Today’s news roundup is dominated by controversy! First on the agenda, Seth MacFarlane wants to reiterate that he will not be hosting the Oscars again. Although, this time around he makes it sound like he probably would have, if it weren’t for his very busy schedule. In his stead, he suggested producers invite Joaquin Phoenix — that’s a dig at the actor, who was one of the many who vocally disapproved of MacFarlane’s comedic flourishes.
Next we’ve got Zoe Saldana, who should be having a pretty good week thanks to the new “Star Trek” film, except she keeps courting PR disaster with controversial statements like those listed here, in which she basically told BET that she cringed from all talk about ethnic identity, and resented discussing her own. This casts further confusion about her choice to play Nina Simone — whose ethnic identity was at the very heart of her music and politics — in Cynthia Mort’s already infamous upcoming biopic, and even upon her role as Uhura (the role became a tremendous milestone for black actors when originated by Nichelle Nichols back in 1966). I’d much prefer the focus shifting to Saldana’s politics instead of her skin color or heritage, but it looks like she might have some tough going ahead of her either way.
Our third hot topic comes to us by way of the feminist blog Reductress, which comments on Hollywood’s body issues with a mock post entitled “Fat Actresses Who Know How to Flaunt It.” The list starts with renowned non-skeletal (aka: “cool fat”) actresses like Kate Winslet, and then works its way down to stars like the “husky” Keira Knightley. So many layers of satire here, my head is spinning!
And last of all: remember back when Archie Comics welcomed a gay character to Riverdale? Not only has Kevin Keller survived the curse of the novelty character; he is now gracing the comic with its first gay kiss. What’s cool about this is that the storyline — in which a Riverdale parent protests against Kevin’s public display of affection — is actually inspired by anti-gay groups like One Million Moms (which has taken down its Facebook page after being mocked for having nowhere near the number of followers to back up its name) having protested Kevin’s introduction in the first place.
Hopefully that’s enough hot news to keep you talking ’round the water cooler (or twenty-first-century equivalent) until tomorrow’s roundup. Just to lighten things up in advance, here’s Martin Freeman attempting a Gollum impression in front of Andy Serkis.
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