The News

 XDefiant’s Preseason is live now on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC through Ubisoft Connect. The free-to-play arcade shooter takes inspiration from different Ubisoft games, kicking off with five game modes, five unique factions, 14 different maps, and 24 weapons with 44 attachments. To help prepare you to jump into its fast-paced 6v6 action, here’s the skinny on XDefiant.

Billie Eilish has revealed that her ex Jesse Rutherford is still her “favorite” person in the world.

The What Was I Made For? hitmaker shared that she is still on good terms with her ex boyfrie

  Wilson Sporting Goods Co. announces today a multiyear partnership with Indiana Fever guard, Caitlin Clark, as part of its athlete roster. Wilson will roll-out signature basketball collections celebrating Clark's continued legacy, as well as work with her to innovate product across the WNBA, NBA and basketball at large– further cementing her impact on the world of sport.

 Horizon: An American Saga — Chapter One’ Review: Kevin Costner Gets Thrown From His Horse in Muddled Western Epic.

The director stars alongside Sienna Miller, Sam Worthington, Jena Malone and Luke Wilson in the opener of a quartet of films about the settlement of the American West.

Running a taxing three hours, this first part of a quartet of films is littered with inessential scenes and characters that go nowhere, taking far too long to connect its messy plot threads. Warner Bros. will release Chapter One in U.S. theaters June 28, with Chapter Two following on August 16 and Chapter Three reportedly going into production. A vigorous montage closes the first part with action-packed snippets from the next installment, adding to the nagging sense that we’re watching episodic TV that lost its way.

What’s most perplexing coming from Costner is the uncomfortably long time the film takes to show sensitivity toward its Indigenous characters. We’re well into Horizon before the perspective on Native resistance is broadened to acknowledge that their murderous attacks on new settlements are a direct response to the occupation of their ancestral lands. It’s very confusing to see a Western in 2024 and find yourself thinking, “Wait, so American Indians are the bad guys again?”

The blustery notes of John Debney’s score over the opening title card announce that we’re about to watch A Work of Great Importance. It begins in Arizona’s San Pedro Valley in 1859, as three surveyors, one of them just a boy, hammer stakes into the ground to mark a plot of riverside land. Two Indigenous kids observing from the rocky hills wonder what the white folks are doing and why they have come. The two adult Native brothers who appear shortly after, Pionsenay (Owen Crow Shoe) and Taklishim (Tatanka Means), are not so much curious as simmering with rage.

Some days later, a solo traveler finds the surveyors’ dead bodies, with feathers laid alongside their corpses as a warning. Those stakes become crosses on their graves.

The action then jumps to Montana Territory, where Lucy (Jena Malone) empties a rifle into James Sykes (Charles Halford), a man who has clearly wronged her, then takes off with their infant son. The dead man’s tough family matriarch (Dale Dickey) sends her two sons, Caleb (Jamie Campbell Bower) and Junior (Job Beavers), to dole out retribution and bring back her grandchild. One is a hotheaded idiot, the other smarter and more controlled, plus he can rock a silver wolf stole.

Meanwhile, back at the river, the new township of Horizon — advertised on widely distributed handbills — has sprung up directly across from those three graves. But any sense of security is instantly erased when Pionsenay and Taklishim lead a deadly ambush. Acting against the advice of their father (Gregory Cruz), an elder of the White Mountain Apache tribe who warns of the inevitable cycle of violence, they kill any settlers unable to get to safety and torch structures that have only just been erected.

In the movie’s most visceral sequence, the tribesmen close in on the home of the Kittredge family. Along with a handful of community members who have gone there for shelter, the father, James (Tim Guinee), and teenage son Nate (the director’s son Hayes Costner) try to hold off the attackers while the mother Frances (Sienna Miller) and daughter Lizzie (Georgia MacPhail) hide out in a hatch under the floorboards.

The flimsiest strand follows Russell (Etienne Kellici), an adolescent boy who manages to outride the Apache horsemen pursuing him, then later wrestles with his conscience about how and against whom to take revenge for his losses. That thread feels like one too many, but it makes the point that white folks regard all Indigenous tribes as a single enemy, meaning payback is indiscriminate.

Working from a discursive screenplay he co-wrote with Jon Baird, Costner is not at his best as a director with this kind of multi-branched narrative. He struggles to keep all the story’s plates spinning, as characters are sidelined and resurface with too little connective tissue.

It’s almost an hour into the film before Costner appears as Hayes Ellison, a taciturn loner described by one of the Sykes boys as a “saddle tramp.” The role allows Kev to go full Clint, conveying the inner conflict of a troubled man wishing to leave violence behind but skilled enough with a firearm to handle it when provoked. Presumably, the character will reveal more layers and maybe a backstory in Chapter Two.

Hayes is the figure who begins to tie things together when he ambles into a small township and catches the eye of Marigold (Abbey Lee), who turns tricks to get by and babysits for Lucy, now going by Ellen and married to good-natured Walter Childs (Michael Angarano). Marigold is an annoying character — dumb, whiny, opportunistic — and it’s a slight stretch that a man as careworn and solitary as Hayes would be suckered into helping her, putting them both in danger. The unconvincing performance of Lee does nothing to make Marigold more palatable.

Other characters include the cavalry summoned to Horizon after the massacre, dispatched by Colonel Houghton (Danny Huston) and led by Sgt. Major Riordan (Michael Rooker) and First Lieutenant Trent Gephardt (Sam Worthington), who gently strikes up a romance toward the end of the film. Gephardt is the one person patient enough to explain to the folks of Horizon why the Apaches are hostile to the idea of sharing land on which they have hunted for generations.

Despite the harsh conditions and extreme danger involved in the expansion of the West, wagon trains of new settlers keep coming. Traveling with one of them is military captain Matthew Van Weyden (Luke Wilson), who lands the exasperating job of de facto leader, dealing with disputes and ensuring that everyone contributes to the workload. That comes as a surprise to a couple of over-educated but clueless Brits begging to be scalped, Juliette (Ella Hunt) and Hugh (Tom Payne).

Any of these plotlines might have sustained an hour of compelling television but they don’t add up to much in this awkwardly stitched quilt, which rarely provides the space for anyone’s experiences to resonate. That also limits the scope for the actors to breathe much dimensionality into their roles. Dialogue-driven scenes often feel stilted and lifeless; the characters played by Costner, Worthington, Miller and Malone at this point show the most potential.

The subtitle An American Saga and some easy guesswork suggest that as Horizon continues the project will become a broad-canvas picture of frontier life and its challenges, of the constant threat of outlaws and Indigenous attack, and the injustices toward Natives that indelibly stained the soil of the West with blood. Hopefully, it will also acquire some much-needed structure.

In the meantime, the movie serves up handsomely photographed virgin American landscapes, with red cliffs, green valleys and wide open plains providing some arresting backdrops. (As is often the case, Utah locations stand in for various parts of the Southwest and Montana.) Period design elements evoke the milieu more than serviceably.

Will the Timberwolves' vibes pull them through to the next round? Or will the Nuggets' experience prove the deciding factor of Game 7? (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)

Here are some key facts about Mohammad Mokhber, 68, Iran's first vice president who, based on the country's constitution, is expected to become interim president following the death of Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash.

* As interim president, Mokhber is part of a three-person council, along with the speaker of parliament and the head of the judiciary, that will organise a new presidential election within 50 days of the president's death.

* Born on Sept. 1, 1955, Mokhber, like Raisi, is seen as close to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who has the last say in all matters of state. Mokhber became first vice president in 2021 when Raisi was elected president.

* Mokhber was part of a team of Iranian officials who visited Moscow in October and agreed to supply surface-to-surface missiles and more drones to Russia's military, sources told Reuters at the time. The team also included two senior officials from Iran's Revolutionary Guards and an official from the Supreme National Security Council.

* Mokhber had previously been head of Setad, an investment fund linked to the supreme leader.

* In 2010, the European Union included Mokhber on a list of individuals and entities it was sanctioning for alleged involvement in "nuclear or ballistic missile activities". Two years later, it removed him from the list.

* In 2013, the U.S. Treasury Department added Setad and 37 companies it oversaw to a list of sanctioned entities.

* Setad, whose full name is Setad Ejraiye Farmane Hazrate Emam, or the Headquarters for Executing the Order of the Imam, was set up under an order issued by the founder of the Islamic Republic, Khamenei's predecessor, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. It ordered aides to sell and manage properties supposedly abandoned in the chaotic years after the 1979 Islamic Revolution and channel the bulk of the proceeds to charity.

(This story has been refiled to say that Mokhber is expected to become interim president)

Colin Jost playfully roasted his wife Scarlett Johansson during a hilarious joke swap with Michael Che on Saturday Night Live's May 18 episode.

On the last episode of SNL’s 49th season, Colin Jost and Michael Che did their usual joke swap on the Weekend Update segment in which they write risky jokes for each other to deliver, without showing them beforehand.

This year, Michael Che tricked Colin Jost into making a joke about his own wife, Scarlett Johansson.

Colin nervously joked, "ChatGPT has released a new voice assistant feature inspired by Scarlett Johansson's AI character in Her, Which I've never bothered to watch, because without that body what's the point of listening?"

During the joke Colin looked really uncomfortable, which made the joke even funnier.

Later, Colin Jost got his revenge by writing a joke for Michael Che that put him in the middle of a famous rap feud between Kendrick Lamar and Drake.

Micheal started reading, “Speaking of bitches, I want to call up the biggest bitch of all, Kendrick Lamar. Your war with Drake may be over, but your war with Michael Che is just beginning. So to quote Hamilton, 'Shoot your shot, player”

After the joke Micheal couldn't resist praising Colin, noting, "That was pretty well done, man."

For the unversed, Colin Jost and Scarlett Johansson got married in October 2020

As per Tehran Times, there were 3 helicopters in the president's convoy, two of which safely reached their destination 

New films from Francis Ford Coppola, Yorgos Lanthimos and an Indian feature in Competition after decades-long absence has us excited for this year's edition.

Pour le pilote canadien, les évolutions introduites sur l'AMR24 ne présentent pas de problème majeur et fonctionnent comme prévu, mais elles sont tout simplement insuffisantes pour suivre le rythme des écuries qui devancent celle de Silverstone. 

"Ce n'est tout simplement pas la journée ni le week-end que nous espérions avec les évolutions que nous avons apportées, nous ne sommes pas assez compétitifs", déplorait Lance Stroll samedi soir. "Je pense que tout fonctionnait, ce n'est tout simplement pas suffisant, donc nous poursuivons les efforts. Les autres écuries sont compétitives et nous ne le sommes pas assez pour le moment. C'est la même chose tout au long de l'année. Nous apportons des évolutions, elles aident peut-être un peu, mais il nous en faut beaucoup plus pour rattraper les équipes qui sont plus haut sur la grille."

Interrogé sur les manques que présente la monoplace verte, il évoque "l'appui aérodynamique, l'équilibre et quelques problèmes de comportement" qui freinent Aston Martin dans sa progression. "Nous devons continuer à apporter des évolutions, continuer à ajouter de l'appui sur la voiture et à la rendre plus rapide, c'est le but du jeu en Formule 1."

C'est une de ces journées où tout va dans le mauvais sens.

Les difficultés d'Aston Martin ont été exacerbées par la sortie de piste de Fernando Alonso lors de la troisième séance d'essais libres, nécessitant d'importantes réparations sur sa monoplace. Puis le double Champion du monde a encore fait un détour par les graviers en qualifications, où il a en partie expliqué sa contreperformance par le choix d'avoir embarqué plus de carburant pour aligner davantage de tours.

"Nous avons commencé avec du carburant pour toute la séance, simplement pour me permettre de faire un peu plus de tours et de me préparer", précise l'Espagnol. "J'ai réalisé mon chrono au tout début, quand la voiture était chargée en carburant. Puis quand la voiture s'est allégée et que nous avons chaussé le dernier train de pneus, j'ai dû rentrer au stand pour un problème non identifié. Je suis désolé pour les mécaniciens car ils méritaient un peu mieux après le travail qu'ils ont fait. C'est une de ces journées où tout va dans le mauvais sens."

Ce dimanche, Fernando Alonso s'élancera finalement depuis la voie des stands puisque l'écurie a procédé à des changements sur sa suspension sous régime de parc fermé.

 The 2008 horror movie The Strangers, starring Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman, written and directed by Bryan Bertino, has been reimagined in a trilogy of films, starring Riverdale alum Madelaine Petsch. With The Strangers: Chapter 1 now in theatres, directed by Renny Harlin, Petsch admitted it was an intimidating move to lead three films based on a movie she loves.

"I was incredibly intimidated by the IP because I loved it so much and I know it is one of those cult classics, ... everybody who loves that movie loves that movie," Petsch told Yahoo. "I knew that it was really important that we did it justice and at first I was like, 'I can't do it. I can't touch this. It's too perfect to me.' Then I was like, look if anybody should do it, it should be somebody who cares about it."

"I was really lucky to work with somebody like Renny Harlin and [producer] Courtney Solomon, who made this film, and Lionsgate, who were so open to collaboration and let me kind of come in and rewrite these movies with them, and become a producer really quickly. I think they could just tell how much I cared about the original. I've watched a lot of horror films in my day, but it was kind of the only and first one that stuck with me to such an extreme degree, because it feels so real. And it was really important to me that we didn't flub that."

What is 'The Strangers: Chapter 1' about?

Maya (Petsch) and Ryan (Froy Gutierrez) have been dating for five years and are driving to Portland, Oregon where Maya is set to interview for a job at an architecture firm. They stop at a small town of 468 people, Venus, Oregon, to eat at a diner, but when they get back to their car it won't start up again.

That leaves Maya and Ryan stuck in this small town overnight, in a cabin a local has setup as an AirBnb, while they wait for their car to be fixed.

Things quickly take a turn when three masked strangers appear at the remote home.

While this is a trilogy being released one at a time, they weren't shot in order, meaning the actors were jumping around in their work. Additionally, there was the added challenge of there being a bit of a time crunch to get these movies made with Petsch's schedule.

"The first scene I shot of the movies was the first scene in movie two," Petsch shared. "So I was like, f**k let's go, I've got to strap in."

"How I looked at it then was this is one big movie that we've broken up into three chapters. ... Also, I had a lot of notes and I spent a lot of time with the filmmakers, making sure that we knew exactly what was happening in those moments. Because we also didn't have a ton of time to do a million takes for each scene. I had to be back on a show I was on so I couldn't just keep going if we ran over. I had to be out and back in Vancouver in 52 days."

But for Harlin, his goal is to eventually allow the audience to watch the three films back-to-back, one long movie.

"I'm almost guaranteeing it that Lionsgate will let me do it, once all the three movies have come out," he said. "Then we can call it the director's cut, or we can call it whatever, but we can quite easily cut the three movies together so that it becomes one movie."

"That would be the true test of the horror aficionado, who can go there and sit through four and a half hours of constant terror."

'The movie should have a constant feeling of dread'

While the instinct for many is to put a horror movie on a scale of terror based on shocks and jump scares, Harlin took a different approach for The Strangers: Chapter 1.

"My number one goal was that the movie should have a constant feeling of dread, that it just feels stressful and tense, and it's not about the jump scares," Harlin said. "Of course there are those too, ... but we really tried to avoid those as much as possible so that the movie is not exactly what you expect."

"We lead you a certain way and then we might go back in another way and not give you the payoff that you might traditionally expect. I'd much rather make things just feel extremely creepy and distressing, instead of just having jumpy things come out of every closet."

At the core for Harlin was trying to ground all these films in reality.

"We wanted to always avoid making it seem cheap, or unrealistic, or cheesy," Harlin said. "Anybody can just go 'boo' to the camera all the time, you tend to react to that, but that is kind of cheap scares and we wanted to try to stay away from those."

That also came down to the sound design, with the director having very specific ideas about what this world should sound like.

"I really put the sound designers through the wringer because I said, the house, it's not a haunted house by any means, it's a completely realistic house, but every house has its spirit," Harlin explained. "We worked days and days and days and days, just creating basically the spirit of the house. And it's subliminal, I don't want anybody to go like, 'Oh yeah I remember when that floorboard creaked.'"

"We were pretty sparse in many places with music, just playing the sounds of the place. And the forest, it was full of birds and it just sounded like any forest. And I said, kill the birds. The only bird that you might hear is in the distance. ... There was a little bit of wind, but I said, 'Where's the sound of the tree trunks?' When you have this kind of a forest with these kinds of narrow, skinny, barren trees, ... they are so close to each other that sometimes their trunks touch each other, and there's this weird, almost kind of a reverb thing."

'I was genuinely scared of them'

But in terms of the real threats of the story, the masked Strangers, Petsch was even terrified of them on set.

"Walking into this I had no idea what I was getting myself into when it came to the three people who played Strangers, and I cannot tell you enough how lucky we were with these people," Petsch said. "They've all got such unique personalities that come through so clearly with masks on, which is such a crazy thing to be able to do as an actor."

"They also were very respectful and understanding of the people who weren't meant to be a part of their group. They didn't fraternize with them. They were like, we're going to do our own thing so that when you see us, it's time to go. So I was genuinely scared of them. It was a good dynamic for this kind of a film. The shower scene, in particular, has haunted me in my personal hygiene life, for sure."