‘The Pursuit of Happyness': Freedom Is Founded on Responsibility
It's the everyday practice of happiness as one would cultivate a lifelong conscious state of being, like love or hope. That spirit shines through in
'The Pursuit of Happyness'
In the film, Chris's (Will Smith) bitter separation from his disrespectful and irate wife Linda (Thandiwe Newton) renders him a single parent to his 5-year-old, Christopher Jr. (Jaden Smith).
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Yahoo
21 hours ago
- Yahoo
Will Smith, Jada Pinkett's daughter Willow, 24, sparks concern with crying selfie and racy message
Fans are sounding the alarm after Willow Smith posted a bizarre crying selfie with a sexually explicit message. Will Smith and Jada Pinkett's 24-year-old daughter sparked worry after she took to her Instagram Story on Wednesday to share the strange photo. The 'Meet Me at Our Spot' singer, who's signed to Jay-Z's Roc Nation label, shared a close-up selfie with tears streaming down her face and included a shocking caption that read, 'Who ate all the p – – – y.' Willow has been open about her sexuality, coming out as bisexual in 2019 and later polyamorous. But the weeping photo caused her over 11 million fans on social media to express worry over her well-being. 'Is she ok? She does not seem like she's ok,' one person reacted on X. 'Lmaooo Willow Smith funny asf bc are you ok?!?!?' another worried fan stated. Some attacked Will and Jada's parenting and questioned the Smith family as a whole. 'Will Smith and Jada have utterly failed as parents,' someone wrote. 'Why tf this family always crying,' asked a second. 'Their family is so weird ngl,' shared a third. Others immediately thought Willow was trolling her followers. 'Can we stop taking the Smith kids so seriously? They obviously like to troll,' someone else commented. Hours later, the singer addressed the concern on her Instagram Story. Calling her worried followers 'dense,' Willow told her fans, 'y'all forgot funny existed!' She further insulted them by comparing those who expressed worry to 'molasses … slow but also sweet though.' Willow then clarified her crying selfie, saying the post and caption were funny. Still, some argued that her disturbing mannerisms in the follow-up message didn't settle anyone's troubles. 'Willow smith on them pills,' a follower claimed. 'Oh lawd Willow Smith is crashing out ,' responded another. The Post reached out to Willow's rep for comment. In 2021, the 'Whip My Hair' singer revealed that she identified as 'polyamorous' on an episode of 'Red Table Talk.' Polyamory is defined as engaging in multiple romantic relationships with the consent of all partners involved, per Psychology Today. 'With polyamory,' Willow explained to her mother and grandma, Adrienne 'Gammy' Banfield-Norris. 'I feel like the main foundation is the freedom to be able to create a relationship style that works for you and not just [to be] stepping into monogamy because that's what everyone around you says is the right thing to do. 'So I was like, how can I structure the way that I approach relationships with that in mind? Also, doing research into polyamory, the main [reason] … why divorces happen is infidelity,' she added. Her famous parents married in 1997; however, in 2016, Jada dropped a bomb when she admitted she and Will had been living separate lives for at least seven years. Despite their different paths, a slapping scandal and an 'entanglement' with a different partner, the actress vowed they would never get divorced. 'I made a promise that there will never be a reason for us to get a divorce – we will work through whatever and I just haven't been able to break that promise,' Jada said in the 2023 interview. 'We live separately.' Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
19 Infamous Oscars Scandals And Controversies That Make Me Wish They Had Twitter A Hundred Years Ago
The Oscars are meant to be a yearly celebration of achievements in film, but sometimes, the drama that unfolds during or around the ceremony is way more intense than anything in the award-winning movies. Here are 19 major Oscars scandals and controversial moments from throughout the years: the 2022 Academy Awards, host Chris Rock made a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith's shaved head. Moments later, her husband, Will Smith, infamously got onstage and slapped Chris across the face. Later that night, Will took home the Best Actor award. Watch the full clip below, with this part starting at the 1:05 mark: Four months later, Will addressed the incident in a YouTube video. He said, "I've reached out to Chris, and the message that came back is that he is not ready to talk — and when he is, he will reach out... I will say to you, Chris: I apologize to you. My behavior was unacceptable, and I'm here whenever you're ready to talk... I spent the last three months replaying and understanding the nuances and the complexities of what happened in that moment. I can say to all of you, there is no part of me that thinks that was the right way to behave in that handle a feeling of disrespect or insults." In her memoir Worthy, Jada said, "I thought, 'This is a skit.' ... I was like, 'There's no way that Will hit him. It wasn't until Will started to walk back to his chair that I even realized it wasn't a skit... We had been living separate lives and were there as family, not as husband and wife. But when I hear Will yell 'wife' in the chaos of the moment, an internal shift of 'Oh shit...I am his wife!' happens instantly." presenting the Best Picture Award at the 2017 Oscars, Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty accidentally announced the winner as La La Land instead of Moonlight. However, midway through the cast and crews' acceptance speech, producer Jordan Horowitz was reportedly shown an envelope with the correct winner's title, so he interrupted the speech to ensure Moonlight got their big moment. It turned out that someone had given Warren the wrong envelope, so he and Faye accidentally read the Best Actress winner, which Emma Stone had been awarded immediately prior. Behind the scenes, Warren showed director Barry Jenkins the correct envelope so that he could be confident his film Moonlight was the true winner. Here's the full clip: Billy Crystal hosted the Oscars in 2012, his opening included a pre-filmed skit parodying the Best Picture nominees. In the video, he played Sammy Davis Jr. in blackface. He'd played the singer in a similar manner several times on Saturday Night Live in the '80s. On social media, many viewers rightfully criticized the host and the Academy. Here's the clip: the 2000 Oscars, Angelina Jolie won Best Supporting Actress. In her acceptance speech, she said she was "so in love with" her older brother, James Haven. Later in the night, as they were being photographed ahead of the Vanity Fair afterparty, Angelina and James briefly kissed. It was actually their second red carpet kiss, following a moment from the Golden Globes a few months earlier (which is pictured below). Sibling actors Angelina Jolie and James Haven kiss as they attend the 57th annual Golden Globe Awards at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, Beverly Hills, California, January 24, 2000. (Photo by Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images) A few months later, Angelina told Entertainment Weekly that it was nothing "more than brotherly" between her and James. She said, "My parents really loved that moment, and that's what will always matter." A lot of people made incest jokes about them, including Jay Leno. So, when Angelina appeared on The Tonight Show, she confronted him about it. She said, "I've been waiting for this. When somebody says stuff about your family, it's just not OK. And my mom's just not been OK about the stuff about me and my brother. … Just do me a favor and read these things you've said. I highlighted the two that she really appreciated — it made her sick." Jay read the two jokes she'd highlighted and brought on a piece of paper. When he tried to defend himself, she interrupted him and said, "No, you're not the only one, and it's good of you to jump in with everybody else. Sometimes it's good to just stand up for something." Watch the full video of Angelina's acceptance speech below: the 2013 Oscars, host Seth MacFarlane performed an ill-received opening number called "We Saw Your Boobs," in which he named actors who'd done nude scenes. He also mentioned Scarlett Johansson's nude picture leaks. As he sang, the camera occasionally panned to the women he named, capturing their uncomfortable reactions. Here's the full video: 1974, as host David Niven was introducing presenter Elizabeth Taylor, a completely nude streaker ran across the stage behind him, threw a peace sign, then disappeared. The streaker, Robert Opel, later posed in the press room. He said, "It just occurred to me that it might be an educative thing to do. You know, people shouldn't be ashamed of being nude in public. Besides, it's a hell of a way to launch a career." Afterwards, some viewers had a conspiracy theory that the streaking had been a planned publicity stunt, especially with the host's quick, witty reaction. However, producer Jack Haley Jr. said there was "no way" it could've been planned. He told the New Yorker, "David wouldn't have stood for that." On The Mike Douglas Show, Robert said that he snuck through security using a press pass he got from a friend. He waited around backstage and acted helpful. Then, at the start of the broadcast, he ducked behind some scenery and stripped off his jumpsuit. He remained hidden until the final envelope of the night. Here's the full clip: host Will Rogers announced the Best Director winner at the 1934 Academy Awards, he called out, "Come up and get it, Frank!" So, Lady for a Day director Frank Capra began making his way to the stage — but Will had actually meant Cavalcade director Frank Lloyd. The walk back to his seat was "the longest, saddest, most shattering walk in [his] life." New York Times Co. / Getty Images, Bettmann / Getty Images / Via Getty In his autobiography The Name Above the Title, he wrote, "I wished I could have crawled under the rug like a miserable worm. When I slumped in my chair, I felt like one. All my friends at the table were crying… Sneaking out of the Biltmore, shame soured into bitter, galling anger. I recalled reading Oscar articles to Mama, as she blessed me and cried for joy; sending clippings to my brothers and sisters about my four nominations — which they innocently mistook as winning four awards, and sent back 'Bravo! Bravo!' letters. Big stupido — running up to get an Oscar dying with excitement, only to crawl back dying with shame." the 2003 Academy Awards, Halle Berry presented Adrien Brody with Best Actor. Onstage, he kissed her suddenly and unexpected, and she "just fucking went with it." Appearing on Watch What Happens Live in 2017, Halle said that, when Adrien kissed her, her initial reaction was, 'What the fuck is happening?' She said, "I don't know [if it was a good kiss]. I was too focused on 'What the fuck is going on right now?'' Here's the full clip: 2023, Andrea Riseborough was nominated for Best Actress for To Leslie, which is an indie movie, but her campaign had some people calling for her nom to be rescinded. Mary McCormack, who's married to the movie's director, Michael Morris, reportedly "emailed and called tons of members of the Academy's actors branch, begging them to see the little-watched alcoholic drama and post online about Riseborough's searing performance," according to Puck. In a statement, Academy CEO Bill Kramer said, "The Academy has determined the activity in question does not rise to the level that the film's nomination should be rescinded. However, we did discover social media and outreach campaigning tactics that caused concern. These tactics are being addressed with the responsible parties directly." The Best Actress award ultimately went to Michelle Yeoh. Pickford's first adult role as Norma Besant in Coquette was poorly received, as was the film itself. So, she invited the five Board of Judges members (who chose Oscar winners at the time) to have tea at her legendary Beverly Hills estate, Pickford. In exchange, they named her Best Actress at the 1928–29 Academy Awards. Her obvious bribery resulted in protests. So, as a result, the Academy changed the rules so that all members can vote for who wins. Bette Davis turned town the titular role in Mildred Pierce, her longtime rival Joan Crawford jumped at the chance to take it. In 1946, she won her first and only Oscar for the role — and she famously accepted it from her bed. She reportedly accepted the award from bed because she was "too nervous." very first person to decline their Oscar was screenwriter Dudley Nichols. He was an important figure in the formation of the Screen Writers Guild, the predecessor to the WGA, which sought to provide better protections for screenwriters. In 1935, studios began favoring Screen Playwrights Guild members over SWG members because their interests were more closely aligned. So, when Dudley won Best Original Screenplay in 1936, he declined it on the grounds that "to accept it would be to turn [his] back on nearly 1,000 members of the Screen Writers Guild." Eventually, the National Labor Relations Board had to mediate between the SWG, the SPG, and the studios. They ruled in the SWG's favor, essentially dissolving the rival guild. Several years later, Dudley finally accepted his Oscar. 1973, Marlon Brando won Best Actor for The Godfather, but he famously sent activist and National Native American Affirmative Image Committee president Sacheen Littlefeather to decline the award on his behalf. Both Sacheen and Marlon received a lot of backlash from the press and their peers. However, it was, of course, much worse for Sacheen. For example, she was plagued by false rumors that she wasn't really Apache, and Playboy dug up previously rejected pictures she'd posed for and published a three-page spread. In a 2022 interview with the Academy, she said, "[John Wayne] did not like what I was saying up at the podium. So, he came forth in a rage to physically assault and take me off the stage. And he had to be restrained by six security men in order for that not to happen... [Afterwards] a lot of cheap shots were thrown at me. And there were a lot of rumors, gossip columnists that were trying to make it something that it was not. And I was boycotted from every talk show while people talked about me. I could not and was not allowed to speak for myself. It was as though I was silenced." In 2022, the Academy released a formal apology to Sacheen. David Rubin, the then-president of the Academy, wrote, "The abuse you endured because of this statement was unwarranted and unjustified. The emotional burden you have lived through and the cost to your own career in our industry are irreparable. For too long the courage you showed has been unacknowledged. For this, we offer both our deepest apologies and our sincere admiration." Here's the full clip of Sacheen's speech: 1940, Hattie McDaniel won Best Supporting Actress for Gone with the Wind, making her the first Black Oscar winner. However, the Academy Awards were held at the Ambassador Hotel, which was segregated, so producer David O. Selznick had to get special permission for her to be allowed in. She was still forced to sit in the back of the room, separated from her white costars. After she died, she left the statuette to Howard University. Sadly, it went missing in the 1970s and was never found. However, in 2023, the Academy finally gave the university a replacement of Hattie's Oscar. the Academy announced its 2015 nominees, all 20 of the acting nominees were white. In response, April Reign created the #OscarsSoWhite movement to call out the egregious lack of diversity. She tweeted, "#OscarsSoWhite they asked to touch my hair." By lunchtime, the hashtag was trending. Selma director Ava DuVernay told the New York Times, "It was a catalyst for a conversation about what had really been a decades-long absence of diversity and inclusion." April said, "It could've been a bunch of different things — there were no women in the directors category, there were no visibly disabled people nominated — so #OscarsSoWhite has never just been about race. It's about the underrepresentation of all marginalized groups." Then, in 2016, the acting nominees were once again all white. Many celebrities, including Lupita Nyong'o and George Clooney, joined fans in calling out the Academy. Some, including Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Spike Lee, boycotted the Oscars that year. April told the New York Times, "One time you could call a fluke, two times feels like a pattern." Then-Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs said, "We had already been working toward increasing diversity and inclusion, but we went from first to fourth gear." In response, the Academy announced their plans to double "the number of women and diverse members of the Academy by 2020." In a statement, Cheryl said, "The Academy is going to lead and not wait for the industry to catch up. These new measures regarding governance and voting will have an immediate impact and begin the process of significantly changing our membership composition.' now-defunct Best Motion Picture Story award went to Robert Rich for The Brave One in 1957. However, he wasn't at the ceremony. The producers claimed he was a former GI they met in Germany and that they had no idea what happened to him after they bought the story from him. The Academy looked and looked for Robert. Even Life magazine published a drawing of what he might look like. But no one could find him — and that's because he wasn't a real person. In real life, "Robert Rich" was actually Dalton Trumbo, a well-known screenwriter who'd recently been imprisoned as a member of the Hollywood Ten. His name was on the Hollywood blacklist, a list of people who were barred from working in entertainment for alleged sympathy for or membership in the Communist Party. Dalton kept the ruse up for two years. He even submitted this poem to Life: "Come back, Robert Rich, wherever you are / Return so the ghost can be shriven. / Do you live on the moon? Do you live on a star? / Is that where your legends are scriven?" The situation became a PR crisis for the Academy, who ended up dropping their rule that barred blacklisted creatives from awards nominations. Marisa Tomei won Best Supporting Actress for My Cousin Vinny in 1993, it sparked a decades-long conspiracy theory that presenter Jack Palance had called her name by accident. However, this has been disproven. Her win was a surprise for several reasons. The competition was stacked, she was a newcomer, and her movie was a comedy rather than the typical "Oscar bait." In 2017, Marisa told the New York Times, "It made me quite ashamed, actually. But on the other hand, it's a load of [expletive]. I think it had to do more with the role that I played — that it was comedic and that it wasn't upper class. I think it was more of a classist thing, frankly." She went on to be nominated for Best Supporting Actress two more times, in 2002 and 2009. 1938, Alice Brady wasn't able to accept her Best Supporting Actress award because she was stuck at home with a broken ankle, so a "mystery man" accepted it on her behalf. However, both the man and the Oscar disappeared after that night — or so the story goes. The story fascinated Olivia Rutigliano since she was 12, so, as a college student, she decided to crack the case. While studying at the University of Pennsylvania, she was able to study cases of stolen Oscars thanks to a research grant. An email to the Academy revealed that Alice's case had quietly been solved a decade prior. The "mystery man" actually turned out to be Henry King, who directed Alice in In Old Chicago, the film she was being awarded for. Following the afterparties, Alice's colleagues gave the Oscar to her, and she had to take it to the Academy to be engraved herself. However, Alice died the year after her Oscar win, and the award seemingly disappeared sometime after that. Several years after her search began, Olivia, then a PhD student at Columbia, decided to find the missing Oscar. Eventually, she found out that a Dallas auction house had sold it, though they'd wrongly labeled it as a "replacement" of Alice's original Oscar. However, Olivia was unable to get in touch with the anonymous buyer to tell them the truth. In 2018, she told Mother Jones, "My plan is to keep talking about Alice Brady's not-stolen Oscar and hope that the message gets to them." finally, when Chill Wills was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his role in The Alamo in 1960, he hired publicist W. S. "Bow-Wow" Wojciechowicz. The press agent put out a series of misguided ads, starting with a published list of every Academy member who'd gotten the actor's vote in the past. The second ad listed every member of the Academy alongside a note from Chill, which said, "Win, lose or draw, you're all my cousins and I love you all.'' In response, Groucho Marx placed his own ad proclaiming, "Dear Mr. Chill Wills, I am delighted to be your cousin, but I voted for Sal Mineo." The final and most controversial ad in Chill's Oscar campaign placed his picture over the rest of The Alamo cast. It said, "We of the Alamo cast are praying harder than the real Texans prayed for their lives in the Alamo for Chill Wills to win the Oscar as the best supporting actor. Cousin Chill's acting was great. [Signed] Your Alamo cousins.'' At the Oscars, Bob Hope joked, "I didn't know there was any campaigning until I saw my maid wearing a Chill Wills button." Chill ultimately lost to Peter Ustinov. Solve the daily Crossword
UPI
2 days ago
- UPI
TV review: 'Peacemaker' Season 2 affirms his place in DC universe
1 of 5 | John Cena and Danielle Brooks star in "Peacemaker" Season 2, premiering Thursday on HBO Max. Photo courtesy of HBO Max LOS ANGELES, Aug. 15 (UPI) -- Peacemaker Season 1 proved John Cena's character could lead a whole series after his appearance in the 2021 film The Suicide Squad. Season 2, premiering Aug. 21 on HBO Max, shows there's room for this graphic, raunchy corner of the DC world after creator James Gunn's Superman. The new season opens months after Chris Smith, aka Peacemaker (Cena), killed his own father, the villainous Auggie (Robert Patrick), Chris and his allies have recovered from their recent battle, but things aren't back to normal. Harcourt (Jennifer Holland) regrets hooking up with Chris, an understandable dynamic for co-workers and the will-they-won't-they dynamic of a TV show. This hurts Chris and Cena lets it show. Supporting characters introduced in Gunn's recent Superman appear, triggering Chris' longing to belong and emphasizing how he's still a little too violent and brash for the official superhero teams. Aside from cameos, Gunn refers to Metropolis overtly, but sparingly, so it's not required homework. As the Season 2 trailers showed, Chris also discovers a portal to another dimension where things appear to be better for him. This gives the season an It's A Wonderful Life subplot, but events are still unfolding in the prime dimension. Both Chris and Harcourt follow a downward spiral, including R-rated language, violence and debauchery. Directing the season premiere, Gunn presents this material as skillfully as his big budget, family friendly movies. The hardcore moments really speak to the characters, too. Excess is the point. These people have lost control, and Holland also shows Harcourt's self-destructive denial of her emotional needs. Chris' eagle, Eagly, is excessive too, but he's over the top in defending his loved ones. The consequences of Adebayo (Danielle Brooks) exposing Amanda Waller is felt, and her personal story is not reset either, giving Brooks emotional moments as well. Economos (Steve Agee) is kind of back to his usual avoidant personality, with his demotion in light of Waller's operations being closed down. Peacemaker's story keeps drawing Economos in against his wishes. Adrian (Freddie Stroma) remains Peacemaker's biggest fan, with an endearing confidence in light of his lack of any useful knowledge or skills whatsoever. New characters exclusive to the series join the cast in episode 2. Tim Meadows brings his deadpan to agent Langston Fleury's vulgar posturing, and has an ultimate weakness so absurd it makes no sense. Yet Meadows commits to it and the weakness very quickly becomes relevant. Chris' venture into the alternate dimension suggests what could have been had he made different choices. Viewers will notice in the opening titles that certain actors whose characters have died still appear in the cast, thanks to this alternate dimension. Living the alternate Peacemaker's life is tempting, and even gives Chris a chance to fix relationships that may be beyond repair in his world. This sort of story, however, is always about how our mistakes make us who we are, and Peacemaker explores that too. The payoff comes in later episodes. Gunn's music choices remain impeccable. On Peacemaker, he chooses much deeper cuts than Guardians of the Galaxy, including many wonderful discoveries by Foxy Shazam, so every track warrants using the Shazam! app to identify. This means the opening title sequence has also grown to reflect the expanding Peacemaker world and evolving dynamics of the characters. Details of the opening titles are considered a spoiler and it's the part that warrants the most analysis, but it's not giving away too much to suggest they added a Fred and Ginger element. Comic books are all about showcasing different tones and creative visions within a connected universe. The Marvel world has not really diverged much, except for later Thors and Ant-Mans emphasizing comedy and allowing Deadpool to be R-rated. Peacemaker is darker than Superman in such a striking way that the two have established the goalposts of each spectrum. The rest of Gunn's DC movies and shows can fall somewhere in between, but Peacemaker shows how many characters can traverse both ends, while finding heart and humor in the most extreme moments. Fred Topel, who attended film school at Ithaca College, is a UPI entertainment writer based in Los Angeles. He has been a professional film critic since 1999, a Rotten Tomatoes critic since 2001, and a member of the Television Critics Association since 2012 and the Critics Choice Association since 2023. Read more of his work in Entertainment.
