Selena Gomez Engaged to Benny Blanco

Luca Guadagnino's American Psycho Reboot Casts Austin Butler

Austin Butler, who recently captivated audiences with his portrayal of the legendary Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann’s biopic, prepares to take on a drastically different and significantly darker character.  The talented actor has officially been cast as the enigmatic and murderous Patrick Bateman in Luca Guadagnino’s highly anticipated adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’ iconic novel, American Psycho. 

The upcoming film marks another foray into the twisted world of Bateman, a role that first gained notoriety through the cult classic 2000 film adaptation featuring Christian Bale. However, Guadagnino, known for his lyrical and visually striking storytelling in films such as Call Me By Your Name, is poised to deliver a fresh and unsettling interpretation of Ellis’ darkly satirical narrative. With a screenplay penned by the acclaimed Scott Z. Burns, the film is expected to push the boundaries of the book by probing into Bateman’s psyche, exploring his disturbing obsession with consumerism, status, and violence. 

While earlier speculation suggested Jacob Elordi might play Bateman, Butler has ultimately secured the part. As Austin Butler steps into what could be a pivotal role, anticipation builds for how he and Guadagnino will redefine one of literature’s most infamous characters. 

Selena Gomez Announces Engagement To Benny Blanco

Selena Gomez has joyfully announced her engagement to music producer Benny Blanco! The actress and singer shared the exciting news on Instagram with a captivating photo of her stunning engagement ring, captioned, “Forever begins now.”

Having confirmed their romance last year, Gomez and Blanco have become inseparable. Following the engagement news, fans and celebrities flooded the comments with congratulatory messages. Pop icon Taylor Swift playfully offered to be the flower girl, while other stars like Cardi B, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Aniston, Suki Waterhouse, and Lil Nas X sent their well wishes.

In additional photos, Gomez radiates happiness, especially in a sweet picture of her and Blanco in a loving embrace. Blanco humorously commented, “Hey wait... that’s my wife,” highlighting their excitement as they step into this new chapter of their lives together.

‘Wicked’ and ‘Conclave’ Lead Critics Choice Award Film Nominees

The 30th annual Critics Choice Awards have revealed its film nominations, leading the charge with an impressive 11 nominations each are the adaptation of the beloved musical, Wicked, and the thought-provoking historical drama, Conclave, positioning both as clear front-runners in this year’s awards season. 

Wicked, based on the popular Broadway musical, has captured the imagination of audiences globally with its dazzling visual spectacle and compelling narrative. The film has been recognized in several prestigious categories, including Best Picture, highlighting its overall excellence in filmmaking. Cynthia Erivo has been nominated for Best Actress for her portrayal of Elphaba, whereas Ariana Grande received a nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Additionally, Jon M. Chu has been acknowledged for his direction, earning a nomination for Best Director, while the film’s ensemble cast is recognized with a nod for Best Acting Ensemble. 

On the other hand, Conclave immerses viewers in the secretive world of papal elections, offering a narrative steeped in political and moral complexities. The film has likewise secured a nomination for Best Picture, with Ralph Fiennes receiving a nomination for Best Actor. Director Edward Berger has also been recognized with a nominee for Best Director, and the film’s ensemble cast has earned a nomination for Best Acting Ensemble. 

Both Wicked and Conclave have succeeded critically at this year’s Critics Choice Awards, but the two films also highlight the diverse storytelling present in contemporary cinema, making the upcoming Critics Choice Awards an exciting event for fans across the globe. 

New Music Friday

Julien Baker (of the Grammy winning indie group boygenius) and TORRES team up for “Sugar in the Tank” after debuting the song earlier this week on ‘The Tonight Show” with Jimmy Fallon. It’s a really neat country genre endeavor.

Stray Kids put out their new album HOP which is plenty full of hip-hop oriented tracks. Our favorite as of yet is “Unfair (Felix).” The production break in the beginning is pretty good.

Fred again… and Angie McMahon got together for a really wonderful song. “light dark light” is a very free and easy going song, that has a low-key downbeat synth happening the whole time.

Ice Spice features on BossMan Dlow’s newest album Dlow Curry. “Pillsbury Dlow” has a really good verse from Ice Spice, actually, and it could be our very favorite from her just yet. We almost wish the song was just her totally alone.

GloRilla and Kehlani have a new Christmas song “Xmas Time” which is certainly an interesting song that takes a really naughty turn about two minutes in.

SYML’s new song “How It Was It Will Never Be Again” is absolutely great. We want those guitar strings engrained in our heads forever.

Worlds collide on JVKE’s new song — our favorite release this week. The song heads toward a pompous bridge, and it’s brilliant once we get there. There’s a really cinematic feeling to this one that we just can’t get over.

—Dawson Therre

ICYMI:

• Donald Trump has been named TIME’s Person of the Year.

• Mariah Carey will perform at the NFL’s Christmas Day game, which will be streamed on Netflix. Beyoncé will also perform, marking the first official performance of her ‘COWBOY CARTER’ era. 

• The University of Houston has announced that Beyoncé’s BeyGOOD Foundation has donated $100,000 to their Law Center’s Criminal Justice Clinic.

• Disney has confirmed that a live-action ‘Tangled’ is in the works.

• The Weeknd has officially been crowned VEVO’s most-viewed male artist globally for the 4th consecutive year, gaining over 1.8 billion views.

— Katie Macbeth

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