Carrie Underwood gets emotional on ‘American Idol,' says it can be ‘difficult' to share your faith

Sex, lies and small-town scandal. No wonder ‘The Hunting Wives' is a Netflix hit.

Yahoo

41 minutes ago

Yahoo

Sex, lies and small-town scandal. No wonder ‘The Hunting Wives' is a Netflix hit.

It's part soapy drama, part erotic thriller and a whole lot of fun. Don't take it too seriously. When The Hunting Wives star Jaime Ray Newman was on a small ferry outside of Vancouver Island last week, she learned firsthand just how much buzz the sexy drama has created. Newman, who plays fiery, red-haired Texan Callie, overheard a group of friends debating what to binge-watch next. When one of them mentioned The Hunting Wives, two women on the boat who weren't part of the group interjected: "Oh my God, we just finished that. Have you seen it yet?" "All of a sudden, the whole boat started talking about the damn Hunting Wives," Newman tells Yahoo. She had changed her hair since the show came out, so she wasn't immediately recognizable. But when a producer she was with pointed her out to the group, they started to freak out. "All of a sudden, I was Julia Roberts on the boat. Everyone wanted selfies." It's a clear sign of how The Hunting Wives is the show of the moment. Last week, it pulled in over 2 billion minutes viewed on Netflix, according to data analytics platform Luminate. That was more than double its debut week numbers, an impressive accomplishment for a show licensed for only U.S. streaming. It remains in Netflix's Top 10. Based on May Cobb's bestselling novel, the series follows Sophie (Brittany Snow), who moves with her family from Boston to Texas. As she settles into the small town, Sophie becomes dangerously entangled with a socialite named Margo (Malin Akerman), spiraling into obsession, seduction and murder. Politics, guns and a touch of campy dialogue are thrown in too. Beyond the premise, what's so resonant about this raunchy series? The shock factor From steamy scenes to unexpected plot twists, The Hunting Wives pushes the envelope. That's especially true with how the series explores sex. There's the unconventional marital arrangement between Margo and her husband, Jed Banks — a debauched oil tycoon played by Dermot Mulroney — which allows them both to sleep with other women. And they both do … a lot. Akerman's character ultimately shares intimate moments with both Snow's and Newman's. There's also a storyline of her sleeping with the son of her best friend, a barely legal teen. Aside from 2021's Sex/Life, this might be the most risqué original series Netflix has ever released. Up until just two months ago, The Hunting Wives was actually slated to premiere on Starz. As Snow told Glamour, the cast filmed the series believing it would land with a smaller audience and potentially become a 'cult classic.' But Netflix changed the equation — and with a much bigger streaming audience comes a lot more opinions. As for the nudity, yes, it's meant to be provocative. 'Nobody who puts this many naked people on TV does it entirely for educational or creative purposes,' Linda Holmes wrote for NPR, while also pointing out how 'everybody seems to be having a transparently great time.' Snow told Glamour she didn't find that nude scenes were 'gratuitously done, where we're showing this shot of a woman's body for no reason.' 'It's all part of the story that needs to be told, specifically because of Margo's coercion and power and making these moves on Sophie, the sex scenes need to happen because Margo uses her sexuality and prowess to make sure that Sophie feels like she's finally being seen,' she said. This show isn't just buzzy because of the sex, although Episode 7's pegging scene might be the most jaw-dropping moment of them all. "Respectfully, the entire meat of the series is its indescribable, inescapable, horniness,' Rolling Stone says. There are plenty of wild antics that make The Hunting Wives an unhinged binge. In one episode, the hunting wives load up for a boar hunt, and after Callie calmly finishes one off, the women celebrate with a boozy brunch of mimosas, gossip and a game of never-have-I-ever that ends with a manslaughter confession. That abruptly ends the party … until two characters embark on an alcohol-and-Xanax rager and invite younger men over for a game of spin the bottle. There's also enough political satire to ruffle both sides of the aisle. Akerman has said her character was inspired by Melania Trump, and an abortion storyline comes with a side of anti-abortion posturing. Critics have called it a 'bonkers, bisexual culture-war soap,' with each episode going further than expected. While all that chaos keeps the entertainment dialed all the way up, it's part of the show's charm. This isn't a prestige drama like Succession or The Crown — it's your new guilty pleasure, dripping in scandal and served with a cold glass of whiskey. Beneath the sex, power plays and whodunit murder mystery, The Hunting Wives knows exactly what it is: a glossy, high-octane escape that doesn't take itself too seriously. Escapism at its finest With its biting one-liners — "she's a coastal elite with a body count" or "open marriages are for liberals" — chaotic Southern style, The Hunting Wives is about having a good time. "There are serious things that we're dealing with, but we come off the [storylines] quickly. We want to entertain," Newman says, crediting showrunner Rebecca Cutter for this no-holds-barred approach. "Oftentimes shows pussyfoot a little bit. They're a little too scared to upset this group, a little scared to upset that demographic. So they end up just playing it so down the middle, and Rebecca has no fear," Newman continues. "She threads that very delicate needle. Every now and then, you get a writer who comes along who just speaks to everyone.' The Hunting Wives certainly speaks to a female audience. The show offers complex, unapologetic characters who break the mold, telling stories that entertain an often-overlooked demographic. Although Sex and the City paved the way in 1998, it's rare to find TV shows centered on female desire and ambition, especially when it comes to portraying women over the age of 40. SATC spin-off And Just Like That... was recently canceled after three seasons, highlighting the challenge of sustaining these narratives. The Hunting Wives rises to the occasion, offering a bold exploration of women navigating power, intimacy and self-discovery without hesitation. 'Why can't women talk about wanting to have sex and be pleased?" Newman asks. 'Most stories are centered around men's pleasure, but finally, we get to be the forefront of these stories. So I think it's about time." This perspective in storytelling is speaking to audiences, especially as women are increasingly demanding their voices and experiences be heard. "Thank God we have writers like Rebecca to clear the way for us. People are so interested,' Newman says. 'You can see that [portraying] women in their 40s garners huge audiences." Will there be a Season 2? There's no official word yet on whether Netflix plans to greenlight a second season, but if the show stays at the top of the charts and the tip of everyone's tongues, it's hard to imagine why the streaming giant wouldn't invest. Newman says the cast and crew all hope it happens. "I cannot express enough the bond that we all had on this set. There was not a bad apple among the bunch. It's very rare to experience that. We all came into the show very seasoned,' she says. 'That is also the benefit of casting women who've been around for a long time. We've all seen good behavior and bad behavior on set." Newman is happy to leave the bad behavior on your TV screens. If that offends you, too bad. "Listen, maybe there are a few people that this angers, but whatever," she says. "Find another show." Solve the daily Crossword

Taylor Swift's Podcast Appearance Was Packed With Health Wisdom. The Recovery Tools and Tests She Shared Are Game-Changers.

Yahoo

3 hours ago

Yahoo

Taylor Swift's Podcast Appearance Was Packed With Health Wisdom. The Recovery Tools and Tests She Shared Are Game-Changers.

"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links." Taylor Swift just appeared on New Heights with her boyfriend and show co-host Travis Kelce. During the two-hour recording, Taylor shared all kinds of health and wellness tidbits from herself and her loved ones. Here's everything you need to know, from her post-tour recovery tactics to her new baking obsession. The world is still reeling from Taylor Swift's viral appearance on her boyfriend Travis Kelce's podcast, New Heights, on Wednesday, where she not only announced a new album (!) coming out in October, but also shared lots of insider details about her life and career. It was fun, it was super insightful, and it might have been the longest anyone has ever heard the pop star speak in public. In short, it was all kinds of magical. And while the 35-year-old talked a lot about random things (like her current obsession with making sourdough and supporting Travis' quest to adopt a wild otter), she also dropped plenty of health and wellness nuggets from her life and her loved ones. From her tour recovery, to her dad's health conditions, and new favorite food, Taylor was super open. Here is everything we learned about Taylor's health on the podcast episode. She has had Lasik eye surgery. Taylor casually threw in that nugget while talking about seeing the traditions her fans started doing in the audience during the Eras tour. 'I've had Lasik,' she said. This actually isn't new news: Taylor previously shared information about her surgery in October of 2019 on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, even revealing video of her groggy self that her mom filmed post-surgery. Apparently those surgical results are holding strong nearly six years later, because Taylor shared that she could see plenty from the audience during her tour. She's currently obsessed with baking sourdough loaves. In case you weren't aware, Tay's big into baking. And on the episode, Taylor spoke a lot about her latest baking obsession post-Eras Tour—sourdough bread—pointing out that she reads recipe blogs and has gotten Travis involved with the stretch-and-folds portion. She walked co-host Jason Kelce through all of the sourdough variations she's tried so far (cinnamon swirl or blueberry lemon, anyone?) and even revealed that she's workshopping a 'Funfetti' sourdough for Travis' nieces, because they love rainbows. 'Right now, we're very deep in a sourdough obsession that has taken over my life,' she said on the episode. 'I'm talking about bread 60 percent of the time now.' Travis loves the bread, of course, and Taylor shared that she sent him two loaves of sourdough when he was at training camp. She used toe spacers and an acupuncture mat to recover from her shows. It's no secret that the Eras Tour was a grueling experience, but Taylor shared that she had a physical therapy set up to help her get through it. 'It was a lot of physical therapy and it was a lot of being in a state of perpetual discomfort,' she said. Travis said he was surprised at how much her recovery practices looked like his own NFL physical therapy experience. 'The similarities were crazy,' he said. 'I was like, 'Oh my gosh. She does more than I do.'' Taylor went on to say that the couple swap 'physical therapy stories,' and Travis added that they 'related on how much torture we've put our bodies through.' She's spreading the news about a key heart health test. Taylor shared that her dad is doing 'incredibly well' after quintuple bypass surgery, which he underwent after a routine checkup showed he had blockages in his heart. "He's had a perfect [electrocardiogram] every year that he's gone in for physicals. But what found his five hard blockages in his heart was a resting stress test," Taylor shared. Now, her dad is encouraging others to get this test. 'He's been telling all his friends, 'You need to get the stress test,' because that's what's actually preventative. If you can find that earlier, you don't have to have a bypass surgery,' she said. 'You can sort out those blockages with stents and things that are a lot less invasive.' Taylor noted she was sharing the news because she wanted other people to be aware that this test exists. She did a lot of cardio and endurance training leading up to tour. Taylor made it very clear that she doesn't think of herself as an athlete, noting that she doesn't really care if she wins competitions or games based on her physical abilities. But Travis and his brother (and podcast co-host) Jason Kelce were quick to correct her. 'Don't say that,' Jason said. They agree: She's a big athlete. Travis pointed out that he and Taylor have worked out together, and that she did endurance training and cardio to get ready for the Eras Tour. He also gave serious praise for her 'power skip' onstage. 'Have you seen her power skip down a stage in heels?' he said. Travis then claimed that Taylor once threw a 'perfect spiral' football (Pop Queen Taylor disputed that). You Might Also Like Jennifer Garner Swears By This Retinol Eye Cream These New Kicks Will Help You Smash Your Cross-Training Goals

Everyone's watching 'The Hunting Wives.' It's not just because of the sex.

Yahoo

4 hours ago

Yahoo

Everyone's watching 'The Hunting Wives.' It's not just because of the sex.

It's part soapy drama, part erotic thriller and a whole lot of fun. Don't take it too seriously. When The Hunting Wives star Jaime Ray Newman was on a small ferry outside of Vancouver Island last week, she learned firsthand just how much buzz the sexy drama has created. Newman, who plays fiery, red-haired Texan Callie, overheard a group of friends debating what to binge-watch next. When one of them mentioned The Hunting Wives, two women on the boat who weren't part of the group interjected: "Oh my God, we just finished that. Have you seen it yet?" "All of a sudden, the whole boat started talking about the damn Hunting Wives," Newman tells Yahoo. She had changed her hair since the show came out, so she wasn't immediately recognizable. But when a producer she was with pointed her out to the group, they started to freak out. "All of a sudden, I was Julia Roberts on the boat. Everyone wanted selfies." It's a clear sign of how The Hunting Wives is the show of the moment. Last week, it pulled in over 2 billion minutes viewed on Netflix, according to data analytics platform Luminate. That was more than double its debut week numbers, an impressive accomplishment for a show licensed for only U.S. streaming. It remains in Netflix's Top 10. Based on May Cobb's bestselling novel, the series follows Sophie (Brittany Snow), who moves with her family from Boston to Texas. As she settles into the small town, Sophie becomes dangerously entangled with a socialite named Margo (Malin Akerman), spiraling into obsession, seduction and murder. Politics, guns and a touch of campy dialogue are thrown in too. Beyond the premise, what's so resonant about this raunchy series? The shock factor From steamy scenes to unexpected plot twists, The Hunting Wives pushes the envelope. That's especially true with how the series explores sex. There's the unconventional marital arrangement between Margo and her husband, Jed Banks — a debauched oil tycoon played by Dermot Mulroney — which allows them both to sleep with other women. And they both do … a lot. Akerman's character ultimately shares intimate moments with both Snow's and Newman's. There's also a storyline of her sleeping with the son of her best friend, a barely legal teen. Aside from 2021's Sex/Life, this might be the most risqué original series Netflix has ever released. Up until just two months ago, The Hunting Wives was actually slated to premiere on Starz. As Snow told Glamour, the cast filmed the series believing it would land with a smaller audience and potentially become a 'cult classic.' But Netflix changed the equation — and with a much bigger streaming audience comes a lot more opinions. As for the nudity, yes, it's meant to be provocative. 'Nobody who puts this many naked people on TV does it entirely for educational or creative purposes,' Linda Holmes wrote for NPR, while also pointing out how 'everybody seems to be having a transparently great time.' Snow told Glamour she didn't find that nude scenes were 'gratuitously done, where we're showing this shot of a woman's body for no reason.' 'It's all part of the story that needs to be told, specifically because of Margo's coercion and power and making these moves on Sophie, the sex scenes need to happen because Margo uses her sexuality and prowess to make sure that Sophie feels like she's finally being seen,' she said. This show isn't just buzzy because of the sex, although Episode 7's pegging scene might be the most jaw-dropping moment of them all. "Respectfully, the entire meat of the series is its indescribable, inescapable, horniness,' Rolling Stone says. There are plenty of wild antics that make The Hunting Wives an unhinged binge. In one episode, the hunting wives load up for a boar hunt, and after Callie calmly finishes one off, the women celebrate with a boozy brunch of mimosas, gossip and a game of never-have-I-ever that ends with a manslaughter confession. That abruptly ends the party … until two characters embark on an alcohol-and-Xanax rager and invite younger men over for a game of spin the bottle. There's also enough political satire to ruffle both sides of the aisle. Akerman has said her character was inspired by Melania Trump, and an abortion storyline comes with a side of anti-abortion posturing. Critics have called it a 'bonkers, bisexual culture-war soap,' with each episode going further than expected. While all that chaos keeps the entertainment dialed all the way up, it's part of the show's charm. This isn't a prestige drama like Succession or The Crown — it's your new guilty pleasure, dripping in scandal and served with a cold glass of whiskey. Beneath the sex, power plays and whodunit murder mystery, The Hunting Wives knows exactly what it is: a glossy, high-octane escape that doesn't take itself too seriously. Escapism at its finest With its biting one-liners — "she's a coastal elite with a body count" or "open marriages are for liberals" — chaotic Southern style, The Hunting Wives is about having a good time. "There are serious things that we're dealing with, but we come off the [storylines] quickly. We want to entertain," Newman says, crediting showrunner Rebecca Cutter for this no-holds-barred approach. "Oftentimes shows pussyfoot a little bit. They're a little too scared to upset this group, a little scared to upset that demographic. So they end up just playing it so down the middle, and Rebecca has no fear," Newman continues. "She threads that very delicate needle. Every now and then, you get a writer who comes along who just speaks to everyone.' The Hunting Wives certainly speaks to a female audience. The show offers complex, unapologetic characters who break the mold, telling stories that entertain an often-overlooked demographic. Although Sex and the City paved the way in 1998, it's rare to find TV shows centered on female desire and ambition, especially when it comes to portraying women over the age of 40. SATC spin-off And Just Like That... was recently canceled after three seasons, highlighting the challenge of sustaining these narratives. The Hunting Wives rises to the occasion, offering a bold exploration of women navigating power, intimacy and self-discovery without hesitation. 'Why can't women talk about wanting to have sex and be pleased?" Newman asks. 'Most stories are centered around men's pleasure, but finally, we get to be the forefront of these stories. So I think it's about time." This perspective in storytelling is speaking to audiences, especially as women are increasingly demanding their voices and experiences be heard. "Thank God we have writers like Rebecca to clear the way for us. People are so interested,' Newman says. 'You can see that [portraying] women in their 40s garners huge audiences." Will there be a Season 2? There's no official word yet on whether Netflix plans to greenlight a second season, but if the show stays at the top of the charts and the tip of everyone's tongues, it's hard to imagine why the streaming giant wouldn't invest. Newman says the cast and crew all hope it happens. "I cannot express enough the bond that we all had on this set. There was not a bad apple among the bunch. It's very rare to experience that. We all came into the show very seasoned,' she says. 'That is also the benefit of casting women who've been around for a long time. We've all seen good behavior and bad behavior on set." Newman is happy to leave the bad behavior on your TV screens. If that offends you, too bad. "Listen, maybe there are a few people that this angers, but whatever," she says. "Find another show." Solve the daily Crossword

Carrie Underwood gets emotional on ‘American Idol,' says it can be ‘difficult' to share your faith

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Sex, lies and small-town scandal. No wonder ‘The Hunting Wives' is a Netflix hit.

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Everyone's watching 'The Hunting Wives.' It's not just because of the sex.

Carrie Underwood gets emotional on ‘American Idol,' says it can be ‘difficult' to share your faith

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Sex, lies and small-town scandal. No wonder ‘The Hunting Wives' is a Netflix hit.

Taylor Swift's Podcast Appearance Was Packed With Health Wisdom. The Recovery Tools and Tests She Shared Are Game-Changers.

Everyone's watching 'The Hunting Wives.' It's not just because of the sex.

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