dispute

Nicolas Cage is making it clear — he’s not an “AI-friendly actor.”

The 62-year-old actor spoke out against a tech giant during an appearance at New York Comic Con on Saturday. He alleged that he was asked to sign an artificial intelligence waiver for the television series “Spider Noir.”

“Amazon is a very AI-friendly company, to the tune of $50 billion invested in OpenAI,” Cage said on stage.

“I am not an AI-friendly actor, so it’s like, connect those dots! I’m not a member of their club. I didn’t sign the waiver to let him use AI on ‘Spider-Noir.’ I’m probably not going to be working with that studio again, but that’s OK.”

Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The use of AI continues to be a major sticking point across Hollywood. Industry unions including SAG-AFTRA and the Writers Guild recently secured protections against technology in new contracts. But as AI evolves and AI actors like Tilly Norwood continue to make headlines, it’s still unclear exactly how the industry will be affected.

“Spider-Noir,” which premiered in May, is a “Spider-Man” project that put a 1930s crime-thriller spin on the web-slinging superhero. The show was produced by both Sony Pictures Television and Amazon MGM Studios.

Cage’s part as “The Spider” marked his first leading role in a series. The Oscar-winning actor, whose home in Malibu was recently affected by a sinkhole, is known best for his roles in movies like “National Treasure,” “Moonstruck” and “The Rock.”

Upon its release, “Spider-Noir” received much praise from fans and critics alike. In its first six weeks of streaming, the series earned 2.6 billion minutes watched, according to Nielsen. It was also Amazon’s most-nominated show at this year’s Emmys, with 11 nominations and five wins.

Last month, Amazon announced that the show was canceled after only one season, leaving much of the industry in shock.

During his Comic Con panel, Cage also said he plans to keep working in TV. He announced that he will be joining the HBO series “True Detective.”

“My agent’s out there somewhere listening,” Cage said. “That’s OK that I’m the first to announce that, right?”

Reports have indicated in recent months that Derry attempted to terminate McClean’s contract because of persistent injuries, a matter alluded to in Tuesday’s statement by the PFAI.

The statement says that Derry had attempted to invoke Section 18 of the Standard Players Contract, which permits them to terminate a contract with six months’ notice when a player is deemed to have a “permanent incapacity”, as confirmed by an independent physician.

“For any club to feel it is OK to attempt to terminate a player’s contract without any due process or just cause is incomprehensible, and it sets a dangerous precedent for every player in this league,” said McClean.

“I am not permanently incapacitated, or anything even remotely close to that. I am capable of contributing and doing well in the League of Ireland. I train as hard and give as much as anyone.

“I will decide when I retire. Nobody else will make that decision for me. When that time comes, my body will tell me. This is my life and my career. I deserve the same duty of care and fairness given to the majority of other players at Derry City FC.”

The PFAI gave further information on the nature and extent of the player’s injury.

“In short, James has had a hip injury which had been causing intermittent issues for him. This has caused him to miss some games and occasional training sessions,” the statement read.

“He has sought medical treatment for this and is currently fit and well.

“He has trained fully for the last nine weeks and has made himself available for selection. He recently played in an internal match arranged by the club. He believes he can help the team and has not been provided with a satisfactory reason for being left out of the squad.”

BBC Sport NI contacted Derry City for comment but a spokesperson said that the club were presently “solely focused on this weekend’s FAI Cup semi-final against Galway United (Saturday, 15:00 BST kick-off).

A challenge to the decision to allow a controversial Orange Order parade to go down a predominantly nationalist road is being heard in court.

The deadlock over the proposed march in Portadown – opposed by residents of the Garvaghy Road – has lasted since last Sunday morning.

The stalemate has reopened what was once the most bitter parading dispute in Northern Ireland, with stand-offs in the mid-to-late 90s accompanied by riots, roadblocks and killings.

The fresh Court of Appeal application argues that the Parades Commission, the organisation that approved the march, had “materially misdirected itself” on the police assessment of the potential for disorder.

The application also said the commission had not given an “accurate representation” of PSNI evidence in its decision.

The Garvaghy Road Residents Coalition (GRRC) and their legal representatives arrived at the court on Monday morning.

Loyalist activist Jamie Bryson, who has been acting as legal advisor to the Portadown District, Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) MP Carla Lockhart and Orange Order legal representatives also arrived.

The hearing began in Belfast at about 10:30 BST.

VICTORIA, British Columbia — A Canadian provincial premier called a snap election Tuesday, saying President Trump’s attacks on Canada are threatening jobs, businesses and the country’s ability to determine its own future.

The provincial election comes after U.S.-Canada trade talks broke down, deepening a dispute that has brought steep tariffs. British Columbia Premier David Eby effectively put Trump on the ballot, arguing the election offers British Columbians a choice between his government’s efforts to resist U.S. economic pressure and opponents he accused of embracing “MAGA-style politics.”

“Join us saying hell no to Trump and to his politics,” Eby said in announcing the Oct. 24 election.

Eby said Trump’s trade war and threats against Canada have changed conditions in British Columbia enough to justify an election two years early.

“Donald Trump is attacking our workers, he’s targeting our businesses, and he is threatening our sovereignty,” Eby said. “He’s threatening our ability to make decisions for ourselves.”

The left-leaning New Democratic Party leader said British Columbia needs to build a “firebreak” against Trump’s economic policies by protecting workers and businesses, reducing its dependence on the United States and finding new markets for Canadian products.

“This isn’t just a trade dispute,” Eby said. “It’s about the life that you and your family are building.”

Eby said British Columbia’s exports to the United States have fallen 4% while exports to other markets have risen 16%.

He also vowed to keep American alcohol off provincial shelves, saying “not one drop of Jack Daniels” would return until Canada gets a fair deal with the United States.

The New Democrats won a narrow majority in the 2024 provincial election, giving Eby enough seats to govern without relying on another party, and he was not required to call another election until 2028.

The election call also comes amid turmoil among the opposition British Columbia Conservatives. Kerry-Lynne Findlay resigned as party leader Sunday following a wave of defections and expulsions from her caucus. Lorne Doerkson was named interim leader.

Sept. 22, 2026 3:42 PM PT

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to intervene in a custody dispute over a 5-week-old child who was born in Texas after a surrogate refused a California couple’s wishes to have an abortion.

Justice Elena Kagan denied the request from McKenna West, who was seeking conservatorship over a baby boy she gave birth to in Dallas.

The brief order did not detail the legal reasoning, as is typical in emergency appeals. The decision came from Kagan because she handles appeals of cases out of California.

West had previously been rejected by other courts in her efforts to have a say in the treatment of the child, who was born with a life-threatening heart condition. She gave birth to the boy in Dallas, where most abortions are banned, after she refused the couple’s wishes to end the pregnancy.

West had asked the Supreme Court to halt a California court order that recognizes Omar Ahmed and Nausheen Gilkar as the parents of the child whom she calls Gabriel and they call Rumi.

Lawyers for the couple had urged the court to reject the request, questioning what an intervention would do for medical decision-making at an already chaotic time. They also accused West of overstating the prognosis for children born with the heart condition.

“Such chaos would be devastating for Respondents and, most importantly, their child,” the couple told the court.

The legal battle over surrogacy and abortion has attracted the attention and support of Republican officeholders and anti-abortion groups. West has said she believes the couple will not provide life-saving care, citing their request for an abortion at 23 weeks. Gilkar and Ahmed have denied those claims.

The boy was born Aug. 12 with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a life-threatening condition that prevents normal blood flow to the organ. He underwent surgery soon after he was born. The couple’s attorney said in August that the newborn had been in critical condition and appeared to be “suffering from potential complications.”

Without treatment, children affected by the heart defect can die within days or weeks. Surgical repairs are not necessarily cures, and additional surgeries or heart transplants may be needed, according to the CDC.

Wilder and Whitehurst write for the Associated Press.

Pennsylvania has asked the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for help containing an expanding measles outbreak that has seen several people die, but says it will withdraw the request unless the federal agency recognises four measles-associated deaths reported by the state.

The CDC, however, said it has not been properly notified of any such request.

The US is currently seeing the worst measles outbreak in the country since 1991, with several deaths over the last couple of years. Measles was declared eliminated in the US in 2000, but has made a comeback in recent years, which some have linked to a rise in vaccine scepticism. The US state of Pennsylvania has been hit especially hard.

In a letter sent to CDC Director Erica Schwartz on Wednesday, Pennsylvania Health Secretary Debra Bogen said the state had begun the process of requesting emergency assistance from the CDC, known as an Epi-Aid.

“The CDC’s choice not to publicly recognize the deaths undermines our response,” Bogen wrote. “For this reason, if CDC is unable to transparently and accurately communicate information about those measles-associated deaths, the Department will respectfully rescind our request for a CDC Epi-Aid.”

However, in a statement to Al Jazeera, Grace Davis Jamison, press secretary for the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), said that the CDC had not received Pennsylvania’s request through its normal channels and that federal outbreak assistance was separate from how the agency tabulates deaths.

“CDC will not allow [Pennsylvania Democratic] Governor [Josh] Shapiro to politicize this process. We owe the American people accurate, consistent, and transparent public health information,” Jamison said. “CDC will not submit to political blackmail that conditions critical public health assistance. The people of Pennsylvania should never be used as leverage in a political dispute over how deaths are classified.”

Disagreement grows as Pennsylvania’s measles outbreak spreads

The dispute over the deaths began in August, when Pennsylvania reported that two unvaccinated people died of measles in Lancaster County, which is located in the South Central part of the state. Lancaster is considered the centre of Pennsylvania Dutch Country and home to the nation’s oldest Amish and Mennonite communities. Both communities have under-vaccinated populations.

The CDC initially included the deaths in its national tally, but subsequently removed them after Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr questioned whether measles had caused or contributed to the fatalities. The agency said at the time that available information did not establish whether measles caused or contributed to the deaths.

Pennsylvania continued to stand by its determination.

The outbreak has spread well beyond its initial epicentre in Lancaster County. On September 13, a county coroner reported that a 40-year-old woman had died from complications associated with measles. The state later confirmed the death as measles-associated and announced two additional deaths on September 15. All four people were unvaccinated, according to the state.

The state reported 393 cases across 28 counties when the first two deaths were announced on August 25. Pennsylvania now reports 731 confirmed cases across 38 counties and 141 hospitalisations. Of those reported cases, only four people, or less than one percent, are vaccinated.

What are officials arguing about?

The disagreement between Pennsylvania and the CDC centres on the distinction between a “measles-associated” death versus a death “caused” by measles. Pennsylvania uses “measles-associated” under its state surveillance definition, while HHS said it is working with the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists to establish a standardised definition for measles deaths.

Infectious disease experts warn that the dispute over how to classify the deaths puts the CDC at odds with a long-standing approach to tracking the consequences of measles. Matthew Ferrari, director of Pennsylvania State University’s Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics, told Al Jazeera that “measles-associated” death has long been a standard used by the World Health Organization and CDC.

“It’s the most useful distinction because it is a case that could have been prevented by a measles vaccination, or by early detection and isolation,” Ferrari said. “Measles is severely immunocompromising, so it is very often a secondary infection that is the ultimate cause of death.”

Experts say the CDC’s dispute with Pennsylvania risks distracting from efforts to contain the outbreak. Dr Andrew Pavia, spokesperson for the Infectious Diseases Society of America and professor at the University of Utah, told Al Jazeera the distinction should not be controversial.

“The impact, though, is confusion for the public and erosion of trust in the ability of CDC staff to communicate to the public without political interference,” Pavia said.

HHS said federal outbreak assistance and national mortality reporting are separate processes and rejected the idea that the two should be linked.

How would an Epi-Aid help Pennsylvania?

An Epi-Aid is a CDC mechanism for providing rapid, short-term assistance during an urgent public health problem. The CDC says Epi-Aids generally last one to three weeks, during which they deploy Epidemic Intelligence Service officers to analyse epidemiological data, evaluate surveillance systems, and recommend measures to control and prevent the spread of disease.

The requesting health authority retains overall leadership of the investigation, while CDC personnel provide technical assistance, including epidemiological expertise and access to laboratory resources.

“The most important thing for an effective response is communication and trust,” Ferrari said. “It is important for all partners to agree on the foundational elements of the problem and the metrics for evaluating the severity of the problem.”