Category: 5. Entertainment

Blake Lively’s civil rights lawsuit against It Ends With Us co-star Justin Baldoni has suffered a significant setback.

A federal judge has dismissed social media PR executive Jed Wallace and his company, Street Relations Inc., from the case, citing a lack of jurisdiction.

Judge Lewis Liman ruled on Wednesday that Lively failed to establish that Wallace, who operates out of Texas, could be sued in New York, where the lawsuit was filed. “The Wallace Defendants are located in Texas, and Lively has not alleged that they are responsible for any act that would subject them to jurisdiction in New York,” the court documents stated.

Lively had accused Wallace of working with Baldoni’s PR team to orchestrate a “digital smear campaign” against her. The actress claimed that Wallace “weaponized a digital army” to seed and promote negative content in retaliation after she filed a sexual harassment and retaliation complaint against Baldoni with the California Civil Rights Department in December 2024.

Wallace, who has denied all allegations, filed his own defamation lawsuit against Lively in February. His attorney, Chip Babcock, welcomed the dismissal, stating that Wallace appreciated the judge’s “thoughtful and thorough opinion.”

Lively still has the option to pursue her claims against Wallace in a different jurisdiction or amend her complaint. Meanwhile, she is expected to be deposed by Baldoni’s legal team later this week.

Her legal representatives maintain that Wallace’s lawsuit is “transparent retaliation” for her speaking out and said they look forward to holding him accountable in federal court.

This development is part of a larger legal battle unfolding between the two stars of the upcoming film It Ends With Us.

Ali Abbas recently discussed how he dealt with his father and veteran actor Waseem Abbas’s second marriage to co-star Saba Hamid. Making an appearance on Excuse Me with Ahmad Ali Butt, Ali talked about the challenges of taking care of his siblings and feeling anger towards his father.

Reflecting on his difficult childhood years, Ali revealed, “When he(my father) got married again, our bond broke. I was around eleven or twelve at the time, and I was very upset.”

“Being the eldest, I had to look after two sisters and a brother. I realised that I had to become a parent to my siblings, as my father would no longer be investing time in us, and my mother was going through depression,” he added.

Ali’s father married fellow actor Saba Hamid in 1993. At the time, Saba was already divorced and had two kids, Meesha and Faris Shafi. The actor was worried at the time that this marriage would make him preoccupied with his new family.

Despite the anger he felt, Ali realised that he needed to be mature about the situation. “I am the one who always chooses to be part of the solution, not the problem.” he said. “I knew I had to take care of my siblings. I also developed a rift with my father. However, I eventually realised that the biggest victim in this situation was my father, who was also suffering because of this separation.”

He shared some thoughts about how parents usually deal with problems. “I’ve come to see that the men at that time did not share their problems. They were really strong that way. Because they didn’t really open up, it was difficult for us to understand what they were going through.”

Ali further said, “My father had already married and it was done now. Meanwhile, he is the one who is caught up between all of it. He is the one who is not at peace. As a son, I realised, it is my duty to listen to him, that is the least I can do.”

All was not doomed. Ali shared how he began working to repair their relationship, “I read somewhere that if someone is going through something, just let them talk about their problems. You can’t fix them. But they will feel that half their worries are gone only by listening to them.I then began talking to him, and he started sharing his problems with me.”

Things are better for the two of them now. Ali said, “Since then, I’ve developed a bond with him.”

“Blackpink in your area”: This tag line is sending many K-pop fans wild with excitement. Blackpink is more than a girl group — they’re a real movement, a lifestyle, a cultural phenomenon.

As per DW, since their debut in 2016, the South Korean girl group Blackpink has risen to become one of the top pop exports worldwide — and they are not just travelling the globe as musicians. Jisoo, Jennie, Rosé and Lisa take on alternating roles as fashion icons, brand ambassadors and influencers, too.

Their Deadline World Tour, which is whisking them across the globe on the big stage, kicked off on July 5.

Six days later, they also released a single, Jump, their first new track in three years.

The new banger reminds some music fans of the 1997 Berlin Love Parade track, Meet Her at the Love Parade, by German DJ Da Hool.

“Girlfriend sends me the Blackpink song, I send girlfriend Da Hool back. Glad I’m not the only one who thought of this song [and whose] brain instantly flashed back to the ’90s,” wrote one user under the official video of the 1997 track.

‘Korean wave’

Blackpink was founded by YG Entertainment — one of the biggest companies in the K-pop industry. As is common in South Korea, the young women underwent years of training in singing, dance, languages and stage presence.

Their debut, a double single featuring the songs Boombayah and Whistle, came out in 2016. The combination of electronic beats, spoken singing, catchy refrains and lyrics in Korean and English was a sensational hit — even outside of Asia.

With their music, elaborate music videos and a very distinct style concept, Blackpink quickly rose to become one of the most successful K-pop groups of all time. Their breakthrough epitomises the “Korean wave” (in Korean hallyu) — the international rise in South Korean culture since the 2000s.

Despite Blackpink’s success and the impending comeback of the boy group BTS, this music genre hasn’t been booming as much in recent years, according to Adam Zulawnik, a researcher and teaching specialist in Korean Studies at the University of Melbourne. But he adds that the South Korean entertainment industry is extremely resilient and innovative – not least thanks to special support from the government. The aim is not only to boost the economy, but especially to pursue the national strategy for so-called soft power: This sector is meant to help reinforce South Korea’s positive image through cultural exports such as K-pop or Korean Netflix series.

Four personalities

Unlike many other K-pop groups, Blackpink features just four members – and each one has their own special vibe.

Jennie, who grew up in New Zealand, is known for her fashion style and her role as a brand ambassador for Chanel. Jisoo is the group’s visual icon and is also a successful actor. Rosé was born in New Zealand, grew up in Australia, and enthralls audiences with her soulful voice and melancholic style. Lisa, originally from Thailand, enthuses audiences with her precise dancing skills and international social media presence.

This diversity has enabled the group to appeal to a broad variety of target groups worldwide — both through their music and visually.

“Many South Korean artists have, indeed, either transcended or perhaps even discarded a certain ‘Korean’ness’ in favour of a more general artistic style,” Adam Zulawnik told DW. “A prime example would be Blackpink’s Rosé and Bruno Mars’ fairly recent hit single APT, a tune that you would hardly associate with traditional forms of K-pop or anything Korean save the title/theme and Bruno Mars enthusiastically waving a South Korean flag mid shot — in fact, many netizens saw the more general ‘pop/rock’ style as refreshing.”

Fashion and beauty

Blackpink is famous for more than their music — they’re also big-name fashion and beauty influencers. All four members collaborate with international luxury brands, including Dior, Chanel, Saint Laurent or Celine, alongside cosmetic brands like MAC or Hera. Fans imitate their looks all over the world.

The overlap between pop culture and the fashion industry stems from the South Korean entertainment industry’s comprehensive marketing strategy. Zulawnik lists some examples, “from BTS meals at McDonald’s in Australia to 17 branded snacks in the People’s Republic of China.”

He adds that this is particularly visible in Southeast Asia — one of the primary markets for the K-pop industry — with various collaborative projects between K-pop groups and local brands and businesses.

A crucial component of Blackpink’s success is their strong online presence. The girl group runs one of the top YouTube channels in the world. More than 90 million people follow them for their music videos, rehearsal clips and a peek into their lives.

On platforms such as Instagram, TikTok or the Korean fan platform Weverse, the group maintains close contact with their fan community — the “Blinks.” This digital proximity to their community amplifies their impact, making them appear approachable without losing their glamor factor.

For a long time, boy groups dominated the South Korean music business but Blackpink has permanently changed that. They show that girl groups can enjoy international success without conforming to stereotypical roles. They radiate self-confidence, professionalism and creativity — making them role models for many artists-to-be.

They have also influenced many other K-pop groups with their formula of a small group with distinct profiles, a limited number of successful releases and global public relations. The so-called Blackpink effect is now an established concept in the sector, meaning the four young women remain an influential force for pop culture — as they will show fans worldwide during the Deadline World Tour.

What’s it like picking up where you left off with a co-worker from 28 years ago? If your name is Tazeen Hussain and that co-worker is fellow actor Faisal Rehman, then the answer is very simple: it is as if no time has passed by at all.

“It felt not like 28 years, but 28 minutes. Or 28 seconds!” recalled Tazeen about her onscreen husband from Qarze Jaan (2024) in a resurfaced clip from The Rafay Mahmood podcast. Eagle-eyed fans of classics from Pakistani television will recall the pair from Shahpar (1997). But although 1997 may be locked away in the previous century, Tazeen is adamant that the Faisal of today is no different from the Faisal she remembers from almost three decades ago.

“Faisal hasn’t changed much, and he told me I haven’t changed much!” continued Tazeen. “He is a riot to work with. That’s how it was before, and that’s how it is now.”

According to Tazeen, the effervescent energy Faisal brings to the set is rooted in his love for thinking on his feet. “A lot of our scenes have a lot of improvisations. He’s amazing with that,” she explained.

Tazeen is adamant that her long-time co-star is also adept at tweaking a scene before anyone can quash his ideas. “He’s very clever!” admitted Tazeen. “He knows if he tells [me what he is up to], I won’t agree! So he just does it on camera!”

However much she may be taken by surprise during a shoot, Tazeen’s chemistry with Faisal is such that she is able to draw on instinct during her scenes with him. “My reaction to him would be totally natural,” admitted the actor.

Having cultivated this shared history and fun-loving chemistry with her seasoned co-star, Tazeen credited Faisal for allowing her to feel comfortable behind the camera, even when she experienced inner turmoil at the demands of a scene.

“You know my wedding night sequence [in Qarze Jaan]? I was so stressed over it, and I told [director] Saqib [Khan] that I couldn’t do it, it was too awkward. But he got me to calm down and shot it beautifully. And it became what it did because Faisal was with me. It is so important to have a relaxed relationship with the actor you are working with.”

In Tazeen’s experience, the fact that Faisal exudes this air of comfort, coupled with his refusal to belittle anyone he works with, combine together to make working with him a joy.

“He respects all his co-stars, whether they are new or experienced. That, and he owns what he is doing and he is totally shameless and unapologetic about it. That’s what makes him what he is!”

Immersive installations could be a gateway into the world of visual arts for young people, according to George the Poet, who said the new technology removes traditional barriers that have historically excluded certain groups.

George the Poet, the award-winning podcaster and spoken-word performer, has worked with a group of young people from the Mayor of London’s violence reduction unit, who he helped reinterpret classic works of art.

The Scream by Edvard Munch, Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee by Rembrandt, the Great Wave off Kanagawa by Hokusai and The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch will all be shown during the summer as part of Art of Expression in Frameless, an immersive art space in London.

He said: “When it comes to immersive art, there are no barriers to entry. You don’t need a language for this. It’s accessible in many ways.

“Sometimes it gets exhausting reading all of the texts of all the artworks that you find interesting. But in an immersive setting, you literally come and sit in some art.”

George the Poet chose Reflections on the Thames by John Atkinson Grimshaw, the enduring image of the moonlit river that runs through the centre of London.

Alongside the immersive artwork that will be projected on to the walls, ceiling and floor of the space, are spoken-word pieces about the paintings, which were developed during workshops.

The poet, who has worked with offenders in prison, believes art can broaden horizons.

He said: “A lot of the conflict that I saw growing up was exacerbated by the feeling of not being able to leave the community, not being able to see beyond our immediate environment. One way to combat that is to invite new experiences.”

A new piece of research was commissioned as part of the project, which surveyed 2,000 young people, asking them about their views on art and accessibility.

It found that almost two-thirds of young people want more access to art, while a quarter said that art galleries “can be intimidating”.

Nearly half said that historical art is not relevant to their modern lives, and when asked if they considered a career in the arts, 40% stated they did “not know where to start”.

Tafari Clarke, a member of the Young People’s Action Group at the violence reduction unit, said: “Being an artist isn’t really glamorised like being a lawyer or being a footballer. For me, art was definitely outside the box.”

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Access to the arts differs greatly depending on someone’s class background.

Sutton Trust research released last year found the creative industries were dominated by people from the most affluent backgrounds, which it defined as those from “upper middle-class backgrounds”, while a Netflix report claimed working-class parents did not see film and TV as a viable career for their children.

The proportion of working-class actors, musicians and writers has shrunk by half since the 1970s, according to one piece of research, while another study found fewer than one in 10 arts workers in the UK had working-class roots.

Guardian analysis from earlier this year found that almost a third (30%) of artistic directors and other creative leaders were privately educated, compared with a national average of just 7%.

George the Poet said improving access to the arts is beneficial for young people and arts institutions themselves. “When you give a young person the confidence to explore their own artistic interests, it does untold things for their mental health, it has untold benefits for their confidence and their ability to express themselves,” he said.

“And then with these institutions, it brings them into the future. The future is our young people. And if our young people don’t feel like they are custodians of these arts and these institutions, then it seems to me we would be moving backwards.”

A person who was present when the mainstage caught fire at Tomorrowland 2025 on Wednesday (July 16) describes the scene as one of “disbelief.”

Kay Soesbergen works for a company that does catering for festivals in the Netherlands and Belgium, where Tomorrowland happens in the town of Boom. He tells Billboard he was working in a vending area of the festival’s camping area, called DreamVille, when he saw someone filming in the direction of the mainstage, located across the site.

“I looked [in that direction] and saw a really big [cloud] of smoke coming from the festival area,” Soesbergen tells Billboard. “That’s kind of when we were like, ‘Okay, something is wrong.’ But then the fireworks start going off, and then we knew it was really wrong. Then I got a call from one of my supervisors who told me that it was the mainstage on fire.”

As Soesbergen describes it, and as heard in widely shared videos of the fire as it burned, the sound of fireworks could be heard going off as the fire consumed the stage and everything on it, burning the massive structure down to its scaffolding.

Soesbergen says that at this point, he and his colleagues were instructed to gather in a holding area for food and beverage supplies while firefighters put out the blaze, which Soesbergen estimates took approximately two to three hours. He says he and other staff stayed there until approximately 8:30 p.m. local time, after a festival press conference and a staff briefing on next steps. At that point, he was allowed to leave the site.

He adds that the mood on site shifted after he and other vendors saw firefighters refilling their water near the vending area, and “we kind of saw [among them] that they had the situation under control, so we got a little bit more relaxed.”

During the press conference, Tomorrowland’s longtime spokeswoman Debby Wilmsen said that the plan is for the festival to go on as scheduled starting Friday (July 18), but that it will be without the mainstage this weekend as well as the second weekend of Tomorrowland, scheduled for July 25-27.

“Our production team will now do everything to make something beautiful out of it,” Wilmsen said during the press conference, as reported by Belgian outlet GVA. “We’ll have to make some changes, but the intention is for all the big artists to perform. We hope to be able to provide more clarity on this on Thursday.”

Wilmsen also said that cancellation is not a consideration for organizers, although “if tomorrow it turns out that the site is not safe and we receive instruction from the authorities, we will follow them. Safety is always the priority.”

There’s very little precedent guiding how Tomorrowland officials should move forward. Festivals have been afflicted by all kinds of terrible weather incidents, from torrential downpours and lightning strikes to tornadoes, wind storms and even a small earthquake at this year’s Coachella festival. But never before has a fire hit a festival’s main stage a day before the festival started.

The cause of the Tomorrowland fire is not yet known, but the public prosecutor’s office in Antwerp, Belgium, has launched an investigation. No one was injured in the blaze, and Tomorrowland still plans to open its DreamVille camping area to attendees on Thursday (July 18). Tomorrowland reports typically hosting 400,000 people across its two weekends.

But for organizers and fans, the loss of the mainstage is a crushing blow. Changing designs each year, the mainstage is the festival’s primary showpiece, with the fantastically designed structure hosting sets from the biggest artists on the lineup and drawing crowds that can swell to more than 100,000. At the press conference, Wilmsen noted that this year’s stage had been in the works for the last two years. On social media, some attendees are already requesting refunds, given that Tomorrowland 2025 will be without what is arguably one of its primary attractions.

“The Tomorrowland mainstage is a project on its own. It’s something that’s super special, and not only the people working for Tomorrowland, but everybody around the globe who loves it and looks forward to the reveal of the Tomorrowland mainstage and what’s going to happen there,” says Soesbergen.” So there was a lot of disbelief that this was the situation. The first hour and a half [of the situation] was really about disbelief.”

Additional reporting by Dave Brooks.

Oprah encountered a hilarious moment with neighbours Meghan Markle and Prince Harry last Easter.

In a recent appearance on Kelly Ripa’s podcast Let’s Talk Off Camera, Oprah shared a detailed account of a “duck emergency” the Sussexes reached out to her for during the holiday.

“I get a call from Harry, Prince Harry, on Easter Saturday, and he says, ‘Sorry to bother you, O, but we have a duck problem here,’” the media mogul recounted, mimicking Prince Harry’s British accent.

“A duck had come into their yard and laid their eggs and had these chicks,” she continued in Harry’s voice. “And he said, ‘Our pond is a stream, we don’t have a pond, so can we bring the ducks over to your pond?’”

Oprah shared that she agreed and thought it was a great coincidence for her BFF Gayle King’s grandchildren to witness it too.

“I said, ‘Wait until I can get the kids to come down to the pond so they can see you put the ducks in the pond.’ And he goes, ‘No, we’re coming right away, we’re coming over!’ “

Oprah, 71, then detailed how it was all fun and games until they let mama duck out of the box.

“As he opens the door, the mama duck flies out. And he’s got all the baby ducks in a box,” Winfrey recounted. “We’re chasing the mama duck who is in the front yard and has flown to the other side. We’ve got her ducks. Harry’s running after, Meghan gets out, she’s running after, chasing the mom and trying to get her to come back to her ducks.”

“And for like half an hour, we’re running around with the ducks in a box. We have video. It’s the funniest thing I’ve ever seen,” she concluded with a laugh.

The wild duck chase also became a spectacle for Meghan’s social media followers as she later dropped the video online.

“The ducks also hit the jackpot,” Ripa remarked jokingly. “They’re like, ‘Wait a minute, we show up at Prince Harry’s house and now we’re at Oprah’s!’ Excuse me. That duck knew what it was doing when it laid its eggs.”

James Gunn‘s “Superman” has ignited an online debate over whether or not its storyline is intentionally reflecting the Israel-Palestine conflict. In the movie, Nicholas Hoult’s villainous Lex Luthor has started a foreign war between two fictional countries. Superman is thrust into the global conflict when he stops Bovaria, the aggressor nation, from attacking its neighbor, Jarhanpur.

Ever since “Superman” opened in theaters (it earned $220 million globally in its debut), online political commentators have been either connecting the movie’s Bovaria-Jarhanpur conflict to the real-life Israel-Palestine conflict or refuting that’s the film’s intention. Hasan Piker, the left-wing political commenter who has a massive following as a Twitch streamer, posted a viral YouTube video explaining how “Superman” exposed Israel. Piker described the movie as “two hours and like 10 minutes of fuck Israel the entire time” and claimed anyone involved with the film would be “lying” if they told you it wasn’t an “analog for Israel and Palestine.”

Piker was responding in part to another YouTube video posted by conservative commenter Ben Shapiro, who proclaimed only those with “left-wing brain” would attempt to view “Superman” as a commentary on the Israel-Palestine conflict (via Forbes). Shapiro said the movie “does not match up to the facts” of the real-life war in Gaza, nor does it have a political agenda. Amidst all the debates, countless articles have popped up online with headlines asking various questions such as “Is new ‘Superman’ movie anti-Israel?” and “Is the new ‘Superman’ movie about the Israel-Hamas War?”

As reported by Variety: “Pro-Palestinian activists and influencers are hailing the film on social media for what they see as an overt rebuke of Israel in the wake of its deadly military campaign in Gaza… However, the timeline might not align with Israel as a stand-in for Bovaria. Gunn turned in his script in May 2023, months before the current Israel-Gaza conflict escalated.”

For what it’s worth, Gunn addressed the matter before “Superman” even opened in theaters. A few days before release, the writer-director told The Times of London: “When I wrote this the Middle Eastern conflict wasn’t happening. So I tried to do little things to move it away from that, but it doesn’t have anything to do with the Middle East. It’s an invasion by a much more powerful country run by a despot into a country that’s problematic in terms of its political history, but has totally no defense against the other country. It really is fictional.”

But even Gunn’s point-of-view on the movie has not calmed down the ongoing debates online, which are sure to escalate as the film’s box office run continues. This also isn’t the first time “Superman” has found itself in the political crossfires. The superhero film became a national talking point pre-release after Gunn called “Superman” an “immigrant.” The comment sparked conservative backlash, with Fox News branding the movie “SuperWoke.”

At the film’s L.A. premiere, Gunn was defended by his brother, Sean, who told Variety: “Yes, Superman is an immigrant, and yes, the people that we support in this country are immigrants and if you don’t like that, you’re not American. People who say no to immigrants are against the American way.”

Former Superman actor Dean Cain told TMZ that Gunn made a “mistake” going on record with the quote. The White House even got in on the debate by photoshopping Trump onto Superman’s body in a mock poster for the movie that touted the “American Way,” a reference to the superhero’s original tagline.

“Superman” is now playing in theaters from Warner Bros.