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 has a fun mix of topics. Fans of a certain British special agent, plus fans of a particular furry friend, will enjoy the blue and purple categories. 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 the 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: Are you kidding me?

Green group hint:  Not a decrease.

Blue group hint: Like 007.

Purple group hint: Meow.

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Nonsense.

Green group: Increase, with “up.”

Blue group: Fictional spies.

Purple group: Cat ____.

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 nonsense. The four answers are baloney, bull, bunk and rubbish.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is increase, with “up.” The four answers are crank, hike, jack and raise.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is fictional spies. The four answers are Archer, Hunt, Peel and Powers.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is cat ____. The four answers are fish, nap, tail and walk.

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

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I got a kick out of today’s Wordle puzzle. It’s a fun word, with fairly common consonants, though if you guess AUDIO or ADIEU as your first word, you won’t get a lot of letters right away. If you need a new starter word, check out our list of which letters show up the most in English words. If you need hints and the answer, read on.

Today’s Wordle hints

Before we show you today’s Wordle answer, we’ll give you some hints. If you don’t want a spoiler, look away now.

Wordle hint No. 1: Repeats

Today’s Wordle answer has no repeated letters.

Wordle hint No. 2: Vowels

Today’s Wordle answer has one vowel.

Wordle hint No. 3: First letter

Today’s Wordle answer begins with C.

Wordle hint No. 4: Fly high

Today’s Wordle answer is often associated with birds.

Wordle hint No. 5: Meaning

Today’s Wordle answer can refer to a short, high-pitched sound.

TODAY’S WORDLE ANSWER

Today’s Wordle answer is CHIRP.

Yesterday’s Wordle answer

Yesterday’s Wordle answer, Sept. 7, No. 1541 was TENOR.

Recent Wordle answers

Sept. 3, No. 1537: FETCH

Sept. 4, No. 1538: BLEND

Sept. 5, No. 1539: DRIFT

Sept. 6, No. 1540: BULGE

Brendan Fraser‘s comeback story may have reached its peak with his Oscar-winning role in “The Whale” (2022), but Hikari’s moving drama “Rental Family” proves he still has new depths to explore. The Japanese-set dramedy premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on Saturday and could very well serve as Fraser’s next ticket into the best actor race.

In the film, Fraser plays Phillip Vandarploeug, a lonely American actor adrift in Tokyo who begins working for a “rental family” agency, stepping into surrogate roles in the lives of strangers. What could be a quirky premise blossoms into a deeply humane exploration of belonging, identity and emotional labor. The conceit is inherently crowdpleasing — a man stumbling into strangers’ lives and finding unexpected connection — but Hikari steers it with earnestness, elevating it beyond sentimental comedy.

The film’s exploration of commodified intimacy arrives at a particularly resonant moment. In our hyper-connected yet profoundly isolated digital age, “Rental Family” examines what happens when human connection becomes a service industry. The Japanese rental family phenomenon — where people pay strangers to fulfill familial roles — might seem foreign to Western audiences, but it speaks to a global crisis of loneliness that transcends cultural boundaries. Fraser’s American outsider navigating this world becomes a mirror for viewers, questioning the authenticity of their own relationships in an era of curated social media personas and transactional digital interactions.

The beauty of Fraser’s performance lies in pure, heartfelt execution. Unlike the overt physical transformation of “The Whale” or the rugged bravado of “The Mummy,” his Phillip is quiet, tentative and often awkward, revealing layers of alienation that are relatable. There’s a resonance in seeing Fraser — once the box office everyman, then Hollywood exile, then comeback king — now playing a man who feels invisible until he steps into someone else’s narrative.

This meta-textual dimension is used expertly by Fraser, and something the Actors Branch may be attracted towards. Oscar voters are often drawn to performances that blur the line between role and real-life persona. In Phillip, Fraser finds a character whose journey somewhat mirrors his own: a man searching for purpose, rediscovering his worth and ultimately touching the lives of others in profound ways.

“Rental Family” also has the makings of a strong Toronto People’s Choice Award contender. TIFF audiences historically embrace films that balance accessibility with emotional impact — “The King’s Speech,” “Green Book” and “The Fabelmans” are all past winners. Hikari’s film shares that DNA: it’s funny without being frivolous, emotional without being manipulative, and culturally specific while universally resonant.

The film’s cross-cultural appeal speaks to cinema’s power to bridge seemingly insurmountable differences. By placing an American protagonist within Japan’s unique social service economy, which is also devoid of a traditional “villain,” Hikari creates a lens through which Western audiences can examine their own assumptions about family. The movie asks uncomfortable questions: If genuine care can be purchased, what makes “real” relationships more valuable?

While Fraser is the obvious awards hook, the film’s strengths extend further. Hikari, who previously directed “37 Seconds” and episodes of “Beef,” crafts an understated but visually rich narrative, weaving Tokyo’s neon glow with the intimacy of makeshift homes. Searchlight Pictures’ involvement ensures a savvy campaign, with possible pushes in original screenplay (which also includes co-writer Stephen Blahut) and perhaps international-friendly categories like cinematography (Takurô Ishizaka) and original score (Jónsi and Alex Somers).

Hikari’s directorial choices prove particularly sophisticated in their cultural sensitivity. Rather than exoticizing Japanese customs for Western consumption, the film treats the rental family concept as a natural response to modern social isolation. The visual language seamlessly blends Tokyo’s urban sprawl with intimate domestic spaces.

Still, best actor would seem to be the core play here. Fraser’s heartfelt turn, coupled with TIFF buzz, could easily place him in the top tier of contenders alongside heavyweights like Dwayne Johnson (“The Smashing Machine”) and Jesse Plemons (“Bugonia”), along with others expected in this year’s crowded lineup. I would also point out the memorable and enriching works of Takehiro Hira and Mari Yamamoto in their supporting turns.

If TIFF’s Audience Award has historically pointed to Oscar glory, “Rental Family” could be Fraser’s bridge from comeback star to Academy mainstay. And with a November release from Searchlight — perfectly timed for awards season — it has all the ingredients to become one of the year’s defining crowdpleasers.

“The Eyes of Ghana” makes a rather literal start to its story. The first frame of the film is of its protagonist’s eyes. He’s Chris Hesse, a Ghanaian filmmaker in his 90s. He’s seen getting his eyes checked and receives the news that he will lose his eyesight. However, the film is concerned with his metaphorical eyes and not his real ones; with his work, not his health. Filmmaker , an Oscar winner for his short “The Last Repair Shop,” shows reverence to both Hesse and to the importance of cinema in a winsome tribute to a man on his last chapter of life who’s been ignored for decades.

In the 1950s and ’60s, Hesse served as the personal cameraman of Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first leader and an inspiring figure in African nations’ quest for independence. Nkrumah led Ghana’s fight for independence and inspired many by calling for “a united states for Africa” that would make the continent a superpower. He also believed in the power of cinema and wanted to harness it the way the U.S. used Hollywood to influence world culture.

Hesse was always at his side, carrying a camera and photographing the prime minister. He escorted him on his travels around the world and on his rallies at home. When Nkrumah was deposed, all these films were destroyed by his successors, who wanted to erase all evidence of his rule. Fortunately, the negatives were stored far away in London. Hesse is on a quest to have them restored and shown in Ghana. A student of his who is also a filmmaker in her own right, Anita Afonu, becomes Hesse’s ally. Through their on-camera interviews, passion and reverence for cinema comes clearly through, making the film a touching paean to the power of the artform and the people behind it.

Also on camera is Edmond Addo, the proprietor of a run-down outdoor cinema in Accra. Afonu hopes to screen Hesse’s work there. Through his testimony and memories, the filmmakers add a poignant note about the grandeur and unique appeal that cinema held decades ago — a status that has since been diluted with the proliferation of other entertainment media. The film’s best passages occur when it calls back to the nostalgia of cinema as a revered art.

Additionally, the presentation of the relationship between Hesse and Nkrumah is intriguing. One had ultimate access and the other had ultimate power. They developed their own language: Nkrumah used a walking stick even though he didn’t need it, in order to signal Hesse what he wanted him to shoot. Hesse believed in Nkrumah and particularly in his dream of a united Africa, something he still carries with him today.

Afonu becomes the voice of a different generation, one that sees Nkrumah as the dictator he became. The film pointedly calls out Nkrumah as a dictator but never questions whether Hesse’s documentation of his rule was akin to propaganda, since it was all on his own terms. “The Eyes of Ghana” shows little of Hesse’s footage, which is understandable since most of it has not yet been restored. Documenting that time of a young independent Africa is certainly a worthy endeavor, even though the film never discusses the artistic and moral merits of these documentaries. 

Hesse remains a fascinating protagonist from beginning to end. His gentle way of speaking invites the audience to relax and listen, as if they are listening to a favorite older relative tell them of the good old times. His rapport with Afonu palpably carries through the film’s narrative. Their shared belief in the importance of cinema breaks through the screen, contagiously inflicting those watching, striking a hopeful tone to cherish and admire that also prevents the film from appearing earnest and naive.

In 2025, it’s inconcievable to hear Hesse talk of his hope of Nkrumah’s dream of a united Africa becoming a reality. With a genocide in Congo and war, famine and ethnic cleasing in Sudan, to cite just two of the conflicts currently happening in Africa, that dream seems impossible. Yet Hesse’s good-natured conviction and the appealing way Proudfoot frames him almost make it believable.

The 38th Tokyo International Film Festival has tapped “Climbing for Life,” Sakamoto Junji’s biographical drama about legendary mountaineer Tabei Junko, as its opening night selection.

The film chronicles the true story of Tabei, who made history in 1975 as the first woman to summit Mount Everest. Beloved Japanese actor Yoshinaga Sayuri takes on the lead role, marking her first collaboration with Sakamoto in 13 years since “A Chorus of Angels” (2012).

“Climbing for Life” represents the 31st feature from award-winning helmer Sakamoto, whose filmography includes “KT” (2002), “Zatoichi the Last” (2010), “Another World” (2019), and “Okiku and the World” (2023). The project marks the 50th anniversary of Tabei’s historic Everest ascent, with Sakamoto crafting what festival organizers describe as “a depiction that highlights human resilience and tolerance.”

The ensemble cast also features Sato Koichi, Amami Yuki, and Non. Sakaguchi Riko penned the screenplay, with music by Yasukawa Goro. The film is based on Tabei’s memoir “My Mountain Life – Up and Down.”

Beyond her Everest triumph, the biopic explores how Tabei’s achievement “cast a radiant light but also a deep shadow on her friends and family,” according to festival materials. The narrative follows her later years as she continued mountaineering despite being diagnosed with a terminal illness.

“It is a true honor for our film to be selected as the opening film of the 38th TIFF,” Sakamoto said in a statement. “Although the production process of filmmaking has been dramatically altered in the digital era, the joy of sharing a film with audiences on the big screen and masterful sound design remains timeless. This film also stands as a testament to the enduring talent of Yoshinaga Sayuri, a national treasure who has graced the pinnacle of stardom for generations.”

TIFF programming director Ichiyama Shozo added: “With a remarkable lead performance by Yoshinaga Sayuri and meticulous direction by director Sakamoto Junji, this film earns a place as one of the year’s most touching films. I am confident that its universal themes will deeply move audiences across the globe.”

Kino Films Co., Ltd. will distribute the film in Japan, with a theatrical release set for Oct. 31.

The festival runs Oct. 27-Nov. 5 across Tokyo’s central entertainment district, with the industry market TIFFCOM scheduled for Oct. 29-31.

More than 1,000 book lovers turned out for the first ever Liverpool Book Festival.

The festival, held at the city’s Invisible Wind Factory, featured workshops, live music, author talks and stalls from more than 60 authors showcasing their books.

It also featured special guests including comedian Stan Boardman, Marvel writers Tim Quinn and Alan Cowsill, broadcaster Billy Butler, celebrity chef Dave Critchley and Sunday Times bestseller Caroline Corcoran.

Justin Hopper, organiser and editor of magazine La Vida Liverpool, said the inaugural festival had been “a lot of hard work but a triumph for local creativity and literary talent”.

He said the event had raised more than £1,500 for local literacy charities Inspiring Minds CIC and Builder Book.

“The feedback has been incredible and there will most definitely be more. Keep your eyes peeled for another Liverpool Book Festival soon,” he said.

There’s a lot that Tom Holland doesn’t have time for right now. Just putting headphones in and listening to music is hard when “there’s no pockets on the Spider-Man suit” and he’s hanging from wires all day. Cheering at the US Open? Even though he’d “love to watch the tennis,” he has to fly back to London tomorrow (he landed in New York this morning). The actor has just stepped off a plane and onto Park Avenue for the launch party of Prada Paradigme, the house’s newest scent. He’s the face of it, and with no time to wait for luggage, he also didn’t pack it. “I always have a carry-on—I try to never have a checked bag, and then you can’t bring the bottle through the airport,” he tells me of the relatable conundrum.

What he does make time for, always, is sleep. “When people brag about, oh, I only need four hours of sleep, it’s like, poor you. I want 9, 10 hours sleep,” he jokes. He’s also making time for nutrition, like protein, which he’s “always consuming” and considers creatine “a really, really important supplement when you’re talking about longevity and staying fit and healthy.”

He’s consistent in the gym, of course, because it’s “so intense” to be a superhero. “I spent all day every day last week in wires, and most of the time I was upside down,” he says. “And it’s about being fit enough that you can do that every day to the best of your ability so that it doesn’t hinder the character. You need to make sure that the energy throughout the entire movie is always growing because the audience will understand that.” It all requires a lot of prep and recovery. “It’s stretching, it’s fitness, it’s strength, it’s health, it’s sleep, it’s diet and wellbeing.” The wellbeing part is important right now. He’s taking time to go to movies, noting that this is a great year for going to the actual theater and experiencing the community. Plus, “going out for dinner and looking nice and smelling nice really helps your wellbeing,” Holland says. “It helps your mental health and your mental health helps your physical health, It’s all connected.”

Holland’s own introduction to wearing scent (which he often refers to as “aftershave”) was around age 12 when his dad bought him a cologne. “I just remember getting compliments about the way I smelled, which never happens as a young kid,” he recalls. Now, he still likes “fresh” scents. He calls out “freshly mown grass” and “cedarwood” as things he likes to smell generally, and describes Prada Paradigme’s notes of bergamot and geranium as “very cool,”“refreshing,” and a “breath of fresh air.” He admits that one of his younger brothers, Paddy, who is “so into fragrance,” is the real expert in the family. “He has such a good nose. I’m not like that; it’s lost on me a little bit, but it’s really cool. He has all sorts of different bottles, and he does different combinations. I really love to see how he expresses himself through that.”

Congratulations are in order for Perrie Edwards and her fiancé, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who are expecting their second child together.

On Saturday (Sept. 6), the 32-year-old Little Mix singer announced that she and the professional football player, also 32, are preparing to welcome a new addition to their growing family.

“Guess what hunnies…,” Perrie captioned an adorable video on Instagram, adding a red heart emoji.

In the black-and-white clip, Perrie wears a white T-shirt with the phrase, “If He Wanted To He Would…” printed on the back. As she turns around, she reveals her baby bump along with a message on the front of the shirt that reads, “…and He Did!” Moments later, her fiancé and their 3-year-old son, Axel, step into the frame to share a sweet family embrace.

The joyful announcement comes after Perrie opened up about a heartbreaking pregnancy loss following the birth of Axel in 2021. In a candid interview on the We Need to Talk podcast in August, the “Shout Out to My Ex” singer reflected on one of the most difficult periods of her life.

“Axel wasn’t even walking yet and we were pregnant,” the X Factor alum said. “I found out when I was rehearsing for the Little Mix tour. I was at rehearsals and I thought, ‘Oh I don’t feel good.’ Every symptom under the sun so I was like, ‘I think I’m pregnant.’”

While tests confirmed she was expecting again, something didn’t feel right once she began touring in April 2022 with her Little Mix bandmates Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Jade Thirlwall.

“Every night before a show, I kept bleeding,” Perrie said. “I remember sitting and thinking, ‘This is it, I’ve lost the baby.’”

Despite reassuring check-ups early on, she later received devastating news during her 20-week scan.

“That was just the worst day of my life, like horrendous,” she said, explaining how traumatic the experience was. “I just knew something was wrong in the scan.” She continued, “I think when you’re fully carrying and you’re 24 weeks and you’ve planned out like their room and all these things, it’s really hard.”

Watch Perrie’s pregnancy reveal on Instagram below.

After Oppenheimer, Cillian Murphy was a buzzword in the industry for a long time. But now he is saying he is waiting for the “right thing.”

“I’m probably less inclined to work all of the time now. This year I won’t have done any acting whatsoever. I’m more willing to be patient and wait for the right thing,” the star says in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.

But he also shares, “I’ve always been a serial re-collaborator. With Chris, Oppenheimer was the sixth time we worked together.”

He continues, “With Tim, this is our third thing. For me, the scale and the budget is always secondary to the story. But when I make a connection with someone and it makes it into the work, that becomes trust, which becomes shorthand. And that’s where the rich work comes from.”

Meanwhile, Cillian is starring in Small Things Like These, which he shares that he worked on after wrapping Oppenheimer.

“As soon as I finished the Oppenheimer awards run, we went straight into Steve. It wasn’t strategic on my part, going one big one, one small one. These were just the stories that drew me,” the actor adds.

“They were written by friends, and since we had a production company, we were able to get them made. And these are exactly the sort of stories that I want to tell, the kind of films I go to see myself,” he concludes.

Small Things Like These bows out in cinemas on Nov 8.

The horror sequel raked in $83 million domestically in 3,802 theaters, making it the third-highest domestic opening for a horror movie, behind “It” and “It: Chapter Two.” It’s now the largest horror opening internationally, with $104 million in earnings outside of North American theaters.

The film also broke records for the “Conjuring” universe, securing the biggest opening weekend in the franchise. The movie’s performance is a testament to the franchise’s success in producing classic horror movies since the first film released in 2013, said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for the data firm Comscore.

“Audiences know when they go in to see ‘The Conjuring,’ the minute this scary, ominous music comes up with the Warner’s logo, you know you’re in for a wild ride,” Dergarabedian said.

The film has received mixed reviews from critics, carrying a 55% on Rotten Tomatoes and a “B” CinemaScore.

Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga return to the big screen in the ninth installment of “The Conjuring” as the paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren who attempt to vanquish a demon from a family’s home.

“Last Rites” also handed Warner Bros. Pictures yet another opening weekend box office win, becoming the distributor’s eighth No. 1 debut win this year and the studio’s seventh film in a row to debut with over $40 million domestically.

The movie’s opening weekend numbers are nearly double that of other successful horror movies this year, including Zach Cregger’s August sleeper hit “Weapons,”“Final Destination: Bloodlines” and “Sinners” — all of which are Warner Bros. releases.

“It just shows how arguably more than any other genre, horror has stood the test of time,” Dergarabedian said. “That’s because there’s nothing quite like seeing a horror movie in a darkened room full of strangers.”

The horror genre last crossed the $1 billion mark in 2023. Meeting that threshold this early in the year is unprecedented, Dergarabedian said, “because usually you need a full year of horror movie box office to bank that much cash.”

Upcoming horror films like “Black Phone 2” and “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” are likely to boost that number, Dergarabedian said.

“Last Rites” blew past other titles at the box office this weekend. Disney’s filmed version of “Hamilton” landed in second place with $10 million domestically. The film was “perfect counterprogramming” to “Last Rights,” Dergarabedian said.

The rest of the top spots were taken by several holdover titles. “Weapons” secured third place during its fifth weekend, bringing in $5.4 million in earnings in North American theaters. The movie’s debut partner, “Freakier Friday” took fourth place with $3.8 million.

The crime caper “Caught Stealing,” which debuted last weekend, rounded out the top five with $3.2 million in domestic earnings.

Top 10 movies by domestic box office

With final domestic figures being released Monday, this list factors in the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:

1. “The Conjuring: Last Rites,” $83 million.

2. “Hamilton,” $10 million.

3. “Weapons,” $5.4 million.

4. “Freakier Friday,” $3.8 million.

5. “Caught Stealing,” $3.2 million.

6. “The Roses,” $2.8 million.

7. “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” $2.8 million.

8. “The Bad Guys 2,” $2.5 million.

9. “Light of the World,” $2.4 million.

10. “Superman,” $1 million.

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