Category: 5. Entertainment

For Chase Sui Wonders, being mixed race hasn’t always been easy.

Wonders, who is half Chinese, used to struggle with her identity — and as a young Asian actress in Hollywood, self-acceptance felt unattainable.

“I had all the shame around it. I would try so hard and I would put myself on tape, but it never felt quite right,” she told Vanity Fair in June. “It always felt like it was written for a white girl, or it was written for a full Chinese girl, or a Japanese girl who has to play a geisha during World War II or something.”

This isn’t the first time Wonders has opened up about being mixed race. The 29-year-old actress is outspoken about the complexities of navigating adolescence, adulthood, and now, Hollywood as someone who is biracial.

As a kid growing up in suburban Michigan, Wonders quickly recognized that she didn’t look like everyone else. Her arrival in Hollywood seemed to reinforce the feeling that she didn’t belong.

“As far as I’m concerned, being Asian, the community I grew up in was really ‘white’, and I grew up with a single mom, who is white, so I felt like I was a white person, and it took me a while to accept or just come to terms with the fact that I don’t look like everyone else and that’s not bad. That was a journey of my youth,” she told Italian Reve in 2024.

Eventually, Wonders began to land roles that felt more true to herself. She nabbed her breakthrough role on HBO Max’s coming-of-age drama series Generation in 2021, before starring in A24’s black horror comedy Bodies Bodies Bodies in 2022.

Wonders, a Harvard graduate, currently stars on Apple TV+’s The Studio as Quinn Hackett, a junior executive at a fictional film studio in Hollywood. Hackett, Wonders told Vanity Fair, wasn’t initially written as a biracial character. It was only after she landed the role that creators Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg decided to work that in. (On The Studio, white executives often look to Hackett for guidance regarding diversity.)

A special screening of The Studio presented an opportunity for Wonders to celebrate her Chinese heritage offscreen too.

For the event, Wonders opted for an archival Prada gown from the fashion house’s spring 1997 collection. More than just a charming cherry red dress with a “dreamy design,” as she told Marie Claire in March, it had elements that reminded her of a qipao, a traditional Chinese dress. “My grandmother is going to love this dress when she sees these photos,” she said.

Next up, Wonders will star in the I Know What You Did Last Summer reboot as Ava Brucks, a role that she told Vanity Fair she was initially drawn to because of how “all-American” she is.

“You just don’t see that many people who look like me who are playing these kind of leading ingenue roles,” she said. “It felt exciting to step into that and also give her some unique flair.”

Where there was once shame in being mixed race, Wonders now feels a sense of pride, telling the magazine, “The thing that I originally felt very complicated about has now become sort of my superpower.”

This article has been updated on June 30 at 5:17 p.m. EST.

PARIS — Second time was the charm for Meryll Rogge, who scooped up the Grand Prize of the 2025 ANDAM Fashion Award on Monday.

“Honestly, we just said it like it is, I didn’t really change much versus last year,” said the Belgian designer. “I think we just evolved and grew a lot in the last year.”

And what a 12-month run it’s been for the Ghent, Belgium-born designer who was a finalist of last year’s ANDAM.

In addition to becoming the first woman to be named designer of the year at the 2024 Belgian Fashion Awards and being a 2025 Woolmark Prize finalist, she saw her designs land on the likes of Dua Lipa, Chloé Sévigny and Rihanna.

Having shown her collections in Paris since 2021 in presentations, she held her first fashion show in March, presenting a collection she deemed her “most developed pieces.” These were among the designs she showed to the ANDAM jury earlier in the day.

Not that she is letting it get to her head. “It just shows that we are stepping it up every year,” she said. “And now we’re going to be able to make huge leaps, of course.”

A 2008 graduate of Antwerp’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts who dreamed of being an illustrator as a child, she swapped paint for textile swatches when moving to New York. After working her way up to lead designer at Marc Jacobs over seven years, she was back in Antwerp working for Dries Van Noten as head of women’s design in 2014 before going solo in 2020.

Several of her pieces have been acquired recently by MoMu Antwerp and Brussels’ Fashion & Lace Museum.

How she plans on spending the 300,000-euro purse that comes with this win is “very clear for us,” Rogge said.

One priority is direct-to-consumer channels, particularly e-commerce, a yet-untapped opportunity for her business.

“It’s a big one for us because we do get a lot of views on our website, lots of DMs and we can never support it, which is a shame,” she said.

The 41-year-old is also looking at expanding in accessories. “We dabbled in shoes, working on a collaboration with [Japanese footwear brand] Grounds and we want to go further,” she said.

In addition to the cash award, she will be mentored by 36th jury president Sidney Toledano, an adviser to LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton chairman and chief executive officer Bernard Arnault, as well as president of the Institut Français de la Mode fashion school.

The seasoned executive will also have another mentee: Special Prize winner Alain Paul, who parlayed a 10-year career working for the likes of Vetements and Louis Vuitton into his eponymous Alainpaul brand, cofounded in 2023 with husband Luis Philippe.

Here too, being plugged in directly to consumers is a must. It’s a particularly important avenue for emerging brands for the revenue it generates, but also for the direct consumer insights.

“It really allows us to work on a collection plan that meets what clients are looking for and not waste so much time on pieces we don’t need,” Philippe said.

Summer will therefore be busy for the brand, as plans for e-commerce that previously were on hold due to the costs involved can now move forward as early as September, the cofounders said.

And Paul is also among the finalists of the 2025 LVMH Prize for Young Designers.

The Pierre Bergé Prize and its 100,000-euro purse went to Burç Akyol, whose eponymous genderless label marries sexiness with austerity — and flawless tailoring.

He will be mentored by Alexandre Mattiuissi, the founder and artistic director of Ami who scooped up the grand prize in 2013. The brand came on board as a sponsor of the design competition with this edition.

“You never expect it,” said an elated Akyol. “I talked about the importance of craftsmanship and it resonated. We tend to forget the product in our industry today, and people think it’s borderline ugly to say the word ‘product,’ but I disagree. I think it’s at the heart of what we do and I’m happy, because that’s what I stand for. I won with that.”

The designer said he looked forward to getting advice from Mattiussi, who has parlayed his independent brand into a thriving business.

“I want to find out how he did it, because it’s an empire. I remember when Ami was founded. His initial inspiration was so organic. He wanted to dress a few friends that inspired him and make that available for others,” Akyol said. “It’s a great financial success, which again comforts me in the idea that there is a place for product.”

He plans to use the prize money to fund his next collection for the label, which is a two-person operation.

“At our level, we have a knife at our throat every season,” Akyol said. “I always have to juggle in terms of cash flow. Now, we will finally be able to develop these categories that we’re always thinking about and don’t have the time to do, because you need real industrial know-how.”

Also in the running in this category dedicated to emerging creative labels were Jeanne Friot and Mouty by couple Bertille and Thomas Mouty.

Belgian designer Sarah Lévy of Sarahlevy beat out footwear designer Philéo Landowski and jeweler Marco Panconesi to win the 2025 accessories prize, which comes with 100,000 euros and purse and mentoring by Sophie Delafontaine, creative director of Longchamp.

Toledano said he’s had eyes on all the winners through the tentacular reach of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton. He met Rogge when she worked at Marc Jacobs, which belongs to the luxury group, while Lévy designs accessories for Patou, another one of its labels.

Meanwhile, he first discovered Paul and Akyol’s work through the LVMH Prize for Young Designers. Akyol was a finalist last year, while Paul is among the final eight this year.

“These four winners are exactly the type of candidate that need our help because they have reached a critical size. They’re doing fine on their own, but they really want to take their brands to the next level and I want to help them do that,” he said.

This year, the innovation prize was awarded separately in May and went to Losanje, a fashion tech company based in the central French city of Nevers that is helping brands implement the use of circular textiles.

The edition’s jury included 11 guest members, including Pascal Morand, executive president of the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode, Sarah Andelman and fashion documentary director Loïc Prigent.

Joining them were multihyphenate actress and author Lou Doillon; Lucky Love, the singer who performed at the opening ceremony for the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games; musical artist Eddy de Pretto; art gallery founder Emmanuel Perrotin, and model, actress and entrepreneur Liya Kebede.

Rounding out the 2025 group sitting alongside permanent members, who are mainly executives drawn from sponsors, were creative consultant Carlos Nazario; writer and fashion critic Sophie Fontanel, and Beka Gvishiani, who’s behind the Stylenotcom Instagram account.

Created in 1989 by Nathalie Dufour with the support of the French Ministry of Culture and the DEFI, a body that promotes the development of the French fashion industry, and with the late Pierre Bergé as president, ANDAM has been a springboard for designers who would go on to achieve international recognition.

In October, a retrospective at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs gave an overview of the ANDAM’s 35-year run, featuring works by winners across fashion and accessories including Viktor & Rolf, Jeremy Scott, Marine Serre, Y/Project, Christopher Esber and Ukrainian milliner Ruslan Baginskiy.

– With contributions from Joelle Diderich

“Spider-Man: No Way Home” director Jon Watts recently revealed to Collider that Reddit helped shape one of the blockbuster’s defining moments: The long-awaited returns of Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield. Watts saw fan-created concept art on Reddit that aligned with his original idea of bringing the former Spider-Man actors back onscreen when Tom Holland’s Peter Parker is at his lowest following the death of Aunt May. The director knew in that moment he’d need more of a surprise.

“There had been rumors that Tobey and Andrew were going to be in the movie, and this is while we’re shooting,” Watts said. “We were writing the script, and we were working on where we wanted to reveal the guys, and it always seemed like Peter’s going to be sad because Aunt May has just died, and that the portals are going to open, and the two Spider-Men are going to step out. It’s probably a rooftop somewhere. It’s all sort of hazy. You’re still trying to figure it out.”

“Then I was on Reddit, and I was looking at people who had already made fan art of, ‘This is probably what it’s going to be like when the two Spider-Men get revealed.’ It was on a rooftop. It was sad, two Doctor Strange portals were open and two Spider-Men are stepping out,” Watts continued. “I was like, ‘Well, we can’t do that. If that’s exactly what everyone thinks we’re going to do, we absolutely can’t do that.’”

That’s when Watts came up with the scene that made it into the movie. As he remembered: “I was like, ‘Probably having the two Spider-Men appear at Ned’s Filipino grandma’s house in Queens.’ I don’t think anyone was doing fan art of that on Reddit. It made perfect sense in the story because it’s kind of the first time we leave Peter’s narrative. We don’t know what’s happened to [Tom’s Peter]. We’re with Ned, we’re with MJ. They have to lay low. Where are they going to go? Ned’s grandma’s house. So, we built this whole scene around that.”

The returns of Maguire and Garfield helped power “Spider-Man: No Way Home” to $1.9 billion at the worldwide box office, a record sum for the post-COVID era until James Cameron’s “Avatar: The Way of Water” came along and earned $2.3 billion. Maguire has already expressed interest in returning again, saying: “If these guys called me and said, ‘Would you show up tonight to hang out and goof around?’ or ‘Would you show up to do this movie or read a scene or do a Spider-Man thing?’ it would be a ‘yes!’ Because why wouldn’t I want to do that?”

The same goes for Garfield, who has said on multiple occasions since “No Way Home” opened in theaters that he would love to play Spider-Man again under the right circumstances.

“It would have to be very weird,” Garfield said at Middle East Film & Comic Con earlier this year. “I would like to do something very strange. Something very unique, and offbeat and surprising, kind of like the creative freedom they have with the animated ‘Spider-Verse’ movies.”

Garfield added in a separate interview with Esquire: “For sure, I would 100% come back if it was the right thing, if it’s additive to the culture, if there’s a great concept or something that hasn’t been done before that’s unique and odd and exciting and that you can sink your teeth into. I love that character, and it brings joy. If part of what I bring is joy, then I’m joyful in return.”

Holland is confirmed to be coming back as the web-slinger in Marvel’s “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” which is set for release in July 2026.

“Spider-Man: No Way Home” director Jon Watts recently revealed to Collider that Reddit helped shape one of the blockbuster’s defining moments: The long-awaited returns of Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield. Watts saw fan-created concept art on Reddit that aligned with his original idea of bringing the former Spider-Man actors back onscreen when Tom Holland’s Peter Parker is at his lowest following the death of Aunt May. The director knew in that moment he’d need more of a surprise.

“There had been rumors that Tobey and Andrew were going to be in the movie, and this is while we’re shooting,” Watts said. “We were writing the script, and we were working on where we wanted to reveal the guys, and it always seemed like Peter’s going to be sad because Aunt May has just died, and that the portals are going to open, and the two Spider-Men are going to step out. It’s probably a rooftop somewhere. It’s all sort of hazy. You’re still trying to figure it out.”

“Then I was on Reddit, and I was looking at people who had already made fan art of, ‘This is probably what it’s going to be like when the two Spider-Men get revealed.’ It was on a rooftop. It was sad, two Doctor Strange portals were open and two Spider-Men are stepping out,” Watts continued. “I was like, ‘Well, we can’t do that. If that’s exactly what everyone thinks we’re going to do, we absolutely can’t do that.’”

That’s when Watts came up with the scene that made it into the movie. As he remembered: “I was like, ‘Probably having the two Spider-Men appear at Ned’s Filipino grandma’s house in Queens.’ I don’t think anyone was doing fan art of that on Reddit. It made perfect sense in the story because it’s kind of the first time we leave Peter’s narrative. We don’t know what’s happened to [Tom’s Peter]. We’re with Ned, we’re with MJ. They have to lay low. Where are they going to go? Ned’s grandma’s house. So, we built this whole scene around that.”

The returns of Maguire and Garfield helped power “Spider-Man: No Way Home” to $1.9 billion at the worldwide box office, a record sum for the post-COVID era until James Cameron’s “Avatar: The Way of Water” came along and earned $2.3 billion. Maguire has already expressed interest in returning again, saying: “If these guys called me and said, ‘Would you show up tonight to hang out and goof around?’ or ‘Would you show up to do this movie or read a scene or do a Spider-Man thing?’ it would be a ‘yes!’ Because why wouldn’t I want to do that?”

The same goes for Garfield, who has said on multiple occasions since “No Way Home” opened in theaters that he would love to play Spider-Man again under the right circumstances.

“It would have to be very weird,” Garfield said at Middle East Film & Comic Con earlier this year. “I would like to do something very strange. Something very unique, and offbeat and surprising, kind of like the creative freedom they have with the animated ‘Spider-Verse’ movies.”

Garfield added in a separate interview with Esquire: “For sure, I would 100% come back if it was the right thing, if it’s additive to the culture, if there’s a great concept or something that hasn’t been done before that’s unique and odd and exciting and that you can sink your teeth into. I love that character, and it brings joy. If part of what I bring is joy, then I’m joyful in return.”

Holland is confirmed to be coming back as the web-slinger in Marvel’s “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” which is set for release in July 2026.

Project Hail Mary, full of grace. Blessed art thou among sci-fi, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, long-haired Ryan Gosling. Ken’s next gig follows a charming white guy on a solo mission through space to save the Earth, and it’s based on a Hugo Award–nominated book by Andy Weir, but it is not 2015’s The Martian. Does The Martian have Sandra Hüller as a commanding boss trying to save the world? Directed by Christopher Miller and Phil Lord, the team behind 21 Jump Street and the Spider-Verse franchise, the trailer signals an apocalypse movie that is, paradoxically, a little silly and fun — certainly more than both The Martian and Gosling’s last trip to space, as Neil Armstrong in First Man. Below, everything we know about Project Hail Mary. 

Ryan Gosling awakens to find himself with no memory and long hair “several light-years from my apartment.” From there, the trailer reveals that a slew of stars, including our sun, are dying, and Hüller believes that only Gosling’s character, Ryland Grace, a middle-school science teacher, can solve the problem. He, meanwhile, claims he’s “not an astronaut,” saying “I can’t even moonwalk.” Why he was chosen to go on the mission is unclear. Hüller’s character explains that Ryland has a degree in microbiology, but lots of people have degrees in microbiology. Either way, Grace gets sent to space, where he meets an alien whom he teaches to give a thumbs-up.

Gosling will star as the main character, Ryland Grace, with Anatomy of a Fall breakout Hüller as his imposing German superior, Eva Stratt. They’ll be joined by The Bear’s resident baker, Lionel Boyce; Industry’s baseball bat–wielder, Ken Leung; and AT&T-commercial star Milana Vayntrub.

Project Hail Mary comes out on March 20, 2026. Yes, that does feel like light-years away.

Getty Images

The royal family’s private “royal train” will be decommissioned as part of King Charles’s drive to modernise the monarchy and reduce costs.

The train has been used to transport members of the royal family around Britain’s railway network since 1840, but it has become increasingly costly to maintain and store. Rolling stock from the 1980s would need to be updated for modern railway networks, and two new more fuel-efficient helicopters offer a suitable alternative.

James Chalmers, the keeper of the privy purse, said: “The royal train, of course, has been part of national life for many decades, loved and cared for by all those involved. But in moving forward we must not be bound by the past.

“Just as so many parts of the royal household’s work have been modernised and adapted to reflect the world of today, so too the time has come to bid the fondest of farewells as we seek to be disciplined and forward in our allocation of funding.”

Chalmers said a search was under way for a long-term home for the train’s historic parts.

The annual royal accounts for 2024-25, published on Monday, show that the sovereign grant, which is distributed by the Treasury to fund the official duties of the royal family, will remain at £86.3m for a fourth consecutive year.

The grant will increase to £132m annually between 2025 and 2027. This is partly to take advantage of record offshore windfarm profits for the crown estate, which hit £1.1bn in the last financial year, and also to cover the remaining £100m costs for the final two years of Buckingham Palace’s £369m, 10-year refurbishment.

The accounts also show that royal travel costs increased by £500,000 to £4.7m and payroll costs were up £2m to £29.9m.

There was an increase in the number of travel journeys costing over £17,000, from 24 in 2023-24 to 43 in 2024-45, reaching a total expenditure of £2.7m. Travel costs for the king and queen’s state visit to Samoa cost £401,000 in public money.

As part of a sustainability drive, one of the royal Bentleys is now powered by biofuels, with the other due to transition this year, and a move to electric vehicles is under consideration.

Separate accounts also published on Monday reveal that the duchy of Cornwall, which provides Prince William with a private income of nearly £23m a year, will waive rents for grassroots groups such as wildlife trusts and the St Petrocs homelessness shelter, and reduce rent for local charities by 50%.

This follows a Channel 4 Dispatches and Sunday Times investigation last November into the prince’s duchy and the duchy of Lancaster estate, which found that the estates had secured rental agreements worth millions of pounds with the armed forces, the NHS and state schools.

Will Bax, the duchy of Cornwall’s new secretary and keeper of records, said the duchy was also looking at including schools in the community groups that would be eligible for the rent waiver. Commercial relationships with public bodies such as the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Justice will not change.

Bax said: “It would be remiss not to address the media scrutiny the duchy has experienced this past year. We’ve used these challenges as an opportunity to stop and reflect. Both the duke and I are clear that we want the duchy to be world-class in our approach to supporting people, communities and nature to flourish, and to realise that aim we must operate and communicate in a modern, socially minded way.

“It’s clear we’ve entered an era of deep change, but we change not because we disrespect our past but precisely because we do respect it.”

The accounts show the duchy generated profits of £22.9m, down £700,000 from £23.6m in the previous financial year.

The annual review for the Prince of Wales omits his income, expenditure and tax payments, a move away from the transparency implemented by Charles as the previous Prince of Wales.