Category: 5. Entertainment

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

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Today’s NYT Connections puzzle could be tricky, but it’s not as tough as yesterday’s bizarre purple category (“ending with homophones of parts of the leg”). Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Tells secret stuff.

Green group hint: Memorable event.

Blue group hint: Moves on the court.

Purple group hint: Peak, summit.

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Informant.

Green group: Big impression.

Blue group: Basketball moves.

Purple group: Top ____.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is informant. The four answers are canary, leak, rat and source.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is big impression. The four answers are footprint, impact, mark and splash.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is basketball moves. The four answers are block, dribble, pass and shoot.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is top ____. The four answers are banana, dog, hat and secret.

“Joy always has a plan B,” said Patou’s artistic director Guillaume Henry, describing his fictional character of the season as an “outdoor woman” who is equally comfortable indoors.

That was a good thing given that the rain clouds looming over a post-heat wave Paris prompted a move of the show from the gardens of the Maison de la Chimie to the house’s oh-so-Parisian interiors, geometric parquet flooring, plaster mouldings and all.

As front row guest Susan Sarandon put it in a skit dropped on Instagram earlier in the day, “who the h–l is Joy?”

Despite sharing a name with the house’s historic bestselling scent, his fictional muse of the season doesn’t herald its imminent return, Henry said.

If the wardrobe the designer imagined is anything to go by, she’s a busy bee who doesn’t have time for outfit changes, expecting her sporty chic looks to work overtime from dawn to dusk.

The opening look, a straight black pinafore minidress with a pair of roomy patch pockets on the front, certainly fit the bill.  

In pursuit of “fresh air, breathing room and lightness,” the designer imagined an encounter with house founder Jean Patou and his love of Art Deco lines and Christian Lacroix, who filled the house with feminine shapes and polka dots during his six-year tenure that began in 1981.

Cue a fusion with his proclivity for sporty knits, cropped proportions and utilitarian jackets that yielded long collarless styles with a gentle hourglass outline and versions with plunging trapeze necklines; shift dresses that could be dressed up or down with a canny change in accessories, and puffy skirts that came in anything from fine gray suiting to layered lace and exuberant peony prints — with pockets, of course.

A final trio gave a then-and-now vision of evening glamour, between floor-length bustier dresses and a lace bodysuit nodding to Sabrina Carpenter’s custom Patou look during her “Short n’ Sweet Tour.”

While continuing to build on the unfussy chic direction of the Henry era, the collection was in step with the dressier direction that emerged from June’s coed runways.

The ivory-and-black silk scarves artfully wrapped around Celine’s runway invitations were out in force on Sunday, guests winding them around their necks, threading them through belt loops, or dangling them from handbags — buh-bye Labubu.

The choice of this keepsake was very considered and intentional, like everything about Michael Rider’s strong debut at the French house.

“Scarves are something I wear and everyone wears differently,” he told a clutch of reporters after the show. “It’s also something you tend to keep and something maybe you give to your children, or a friend. But I liked the idea, particularly at Celine, where scarves mattered so much at the very beginning.”

Rider kept the best bits of the Hedi Slimane era, and the Phoebe Philo one — of which he was an integral part — and threw in some of his own recent past as creative director of Polo Ralph Lauren, tossing sweaters over a few shoulders, preppy-style.

He left some things behind, notably the recent rash of Rue Cambon references, but it was fun to spot such Easter eggs as a Luggage bag elongated into a weekender with a zippered pocket now curved like a smile, or a logo T-shirt and skinny jeans on a gangly, long-haired guy, also shown in a looser version.

Like many of the designers making debuts at houses this season, Rider has a lot of stakeholders to please, and billions of business at stake at a moment of luxury doldrums. So this was a crowd-pleaser of a collection that balanced heritage and novelties in the right measure.

The show was staged on a rainy afternoon at Celine headquarters on Rue Vivienne, models whisking in two directions across the limestone floors to propulsive hits by The Cure.

The tailoring was distinctive: strong-shouldered jackets with a high-button stance, giving them a pinched and pleasing Empire line — and narrow, buttonless coats with elegant, cutaway openings.

The pants were cool, cut slim as leggings or loose as culottes, some with cuffs and satin stripes like tuxedo pants. Pleated carrot shapes and harem pants tucked into glove-soft wrestling boots fed a vague ’80s mood.

This coed show also covered all the categories, from day to evening, Rider’s LBDs trimmed with garlands of jet beading; his ivory infanta gown as simple as a T-shirt and unadorned but for the cutest little chest pocket.

Some of the bags and costume jewelry dangled too many charms and gewgaws, but you could discern new shapes and colors in Triomphe canvas, and raffia totes in all sizes, too.

His design successor at Polo, Karen Brown, and a small crew from Lauren headquarters came to cheer him on, as did designers Lucie and Luke Meier, Jonathan Anderson and Raf Simons, adding to the electric atmosphere at the show.

While unaccustomed to the spotlight, having worked behind the scenes his entire career, Rider seemed at ease talking to reporters backstage, while not giving too much away. He spoke about the values of Celine — quality, timelessness and style — aligning with his.

“I was thinking a lot about something very real,” he said. “Also, there’s a foundation here that we’re building on… We were as much about the beginning of the company as the nine wonderful years I was here, as well as the last six years.”

Founded in 1945 by Céline Vipiana and based initially on shoes, Celine has been part of the LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton stable since 1996 — and has seen its ups and downs. While American Michael Kors revved up the house when he was at the design helm from 1997 to 2004, it struggled to reclaim that buzz under former Burberry designer Roberto Menichetti and Prada alum Ivana Omazic.

Philo and Slimane ultimately propelled Celine into fashion’s big leagues, and Rider seems keen to make it a byword for classics with plenty of panache, and the right degree of zing.

It’s becoming nearly customary for designers to write a letter after the show, rather than typical show notes, and Rider’s tells you where his head is at.

“I’ve always loved the idea of clothing that lives on, that becomes a part of the wearer’s life, that may capture a moment in time but also speaks to years and years of gestures and occasions and change, of the past, the present and the future, of memories, of usefulness and of fantasy — of life really.”

Ross Halfin

Getty Images

Morgan Wallen’s I’m the Problem rules the Billboard 200 albums chart (dated July 12) for a seventh consecutive, and total, week. The set earned 173,000 equivalent album units in the United States in the week ending July 3 — down a scant 3% compared to the previous week. The album opened at No. 1 on the May 31 chart.

With 173,000 units earned, Problem lands the largest total for an album in its seventh week on the chart since Adele’s 25 earned 194,000 in its seventh week nearly a decade ago (on the Jan. 23, 2016-dated chart).

Also in the top 10 of the latest Billboard 200, Lorde’s Virgin debuts at No. 2, the KPop Demon Hunters soundtrack surges 8-3, KATSEYE’s BEAUTIFUL CHAOS bows at No. 4, Playboi Carti’s chart-topping MUSIC vaults 28-8 after its vinyl release and Russ’ W!LD starts at No. 10.

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new July 12, 2025-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on July 8. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.

Of I’m the Problem’s 173,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending July 3, SEA units comprise 164,000 (down 3%, equaling 215 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs — it leads Top Streaming Albums for a seventh week), album sales comprise 7,500 (up 2% — it falls 7-11 on Top Album Sales) and TEA units comprise 1,500 (up 6%).

Lorde achieves her fourth top 10 album on the Billboard 200 as her latest studio project, Virgin, debuts at No. 2. All four of her top 10s have also debuted inside the top five (as Virgin follows Solar Power, with a No. 5 debut and peak, 2021; Melodrama, No. 1, 2017, and Pure Heroine, No. 3, 2013). Virgin bows with 71,000 equivalent album units earned. Of that sum, album sales comprise 42,000 (it debuts at No. 1 on Top Album Sales), SEA units comprise 29,000 (equaling 37.07 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs — it debuts at No. 6 on Top Streaming Albums) and TEA units comprise a negligible sum.

Virgin’s first-week sales were aided by its availability across eight vinyl variants (including two signed editions), a standard CD and a digital download. All versions contained the same tracklist. Lorde’s vinyl sales added up to 31,000 — her best week ever on vinyl.

The album was announced on April 30 and preceded by the Billboard Hot 100-charting track “What Was That,” which debuted and peaked at No. 36 on the May 10-dated chart (her highest charting song since 2017’s “Green Light” hit No. 19). Lorde’s Ultrasound Tour of North America and Europe launches on Sept. 17 in Austin, Texas.

The KPop Demon Hunters soundtrack surges 8-3 on the Billboard 200 in its second week on the chart — earning 62,000 equivalent album units (up 97%). Of that sum, SEA units comprise 56,000 (up 108%, equaling 77.42 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs — it jumps 10-2 on Top Streaming Albums), album sales comprise 4,500 (up 31%, it’s pushed down 18-22 on Top Album Sales) and TEA units comprise 1,500 (up 24%).

The set’s haul of 77.42 million streams for its songs is the largest streaming week for a soundtrack in  nearly two years, since the Barbie soundtrack claimed 79.32 million on the Aug. 19, 2023-dated chart (its third week on the chart).

With KPop Demon Hunters’ 8-3 climb on the Billboard 200, it becomes the highest-charting soundtrack of 2025, and the highest-charting soundtrack to an animated film since Encanto spent nine weeks at No. 1 in 2022. (Previously among soundtracks in 2025, Wicked reached a No. 4 high in January, after debuting and peaking at No. 2 in December 2024.)

KPop Demon Hunters premiered on June 20 on Netflix alongside its soundtrack. In the tracking week ending June 29, KPop Demon Hunters jumped 6-2 in its second week on Netflix’s Top 10 Movies in United States chart.

KATSEYE claims its first top 10 album on the Billboard 200 with the No. 4 debut of its second project, BEAUTIFUL CHAOS. The pop group’s five-song set opens with 44,000 equivalent album units earned. Of that sum, album sales comprise 30,000 (it debuts at No. 2 on Top Album Sales), SEA units comprise 14,000 (equaling 21.36 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs; it bows at No. 47 on Top Streaming Albums) and TEA units comprise a negligible sum.

The album’s first-week sales were bolstered by its availability across nine CD variants and four vinyl variants (one signed), all with the same audio but with packaging variations. All contained collectible paper ephemera, some randomized. It was also issued as a standard digital download album for purchase.

BEAUTIFUL CHAOS was announced on May 7 and the album’s release was preceded by a pair of charting entries on the Hot 100: “Gnarly” (No. 90) and “Gabriela” (No. 94).

Karol G’s Tropicoqueta falls 3-5 on the Billboard 200 in its second week (40,000 equivalent album units earned; down 29%), Wallen’s chart-topping One Thing at a Time is pushed down 5-6 (nearly 40,000; up 7%) and SZA’s former No. 1 SOS descends 4-7 (39,000; down 17%). Playboi Carti’s former leader MUSIC jumps 28-8 with 35,000 (up 83%), following its release on vinyl (pressed on two variants). The album sold 16,500 copies in the tracking week (up 12,593%), largely from vinyl purchases.

Sabrina Carpenter’s chart-topping Short n’ Sweet slides 6-9 on the Billboard 200 with 33,000 equivalent album units earned (down 5%).

Russ closes out the top 10 with the No. 10 debut of his latest album, W!LD, entering at No. 10 with 32,000 equivalent album units earned. The set marks his fourth top 10-charted effort. Of the new album’s 32,000 units, album sales comprise 25,000 (it debuts at No. 3 on Top Album Sales), SEA units comprise 7,000 (equaling 9.15 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs) and TEA units comprise a negligible sum.

W!LD was announced on March 18 and preceded by the radio-promoted track “Crazy,” which has reached the top 30 on the Rhythmic Airplay chart. The album’s first-week sales were aided by its availability across three vinyl variants, three CD variants and three cassette variants (some signed), as well as a standard digital download. All contained the same tracklist, and all of the physical editions were exclusively sold via Russ’ official webstore. There was also an expanded edition of the download album, sold via the webstore, that includes narration from the artist.

Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.

CNN
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Dinosaurs are alive and well at the box office as Universal’s “Jurassic World Rebirth” trampled competitors, grossing $147 million domestically over five days of the Fourth of July weekend.

The fourth installment of the “Jurassic World” series outperformed early estimates of nearly $80 million for the three days and $135 million for the five days. It nearly matched its predecessor from 2022, “Jurassic World Dominion,” which grossed $145 million in its first three days before raking in over $1 billion worldwide.

“Jurassic World Rebirth” is another win for Hollywood, which has effectively rebounded from a sluggish start to 2025. The box office is up more than 14% year-to-date compared with last year, according to Comscore, which collects box office data. The summer season, which Comscore begins tracking on the first Friday in May, is faring even better — up 15% compared to 2024.

“Jurassic Park Rebirth” is the seventh film in the franchise, which began with Steven Spielberg’s “Jurassic Park” in 1993. The original movie would go on to gross $924 million worldwide, or $2 billion when adjusted for inflation.

While “Jurassic World” was a new era for the franchise, calling the fourth film “Rebirth,” and casting Scarlett Johansson, likely reinvigorated the brand, according to Paul Dergarabedian, a senior media analyst at Comscore.

“This brand will never go extinct because it continues to thrill audiences,” he said. “It’s most impressive to have a franchise three decades old, topping the chart once again.”

“Jurassic World Rebirth” knocked Apple and Warner Bros. Pictures’ “F1” down a peg to No. 2. “F1” grossed $26 million domestically this weekend, a 54% drop from the week prior. The racing movie starring Brad Pitt opened last weekend to roughly $55.6 million domestically and $144 million worldwide.

Warner Bros. Discovery is the parent company of CNN.

“‘F1’ is interesting because it’s absolutely killing it at the international box office,” said Dergarabedian. “(It’s) a sport that is more internationally centric than in the United States.”

“Jurassic World Rebirth” and “F1” will face fierce competition next week when Warner Bros.’ “Superman” opens in theaters. Analysts expect “Superman” to gross over $100 million in its opening weekend.

“The best thing for ‘Superman’ is the success of ‘Jurassic’ and ‘F1.’ The rising tide raises all ships,” said Dergarabedian.

Shawn Robbins, director of analytics at Fandango and founder and owner of Box Office Theory, said the releases of “Jurassic World Rebirth,” “Superman,” and Disney’s “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” (July 25) could account for about a quarter of the domestic box office this summer.

Robbins added that “F1,” “Jurassic World Rebirth” and “Superman” will likely attract similar audiences of young men. “Superman” could also appeal to families and younger audiences.

”It’s summer. It’s the time when multiple films can coexist, so if any of them are going to do it, this is a good set of movies to pull it off,” he said.

James Gunn is getting candid about the themes behind his highly anticipated Superman.

The filmmaker and co-head of DC Studios recently opened up to The Sunday Times about what his new superhero blockbuster is really about, especially given the current political climate in the United States and President Donald Trump’s aggressive immigration policies.

“I mean, Superman is the story of America,” Gunn explained. “An immigrant that came from other places and populated the country, but for me it is mostly a story that says basic human kindness is a value and is something we have lost.”

He also acknowledged that Superman may be interpreted differently among various political groups and areas, but that he doesn’t care if people take offense to the film.

“Yes, it plays differently,” Gunn said. “But it’s about human kindness and obviously there will be jerks out there who are just not kind and will take it as offensive just because it is about kindness. But screw them.”

The director added that while the superhero pic, starring David Corenswet (Clark Kent/Superman) and Rachel Brosnahan (Lois Lane), is about politics, “on another level it’s about morality.”

“Do you never kill no matter what — which is what Superman believes — or do you have some balance, as Lois believes?” he said. “It’s really about their relationship and the way different opinions on basic moral beliefs can tear two people apart.”

Gunn’s Superman centers on a younger Clark Kent who must reconcile his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing, while also working as a reporter in Metropolis.

“This Superman does seem to come at a particular time when people are feeling a loss of hope in other people’s goodness,” the Guardians of the Galaxy filmmaker said of the movie’s timing. “I’m telling a story about a guy who is uniquely good, and that feels needed now because there is a meanness that has emerged due to cultural figures being mean online.”

He added, “And, no, I don’t make films to change the world, but if a few people could be just a bit nicer after this it would make me happy.”

Superman hits theaters on July 11.

Singer enlists his high school band and Wheatus’ Brendan B. Brown to play “one of my favorite songs of all time” at Hamburg concert