky Club employee that served as Yang’s emotional goodbye, it was clear that Grande understood the assignment: this was Yang’s night, not hers.
Which isn’t to say Grande wasn’t great. She started strong with an “All I Want For Christmas” takeoff in her monologue, played an Elf on the Shelf who’s been cut in half in a support group sketch, exchanged a costume soul patch with Marcello Hernández as one of two dramatic dance instructors, and perhaps most memorably in this outing, played Macaulay Culkin‘s character Kevin in an extremely bloody parody of “Home Alone.”
But in his last show as a cast member, Yang got to appear in nearly every sketch as well, from a brief appearance in the “Home Alone” sketch to playing Yoko Ono in the Peacock special skit to reprising his Trend Forecaster character on “Weekend Update” with former cast member Aidy Bryant.
If Grande wasn’t as locked in as last time (she broke character laughing a few times), it didn’t matter much because she was as funny, energetic and eerily accurate in all her impressions. It felt very much like Grande was there less to promote the new “Wicked” movie than to help a friend say goodbye.
Not surprisingly, President Trump (James Austin Johnson) had a lot to say in a holiday address to the nation while also hugging a Christmas tree (“Remember when I did this with flag? I’m hugging tree now.”) and reading his stage directions out loud, an interesting new wrinkle to Johnson’s masterful impression. Trump reminded the country that “Arctic immigrants are coming in through our chimneys and stealing our milk and cookies” and discussed the recently voted on name change to the Kennedy Center, now “The Trump-Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts No Homo,” saying it is just the beginning. His name will be on the Trump Washington Monument, the Trump Lincoln Memorial and “Big Elphaba,” his name for the Statue of Liberty. Why so many names on things? “We had to take it off so many files,” he said, a reference to the much-redacted, newly released Epstein Files. Johnson’s impression is getting slurrier and even more meta, but continues to deliver on random pop culture references, which this week included the Indigo Girls, “The Hunger Games” and the videogame “Metal Gear Solid.”
Grande’s monologue briefly touched on the idea of bringing back old sketches such as “Domingo” from her last appearance before declaring cheekily, “When something is perfect, it doesn’t need a sequel.” She talked about how hard it is to find gifts for people she doesn’t know well, like her cousin’s boyfriend, Steve, which led to a whole music number to the tune of “All I Want for Christmas,” including Yang and other cast members giving suggestions on gifts like back massage coupons or a box of raw oysters. The lyrics weren’t all easy to understand unless you had captions enabled, but Grande sang the heck out of the Mariah Carey song.
Best sketch of the night: Take a bow, Bowen
Was it the funniest sketch of the night? No, that would probably be the Elf on the Shelf support group or the “Love is Blind” reunion. But Yang’s last sketch, about an elderly Delta Sky Club worker passing out eggnog and working his last shift, was heartfelt and sweet. Even a casual fan of Yang and “SNL” would be hard pressed not to get choked up by Yang talking about his time on the show to his wife (Grande), who replied, “All the egg nog you’ve made over the years. Some of it was great. Some of it was rotten.” “And a lot of it got cut,” he replied. Bowen broke down a few times while expressing his love for the people who work on “SNL” and sang through tears a version of “Please Come Home for Christmas” with Grande. “Egg nog is kind of like me — it’s not for everyone, but the people who like it are my kind of people,” he said to riotous applause. When he said he wanted to go out on top, she responded, “Oh, everyone knows you’re a bottom.” The capper to the sketch: Cher appearing as his Delta boss to tell him, “Everyone thought you were a little too gay. But, you know what? You’re perfect for me.”
Also good: The holiday duets you didn’t know you needed
When you’ve got Grande on board, it’s hard to resist falling back on lots of celebrity impressions, especially if they involve singing. For this piece, random performers are paired up for duets to try to replicate the magic of David Bowie and Bing Crosby’s “Little Drummer Boy” to varying degrees of success. Grande and Johnson were paired up twice: as Katy Perry and Bob Dylan and then again to close the sketch as Andrea Bocelli and Celine Dion. It’s impossible to overstate how good Grande is at mimicking other singing voices, but the surprise here is how well Johnson keeps with her as Bocelli. Other standouts: Hernández as Bad Bunny, a backflipping Benson Boone (it was likely a stunt person and not a cast member, we never see his face) and Veronika Slowikowska as Bjork.
‘Weekend Update’ winner: Mistletoe, you are on watch!
Kam Patterson did well as Michael Che’s 12-year-old nephew Tyson, who goes back and forth between being a sweet kid and threatening Santa Claus for not bringing him a bike for Christmas last year. And this year’s holiday joke swap was weirdly one-sided with only Michael Che writing heretofore-unseen jokes for “Update” co-host Colin Jost to read. But Bryant returning to reunite with Yang for their arch Trend Forecasters bit won the week. They targeted mistletoe, musical intros that go “1, 2, 3, 4!” and in Chinese Trends, orange chicken. The duo repeated their catchphrase, “Go to bed, b—!” to each of these outgoing trends before declaring that waving pride flags, Marge Simpson hair and Michael Che are out. Of course, a stunned Michael Che was shown with a big blue wig and little pride flags in his hands.
The Rams have lost four games this season, three resulting in part from special teams breakdowns.
In the aftermath of their defeat by the Seattle Seahawks, coach Sean McVay made a significant move.
Chase Blackburn, the Rams’ special teams coordinator for the last three seasons, has been fired, a team official said Saturday.
Assistant Ben Kotwica remains on the staff.
Earlier this month, Blackburn said, “The job of a special teams coach is to be able to adapt and overcome on all things.”
That proved a challenge for a team that features a high-powered offense, and an at-times dominating defense.
On Thursday night in Seattle, the Rams led by 16 points in the fourth quarter when they allowed Rashid Shaheed to return a punt 58 yards for a touchdown. The play sparked the Seahawks’ comeback that sent the Rams to a 38-37 overtime defeat.
The loss dropped the Rams’ record to 11-4, and knocked them out of the No. 1 seed in the NFC and first place in the NFC West.
The breakdown was the latest in a series of special teams issues that have plagued the Rams.
In September at Philadelphia, the Eagles blocked two field-goal attempts by Joshua Karty, returning the second for a winning touchdown on the final play of regulation.
Two weeks later, in a 26-23 overtime defeat by the San Francisco 49ers, Karty missed a long field-goal attempt and had an extra-point attempt blocked. Karty’s kickoff in overtime did not reach the landing zone, giving the 49ers the ball at the 40-yard line.
Before their Week 10 game against the 49ers, the Rams signed kicker Harrison Mevis to replace Karty and signed veteran snapper Jake McQuaide to replace Alex Ward.
The kicking game solidified. Mevis made all eight of his field-goal attempts, including three against the Seahawks, before he missed a 48-yard attempt with just over two minutes left in regulation.
The Rams, who clinched a playoff spot, play the Atlanta Falcons on Nov. 29 in Atlanta and then conclude the regular season at home against the Arizona Cardinals.
With the ongoing fracas over President Trump’s demolition of the White House’s East Wing, a number of other Trump administration-led attempts to remake the architectural landscape of Washington, D.C., have flown largely under the radar. This includes the sale and possible demolition of the Wilbur J. Cohen Building, which was completed in 1940 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2007.
Part of what makes the building so beloved is a series of 1942 frescoes by Ben Shahn titled “The Meaning of Social Security,” commissioned as part of the Roosevelt administration’s robust New Deal art program. In a recent article in the New Republic, architectural historian Gray Brechin is quoted as calling the Cohen building, “a kind of Sistine Chapel of the New Deal.”
The structure, originally known as the Social Security Administration Building, has served as the headquarters for Voice of America since 1954. In March, Trump signed an executive order cutting funding for the agency that oversees VOA, and most of its staff was placed on administrative leave. In June, more than 600 VOA employees received layoff notices, and the service basically shut down.
At the beginning of this year, Congress agreed to sell the Cohen building, which had been suffering from major maintenance issues. The scope of the threat to the building became clear earlier this month when Bloomberg reported that “The White House is independently soliciting bids to recommend the demolition of the historic buildings [including the Cohen building], without the input of the General Services Administration, which maintains government buildings.”
“Federal properties can be sold quickly with limited public input. As powerful interests move in haste to sell this historic building, we call for the process to be paused and conducted with transparency, respect, and public participation,” the petition, which has garnered more than 4,700 signatures, states.
The Shahn frescoes aren’t the only precious New Deal artworks in danger. Other art housed in the Cohen building include murals by Seymour Fogel and Philip Guston.
I’m arts and culture writer Jessica Gelt wondering when enough is enough. Here’s your arts news for the week.
On our radar
Grant Gershon conducts the Los Angeles Master Chorale at Walt Disney Concert Hall.
(Jamie Phan / Los Angeles Master Chorale)
Disney Hall-e-lu-jah It’s hard to imagine the holidays without music, and the Los Angeles Master Chorale has three days of caroling and chorusing that should lift anyone’s seasonal spirits. A new addition to the choir’s traditional offerings is the family-friendly “Carols for Kids” (11 a.m. Saturday. Walt Disney Concert Hall), featuring Youth Chorus LA and designed for even the squirmiest children, 6 and under. That will be followed by the “Festival of Carols” (2 p.m. Saturday. Disney Hall), a program of global holiday music. The group’s performance of “Handel’s Messiah” (7 p.m. Sunday. Disney Hall) is a worthy centerpiece of any celebration. If you’re ready to have your own voice be heard, “Carols on the Plaza” (6 p.m. Monday, across the street at the Music Center’s Jerry Moss Plaza), is your chance to join in on free outdoor caroling with family, friends and fellow Angelenos. Festivities conclude with the Master Chorale’s “Messiah Sing-Along” (7:30 p.m. Monday) back at Disney Hall where 2,000 voices will unite for the “Hallelujah Chorus.” — Kevin Crust Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave.; Music Center, 135 N. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. lamasterchorale.org
You’re reading Essential Arts
The week ahead: A curated calendar
FRIDAY The Fruit Cake Follies In its 27th year, this madcap holiday variety show promises “music, mirth and merriment.” 8:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, with dinner at 6:30 p.m.; 1 p.m Sunday, with brunch at 11 a.m. Catalina Jazz Club, 6725 Sunset Blvd. Hollywood. catalinajazzclub.com
Guadalupe Maravilla: A Performance Expanding on his solo exhibition “Les soñadores,” the transdisciplinary artist creates a collective ritual combining sound, vibration and healers from around the world alongside L.A.-based artists. 8 p.m. REDCAT, 631 W. 2nd St., downtown L.A. redcat.org
Piotr Beczala The Polish-born tenor, known for his work in opera and the classical vocal canon, performs, accompanied by conductor and pianist Kamal Khan. 7:30 p.m. Broad Stage, Santa Monica College Performing Arts Center, 1310 11th St., Santa Monica broadstage.org
“Wet” by Sahar Khoury at Parker Gallery, 2025
(Sahar Khoury / Parker Gallery)
Sahar Khoury The interdependence of materials and their social and cultural environments inspired the sculptor’s newest solo exhibition, “Wet,” a series of pieces created from ceramic, steel, iron, brass and aluminum. 11 a.m.–6 p.m. Tuesday–Saturday, through Jan. 17. Parker Gallery, 6700 Melrose Ave. parkergallery.com
SATURDAY Christmas Joy Concert The free Third@First concert series continues with a program of carols, classic and new. 4 p.m. First United Methodist Church of Pasadena, 500. E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena. thirdatfirst.org
Sanaa Lathan and Omar Epps in the romantic drama “Love & Basketball.”
(New Line Cinema)
Love & Basketball Writer-director Gina Prince-Bythewood marks the 25th anniversary of her modern romance classic, starring Sanaa Lathan, Omar Epps, Alfre Woodard and Dennis Haysbert. 7 p.m. Academy Museum, 6067 Wilshire Blvd. academymuseum.org
The cast of “Nutcracker! Magical Christmas Ballet.”
Nutcracker! Magical Christmas Ballet This 80-plus city tour offers a distinct blend of classical ballet with avant-garde circus techniques and global influences, complete with 10-foot-tall animal puppets constructed by Roger Titley. For its 33rd year on the road, the production adds a new character: Sweets the Dog, created by Barry Gordemer of the award-winning puppeteer studio Handemonium. — Ashley Lee Noon, 4 and 8 p.m. Saturday. Wiltern Theatre, 3790 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles; and 1:30 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday. La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts, 14900 La Mirada Blvd. nutcracker.com
SUNDAY Collecting Impressionism at LACMA This new exhibition traces how the museum built its collection and its pursuit of legitimacy through early acquisitions of American and California Impressionism and donations of paintings by Edgar Degas and Camille Pissarro from major Hollywood collectors. Through Jan. 3, 2027. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Resnick Pavilion, 5905 Wilshire Blvd. lacma.org
Actor Taylor Nichols, left, and director Whit Stillman at a 20th anniversary screening of “Metropolitan” at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival.
(Jemal Countess / Getty Images)
Metropolitan It’s hard to believe that it’s been 35 years since the young socialites of the “urban haute bourgeoisie” entered our consciousness via filmmaker Whit Stillman’s delightfully droll film and its banter-driven, Oscar-nominated screenplay. Stillman and actor Taylor Nichols will be on hand for a Q&A with the screening. 2 p.m. Aero Theatre, 1328 Montana Ave., Santa Monica. americancinematheque.com
WEDNESDAY
Aloe Blacc and Maya Jupiter host the 2025 L.A. County Holiday Celebration.
(Music Center)
L.A. County Holiday Celebration The Music Center’s annual spectacular features more than 20 local music ensembles, choirs and dance companies. The free, ticketed event will also be broadcast on PBS SoCal. Aloe Blacc and Maya Jupiter are this year’s hosts. 3-6 p.m. Dec. 24. Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, 135 N. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. musiccenter.org
— Kevin Crust
Dispatch: A director with a human touch
Cameron Watson is the new artistic director of Skylight Theatre Company.
(David Zaugh)
Stage director Cameron Watson has one of the best batting averages in town.
His productions of “The Sound Inside” at Pasadena Playhouse, “On the Other Hand, We’re Happy” for Rogue Machine Theatre at the Matrix and “Top Girls” at Antaeus Theatre Company were morale-boosting for a critic in the trenches, offering proof that serious, humane, highly intelligent and happily unorthodox drama was alive and well in Los Angeles.
Watson’s appointment as artistic director of Los Feliz’s Skylight Theatre Company starting Jan. 1 is good news for the city’s theater ecology. Producing artistic director Gary Grossman, who led the company for 40 years with enormous integrity, built the small but ambitious Skylight into an incubator of new work that embraces diversity and the local community.
Developing new plays is fraught with risk. Watson has the both the artistic acumen and audience sensitivity needed to usher Skylight through this perilous moment in the American theater when so many companies seem to be holding on by a thread.
Watson, like Peter Brook before him, knows how to convert an empty space into a realm of magic and meaning. For Watson, the play’s the thing. But for the spark to happen, actors and audience members need a director as intuitively attuned to the uncertain human drama as Skylight Theatre Company’s new leader. (The director’s current production of “Heisenberg” at Skylight ends Sunday.)
— Charles McNulty
Culture news and the SoCal scene
Moving in stereo The most Tony-nominated play in Broadway history, “Stereophonic,” is playing at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre through Jan. 2. Times theater critic Charles McNulty caught opening night and wrote that the first touring production fails to capture the high notes of the Broadway original. A few days later, I sat down for an interview at Amoeba Records with Will Butler, the former Arcade Fire multi-instrumentalist who wrote the music for the show. Our interview took place before Butler got onstage with the cast of the show for a short live in-store performance.
Boiling in Brooklyn Brooklyn was also on McNulty’s itinerary, where he saw Michelle Williams in the new revival of Eugene O’Neill’s “Anna Christie” at St. Ann’s Warehouse. “Michelle Williams seems to have unlimited emotional access. Her inner intensity expresses itself in a frenzy of volcanic feeling that can never be tamped down once it reaches its boiling point,” McNulty writes.
The name game The Kennedy Center continued its Trump-era transformation Thursday after the board voted unanimously to rename the world-famous performing arts venue The Donald J. Trump and the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. It remains unclear if the move is legal, or if the name change will need to be made official via an act of Congress.
Viva Las Vegas I got a look at newly revealed architectural plans for the Las Vegas Museum of Art, which is expected to break ground in 2027. Pritzker Prize-winning architect Diébédo Francis Kéré is designing the city’s first freestanding museum and says his ideas were inspired by the red rocks and canyons of the desert surrounding Sin City.
Enjoying this newsletter? Consider subscribing to the Los Angeles Times
LACMA United Workers at Los Angeles County Museum of art voted to unionize Wednesday. The vote in favor was 96%, and came after LACMA rejected workers’ requests for voluntary recognition. Staffers have expressed disappointment in management over what they are calling its anti-union campaign.
La malchance The Louvre is down on its luck. Maintenance issues have lately plagued the famous Paris museum, and then there was that infamous heist. Now workers have voted to strike over working conditions among other complaints.
