Box office weekend… Diddy update… Concert for Carolina… Saoirse Ronan is going viral… and Liam Payne’s Netflix show Building the Band postponed

 

Venom: The Last Dance was No. 1 at the box office this weekend, but it didn’t perform quite as well as the studio — and Tom Hardy! — had hoped. Tom actually co-wrote this third, and presumed, final installment of the Venom trilogy. It was projected to debut with $65M, but took in $51M instead. Globally, it earned $175M. Smile 2 fell from first to second with $9.4M. The Wild Robot and the new movie Conclave — a thriller about selecting a new pope — basically tied for third with $6.5M, but box office charts are giving third to the robot and fourth to the pope. Rounding out the top five was A24’s We Live In Time with $4.8M. By the way, Joker: Folie á Deux is already out of the top ten, taking in just $600K this weekend for a 13th place finish.

PS: Happy birthday to Joaquin Phoenix, who turns 50 today.

Diddy’s lawyers asked a NY judge for a gag order to prevent government officials from leaking information to the media as he waits to go on trial for sex trafficking and racketeering. The judge said no. Diddy’s attorneys believe the feds are to blame for leaking that hotel security video of him beating his ex-girlfriend Cassie to CNN in order to “mortally wound the reputation and the prospect of Sean Combs successfully defending himself against these allegations.” His attorneys continued, “Rather than using the videotape as trial evidence, alongside other evidence that gives it context and meaning, the agents misused it in the most prejudicial and damaging way possible.” I would love to know the context and meaning they think would justify that beating. Even though the judge said no to the terms of the gag order requested, he did say that federal agents, investigators and Diddy’s team are forbidden to talk about anything regarding the grand jury proceedings that could prevent him from receiving a fair trial.

When Luke Combs saw the devastation from Hurricane Helene, he immediately called his manager and said, “We need to do a benefit connect.” His manager called up the Carolina Panthers, Luke hit up Eric Church, and it was on. An event like this would normally take months to plan, but they did it in four weeks. Panthers owners David and Nicole Tipper said they could use the team’s stadium free of charge, so every penny raised could go directly to the people who need it. Luke and Eric got a bunch of their friends to perform, including Keith Urban, Sheryl Crow, James Taylor and more. In the crowd, Nicole Kidman was there to support her husband Keith, along with Randy Travis, and Sydney Sweeney, who had a great night with her girlfriends. In total, 82,193 people filled Bank of America Stadium Saturday night, making it the largest concert in the venue’s almost 30-year history. And Luke and company raised $24.5M for Hurricane Helene relief.

Britain’s The Graham Norton Show is very light-hearted, filled with lots of music and games and laughter. Celebrities on the panel are known to really let their hair down and share stories they normally wouldn’t. But Saoirse Ronan has gone viral for bringing the laughter to a screeching halt. She was a guest alongside Paul Mescal, Eddie Redmayne and Denzel Washington. The conversation somehow turned to defending yourself from an attack. At one point, Paul mocked the idea of using a cellphone, asking, “Who is actually going to think about that? If someone actually attacked me, I’m not going to go, ‘Phone.’” Host Graham started patting his pockets like he was looking for a phone, joking, “Can you hang on a second?” And then Paul pretended to hold a phone up to his ear, saying, “Sorry, mum, one second. BANG,” pretending to hit someone with his phone. Eddie agreed he had a good point, but then Saoirse interjected, “That’s what girls have to think about all the time.” That stopped the silliness right then and there. Then she asked the audience, “Am I right, ladies?” getting huge applause.

Because of Liam Payne’s tragic death, Britain’s Got Talent has postponed auditions indefinitely. The series is expected to return next year. Meantime, Liam wrapped filming the Netflix talent competition series Building the Band back in August, but Netflix is putting its release on hold for now. A source told the US Sun, “Netflix will sit down with Liam’s family when the time is right to speak about the series and when it could be released. There is no rush or pressure to release the series. It would simply be a beautiful tribute to Liam and capture him at his best in the months before his death.”

 

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