Boo-hoo, Melissa.
Actress Melissa Barrera is opening up about her brief Hollywood exile following some ghastly comments said after Oct. 7.
‘We haven’t seen this before in our country. So Americans who don’t travel, who 80% don’t have a passport, who are uneducated, are in their extraordinary naivete.’
The “Scream” star appeared to be Hollywood’s next “It” girl before she took a side in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
That cost her a part in “Scream 7” and appeared to chase some studios away.
“It was quiet for, like, 10 months … I was still getting offers for small things here and there – I’m not going to lie and say there was nothing — but [the message] was, like, ‘Oh, she probably doesn’t have work, she’ll say yes to anything.’”
What did she say? She called Israeli’s counterattack against Hamas “genocide and ethnic cleansing” and suggested the Jews control the media.
She currently has three new projects in the works, for what it’s worth. Some exile.
Now, compare that to conservative actors who face years of shunning for sharing conservative thoughts. Think Kevin Sorbo, James Woods, and many more.
Sorry, “Scream” queen. We’ll save our sympathies for them …
Stiller not sorry
Ben Stiller admits comedians work with cultural handcuffs today.
Yes, cancel culture isn’t as muscular as in recent years, and the woke mind virus has taken some body blows of late. Take a bow, Christopher Rufo, Robby Starbuck, and Matt Walsh.
Still, comic actors have to tread carefully when trying to crack us up. Stiller said as much while reflecting on his celebrated 2008 comedy “Tropic Thunder.” The film’s politically incorrect yuks are legendary, including Robert Downey Jr. donning blackface to play a vain actor desperate for Oscar fame and fortune.
Obviously, in this environment, edgier comedy is just harder to do. … Definitely not at the scale we made it at, too, in terms of the economics of the business. I think even at the time we were fortunate to get it made, and I credit that, actually, to Steven Spielberg and DreamWorks. He read it and was like, ‘All right, let’s make this thing.’ It’s a very inside movie when you think about it.
He’s right, of course. Stiller also refuses to publicly apologize for making the film, no small measure given the cultural pressures facing him. Remember, blackface sitcom episodes were memory-holed in the wake of George Floyd’s 2020 death.
Still, wouldn’t a better reaction be to do it all over again? Make another raucous comedy that’s smart, satirical, and hits below the belt. Stiller has the clout to do it, the celebrity Rolodex, and the wit.
Don’t just lament the cultural scolds. Defy them …
Stone cold
At least she didn’t call us “Deplorables.”
Actress Sharon Stone lashed out at the election results by insulting more than half the nation.
“We haven’t seen this before in our country. So Americans who don’t travel, who 80% don’t have a passport, who are uneducated, are in their extraordinary naivete.”
Now, let’s see if she follows that up by making good on her threat to leave the country under a Trump 2.0 administration. We may lose a third “Basic Instinct,” but somehow we’ll survive …
Diddy’s OJ play
It’s the only card he has left.
Sean Combs played the Race Card™ during his latest legal maneuver to avoid decades of jail time. The superstar singer/actor/producer is facing charges of sex trafficking and racketeering, part of an elaborate lifestyle that was covered up for far too long.
Suddenly, his infamous “freak-off” parties and lavish lifestyle are under new, withering scrutiny, and his future looks bleak. So he charged his legal team with slamming the prosecution as being racially motivated.
“The government’s arguments that asking his children to post birthday wishes on Instagram and that he is not entitled to publicly express his opinion that this prosecution is racially motivated are, quite simply, an unconstitutional effort to silence him,” read a letter to the court on his legal team’s behalf.
This could be the trial of the new century, and it’s already taking a page from the O.J. Simpson playbook …
Are you not entertained?
They just can’t help themselves.
Hollywood stars just can’t resist making everything about President-elect Donald Trump
Legendary director Ridley Scott is the latest to catch DJT fever, comparing a villain in “Gladiator 2” to the 45th and 47th president.
Denzel Washington’s Macrinus proves formidable in the Hollywood sequel, a power broker who uses the heroic main character played by Paul Mescal for his own nefarious purposes.
He evolved into a very rich merchant selling s*** to the Roman armies — food, oil, wine, cloth, weapons, everything. He maybe had a million men spread around Europe. So he was a billionaire at the time, so why wouldn’t he [have ambitions toward the throne]? ‘Why not me?’ He’s also a gangster — very close to Trump. A clever gangster. He creates chaos and from chaos he can evolve.
Whatever you say, Ridley. The rest of us are over here munching our popcorn and trying to escape from the 24-hour news cycle.
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