From the author’s desk bed
Hi besties, yes, you’re getting a double feature this week because last week I was taken out by a very unsexy villain: sciatica. Like, truly sidelined. Doctor’s orders were basically: “Don’t walk. Don’t stand. Don’t even sleep on your back.” (Shoutout to them for forgetting to mention “Don’t let the entire internet explode with pop culture moments while you’re incapacitated.”)
So there I was, lying on my side like a tragic 19th-century poet, watching Sabrina Carpenter's VMAs performance slack-jawed, drooling over Chris Evans, and cringing at the new Wuthering Heights trailer, unable to type anything except my own cries for help. The physical pain was bad, but the real pain? Watching the takes scroll by untouched.
Anyway, I’m back, (semi)upright, and ready to give you two weeks’ worth of chaos in one email. Consider this my triumphant return, or at least my villain origin story. It’s Giving Backlog (And You’re Going to Love It).
Show business
VMAs 2025: Sabrina Carpenter served a glitter-drenched, early-2000s-coded performance of Tears that had the internet in a chokehold, channelling her inner Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, and also used her moment to publicly support trans rights, earning instant praise. Pop star activism but make it dance-break-in-the-rain. Also attending and performing at the VMAs was Lady Gaga, who then left and made it just in time for her concert at Madison Square Garden, talk about multi-tasking.
Creative Arts Emmys: The Guest Actor and tech categories got their moment, with awards honoring the unsung geniuses of TV, from sound design to scene-stealing cameos. Julianne Nicholson, Bryan Cranston, Merritt Wever and Shawn Hatosy were the winners for 'Hacks,' 'The Studio,' 'Severance' and 'The Pitt,' respectively. A perfect appetizer for tonight’s main Emmy course.
Apple iPhone 17 + iPhone Air: Apple just dropped two shiny new toys, the iPhone 17 with its upgraded cameras and higher specs, and the ultra-thin, ultra-light iPhone Air. Your bank account is already crying.
Harry Styles & Zoë Kravitz: TMZ reports the two are “casually hooking up,” after being spotted together again and again and again. Not sure how TMZ obtained this kinda info, but regardless, the internet is rooting for the two, who even met up with Zoë’s dad, Lenny Kravitz.
Banksy’s London Piece: Banksy’s latest work criticizing the British Royal Courts of Justice was swiftly removed, which somehow made the statement even louder. Classic Banksy: chaos as performance art.
Nikki Rodriguez’s Age Reveal: Turns out My Life With the Walter Boys star Nikki Rodriguez is 33, not 22, according to public records and a resurfaced 2010 high school video.
KJ Apa’s Mr. Fantasy: KJ Apa has unveiled his alter ego, Mr. Fantasy, complete with eccentric outfits, a surreal vibe and a very trending and very catchy self-titled song. Perhaps his greatest role yet.
Emmys 2025: The Emmys air tonight, with The Pitt and Severance leading the pack. I just hope we get some “Thank you Sal Saperstein”s in the winners speeches (go watch The Studio if you don’t get the reference).
New era of fashion
Giorgio Armani’s Passing: The legendary designer Giorgio Armani has passed away, marking the end of an era for Italian fashion. Tributes are pouring in as the industry reflects on his clean, powerful silhouettes that defined decades.
Chloe Malle at Vogue: Chloe Malle has been named the new US Vogue editor. A nepo baby (daughter of an actress and a director) who has earned her merit with 14 years at the publication, her first cover featuring Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid was unveiled. The response? Let’s just say the internet shrugged politely. The cowgirl aesthetic would’ve been better suited to the other Hadid sister.
Dior x Greta Lee: Greta Lee has been announced as the new brand ambassador of Dior, serving sharp sophistication and proving she’s the quiet luxury muse of our dreams, she wore Jonathan Anderson’s first foray into Dior couture at the Venice Film Festival.
Versace’s Twin Moment: Julia Roberts and Amanda Seyfried stepped out in the exact same Versace look, proving fashion déjà vu can be chic when you’re both icons. A great stunt to get the world’s eyeballs on the new Versace post Donatella’s departure.
The Naked Dress Renaissance: Margot Robbie stunned in a sheer Armani number at her London premiere, while Dakota Johnson went sultry in black Gucci at a New York gala. The naked dress is officially back and baring it all.
Courtside crushes
And then there were two: Sinner and Alcaraz made it to yet another Tennis final, but it was Alcaraz who took the title at the US Open, with Sinner’s post-match longing stare at him instantly becoming a meme. Challengers was onto something, tennis romance arc unlocked.
Aryna Sabalenka’s Repeat Win: Sabalenka has officially defended her US Open crown, proving she’s not just a one-season wonder.
Djokovic’s Soda Pop Dance: Novak Djokovic went full dad mode, dancing to “Soda Pop” from Kpop Demon Hunters for his kids.
Lorenzo Musetti: Twitter (or X, whatever) has crowned Musetti their latest White Boy of the Month, thirsting over his press conference pictures.
Trailer park
Chad Powers - Glen Powell’s new sports comedy, which he is also promoting on his new GQ cover.
Wake Up Dead Man - Benoit Blanc is back for the third instalment of the Knives Out franchise, now featuring Josh O’Connor as a priest.
Wuthering Heights - Literature fans, be warned, this is NOT a faithful adaptation, and has taken creative liberties galore. I’m not sure what to make of it yet. (PS Charli XCX has written original songs for the movie…okayyy)
Hamnet - Academy Award-winning director Chloe Zhao’s next, starring Paul Mescal
Die My Love - Starring Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson
After The Hunt - Julia Roberts, Ayo Edebiri and Andrew Garfield’s latest drama (another piece of drama- at the Venice Film Festival, while promoting the movie, the trio were met with a rather racist interviewer who completely excluded Ayo while questioning the other actors about the Me Too and Black Lives Matter movements. Yikes.)
Christy - A biographical sports drama film about the former professional boxer Christy Martin, played by Sydney Sweeney.
Sound off
Justin Bieber’s Swag II: In a surprise move, Bieber dropped Swag II way sooner than anyone expected, just weeks after Swag. Even though he promised a midnight release, the album showed up late for reasons neither he nor fans could explain, which somehow made it feel even more chaotic.
Sabrina Carpenter’s Tears MV: Sabrina’s Tears music video features four alternate endings, each in classic Sabrina fashion- the guy dies in three of them, and in one, no one dies. Whether it’s avoiding censorship or just a clever way to boost replays, it’s working.
Louis & Zayn Reunion: Former bandmates Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik were spotted together, sending 1D Twitter into cardiac arrest.
Bad Bunny’s Bad Knees: A video of Bad Bunny’s knees giving out mid-hop has gone viral. Fans are begging him to sit down before the Un Verano Sin Ti sequel becomes Un Verano Sin ACL.
Jonas Brothers Christmas Movie: The Jonas Brothers are starring in a Christmas movie, pushing the nostalgia button so hard it might break.
Fifth Harmony (Minus Camila): Fifth Harmony has reunited as a quartet, but they’re still out of sync when performing on stage. Some things never change.
Spotify Lossless Audio: Spotify is finally rolling out Lossless audio for Premium users, catching up to the feature Apple Music has had for years. Audiophiles everywhere are ready to pretend they can tell the difference.
Tame Impala’s New Album: Tame Impala just announced Deadbeat, dropping October 17th.
Hilary Duff’s Comeback: Hilary Duff has signed with Atlantic Records and is officially working on new music.
Eternal Struggle: Ariana Grande tickets went on sale and the battle was brutal, friendships were tested, bank accounts drained, and Ticketmaster remains the true villain.
Coldplay’s Endless Tour: Coldplay’s Music of the Spheres tour started in March 2022, and Chris Martin just announced they’re adding a whopping 138 more shows, extending it through 2027. At this point, is it even a tour, or just a permanent way of life?
Hollywood Hot Sheet
Sophie Turner as Lara Croft: Sophie Turner has officially been cast as Lara Croft in the upcoming live-action Tomb Raider series.
Superman: Man of Tomorrow: David Corenswet and Nicholas Hoult just shared new artwork for Superman: Man of Tomorrow, hitting theaters July 9, 2027. The hype cycle has officially begun.
Chris Evans at TIFF: Chris Evans showed up at TIFF looking ridiculously jacked, sparking rumors that he may appear in Avengers: Doomsday. Cap comeback? He COULD do this all day, after all.
Spielberg x Call of Duty: Steven Spielberg reportedly wanted to direct a Call of Duty movie but got turned down. Somewhere, a gamer just shed a single tear at what could’ve been.
Cillian Murphy ‘ROMO’: Cillian Murphy joked he has ROMO (relief of missing out) on not joining Nolan’s The Odyssey.
Twilight on YouTube: All five Twilight films will stream for free on YouTube from September 7–14. Time to relive the Team Edward vs. Team Jacob wars like it’s 2009.
People We Meet on Vacation: First look at People We Meet on Vacation is here, complete with a book-accurate poster. Coming to Netflix on 9th January, I hope we get a teaser trailer soon.
No Other Choice at TIFF: No Other Choice is getting rave reviews out of TIFF. Expect it to be your new “have you seen this??” movie rec by year’s end. A South Korean satirical dark comedy thriller, revolving around the desperation of unemployment and job hunting.
Venice Film Festival Buzz: The Testament of Ann Lee and The Smashing Machine got standing ovations in Venice, both clocking in at just 15 minutes each. This year’s Oscars race is sure gonna be a mixed bag of genres.
Anxious People Adaptation: Best-selling novel by Fredrik Backman, Anxious People is getting a star-studded adaptation with Aimee Lou Wood, Angelina Jolie, and Jason Segel.
The White Lotus Season 4: The White Lotus Season 4 will be set in France. But we still don’t know if that means a Parisian hotel of drama or a snow-capped Alpine murder mystery.
New Drops: The Conjuring and The Roses are both out now, Thursday Murder Club just landed on Netflix, and Only Murders in the Building dropped its first three Season 5 episodes. Consider your weekend officially booked.
Elsewhere on the internet
The Etsy Witch Trials: Jezebel posted about paying a witch on Etsy to curse Charlie Kirk, an American right-wing political activist, just two days before he was shot to death. Buying spells and consulting for hexes with Etsy witches has quietly become the internet’s favourite pastime ever since an influencer went viral for summoning perfect wedding weather.
Charlie Kirk Shooter Memes: The shooter is already being compared online to the infamous Luigi Mangione, who apparently set the hotness bar too high for assassins. Adding to the chaos, the bullet casings reportedly had messages engraved like:
“*notices bulge* OWO what’s this?”
“Hey Fascist! Catch!”
“Bella Ciao”
“If you read this, you are gay lmao”
The internet has been absolutely feral with reactions.
Shaun White & Nina Dobrev Split: Shaun White and Nina Dobrev have officially called off their engagement after five years together.
Rebecca Ma’s Wedding: Influencer Rebecca Ma (aka BeccaxBloom), known for her #RichTok flexes and showcasing her family’s amassed wealth, just tied the knot with her boyfriend in Lake Como.
Royal Mess: Kate Middleton was spotted in a blonde wig that was… not exactly secure.
The Summer I Pranked People: TikTok has a new trend: telling people the plot of The Summer I Turned Pretty as though it’s gossip about mutual friends. Gaslighting as entertainment? It’s what Susannah would have wanted…
Nepal’s Discord-Elected Leader: Sushila Karki has been sworn in as Nepal’s interim prime minister, the first world leader elected via Discord after Gen Z overthrew the government. Democracy just got a push notification.
