Viraldice

The world of social media has lost a rising and beloved star.

Days after being critically injured in a shooting at a Southern California movie theater, TikTok star Anthony Barajas has passed, authorities have confirmed to various outlets.

He was 19 years old.

"The Corona Police Department has been notified that Anthony Barajas passed away early this morning," the police department stated in a press release.

"We extend our thoughts and condolences to his family and friends."

Late Monday night, 18-year-old college student Rylee Goodrich was found dead by movie theater employees after a shooting during a screening of The Forever Purge ... with Barajas being taken to a nearby hospital.

He was subsequently placed on life support, but ultimately succumbed to his injuries.

On Tuesday, July 27, local law enforcement arrested Joseph Jimenez for his alleged involvement in fatal incident.

Joseph was charged for murder, attempted murder and robbery, according to a press release from the local police epartment at the time.

In Saturday's statement, authorities said they are "working with the Riverside County District Attorney's Office to add an additional count of first-degree murder against Joseph Jimenez."

Added authorites in a previous message: "Based on statements obtained, there is no known motive and it appears to be an unprovoked attack."

Anthony, for his part, had over one millionn TikTok subscribers.

HHe last Instagram post was shared on July 22, in which he posed with his mother.

"Better to lose count while naming your blessings than to lose your blessings to counting your troubles," he wrote as a caption to the image.

Barajas is being remembered by family in a GoFundMe page as an "amazing brother, son and friend.

Reads a section of this account, which is raising money for his medical costs and other expenses:

"Anthony was the light of so many peoples lives and there are tough times ahead, but we have amazing family and friends to get through this."

To date, this GoFundMe campaign has raised over $70,000.

In a statement to People Magazine earlier this week, a spokesperson for Regal Cinemas wrote:

"We are currently working with the local authorities regarding the investigation. Our primary concern is for the safety and security of our guests and staff."

The Hollywood Gossip sends its condolences to the friends, family members and loved ones of Anthony Barajas.

May he rest in peace.

View Slideshow: Celebrities Who Died In 2021: In Memoriam

It’s no secret that Hollywood thrives on nepotism: the children of successful actors, directors, and producers are exposed to way more opportunities in the industry. In addition, their family wealth gives them a leg up in an industry that continues to underpay and undervalue those at the bottom rung. You certainly have more time to write, direct, and train when you don’t have to worry about paying your rent and affording food. That’s not to say that those who benefit from nepotism are underserving: Hollywood is littered with talented and celebrated celebrity offspring who earned their success.

But these same people would rather believe that Hollywood is a meritocracy, and in doing so they contribute to the lack of diversity and inclusivity within the industry. And that dichotomy led to a spirited debate between actor Ben Stiller and The Black List founder Franklin Leonard.

Leonard responded to a tweet which announced short film “The Rightway,” which stars Hopper Penn (son of Sean Penn and Robin Wright), directed by Destry Spielberg (daughter of Steven Spielberg), and written by Owen King (son of writer Stephen King). Leonard tweeted, “Hollywood’s a meritocracy, right?”

Hollywood's a meritocracy, right? https://t.co/jELCVujYyB

— Franklin Leonard (@franklinleonard) July 28, 2021

Ben Stiller, son of comedy icons Anne Meara and Jerry Stiller, responded by tweeting “Too easy @franklinleonard. People, working, creating. Everyone has their path. Wish them all the best.”

I do, without fail, but I also think it's important that we acknowledge those paths.

— Franklin Leonard (@franklinleonard) July 28, 2021

Leonard replied, “I do, without fail, but I also think it’s important that we acknowledge those paths,” while Stiller responded, “Yes. Just speaking from experience, and I don’t know any of them, I would bet they all have faced challenges. Different than those with no access to the industry. Show biz as we all know is pretty rough, and ultimately is a meritocracy.” Leonard disagreed, adding I don’t for a second doubt that they’ve all faced challenges. They’re human. I simply reject the claim that the industry is – in the short term or long term – a meritocracy. If it were, how do you explain the utter lack of diversity behind the camera? Lack of merit?”

I don't for a second doubt that they've all faced challenges. They're human. I simply reject the claim that the industry is – in the short term or long term – a meritocracy.

If it were, how do you explain the utter lack of diversity behind the camera? Lack of merit?

— Franklin Leonard (@franklinleonard) July 28, 2021

Stiller backpedaled, adding “100 percent agree. Diversity is much bigger issue. No question. And I see your point, access is access. So yes. I’m saying that untalented people don’t really last if they get a break because of who they are or know or are related to.” Leonard shut him down with the following:

And we both know plenty of unqualified people who manage to stay employed for reasons other than their talent, though both of us have enough decorum not to name names.

— Franklin Leonard (@franklinleonard) July 28, 2021

Ultimately, Leonard summed it up by tweeting, “It’s not just access. It’s undervaluation. It’s active discrimination. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. The Hollywood film C-suite is the least diverse sector in American business. Less diverse than Trump’s cabinet.”

pic.twitter.com/4NLpz9Y9pl

— Franklin Leonard (@franklinleonard) July 28, 2021

(via Twitter, image: Matt Winkelmeyer/Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)

• Here’s an in-depth look at Scarlett Johansson’s legal battle with Disney. (via Variety)
• The Green Knight director David Lowery talks the challenging film shoot. (via THR)
• Black Adam will use new technology to showcase his superpowers. (via Collider)
• Netflix drops a first look at Imelda Staunton as Queen Elizabeth II in season 5 of The Crown:

An early glimpse of our new Queen Elizabeth II, Imelda Staunton. pic.twitter.com/ZeMSA1hDnv

— The Crown (@TheCrownNetflix) July 30, 2021

• Disney is mandating COVID-19 vaccines for all its U.S. employees. (via io9)
• Joel Kinnaman prefers James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad to that other one. (via EW)
• Scare grandma with these Venom and Carnage-themed Instagram filters. (via Nerdist)
• The trailer for Season 12 of Archer just dropped, featuring Jessica Walter’s final performance as Mallory:

Hope you’re enjoying the last day of July, Mary Suevians! Onwards to August!

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Few actresses have endured relentless online bullying and smear campaigns like Amber Heard. These attacks from a vocal group of staunch Johnny Depp stans has led to a petition (with nearly 2 million signatures) to remove her from Aquaman 2. Luckily, online petitions mean nothing, and Warner Bros. is standing by Heard. In an appearance on Deadline‘s Hero Nation podcast, Aquaman producer Peter Safran said, “I don’t think we’re ever going to react to, honestly, pure fan pressure. You gotta do what’s best for the movie. We felt that if it’s [director] James Wan and [star] Jason Momoa, it should be Amber Heard. That’s really what it was.”

Safran added, “One is not unaware of what is going on in the Twitter-verse, but that doesn’t mean you have to react to it or take it as gospel or accede to their wishes. You have to do what’s right for the film, and that’s really where we landed on it.” Heard also confirmed she was returning for the sequel, telling Entertainment Weekly, “I’m super excited about the amount of fan love and the amount of fan appreciation that Aquaman has acquired and that it has garnered so much excitement for Aquaman and Mera that it means we’ll be coming back, … I’m so excited to film that.”

Heard continued, “Paid rumors and paid campaigns on social media don’t dictate [casting decisions] because they have no basis in reality, … Only the fans actually made Aquaman and Aquaman 2 happen. I’m excited to get started next year.”

Not only has Heard endured the attacks from his stans, but her ex-husband Johnny Depp tried to use his influence to get Heard fired from the first Aquaman movie. According to Tatiana Siegel’s exposé in the Hollywood Reporter, Depp told his sister, producer Christi Dembrowski, “I want her replaced on the WB film.” During his high stake libel lawsuit against British tabloid The Sun, Depp admitted that he was referring to Aquaman.

Depp ultimately lost his libel suit against The Sun, after a London High Court Judge Andrew Nicol ruled that Depp had repeatedly assaulted his former partner and put her in fear for her life. “I have found that the great majority of alleged assaults of Ms Heard by Mr Depp have been proved to the civil standard,” said Nicol. “The claimant has not succeeded in his action for libel.”

This resulted in Depp being asked to leave his role as Grindelwald in the Fantastic Beasts films, and will be replaced by Mads Mikkelsen.

Ever since they first got together on the set of The Rum Diary, rabid Depp fans have attacked Heard, labelling her a “gold digger” and an abuser as well, blaming her for defending herself. As our own Princess Weekes wrote, “It is easier to make Amber Heard, a less beloved actress and young bisexual woman, the malevolent “femme fatale” and orchestrator of his doom like some Isabella of France, than to admit that his behavior, ego, vanity, and thirst for revenge has led him down a destructive path of his own making.”

As Depp’s self-immolation continues, Amber Heard continues to thrive. She is training for Aquaman 2 and recently welcomed a daughter. But next year will see Heard and Depp in court once more, as Depp has filed a $50M defamation suit. Heard has responded with a $100M countersuit, and two are scheduled to go to trial in April 2022.

(via Deadline, image: Warner Bros.)

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In what may be the most high profile lawsuit between a movie star and a studio in Hollywood history, Scarlett Johansson is suing Disney for breaching her contractual payment structure on Marvel’s Black Widow. Like many stars, Johansson has a series of bonuses built into her contract based on how much money the film earns at the box office, but when Disney chose to release the film simultaneously in theaters and via Premiere Access on Disney+, they cut into the potential box office profits for the film, leading to a smaller payday for Johansson.

Instead of renegotiating the terms of the contract or agreeing on a payout price, Disney largely ignored Johansson’s and her team’s request to resolve the outstanding issue. Disney fired back with an angry missive, describing Johansson’s claim as a “callous disregard for the horrific and prolonged global effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.” One wonders what their response would have been if Chris Evans or Robert Downey Jr. faced a similar situation. It’s especially galling considering that Disney themselves have shown a “callous disregard” for COVID-19, what with laying off 32,000 workers during the pandemic.

#TIMESUPENT pic.twitter.com/2Q3oVn0XTK

— TIME'S UP (@TIMESUPNOW) July 30, 2021

Time’s Up, ReFrame, and Women in Film have issued a joint statement regarding Scarlett Johansson’s lawsuit against Disney over their breach of contract with the Black Widow release.The statement reads, “While we take no position on the business issues in the litigation between Scarlett Johansson and The Walt Disney Company, we stand firmly against Disney’s recent statement which attempts to characterize Johansson as insensitive or selfish for defending her contractual business rights. This gendered character attack has no place in a business dispute and contributes to an environment in which women and girls are perceived as less able than men to protect their own interests without facing ad hominem criticism.”

Johansson’s agency CAA also released a statement defending their client from the character attack. Bryan Lourd, co-chairman of the Creative Artists Agency, said “They have shamelessly and falsely accused Ms. Johansson of being insensitive to the global COVID pandemic, in an attempt to make her appear to be someone they and I know she isn’t.” He added, “The company included her salary in their press statement in an attempt to weaponize her success as an artist and businesswoman, as if that were something she should be ashamed of, … Scarlett is extremely proud of the work that she, and all of the actors, writers, directors, producers, and the Marvel creative team have been a part of for well over a decade.”

“Disney’s direct attack on her character and all else they implied is beneath the company that many of us in the creative community have worked with successfully for decades,” he said. And he’s not wrong: Johansson has appeared in nine Marvel movies as a core member of the Avengers, a franchise that has earned Disney billions of dollars.

Disney was betting that Scarlett Johansson’s problematic history, coupled with the rampant misogyny we see aimed at successful women to somehow shame her into accepting a subpar offer. Additionally, they clearly hoped she would stay silent to maintain her relationship with the studio. But Johansson is part of high tier of successful actors who don’t need Disney or their subsidiaries.

In response, fellow actors Emma Stone and Emily Blunt are reportedly mulling over their own lawsuits, as their films Cruella and Jungle Cruise were subject to the same hybrid release structure as Black Widow. If they join Johansson, they could set in motion a major power play between A-list actresses and Disney.

(via Variety, image: Marvel Studios)

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How many times has Farrah Abraham gone under the knife or the needle?

It would be impossible to count at this point, right?

She started off her plastic surgery journey soon after she achieved Teen Mom fame -- she got a nose job and a chin implant.

She then got breast implants, then later she got different breast implants, then a while after that she had to have a third boob job because the second one had been botched.

In addition to those surgeries, she's had tons of Botox and fillers, and a variety of injections in her lips.

There was a period of time when she seemed to be super into vaginal rejuvenation, and of course she's awfully fond of getting butt injections as well.

And as it turns out, this week she thought it was high time to pump some more stuff into the old backside.

She shared a video of the shenanigans on TikTok, and thankfully it didn't appear to be filmed by Sophia this time around -- she seemed to be good friends with a woman who worked at the facility she visited, and she did the filming.

"She's getting a little filler just for the little dimpling that we sometimes have as females," the woman explained. "We get a little cellulite, we get a little more elasticity."

"If you got all that junk in your trunk, this will help," Farrah added with a smile and a "Yeehaw!"

And just in case you thought she might be too modest to actually document all of this ... no, never mind, that doesn't make sense.

There's no possible scenario in which you'd have gotten this far into a story about Farrah's butt injections and thought she'd be too modest for much of anything.

Anyway, Farrah's friend filmed who we assume to be a doctor actually doing the injections, all while Farrah mumbled some more nonsense about the junk in her trunk.

She also said "A real doctor knows how gravity works" before winking and blowing off a finger gun.

Just so you know exactly what we're dealing with here.

When the injections were over, she showed off the results, which you can see below:

"Oh my god, don't be jealous," Farrah said. "The cowgirl's ready for some horse-riding."

The whole thing is just deeply, deeply bizarre.

Look, Farrah is obviously allowed to do whatever she wants with her body.

But you'd think that at some point in time, a doctor would have looked at her and thought something along the lines of "You know, this person doesn't seem well, perhaps I shouldn't be doing this."

She doesn't even remotely look like the same person we saw all the way back on 16 and Pregnant, and it has nothing to do with how much time has gone by since then.

Specifically with these butt injections she keeps getting, it looks so uncomfortable because she's so thin -- her thighs are so small, they don't even seem like they should be able to hold up that butt.

It just always feels like she's so unhappy with so many things, that she keeps changing her appearance hoping to find something that will make her feel good and it just never happens.

View Slideshow: Farrah Abraham: The Iconic, Cringe-Worthy Moments We Can Never Unsee

It's really sad to watch.

What do you think about this new look?

**Content Warning: Descriptions of sexual assault**

HBO’s new Music Box series debuted with a documentary film about the Woodstock ’99 music festival. If you hold this festival in any sort of nostalgic esteem, this movie will make you wonder why.

Told through interviews with musicians, organizers, security, and attendees, Woodstock ’99: Peace, Love, and Rage paints a picture of an event that, at its core, had no reason to exist. The 25th anniversary Woodstock festival held in 1994 attempted (and fairly successfully so) to be a bridge between the music of the original fest and the present. ’99, though, had nothing in common with the original beyond the name. Multiple musicians tried to pay homage to the iconic festival during their sets, and all of them said their allusions went right over the audience’s heads. For the most part, the attendees didn’t know anything about Woodstock and they didn’t want to.

The original Woodstock brought people together for the music, yes, but also around a shared worldview that was deeply important to those in attendance. The music was an intrinsic part of the social and political counterculture those attendees inhabited.

But the ’99 festival was purposeless–unless you count capitalism as a purpose, which the organizers clearly did. As the documentary depicts it, the entire point of the festival was making money, and as much of it as possible. Much is made throughout the film over the $4 cost of bottled water (about $6.50 today with inflation), including its role in eventually inciting a full-on riot.

While the counterculture youth of the late 60s had much to rally against, the youth of the late 90s were largely without any sort of big social or political fight. Gen X and elder Millenials are largely stereotyped as being awash in a Reality Bites-style slacker malaise but that lack of purpose also manifested in some major unplaced anger. And that anger–the anger of young middle-class white men with nothing to rage against except their own unfulfilled entitlement–that was the driving force of Woodstock ’99.

That anger takes a lot of forms in Garret Price’s documentary but by far the most upsetting is the raw, aggressive entitlement those men feel to the bodies of the women around them. The film can be hard to watch as it’s filled with footage of men grabbing women’s breasts, groping them while they crowd surf (including one horrifying shot of a crowd trying to tear the underwear off of a woman as she passed over them). Over and over, we watch men surroung women, yelling at them, demanding the women flash them.

Many women chose to go topless at the festival and men en masse viewed that as permission to assault them. In one infuriating talking-head clip, festival promoter John Scher denied that assault was widespread at the event, citing a lack of police reports, as if that’s something most of these very young women and teenage girls even thought was an option for them at the time. He also justified the assaults that did happen, arguing that the women brought it on themselves by dressing so “promiscuous.”

The big question that arises when looking over this footage is “What were all of these men so angry about?” The answer, largely, is nothing. What the film shows is a generation of white men who had heaps of privilege and power, and were angry about it because they wanted more. Maybe it was the realization that while they wanted to play at power–smashing into each other in mosh pits, tearing down giant scaffolding structures and setting things on fire, treating women as mere toys to be groped–they were still powerless cogs in the MTV capitalism machine. The real Woodstock used music to reach people but the MTV nu metal scene didn’t view these men as people, just marketing figures.

It’s not hard to draw a direct line between the confounding, pointless anger of the men at Woodstock ’99 and so many of the behaviors we see manifested now. These angry, entitled men were proto-incels, the precursors to the MAGA/QAnon/would-be insurrectionists of today. In fact, I’m confident that we could guess where quite a few of the men in this archival footage (and maybe their sons as well) were on January 6.

As commentator Wesley Morris puts it in the film, “A lot of that energy that was permeating the crowd that day, it just wound up in chat rooms and Reddit boards. It’s fascinating to think about because  I don’t know if it’s possible to get that collection of people together in 2021 without it being a cause for concern.”

(image: Catherine Lash, HBO)
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Few authors can claim the extraordinary fan base and universal adoration that Sir Terry Pratchett has. The prolific Discworld author, who passed away in 2015, was not only a pillar of fantasy literature, but was universally beloved among his peers. Pratchett’s work often contained themes of acceptance and inclusivity, so when some online transphobes tried to claim him as one of their own, the internet reacted with righteous anger and indignation.

Chief among them was Pratchett’s daughter Rhianna, who tweeted “This is horrifying. My father would most definitely not be a GC if he was still alive. Read. The. Books.”

This is horrifying. My father would most definitely not be a GC if he was still alive. Read. The. Books. https://t.co/iphrwjBMUk

— Rhianna Pratchett 💙 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ (@rhipratchett) July 30, 2021

“GC” stands for “gender critical”, i.e. a fancy pseudo-academic phrase to describe transphobic people. Anti-trans campaigners have previously tried to co-opt the words of dead authors, applying a transphobic interpretation to their works. It is upsetting and deeply distasteful that these people are trying to place an anti-trans label on authors who can no longer speak for themselves.

And of all the authors…Terry Pratchett, really? Clearly none of these people have actually read Mr. Pratchett’s work, or they would know that he frequently subverted gender norms and featured gender nonconforming characters in several books, like Discworld‘s Cheery Littlebottom, a dwarf who identifies as a woman and uses she/her pronouns.

Many fans took to Twitter to celebrate Pratchett’s work and call out the transphobic claims for what they are: absolute rubbish.

Sometimes, the voice of a person long dead remains more alive and more relevant than that of a thousand still living. pic.twitter.com/RAJYEvtoC3

— Joanne Harris (@Joannechocolat) July 31, 2021

Love that Terry Pratchett has interrupted his own eternal slumber to say ‘absolutely fucking not’ to transphobes trying to co-opt his legacy. https://t.co/sWJUUgYDjV

— Max Morgan 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ (@SpillerOfTea) July 31, 2021

I mean pic.twitter.com/lxXbx0nLfX

— Adult Human Tamale (@halford_rosie) July 30, 2021

still thinking about those TERFs who thought Terry Pratchett would be on their side pic.twitter.com/3I7vb54m7T

— constant badthoughts (@allwrongthink) July 28, 2021

Literally one of the first jokes in Terry Pratchett's first novel "The Colour of Magic" made fun out of researchers who couldn't stop obessing about what sex the giant space turtle, the Great A'tuin, was. The joke being literally who fucking cares about the turtle's sex. https://t.co/tJFYVObF94

— Hugh「ヒュー」 (@HwpMatthews) July 31, 2021

Terry Pratchett literally wrote a book where the villain was a GC who sided with fascists. pic.twitter.com/SXbSz6VS2f

— Tom Eastman (@tveastman) July 31, 2021

People claiming that Sir Terry Pratchett was a TERF/GC, when we have Cheery god damn Littlebottom is hilarious.

Don't besmirch Sir Terry's name for something this dumb. pic.twitter.com/4WKkvgs8JX

— Drewie-Pie (@AmonsJasa) July 31, 2021

“Terry Pratchett would be gender critical” is the UK version of “George Carlin would’ve voted for Trump.”

Complete nonsense from bigots looking to appropriate people that aren’t here to speak for themselves. https://t.co/WB0veiwyDD

— Drace (He/They) (@Drace_Domino) July 31, 2021

Yes it is horrifying, but remember~

“…and the funny thing was that people who weren't entirely certain they were right always argued much louder than other people, as if the main person they were trying to convince were themselves.”#TerryPratchett#TransRightsAreHumanRights https://t.co/QAHnCf8uPo pic.twitter.com/QaTzhBthoi

— Andi Marchal, Author (@AndiMarchal) July 31, 2021

Terry Pratchett’s works were full of remarkable ideas that were even more progressive when they were written. Cheers to his readers, friends and daughter who continue to see this message carried forward. https://t.co/W6JcSmg9kS

— Sheala.draws✒️ (@Shealadraws) July 31, 2021

Terry Pratchett was a fierce defender of individuals staying true to themselves regardless of the roles the world had in mind for them. His book Equal Rites shows how gender roles are by & large bullshit & says you should make your life w/ the gifts you have no matter your sex.

— Daniel O'Brien (@OdiEtAmo_PRNqd) July 31, 2021

The lesson? Don’t come for Discworld fans and don’t you dare besmirch the reputation of Sir Terry.

(via Pink News, image: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)

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New hair.

And Jinger Duggar just doesn't care... what her parents think.

Earlier this week, the former reality star stunned Instagram followers by undergoing a rather drastic makeover, cutting her hair and coloring her hhairr and documenting the whole thing on social media.

"Sometimes you just need to change the hair up a bit,” Jinger captioned her before-and-after photos on Friday, July 30.

As you can see above and below, Jessa cut off several inches from all around her head, while leaving behind her long, blonde locks.

In the comments section, Jessa Duggar wrote of her sister and this fresh look: "Love it!!!"

You can scroll down and see if you agree.

Jinger went ahead with this major change in the wake of chatter that she's pretty much done with her controlling mother and father.

Just a couple weeks ago, for example, Duggar rocked some especially short shorts in what many observers interpreted to be a shot at parents Jim Bob and Michelle.

She's come across as far more rebellious ever since brother Josh got arrested on charges of child pornography possession.

It may have taken an extreme and heinous circumstance, but Jinger seems to have finally realized just how dangerous and/or unhealthy of an environment her mom and dad have created at home.

Hence the admitted need for Jinger to change, you know?

Even if she's merely referring to her hair at the moment.

“Your hair!” raved her close friend Carlin Bates after Jinger's husband, Jeremym shared a close-up snapshoot that highlighted his wife's makeover. “I

am so OBSESSED!” Carlin added under Jinger’s post. “You are stunning."

In an interview on the Dinner Party with Jeremy Fall podcast last month, meanwhile, Jinger opened up about the trouble with being in the spotlight.

"I think a lot of people do look into fame, and they think it's all beautiful, it's all wonderful.

"And yes, as I'm saying, there are tons of perks, but then, you also have to wrestle through a lot," Jinger explained on the episode.

Continued the mother of two:

"They can think, 'Oh, you don't wrestle with anything, you don't struggle with being depressed one day,' you know?

"Or, like, your day hasn't gone as you want, and how do you get through that?

"I think it's been more challenging for me personally to figure out how to move past that, and how to truly open up to people."

How do she and Jeremy navigate challenging waters?

How do they overcome obstacles and maintain a positive attitude?

"We are people of faith and we have faith in God and so I think for me in those times when I wrestle the most, I just run to God," Jinger said on the podcast.

Jinger went on to say that the tabloid headlines and opinions of her family on social media can be especially difficult for her to handle. 

"I've told Jer a couple times, 'I just don't want to be in the public eye!

"I just don't want to be there, I just don't want to be here, I don't want my kids to have people looking in on their lives and picking it apart,'" Jinger admitted on air.

She even brought up incidents in which trolls talked trash about her two-year old daughter.

Still, Jinger does continue to post often on Instagram and does try to draw attention to herself rather often. It can be a fine line.

"There are days where I just wish [I] could say, 'Oh, no one knows who I am, ever again,'" she said.

"But that's never gonna be true for me because people already know who I am.

"People can always look me up."

Just in case you weren't sure, Teen Mom fans?

Just in case you had any doubts?

Just in case you thought there was peace between Mackenzie Edwards and Maci Bookout?

We're here to make it as clear as can be: HA! Not by a long shot.

Earlier this week, Mackenzie jumped on her Instagram Stories page and shared a meme that read as follows:

"No one watches you harder than the person who can't stand you."

She did not cite her long-time rival by name, of course. That would make it way too obvious.

Anyone paying attention to the actions of Edwards and Bookout, however, is well aware that the former was talking trash here about the latter.

Prior to Mackenzie uploading this quote, Bookout had seemingly hurled shade at Mackenzie by actually coming out with "petty bitch" t-shirts.

This is an insult Edward had previously tossed at Maci, as the pair have been at each other's throats since, well... pretty much as long as we can remember.

Mackenzie, of course, is married to Bookout's ex, Ryan Edwards.

The trio have often clashed over Ryan and Maci's 12-year old so, Bentley; specifically, they've had issues with how frequently Ryan and his family get to spend time with the child... following Ryan's lengthy history of drug abuse. 

Back in February, for example, Mackenzie and Ryan lashed out at Maci after Bentley refused to attend his half-brother Jagger's birthday party.

"I am responsible for these kids' emotions and feelings, and they don't deserve that," said Mackenzie in response to her belief that Maci withheld Bentley from the gathering.

This is when she added:

"It's one thing to be a petty b**ch, fine, but when you're including my kids, that's not okay with me."

Maci fired back hard at the time, Tweeting:

"I really wanted to post some 'petty b***h' (and hilarious) comments.

"But I'll wait until they can tell me the definition of 'petty' without Googling it and reading it aloud."

Bookout then got the last laugh by basically getting Ryan fired from Teen Mom OG. His wife and his parents won't be appearing on the show again, either.

Back in May, meanwhile, Maci once again emphasized that Ryan is a deadbeat dad.

The guy has been in and out of rehab on numerous occasions and has also spent time in jail.

He's been trying to put his life back together for years.

In other Maci Bookout news...

... the reality star shared on Instagram thiis week that she had been nominated for the 10th annual WEGO Health Awards.

She went on to provide a link where her followers could learn more about her advocacy, “endorse” her in one of the 10 categories she’s been nominated or even nominate her for additional categories.

“ … I would be humbled to receive a nomination and/or an endorsement from you,” she wrote.

“Nominations and Endorsements are ONLY OPEN UNTIL JULY 31st … so please visit my page now and help your girl out!”

Maci’s bio on the WEGO Health page describes the mom of three as a “devoted PCOS & Women’s Health Advocate.”

It goes on to claim that for more than a decade, she has “used her publicity through television and social media to empower & encourage those living with PCOS to be prevalent through the adversity they face.”

It also touts her efforts to press “for legislation to advance their efforts for PCOS acknowledgment & education.”

According to the official website, Maci has been nominated for the following awards:

Advocating for Another, Healthcare Collaborator, Lifetime Achievement, Patient Leader Hero, Rookie of the Year and Best in Show for Blog, Community, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, respectively.

We applaud the MTV personality for her work in this area.

Some questions have been raised about Donald Trump’s promise to donate his entire presidential salary.

Trump made that pledge in 2015, at the start of his campaign. He initially said he would decline to take a salary at all but the Constitution requires it, so he promised to donate it instead. And he actually did so for most of his term.

He also, predictably, routinely complained about how no one talked about his donations or said thank you enough. He repeatedly claimed that he was the only president to donate his salary as well, which is untrue. Both JFK and Herbert Hoover did so first.

Trump donated his $400k annual salary in $100,000 increments to various federal agencies, which correlated with his political agendas at the time. For instance, as the Washington Post reports, “He donated to a Transportation Department infrastructure program in early 2018, during one of his many doomed attempts at holding ‘Infrastructure Week.’ (That one was derailed by the revelation that Trump’s attorney Michael Cohen had paid hush money to an adult-film star who claimed she had an affair with Trump.)”

He also donated to the Park Service “to support its efforts in repairing and restoring our national monuments.” This was in July of 2020, during the nationwide protests for racial justice following the murder of George Floyd, at a time when Trump was also threatening to prosecute anyone who damaged monuments to slave owners or any federal property.

So while Trump did actually follow through on his promise to donate his salary for most of his time in office—something the Post’s David A. Fahrenthold notes differed from his patterns pre-presidency, when Trump regularly promised to make charitable donations that then never appeared—those payments abruptly and mysteriously stopped after last summer.

“In recent weeks, The Post contacted 15 major federal departments, including the eight that Trump had given to before, plus five agencies whose leaders attend Cabinet meetings. None provided any confirmation of a gift from Trump after July 2020,” Fahrenthold writes. He’s also been ghosted by several Trump reps:

The Post also contacted two different spokespeople for Trump’s post-presidential office. On June 10, spokesman Jason Miller wrote back, “Let me inquire and get back to you.” But he did not provide details, and later left Trump’s office.

Liz Harrington replaced Miller as Trump’s spokesperson. “I will try to track this down,” she wrote on July 21, when The Post asked again. Since then, Harrington has not responded to queries about the pledged donations.

And while, as the paper notes, that isn’t proof that a donation wasn’t made, Trump is so desperate for recognition over these donations, it seems unlikely that he and his team would just keep it to themselves.

After his last donation, Trump continued to brag/complain about his donations and the lack of positive coverage they got.

“They [the media] never write about that [his donations]. If I ever didn’t give it up, there would be headlines, ‘Trump refused,’” he said at a campaign rally in October of 2020.

I guess he was right!

(via Washington Post, image: Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

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Baby, one more time?

Okay, no problem, Britney Spears has basically said on Instagram.

On Thursday, the artist took to her official social media page (again) and gave her followers a glimpse of herself half-nude (again.)

This time around, Britney did so via a short video that featured a close-up of her face...

... and also a few seconds of her squeezing her bare boobs.

The mother of two simply included a few lipstick emojis as a caption to this footage, leaving some fans excited and aroused.

But other fans confused and even a bit concerned.

What does it say about the state of Britney's mental health that she continues to expose private parts online?

Last week, Spears uploaded topless photos on back-to-back days.

In both snapshots, Britney is wearing ripped denim shorts and posing in a seductive manner.

And in one of them, her nipples are even uncovered, although they are censored.

Britney posted the original racy images on Instagram last Friday, with boyfriend Sam Asghari quickly commenting “I’m sooo lucky” under the photograph.

A number of fans praised the superstar for her latest provocative clip, with one writing: “Act of rebellion, act of freedom, free Britney, free your inner beast, beauty.”

That's one way to look at it for certain.

Spears has been in the spotlight of late because she's fighting to remove her seemingly evil father, Jamie, as the head of her conservatorship.

Through a number of emotional testimonials, Britney has explained to a judge how Jamie has been controlling her finances since 2008; and, really, nearly every aspect of her life.

"He [loves] to control [and] hurt his own daughter," Britney told the court late last month, adding: "I truly believe this conservatorship is abusive."

Spears has also said her dad should be put in jail for the way he's treated her over the past 13 years.

Hence why she may be using these NSFW pictures to express a certain amount of freedom; to make it clear that only she gets to decide what happens with her body.

“LOOKING GOOD BRIT AND FEELING FREE,” added one more supporter in the wake of this new video, with another writing: “Queen of feeling confident with herself.”

The pop singer recently shared that she is feeling “bright,” “bold” and “rebellious” amid her current legal fight.

Just last week, she at last earned a victory in court, as a judge allowed Spears to hire a new attorney, Mathew Rosengart, to lead her legal fight.

It didn't take long for this lawyer to file a motion that asks for Jamie to be removed as Britney's conservator.

Wrote Rosengart in the brief:

“Serious questions abound concerning Mr. Spears’s potential misconduct, including conflicts of interest, conservatorship abuse and the evident dissipation of Ms. Spears’s fortune, which Mr. Spears has effectively controlled since 2008."

These just-submitted papers also referred to the relationship between Britney and Jamie as "venomous" and added:

"It impairs Ms. Spears's mental health, her well-being, and her ability to pursue and continue with her extraordinary career."

Broadway is coming back and better than ever! Meaning you have to be vaccinated and wear a mask in order to go to a Broadway show, and that’s exactly what I like to hear! According to Variety, all cast members and audiences must be vaccinated when Broadway opens up this fall. Masks will also be enforced when audience members are not eating or drinking.

“As vaccination has proven the most effective way to stay healthy and reduce transmission, I’m pleased that the theatre owners have decided to implement these collective safeguards at all our Broadway houses. A uniform policy across all New York City Broadway theatres makes it simple for our audiences and should give even more confidence to our guests about how seriously Broadway is taking audience safety,” said the president of the Broadway League, Charlotte St. Martin, in a statement.

The children under 12 (who are not yet eligible for the vaccine) are the exception to the rule, and those with a medical conditions or sincerely held religious beliefs that get in the way of vaccination, and in that case, you must provide a negative COVID-19 PCR test taken within 72 hours of a performance’s start time.

Honestly, this should be the policy for all venues. Right now, the unvaccinated are causing a rise in COVID-19 cases across the United States, and while the vaccinated are not as at risk for COVID, we can still get the virus and pass it on in, just a more manageable way. Having venues enforce mask policies and require proof of vaccination is what I want to feel safe going out and experiencing things. Don’t want to get vaccinated? That’s fine, but you can’t go to Broadway, and that’s your choice!

The Broadway League did say they would reevaluate the rules in the fall to see if they could let the mask rule lessen or change their stance, but I hope they don’t. I like knowing I can return to the theatre in a safe way and not have to worry about getting COVID-19 because of an unvaccinated audience member or cast member.

I wish that movie theaters would do this same thing. Right now, you don’t have to wear a mask, and every time I’m in the theater, I’m nervous because of those around me since we’re supposed to just trust that those individuals are vaccinated.

“With these procedures in place and recognizing the high vaccination rates among NYC audiences, Broadway continues to make safety our priority. As we get ready for Broadway’s big comeback, the entire theatre community is committed to the highest level of public health standards. We’re all eager to welcome our many patrons and fans back to the magic of Broadway,” said Nick Scandalios of The Nederlander Organization and good. I’m happy that Broadway is taking this seriously, I’m happy that Broadway is open and willing to put their casts, staff, and audiences at ease by making this the norm and I hope that others continue to do this.

Broadway will open at full capacity this September and you can enjoy the magic of theatre once again, as long as you’re vaccinated.

(image: Disney)

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The Hills: New Beginnings is the perfect nostalgia for millennials who grew up watching Lauren Conrad and Kristin Cavallari take turns dating Brody Jenner. Kardashian who? Brody was famous from The Hills long before Kylie Jenner became a self-made billionaire. It’s been fun watching Brody, Audrina Patridge, Heidi Pratt, Spencer Pratt, and Jason Wahler play act some scripted reality this season.

Brody’s current story on The Hills revolves around the disintegration of his  marriage  to Kaitlynn Carter. They married in 2018 and enjoyed having three-ways until, well, Kaitlynn didn’t anymore. They divorced in 2019. Kaitlynn was spotted making out with Miley Cyrus a week later. Both parties have since moved on. Brody is pursuing Audrina like a middle-schooler and Kaitlynn is dating Kristopher Brock. She’s also very pregnant, which Brody has thoughts about.

E! News reports that Brody,“was none too pleased” when he found out Kaitlynn was pregnant. However, “it’s not because he’s jealous,” it’s because he “was upset to receive the happy news from someone other than Kaitlynn, whom he once shared a life with.”

In a confessional from this week’s episode, Brody shared, “of course it’s hurtful to see all of these other people that seem to know that [Kaitlynn’s] pregnant and not me.”

RELATED: Brody Jenner Wants Kristin Cavallari Back Full-Time On The Hills: New Beginnings

He also added that, “a baby was such a big part of our relationship and talk in our relationship.” Which yes it was, but Brody never seemed ready. He was too busy being a DJ.

“I don’t need to be the first one to know but I think I should be in the top 10,” Brody said. If you’ve been watching the show, Kaitlynn couldn’t hide her pregnancy anymore. But she was hesitant to share the news with Brody because “it feels like one final nail in the coffin” of their relationship.

We’ll have to wait until next week – the season finale – to see how their conversation wraps up.

RELATED: The Hills Stars Brody Jenner & Kaitlyn Carter Split; Never Legally Married

TELL US- WHAT DO YOU THINK OF BRODY’S COMMENTS? SHOULD KAITLYNN HAVE TOLD HIM SOONER? ARE YOU WATCHING THE HILLS? SHOULD IT GET ANOTHER SEASON?

Photo Credit: [Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images for IMDb]

The post Brody Jenner Upset Ex Kaitlynn Carter Didn’t Share Pregnancy New With Him Sooner; Says He “Should Be In The Top 10” Of People Told appeared first on Reality Tea.

Doesn't it feel like the entire cast of Sister Wives has been absolutely miserable for eons at this point?

It just seems like endless suffering, season after season.

Things have gotten so bad that last season, we saw Kody, who was once so quick to praise polygamy and defend it, say that he didn't even think it was a good idea anymore.

Like, just imagine sitting around a table with your husband and his three other wives and hearing him say "Hey, turns out me marrying four ladies and having oodles and oodles of kids with them maybe wasn't the best plan, huh?"

It's just such a deeply bizarre situation.

During that big talk, we saw Kody admit that their arrangement wasn't exactly fair to the women, which was interesting because we've all seen that since day one.

But no one understands that unfairness quite like Meri.

While all the sister wives have appeared to be unhappy with their arrangement for a while now, Meri has clearly struggled for years with these kinds of feelings.

As Kody's first wife, she was his only legal spouse, but she divorced him in 2014 so that he could legally marry Robyn and adopt her children from her first marriage.

Everyone tried to pretend like it didn't matter too much because they all had spiritual marriages with Kody and that's what really mattered, but it was obvious that the legal marriage meant a lot to her.

She'd been having a hard time finding her place in the family anyway during that time -- she and Kody weren't connecting very well, they struggled with her fertility problems and with the choice of whether or not they should explore things like IVF.

But after the divorce, things got much worse, and in 2015 she found herself having an emotional affair with another man who actually turned out to be a woman who had been catfishing her.

After that, things went from bad to worse when it came to Meri and Kody's relationship, and it really feels like they haven't stopped getting worse, even all these years later.

They've said that their marriage is dead, that they have no interest in each other, they never spend time together ...

And judging by the kinds of posts Meri makes on social media, she's totally over it.

If you follow her on Instagram, you know she has a habit of posting cryptic little quotes and messages -- just earlier this week she posted one about mental abuse that had people thinking that perhaps she's trying to tell us something about her personal life.

This time around, she's got another message:

As you can see, this new post she shared reads "I don't chase after people anymore. If they like spending time with me, they will do so. If not, I'm content in my own company."

That's kind of pointed, right?

For a long time, we saw her try to reconnect with Kody after the catfish mess -- things were difficult between them, but there was a definite period where she insisted that she wanted her marriage to work.

She put in so much effort, but Kody was just not interested, and he said as much himself.

She has to know that by sharing something like this, fans will connect the dots and assume that she's talking about her husband.

But just last night, she shared something else:

"Before you make a statement about anyone else's decisions on how they live their life, ask yourself 'Whose business is it?'" this post read.

This one isn't as clear -- it could be about a lot of things, or just a general sentiment she believes in.

Or it could be her way of telling people to mind their business as she works through her feelings by way of Instagram.

Whatever's going on, we hope she finds her happiness soon.

View Slideshow: Sister Wives Ranked: Who is Kody Brown's #1 Woman?

Because she definitely does not have it right now.