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Neil Young and Crazy Horse have cancelled the rest of their tour– for now.
(I’m so glad I got to see them back in May.)
The reason? They say some of members of the group are ill. Is it COVID? Sounds like it. They got sick at Detroit’s Pine Knob. “Health is Number 1,” the announcement emphasizes.
Neil is almost 79 years old, his Crazy Horse bandmates look pretty aged on stage. The only young guy is Micah Nelson, son of Willie, who may be off to join brother Lukas on Outlaw Music Festival tour. Lukas’s band is subbing for dad, Willie, 91, who’s ailing and off the road.
The conspiracy theorist in me thinks maybe all of this has something to do with Willie’s situation. Let’s hope not. Let’s pray everyone gets better fast.
The cancellation will be a disappointment since most of those July dates are in Canada, where Neil is a national icon. But he’ll be back. The show I saw in May was brilliant.
The first two “A Quiet Place” movies were no slouches acting wise. Emily Blunt brought a real sense of fear to the assignment, Cillian Murphy was very engaging in part 2, and Millicent Simmonds had a spectacular debut as the deaf daughter.
But now comes the prequel, “A Quiet Place: Day One,” and it’s a whole different species of film. The aliens are still running around, looking gross and acting mean, killing people and overturning cars. If you make a noise, they will eviscerate you. None of that has changed.
In this standalone chapter, we get to see what happened to other people when the emergency was announced to the world. Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o’s Samira, dying of cancer, is in a group discussion at her hospice. Alex Wolff is the group leader, and it’s clear they have an itchy scratchy friendship. She doesn’t suffer fools, and even announces that she is mean. She also carries a fluffy white and black security cat with her — everywhere.
Wolff’s Reuben invites the group to see a marionette show in The City — meaning New York. Samira agrees as long as they can get some New York pizza while they’re in town. They get in the hospice school bus, and you know there will be trouble.
Krasinski shares screenplay credit with director Michael Sarnoski. They carry over the spirit of the first two but add new dimensions. Instead of a family bound by biology, this one is made of strangers. Samira is thrown together with Eric, a nattily dressed British law student more dependent on her than the cat. They are just randomly paired by the universe.
It comes as no surprise, but Nyongo’o gives a tour de force performance. She reminded me of Cicely Tyson, with that level of intensity and warmth. There isn’t much dialogue in these movies, so emotion is conveyed largely in facial expressions. The eyes are so important. On all fronts, Nyongo’o carries this 90 minute adventure heroically. An Oscar nomination is not that far-fetched.
The men in Samira’s life are strong presences. Wolff is a very Judd Hirschy guy, perfectly cast. Joseph Quinn, straight from “Stranger Things,” looks like he should be Robert Downey Jr’s son in some movie. He makes an impressive big screen debut. The great Djimon Honsou has a fleeting cameo — he’s the tie in to “A Quiet Place 2.” If they ever make the third movie in the Emily Blunt series, I hope he gets more screen time. Honsou is a two time Oscar nominee who should be working every minute. He’s terrific.
Michael Bay produced the film, and he was there last night at the screening and after party at Lincoln Restaurant. I’d never really met him before, but he’s funny and engaging which makes sense since he’s one of the most successful producers and directors of all time. I asked him what was next and he replied, “I could tell you but then I’d have to kill you.” So we’ll have to wait and see…
PS Paramount may be in corporate disarray, but they have hits! (See: “If.”) That’s all that matters.
“Inside Out 2” is an Aaron Judge grand slam home run.
The animated Pixar Disney film crossed the $400 mil mark yesterday after just 13 days in release!
This means that “Inside Out 2” has now made $44 million more than the original “Inside Out” garnered in its entire run!
The first movie made $850 million total worldwide. This one has made $836 million worldwide in just two weeks!
How is this possible? What kind of demon sorcery is going on here? Or it just the combination of school being out, intense heat and the need for air conditioning, plus of course the movie’s pulling on heart strings, has just become the perfect recipe for success?
Yes.
This means that parents are taking their kids back over and over, because what else is there to do? Or to see?
On we go to a few more weeks of box office headlines!
Willie Nelson will not be back on the Outlaws Tour tonight.
The 91 year old country music superstar left the tour on June 21st saying he didn’t feel well.
Now he’s posted to social media that he’s still not feeling well, and “will return to the tour shortly.”
This will be the fourth show Willie has missed on this tour. The schedule is pretty heavy, so he can rejoin at any time.
There’s no mention so far of what’s ailing Willie. If he has COVID, the current strain could really be kicking his ass.
In March, Willie released his 100th studio album, called “The Border.” He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last fall, which proves if you can live almost forever the Rock Hall will acknowledge greatness.
Lukas Nelson and his Family Band will continue to fill in for his dad.
Sending speedy recovery to Willie. He’s a national — make that international — institution.
Michael Easton is leaving “General Hospital” after 12 years with the ABC soap. He was on ABC’s “One Life to Live” for several years before that.
Easton was a fan favorite but his storyline has come to an end. In all likelihood his character will die or be sent to endless rehab for addiction. (He’s played three different characters over the years.)
Easton’s leaving has to do with yesterday’s announcement that Jonathan Jackson is returning to the show after 10 years. To pay that salary, someone else with a big paycheck had to go. Easton will turn up on another show pretty quickly, I’d guess, probably “Days of our Lives,” where he started his career.
Shown in Cannes, the movie — a documentary style dramatic version of Donald Trump’s early days — may finally have found a distributor.
I’ve confirmed that would be indie outfit Briarcliff Entertainment, whose owner — Tom Ortenberg — steered “Spotlight” to a Best Picture in 2016. His other hits included Michael Moore’s “Fahrenheit 911.”
“The Apprentice” is film directed by Ali Abbasi and written by journalist Gabriel Sherman. Sebastian Stan plays Trump in his 30s and 40s. Newly minted Tony Award winner Jeremy Strong is the late monster Roy Cohn, Trump’s evil guru who taught him the tricks of the trade.
Maria Bakalova, who made such a splash in the “Borat” sequel, plays Ivana Trump. The film re-enacts Donald raping Ivana, something Ivana alleged and subsequently retracted years ago.
There’s a long, complicated history of the film’s financing which had so far prevented it from finding a distributor after becoming a sensation in Cannes last month. It involves Dan Snyder, former owner of the Washington Commanders (formerly Redskins) who invested $5 million thinking the movie would portray Trump in a positive light.
But holding up the release would mean extremely negative PR for Snyder as football season begins, and who needs that? So negotiations are under way to pay him back and move on with “The Apprentice” hitting theaters this fall.
If the film is released before the November 5th election — and I’m told it can be, easily — the impact would be tremendous. Just the publicity alone from the film, apart from people running out to see it, would take over the conversation as Trump struggles to be elected again. Imagine Ivana’s children taking to the media their defense of their father and questioning their late mother’s veracity.
Could “The Apprentice” be in the mix for the Oscars and other awards shows? It’s still unclear but 2024 is turning into a light year for Oscar buzzed films, so anything is possible. Acting wise, from what we’re told, Stan and Strong at least would be cinches. You wouldn’t want to wake up in March 2025 to a newly elected Trump portrayed by an Oscar winner as a rapist.
The revival of The Who’s “Tommy” will play its last performance on July 21st.
The musical received good reviews and had ecstatic audiences, but was overwhelmed at the Tony Awards by other revivals like “Merrily We Roll Along.”
Already announced is a closing for “The Heart of Rock and Roll,” the Huey Lewis musical. Next should be the musical version of “The Notebook.”
“Tommy” has been played at 78% capacity. Last week it made just $794,967 — not enough to sustain a musical of its size during the fall off month of August.
Will we ever see “Tommy” again? I sure hope so, but probably not for a while. We still have the album and the movie, though! The Who are forever!
PS Count me in for seeing it again before the Pinball Wizard wraps up his game.
Lucky Spencer is coming back to “General Hospital.”
The ABC soap is fighting a ratings spiral this spring and summer, down to 1.9 million viewers two weeks ago.
Jonathan Jackson is returning after a decade away. Jackson is the original actor who played Lucky, the son of Luke and Laura, decades ago. Jackson has come and gone since then, playing the part from 1993 to 1999, and 2009 to 3011, with a stint on the hit nighttime show, “Nashville.”
At the soap he won five Emmy Awards, in 1995, 1998, 1999, 2011 and 2012.
Producer Frank Valentini had promised a big male star from the past was returning, and he’s come through. The return of Lucky could give the ratings a boost as the character is connected to everyone in Port Charles.
“General Hospital” has suffered from the pandemic, the writer’s strike, changing head writers, and the losses of several actors to illnesses. This seems like a Hail Mary pass to get viewers back. Let’s hope it works.
House of the Dragon is not having any easy launch.
The second season of the “Game of Thrones” spin off had a hard start last week. Now its second week has gotten worse.
Week 2 for Season 2 was down 17% in the key age demo, and down almost 2% in total viewers — 1.3 million.
These are actually reported numbers for linear HBO, not counting Max and other platforms. But linear numbers tell the story. Fans — especially the desired age group — are not digging the prequel.
The show is relentlessly grim. It’s also very dark. The characters are constantly at odds with each other. There’s never a light moment, or indications of friendship or family loyalties. It just seems like a constant war.
This is a big difference from “Game of Thrones.” Yes, it was violent, but it was also sexy and fun. In the first few seasons you could also root for Jon Snow and Jamie Lannister. I can’t find a character to invest in.
Luckily we are two days away from the return of “The Bear” on Hulu. Yes, chef! Maybe Carmie can broil up some dragons!
The 2025 Hollywood Walk of Fame inductees have been announced.
They range from the absolutely right people — legends like Jane Fonda and Prince, beloved actor Glynn Turman, director John Carpenter — to the absolutely ridiculous.
The latter includes controversial radio personality Adam Carrolla (are they kidding?) to soccer player David Beckham, and a couple of people you’d really have to think about who they are.
The Walk of Fame is decided by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, and is a money maker for the city. The yearly inductees are divided between a few who deserve it and a bunch who pony up around $50,000 to see their names memorialized on the sidewalk with a star. Usually, studios donate the money for their stars.
Some stars wait a lifetime — two time Oscar winner Jane Fonda should have had one 50 years ago — and others are ushered in seemingly overnight after a few minor successes. But that, folks, is entertainment! I’m impressed that the group WAR is going in. They are a personal favorite. And the B52s’ ceremony should be a hoot!
It will be nice to see the likes Fonda, Bill Duke, Carpenter, Colin Farrell, Oscar winner Jessica Chastain, and science Bill Nye join the ranks of everyone from Michael Jackson to Lassie and John Wayne.
Turman wrote on Twitter:
“Absolutely honored to be a star recipient on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for the class of 2025! Thank you to everyone who has supported me on this incredible journey. Dreams do come true!”
In the category of MOTION PICTURES:Â John Carpenter, Jessica Chastain, Bill Duke, Robert Englund, Emilio Estevez, Colin Farrell, Jane Fonda, Nia Long, Lisa Lu, Glynn Turman and Toni Vaz
In the category of TELEVISION: Fran Drescher, Lauren Graham, Bill Nye, Molly Shannon, Sherri Shepherd, Courtney B. Vance, Chris Wallace, Trey Parker and Matt Stone (double ceremony)
In the category of RECORDING: Fantasia, Depeche Mode, Los Bukis, The B-52s, Green Day, The Isley Brothers, Busta Rhymes, George Strait, Keith Urban, WAR and Prince (Posthumous)
In the category of LIVE THEATRE/LIVE PERFORMANCE: Misty Copeland and Alan Cumming
In the category of RADIO: Adam Carolla
In the category of Sports Entertainment: David Beckham and Orel Hershiser
