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The Age
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The Age
All US television is Trumpy now, even when it's not
In the original SATC era we wanted to join the wealthy and aspirational foursome for a drink, but now the zeitgeist has turned. The television shows that feel most relevant to the moment, and which are the most engaging, are all about the suffering and the immorality of the super-rich. It feels more comfortable, now, to reassure ourselves that while billionaires and tech-bro oligarchs appear to be running the world, they're living lives of miserable inauthenticity. It started with Succession, a brilliant and darkly funny exposition of the ways in which inherited wealth can corrupt family relationships. The creator of Succession, Jesse Armstrong, has just released a movie, Mountainhead, about a foursome of tech billionaires who hole up in a mountain mansion in Utah as the world seems to be ending. More recently we have Your Friends & Neighbours, starring Mad Men's Jon Hamm, a square-jawed hero of all-American good looks but with just enough despair in his face to hint at inner spiritual desolation. Hamm plays Coop, a one-percenter hedge fund manager enraged by his divorce (his wife left him for his good friend), who loses his job after a low-level sexual indiscretion at work. In order to maintain his lifestyle (which includes $4500 skin treatments for his daughter and $30,000 tables at charity galas), he resorts to stealing from his friends and neighbours. These people, who live in a fictional, highly manicured wealth conclave outside New York City, are so obscenely rich that they have $200,000 watches and rolls of cash lying around in drawers. Hamm does what he has to do – he becomes a cat burglar with a cynical philosophy. Loading Coop is just a man trying to get by, and if that doesn't involve selling his Maserati, or getting a new (albeit less well paid) job, then it is a testament to the show's good writing that we are still with him, even when we question his attachment to a lifestyle he purports to disdain. Another new American show, Sirens, stars Julianne Moore as the beautiful philanthropist wife of a billionaire hedge-fund manager, who is summering in her uber-mansion (it has a turret) on an unnamed east-coast big-money island similar to Nantucket or Martha's Vineyard. She has a creepy, co-dependent relationship with her young personal assistant, who comes from poverty and dysfunction but who is loved in a way her wealthy boss never will be. Of course, these shows have a buck each way – they seek to satirise the super-rich and expose the underlying emptiness of their lives, while allowing us the vicarious experience of living in their luxury for an hour or so. The Hollywood Reporter calls it 'affluence porn'. We get access to the calfskin-lined interior of the private jet. We get to enjoy the week-long wedding festivities in Tuscany and gawp at the marvellous outfits, all while judging the protagonists for their materialism. In AJLT the materialism is not there to be judged; it is an integral part of the fun. Perhaps AJLT feels off because the writing is bad, and the plot lines so tired that dogs must be enlisted to prop up the action. Or maybe it is because in the second Trump administration the US political environment has become so oppressive and so inescapable that no story feels true unless it references it, however obliquely.
Sydney Morning Herald
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
All US television is Trumpy now, even when it's not
In the original SATC era we wanted to join the wealthy and aspirational foursome for a drink, but now the zeitgeist has turned. The television shows that feel most relevant to the moment, and which are the most engaging, are all about the suffering and the immorality of the super-rich. It feels more comfortable, now, to reassure ourselves that while billionaires and tech-bro oligarchs appear to be running the world, they're living lives of miserable inauthenticity. It started with Succession, a brilliant and darkly funny exposition of the ways in which inherited wealth can corrupt family relationships. The creator of Succession, Jesse Armstrong, has just released a movie, Mountainhead, about a foursome of tech billionaires who hole up in a mountain mansion in Utah as the world seems to be ending. More recently we have Your Friends & Neighbours, starring Mad Men's Jon Hamm, a square-jawed hero of all-American good looks but with just enough despair in his face to hint at inner spiritual desolation. Hamm plays Coop, a one-percenter hedge fund manager enraged by his divorce (his wife left him for his good friend), who loses his job after a low-level sexual indiscretion at work. In order to maintain his lifestyle (which includes $4500 skin treatments for his daughter and $30,000 tables at charity galas), he resorts to stealing from his friends and neighbours. These people, who live in a fictional, highly manicured wealth conclave outside New York City, are so obscenely rich that they have $200,000 watches and rolls of cash lying around in drawers. Hamm does what he has to do – he becomes a cat burglar with a cynical philosophy. Loading Coop is just a man trying to get by, and if that doesn't involve selling his Maserati, or getting a new (albeit less well paid) job, then it is a testament to the show's good writing that we are still with him, even when we question his attachment to a lifestyle he purports to disdain. Another new American show, Sirens, stars Julianne Moore as the beautiful philanthropist wife of a billionaire hedge-fund manager, who is summering in her uber-mansion (it has a turret) on an unnamed east-coast big-money island similar to Nantucket or Martha's Vineyard. She has a creepy, co-dependent relationship with her young personal assistant, who comes from poverty and dysfunction but who is loved in a way her wealthy boss never will be. Of course, these shows have a buck each way – they seek to satirise the super-rich and expose the underlying emptiness of their lives, while allowing us the vicarious experience of living in their luxury for an hour or so. The Hollywood Reporter calls it 'affluence porn'. We get access to the calfskin-lined interior of the private jet. We get to enjoy the week-long wedding festivities in Tuscany and gawp at the marvellous outfits, all while judging the protagonists for their materialism. In AJLT the materialism is not there to be judged; it is an integral part of the fun. Perhaps AJLT feels off because the writing is bad, and the plot lines so tired that dogs must be enlisted to prop up the action. Or maybe it is because in the second Trump administration the US political environment has become so oppressive and so inescapable that no story feels true unless it references it, however obliquely.
Elle
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Elle
'Your Friends & Neighbors' Was Already Renewed for Season 2—and James Marsden Is Joining
Apple TV+'s newest show, Your Friends & Neighbors, puts Jon Hamm back on the small screen in his first leading TV role since the Emmy-winning series Mad Men, where he portrayed the successful advertising exec Don Draper. Now, Hamm plays Andrew 'Coop' Cooper, a flailing hedge-fund manager who begins stealing from his affluent neighbors after he loses his job (and his wife, played by Amanda Peet). While season 1 comes to a close with today's finale, we're already anticipating the next one. Here's what we know about season 2 of Your Friends & Neighbors so far. Yes! Back in November, before season 1 even premiered, it was announced that Your Friends & Neighbors had already been renewed for another season. 'It's a wonderful honor,' Hamm told Forbes when asked about the unprecedented move. 'It is a tremendous vote of confidence, obviously, and honestly, they've never done it before, so we were the first one. It's a tremendous feather in our cap. It means we're doing something right.' The show's creator and executive producer, Jonathan Tropper, feels the same way. 'The support from everyone at Apple has been phenomenal,' he told The Hollywood Reporter, 'and the fact that they've ordered a second season before we aired our first is an incredible validation and a tribute to the work of this stellar cast, crew, writers, directors and producers who worked so hard to make this show what it is.' Jon Hamm is set to return for the second season, along with series regulars Peet, Olivia Munn, Hoon Lee, Mark Tallman, Lena Hall, Aimee Carrero, Eunice Bae, Isabel Gravitt, and Donovan Colan. And according to Deadline, season 2's cast will expand to include James Marsden, Arienne Mandi, Erin Robinson, and Bre Blair in recurring roles. Hamm, who also serves as an executive producer, played a huge role in casting some of the show's bigger names. 'He's got a pretty good list of contacts in his phone, and any time we needed to get to someone, usually Jon knew them pretty well,' said Tropper. 'I wanted to cast Amanda Peet. I wanted to cast Olivia Munn. I don't think any of that happens if Hamm wasn't producing the show with me.' Yes. According to THR, season 2 is currently being filmed. Not yet, but stay tuned. This story will be updated.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Jon Hamm Admits He Would Have Done Anything for Role in 'Top Gun: Maverick'
Jon Hamm had no problem not being the 'star' of the 2022 action film Top Gun: Maverick. On the heels of his massive success on the AMC drama series Mad Men, the actor told GQ magazine that he just wanted to work on projects that were meaningful to him. 'I knew it would be unlikely to have another experience like Mad Men,' Hamm told the outlet in a May 2025 interview. 'And I was okay with that. Some people don't even get the one. So I got one. I got all the awards I needed. [After it ended] I was like, 'I'm good.' I just want to work with people I find compelling.' Hamm also revealed that he did what he had to do to get cast in the 2022 Top Gun sequel. 'That was an interesting one, because there's no mistaking who's the star of that movie,' he said of the film's lead, Tom Cruise. 'I saw the original film when I was 14 years old. So, I would've f---ing made coffee on that set.' 'My agents were like, 'I don't know—it's not a very big part. Do you really want to do this?'' the actor added. 'And I go, 'Dude, it's Top Gun 2. Like, what?' That movie meant a lot to me personally. I told them, 'If you guys f--- this deal, you're all fired.'' In the sequel to the 1986 film Top Gun, Hamm played Vice Admiral Beau 'Cyclone' Simpson opposite Cruise's Captain Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell. The film, released in May 2022, was a massive box office hit, grossing $1.48 billion worldwide, per CNBC. Cruise has not ruled out a third run for the Top Gun franchise. In May 2025, he told the Today Show Australia he had several ideas in the works. 'We're thinking and talking about many different stories and what could we do and what's possible. It took me 35 years to figure out Top Gun: Maverick, so all of these things we're working on, we're discussing Days of Thunder and Top Gun: Maverick,' the actor said.
Boston Globe
3 days ago
- Sport
- Boston Globe
The Endicott baseball team is back in the Division III World Series, and hoping to improve on past performances
'We haven't succeeded the way we want to in the World Series to this point,' he said. Last season, Endicott lost its first game at the World Series to Lynchburg, then defeated Ponoma-Pitzer before being eliminated by Misericordia in the double-elimination bracket. Two years ago, Endicott reached the final eight, but then lost two in a row. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Haley wants the starting pitching to set a stronger tone. Righthander Charlie Hale is leading the efforts on the mound with a 2.04 ERA, 86 strikeouts, and 13 wins. Righthander Evan Scully is 10-0 with a 2.05 ERA. Advertisement The Gulls, who are on a 12-game winning streak, have a .453 team on-base percentage, a .343 team batting average, and have hit 70 home runs. Endicott won the Conference of New England title. Infielder AJ Hamm leads Endicott in batting average at .377. He said the point of emphasis for the players is staying composed and focused in difficult moments. 'Last year definitely was a huge learning experience,' he said. Advertisement This is Hamm's second time playing for a national title and he feels more prepared to compete this year. 'During our losses last year we kind of seemed to feel like we're out of the game and we didn't have a chance,' he said. Haley has preached playing with passion all season to keep his players at their best. He tells his team to 'play like kids' down the stretch of the season. 'We don't lose a lot because we know how to play the game together and for each other,' Hamm said. 'We know exactly what we need to do this week and we're ready to go,' he added. Endicott faces Kean at 10 a.m. on Friday, and the winner will face the winner of a first-round game between Johns Hopkins and Messiah. The Endicott-Kean loser will go into the elimination bracket. Auzzy Byrdsell can be reached at
