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These celebrities traded in their usual glamour for red, white, and blue.
After all, stars like Khloe Kardashian and Meghan Markle rang in the Fourth of July in their own unique style, ranging...Paul Simon is on the mend after undergoing back surgery.
A statement from Simon’s team on Thursday, July 3, confirmed that the musician, 83, had successful surgery after suffering from “severe back pain,” which caused him to cancel his June 27 and 28 shows in Philadelphia. Simon had a performance scheduled on Monday, July 7, in Long Beach, California, but that has since been postponed until the next day amid Simon’s recovery.
“Thanks to a great team of doctors, the surgery went well, as expected,” read the Instagram statement. “However, it has become clear he will need one additional day of rest and recuperation to ensure he is able to perform at the top of his ability in Long Beach.”
The post noted that the decision to move the concert back by one day was made out of “an abundance of caution” and that all tickets will be accepted for the rescheduled date. There will also be refunds for fans who can’t make the new concert date, which will be held at the same location.
Celebrity Health Scares Through the Years
“We are sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, but Paul is looking forward to seeing everyone in Long Beach on Tuesday,” the post concluded.
Simon’s health scare previously caused him to cancel the two shows at Philadelphia’s Academy of Music just hours before he was set to take the stage.
“Paul has been struggling with chronic and intense back pain,” a statement posted via Instagram read in June. “Today it became unmanageable and demands immediate attention. Unfortunately, we have to cancel these shows at this time, as we don’t have the ability to reschedule them.”
The statement noted that Simon was prioritizing his health.
“However, we are hopeful after this minor surgical procedure which has been scheduled in the next few days, Paul will be able to complete the tour as well as look into returning to make up these dates,” the statement continued. “In the meantime, please go to your point of purchase or local ticket provider for a full refund.”
Louis Tomlinson Cancels Album Signings After Breaking Arm ‘Pretty Badly’
Simon is currently on his A Quiet Celebration Tour, which was announced after he retired from touring in 2018 due to hearing loss.
“It was incredibly frustrating. I was very angry at first that this had happened,” Simon told CBS News in November 2024. “I guess what I’m most apprehensive about would be if I can’t hear well enough to really enjoy the act of making music.”
He continued: “You know Matisse, when he was suffering at the end of his life, when he was in bed, he envisioned all these cut-outs and had a great creative period. So I don’t think creativity stops with disability. So far, I haven’t experienced that. And I hope not to.”
© Ian Gavan/Getty Images
Giada De Laurentiis knows that in the kitchen, as in love, it always helps to add a little spice — something she promptly put into practice when she met boyfriend Shane Farley.
“It’s been 10 years now with Shane [and] he was a pretty good cook before he met me,” De Laurentiis, 54, told Us Weekly exclusively while promoting her partnership with Peroni Italian Beer Ice. “I think he did things a little differently than I do. But his mother was Italian.”
The Giada in My Kitchen star explained that Farley, 52, asked her to compete in a “sauce off” with him during the early days of their romance.
“[It’s] something he used to do with his friends,” she recalled. “I’m like, ‘You really don’t want to do a sauce off with me.’ And he’s like, ‘No, I really do. I used to win them all the time.’ ‘Yeah, but you’re not gonna win it with me.’”
Giada De Laurentiis Left The Food Network Because She Was ‘Burnt Out’
De Laurentiis eventually agreed, admitting “I had to doctor up his sauce because the thing that people miss a lot is seasoning. He wasn’t seasoning it.”
The couple met back in 2013 while working at Food Network before sparking a romance two years later. Now, almost a decade into their relationship, De Laurentiis said they have come a long way in the kitchen together.
“Over the years, in the sweetest way, I have been able to teach him a few things and he makes an awesome sauce now,” the chef told Us. “The empowering thing for me is that when people come over and I’m working and I can’t make a full dinner because I’m not home, he does it, and he feels so good about it. He’s become so good at it.”
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Just like nurturing a relationship, DeLaurentiis told Us that helping a partner with their cooking skills takes time and patience.
“You’ve got to eat maybe some dishes that are not so, you know,” she said. “But we got there and now I have somebody that can help me in the kitchen and he’s really good at it and feels really empowered by it. It’s been a really fun journey.”
This summer, De Laurentiis and Farley will be toasting their meals with boozy frozen treat Peroni Italian Beer Ice, which the TV personality created in partnership with the Italian lager.
“I loved granita as a kid, we eat a lot of granita in the south, in Naples and Sicily. I thought we could combine the beer and the ice together and sort of bring the cocktail with the dessert all in one for summertime,” she told Us of the new drink. “I think it’s clever and I think people haven’t really heard that before, and it’s got less alcohol than the wine does, so it’s a way for us to enjoy ourselves without having way too much fun and having a terrible hangover the next day.”
© Courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis/Instagram
Season seven contestant was removed in episode two after videos of her making racial slurs resurfaced online
© Peacock
Blac Chyna and Derrick Milano are calling it quits.
Nine months after the couple got engaged following one year of dating, the “Seen Her” rapper and the songwriter confirmed that they have broken...
Stephen Baldwin is saluting his son-in-law Justin Bieber.
The Usual Suspects star—who is dad to Justin’s wife Hailey Bieber—complimented the “Somebody to Love” singer as well as his daughter Alaia...Virginia Madsen paid tribute to her late brother, Michael Madsen, following his death at age 67 on Thursday, July 3.
“My brother Michael has left the stage. He was thunder and velvet. Mischief wrapped in tenderness. A poet disguised as an outlaw,” Virginia, 63, wrote via Instagram on Thursday. “A father, a son, a brother — etched in contradiction, tempered by love that left its mark.”
In her tribute, Virginia noted that although Michael had a legendary reputation in Hollywood, his loved ones always treasured his humanity.
“We’re not mourning a public figure. We’re not mourning a myth — but flesh and blood and ferocious heart,” she pointed out. “Who stormed through life loud, brilliant and half on fire. Who leaves us echoes — gruff, brilliant, unrepeatable — half legend, half lullaby.”
Celebrity Deaths of 2025: Stars We've Lost
She concluded: “I’ll miss our inside jokes, the sudden laughter, the sound of him. I’ll miss the boy he was before the legend. I miss my big brother. Thank you to everyone reaching out with love and memory. In time, we’ll share how we plan to celebrate his life. But for now — we stay close, and let the silence say what words can’t.”
Virginia received numerous supportive replies from the Hollywood community, including uplifting messages from Superman director James Gunn, The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills’ Jennifer Tilly and Dumb and Dumber actress Lauren Holly.
“My condolences. He was a wonderful man,” Tilly, 66, replied via Instagram, with Holly adding, “I’m so sorry for your loss.”
Michael’s longtime manager Ron Smith previously confirmed to Us Weekly that the Kill Bill and Free Willy actor died from a suspected cardiac arrest, after being found unresponsive at his home in Malibu, California.
A Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department spokesperson subsequently confirmed to Us that Michael was pronounced dead when officers arrived on the scene.
“The death is believed to have been from natural causes and no foul play is suspected,” a sheriff’s department representative clarified.
Michael is perhaps best known for his frequent collaborations with filmmaker Quentin Tarantino. His breakout role was playing Mr. Blonde in Tarantino’s 1992 crime thriller Reservoir Dogs — and he was the director’s original choice to play Vincent Vega in 1994’s Pulp Fiction. When Michael turned down the part, Tarantino eventually cast John Travolta for a career-defining performance.
Tarantino reunited with Michael many years later by casting him in supporting roles in Kill Bill: Volumes 1 and 2, 2015 Western The Hateful Eight and 2019’s Oscar-winning crime comedy Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
“In the last two years Michael Madsen has been doing some incredible work with independent film including upcoming feature films Resurrection Road, Concessions and Cookbook for Southern Housewives, and was really looking forward to this next chapter in his life,” the actor’s managers Smith and Susan Ferris and publicist Liz Rodriguez told Us. “Michael was also preparing to release a new book called Tears for My Father: Outlaw Thoughts and Poems, currently being edited.”
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They concluded, “Michael Madsen was one of Hollywood’s most iconic actors, who will be missed by many.”
Michael is survived by his third wife, DeAnna Morgan, and five living children, including The Family Business and Divergent actor Christian Madsen. (He was previously married to Cher’s half-sister, Georganne LaPiere, from 1984 to 1988 and to Jeannine Bisignano from 1991 to 1995.)
Michael opened up about his grief in 2022 when his son Hudson Madsen died at age 26. (Hudson was Tarantino’s godson.)
“We are heartbroken and overwhelmed with grief and pain at the loss of Hudson,” he told Metro U.K. in January 2022. “His memory and light will be remembered by all who knew and loved him. We ask for privacy and respect during this difficult time.”
© Albert L. Ortega/WireImage
Love Island USA‘s Yulissa Escobar finally revealed how exactly she was told by producers that her time in the villa was over amid her racism scandal.
“Plot twist: I wasn’t dragged out in the dark. I walked out in broad daylight head high, lashes on,” Yulissa, 27, wrote via TikTok on Thursday, July 3. “Here’s the real story.”
Yulissa noted in the video that she couldn’t reveal every detail from her dismissal, adding, “I’m here to address exactly how it happened. Well — not exactly — because I can’t share certain things. But I will share the majority of what happened.”
According to the reality star, the day started out just like any other.
Who Runs 'Love Island USA' Stars' Social Media While They're in the Villa?
“I did not wake up in the middle of the night. They didn’t drag my ass out of bed. I was actually just getting comfortable and just coming out of my shell because initially I was kind of timid and shy. I was upset that I got pulled out on that day because I was like, ‘Damn, I was just starting to have fun,’” she admitted. “But it is what it is. I woke up and Ace [Greene] made me breakfast every day. Then I had a conversation with the guys because me and Ace were actually plotting since the night before to kind of spice things up in the villa. We were planning to play spin the bottle to get to know everyone.”
Yulissa recalled production stepping in at some point that day.
“I can’t tell you the time because we don’t have access to the real world. We don’t have access to our phones. We don’t have access to an actual watch or clock. And the producers don’t tell us the time. I had gotten called to the front and then I met one of the producers and they asked me to take my mic off,” she explained. “I figured something serious was kind of happening. I honestly got scared. I thought something happened with a family member or something. They didn’t really tell me anything. They just said that a video resurfaced on the internet and it’s not looking too good. I didn’t really know what video or what I was saying or what I did.”
As Love Island USA viewers might remember, Yulissa was introduced as an OG Islander in season 7, but by the second episode, she was gone. Narrator Iain Stirling later acknowledged the shakeup when he noted that Ace was single because Yulissa “has left the villa.”
Yulissa’s departure came after clips of her using racial slurs on a podcast circulated online. On Thursday, however, she explained that she didn’t realize exactly what was going on until she left Fiji.
Love Island’s Most Controversial Contestants and Moments Through the Years
“I didn’t get my phone back for another two days. They were waiting for the two episodes that I was in to air. I was literally in my hotel room losing my mind because I didn’t know what was going on. I just knew that there was a video out there,” she continued on Thursday. “I get it. I said a word that I should have not said. But I wish I would have never said that. It is what it is. I can’t go back in time. I am sorry that I said that word.”
Yulissa’s insight into her exit comes after fans shared a multitude of memes about the different ways they thought she was asked to leave while everyone in the villa was still sleeping. Her fellow season 7 contestant Jeremiah Brown also recently weighed in with his perspective after being dumped from the season.
“They personally never told me anything. They never told us in the villa,” he said during the “Speedy Morman” show on Monday, June 30. “They said she left for personal reasons — I can say that. I found out later after getting my phone back that it was because of whatever happened.”
New episodes of Love Island USA are released six days a week — except for Wednesdays — on Peacock.
© Ben Symons/PEACOCK
Nearly five years ago, Ryan Dorsey’s life changed forever.
The Justified actor, 41, discovered on July 8, 2020, that Naya Rivera, his former wife and the mother of his son, was missing after she rented a boat for a day of swimming at Lake Piru in California. The Glee actress, 33, was last seen in the water by their son, Josey, who was 4 years old at the time.
The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office searched the lake for days before their worst fears were confirmed on July 13. Rivera accidentally drowned moments after she used her last bit of energy to help Josey climb back into the boat, saving his life.
Rivera’s unexpected death was a “never-ending nightmare” for her family.
Ryan Dorsey Shares the Last Things Naya Rivera Said to Their Son
“I remember laying there with [Josey] in a state of shock,” Dorsey recalls in the latest issue of Us Weekly, on newsstands now. “Looking at this beautiful boy and grateful that he’s OK. When he woke up, he said, ‘Dad, what are you doing here?’ I said, ‘I came to be with you.’ He told me, ‘They can’t find Mommy. I hope they find her, but I think she might be dead.’ I was devastated for him, for me, for everyone.”
Overcome with tragedy, Dorsey left Los Angeles with Josey and returned to his hometown of Charleston, West Virginia, where he began to rebuild their lives. Five years later, father and son have fallen into a “surreal” but happy rhythm.
Dorsey is focused on being the best father he can be to little Josey, who spoke with a grief counselor to help him process Rivera’s death. The 9-year-old is enrolled in school and paying tribute to his mother with performances in local plays and piano lessons.
“I see how creative [Josey] is,” Dorsey shares. “He’s been playing piano for a year and he is getting better at that. It’s been awesome to watch him go from poking around on one finger to playing with two hands. He’s starting to really hit the notes when he’s singing. He said to me the other day, ‘Dad, I think I might want to be a musician. My mom is a singer, so why not me?’ I just thought that was a beautiful thing.”
Naya Rivera's Son Had Tears 'Welling Up' Watching 'Glee' Concert Movie
Dorsey makes sure that Josey is close with Rivera’s family, arranging frequent FaceTime calls and visits with her parents and siblings in Los Angeles. The actor tells Us that Josey “talks with [his] grandma and all the uncles,” who are “very involved” in the boy’s life. The 9-year-old is also encouraged to share his thoughts and feelings about Rivera whenever she crosses his mind.
“[Josey will] always have a lot of memories [of his mother],” Dorsey shares. “He’s still telling stories about when we went to this place or that place. We have a lot of videos. Your iPhone will remind you, ‘Three years ago on this date,’ and I’ll say, ‘Hey, do you remember this?’ He’s like, ‘Yeah, I remember.’”
Dorsey honors Rivera’s place in Josey’s life through big birthday celebrations — a tradition that the Glee star started when their son was a baby. Josey will celebrate his 10th birthday in September, and the party will reflect that major milestone with a Ninja Turtles or Star Wars–themed bash.
Dorsey is hopeful that one day, when the timing is right, Josey could have a stepmother to help love and care for him as he moves forward in life. But the most important thing, Dorsey stresses, is Josey’s continued health and happiness as he remembers Rivera.
“Josey is going to be her legacy,” Dorsey shares. “I don’t know what he’s going to do, but I think he’s going to do great things.”
© Gregg DeGuire/WireImage
Sophia Bush and Chris Carmack have a lot in common.
The twosome both skyrocketed to success in early 2000s teen dramas and, in 2024, became costars on ABC’s long-running Grey’s Anatomy. Now they’re pivoting to an entirely new genre in the psychological thriller The Stranger in My Home. The film follows Bush’s Ali as she meets Carmack’s Tom, a mysterious man who claims their respective daughters, Katie (Amiah Miller) and Liv (Grace Aiello Antczak), were switched at birth. What begins as an unsettling encounter soon spirals into a nightmare of long-buried secrets, lies and obsession.
“You look like Superman!” exclaims Bush, 42, who is still in disbelief over seeing her old pal Carmack, 44, stray from good guy roles to portray a grieving father with an edge of darkness. Bush is just as removed from her typical “badass” characters as Ali, a mother who will do anything to protect her child. “It was nice for me to not have to be a hero in the most obvious sense of the word,” she tells Carmack in Us Weekly’s latest In Conversation.
Stranger in My Home is available On Demand now. Below, the pair discuss their shared teen drama past, potential rom-com future and more:
Sophia Bush and Chris Carmack Trade 2000s Dramas for New Thriller: Watch
Chris Carmack: I’ll begin! Sophia, people are fascinated by these stories of being swapped at birth. Why do you think that is?
Sophia Bush: The idea that babies could be swapped at birth sounds like an old wives’ tale or an urban legend. And then as we get a script, we do research. We found out about the times that this has happened before there were these supposedly fail-safe measures instituted in hospitals. To know this has happened to people, it spins you out mentally. [Thinking about] being able to get in character, I thought, “Well, it wouldn’t matter, right? They’ve raised this kid, this is their baby.” And yes, their biological child is out there somewhere, and the spin cycle that that would put you on mentally and emotionally. It’s absolutely valid that I love my child and nothing will ever change this. It doesn’t matter if they’re biologically mine or not. But also, how do I make space in my life for this other person? What do they mean to me? What will I mean to them? What’s going to happen to us? Will our family be the same? It sort of begins this cascade of questions that can just shift everything you know to be reality. I thought that would be really fascinating for us to dig into. I mean, what a juicy thing to do as an actor. What about you?
CC: It’s sort of a gut punch to the idea of identity. Identity is such a personal question for everybody. And to have that viscerally ripped away from you, now [the daughters who have been switched] have to explore, “What is now my identity? Who am I? I felt like I was like my mother.” Or, “I’ve had a conflict with my mother, is it because I’m not their seed, so to speak?” As a parent, I can’t think of anything that might be so absolutely gut-wrenching, to think this person that I know and love is someone else’s biological child that they didn’t know about. You know, this is not an adoption. What are they gonna want to do? Are they gonna wanna go meet these parents? Are they gonna love these parents more than they love me? All these questions are asked. And you’re right, juicy is the right word.
SB: And I think especially because the script centers on this happening when the girls are 15, teenage angst is a real thing. As the both of us know from our early careers, I think there’s such a fear as a parent, if you are in that very traditional timeline of conflict with your teenager, will they, in their rebellion, say, “I wanna be with these other people? I wanna live with these other people?” Are they going to desire an agency that could forever shift your life? It’s the sort of scenario that just causes this kind of unending stream of questions.
CC: And they’re exploring their identities so much at that age. I mean, we have the whole social media thing with Amiah’s character. [She has this] scary fake social account. These teenagers are trying to become something and they don’t know what it is. They always say kids need structure to rebel against. Well, that structure’s just ripped away from them. Everything has been ripped away, and it’s very scary where that could lead these kids.
SB: Absolutely. I love that in this moment all [the readers] are getting, like, a real inside peek at the way scene partners work! This is kind of what we did, you know? Sit and bring all of these questions we’d been thinking about into our rehearsal room and our table reads and our cast dinners and mornings over coffee on set. This is really the fun part about our jobs.
CC: That’s true!
SB: Speaking of what we do at work, how did you start to prepare once you first read the script and said, “Oh, I wanna do this?” What was your next order of business to get into character?
CC: My next order of business is to relate to Tom. I’m thinking about, “What do I know about Tom and how can I bring something of myself into Tom?” And my hook in was family, love of family. I’ve got two daughters [Kai, 5, and Cielle, 3, with my wife, Erin Slaver]. I would fight for them, I would die for them. I think there’s a lot of that in Tom. And we find out that he’s kind of been devastated and lost a bit of his family and here’s an opportunity to reclaim a new family. Maybe he doesn’t do it in the best way, but it’s out of love and need and fear and grief and obsession. Where did you start with Ali?
SB: Similarly to you, I think [it’s about] figuring out what I understand about someone, even if they’re doing something that you could call wrong. How do you understand that motivation? For me, I had to really unpack who Ali is. I had to unpack what her journey has been. I had to, as myself, even look at some of the things that this character criticizes about herself. I hated some of that for her. And then what I always make sure I do is come to terms with what I relate to a character on and what I don’t, and ensure that I can deconstruct any favoritism on this end of the spectrum and any judgment on that end of the spectrum. And really just figure out how to put a nuanced, complicated human being together. Then something that was really impactful for me was understanding this question of identity and family. My partner [Ashlyn Harris’] kids are adopted. My best friend’s son is my godson. Obviously, I did not give birth to him, but I would literally give up my life for that kid. I have two friends who have a gorgeous family, and both of their children were adopted through the foster care system. I watched them fight for years for those children. I got to ask them about what it felt like to have raised them from the time they were little babies and spend years not knowing if their children would stay, what that limbo felt like, what that journey was like, how they held onto their humanity, how they didn’t just die from the anxiety and the fear. And it was so gorgeous to have people share all of these journeys and these experiences. Because imagine being trapped in that limbo that I know my friends were in! All of it became really beautiful to understand, that yes, biology is something, and also family is what you make it. It colored the story for me in a really cool way.
CC: I’ve got a question. This film obviously is full of all kinds of twists, turns and surprises. When you saw it in its final entity, was there anything that surprised you?
SB: Honestly, I remember the first time I read the script thinking I knew where it was going and then it kept twisting. And what felt really exciting to me when we all got to sit down and watch it together was that even though I knew what was coming, I was still stressed. I was still nervous. I found myself laughing in moments that I didn’t know would be funny. I found myself gasping at things that obviously I knew were coming. We filmed those scenes and I was still startled. And those kinds of things make me feel really excited. We literally made the movie and then I still get to be surprised by the movie. It’s taken on its own life. What surprised you?
CC: One hundred percent agreed. Because when you’re making the movie, you know your character, you know the journey, you know all the things that the audience doesn’t and shouldn’t at the time. So when I got to watch it almost a year after having filmed it, Tom was not quite as close to the surface and I was so excited about how it keeps everybody on their toes and we don’t know what’s gonna happen. And like you said, I was really happy to see the laughs in places I wasn’t expecting, because that’s an element of enjoyment of a film. We wanted to bring it in, but you just don’t know until you see it. And I think it really played.
SB: I do too. I know you talked about how you’ve got to relate to your character no matter what. That’s obviously our job, but you’ve been working on Grey’s for so long now, and you play this wonderfully heroic doctor [Atticus Lincoln]. You put people back together, you’re Chris Carmack! I mean, you look like Superman! You’re a good dude. Was it a breath of fresh air for you to get to lean into somebody who’s got some darkness and some twisted history? Did it make you feel a little excited?
CC: Oh, absolutely. When I got the script and realized I was gonna be on a plane soon to go play Tom, it was like strapping myself into a roller-coaster. I was excited about the ride. And I think through the course of filming this movie, it took me on that ride. It was fresh wind in my face, and I didn’t know what was coming around every turn. It was like a shot of oxygen. It was exciting. What about you?
SB: What I think I really enjoyed [was] the amount of vulnerability in this character. It’s a very vulnerable experience to embody. I loved getting to be so afraid because the last time that I was doing stunt sequences like this, I was doing them every week on a cop show [Chicago P.D.], but I was playing a cop. I was like, strapped with a gun and absolutely the person who runs toward the problem, which is also kind of similar to me. I mean, I’m not out there carrying, but I am a weapons person. I am a person who runs towards something if something happens. And in the weirdest way watching the movie, I was like, “Oh man, I love getting to play a woman that’s allowed to be scared.” She’s not a badass. She doesn’t know how to fight. She absolutely is flailing and afraid and runs and falls, and then still gets back up and figures it out. And it was really nice for me to not have to be a hero in the most obvious sense of the word. I so appreciate when someone is afraid and does it anyway.
CC: Yeah, it was the emotional and psychological need to protect your family that kept you charging into the fire. So this movie plays a little with genre. How would you describe it?
SB: I think this is what excited me so much about the script. I thought I was reading a sort of heightened family drama. When it first opens, it’s a little surreal. It gave me, like, Big Little Lies or Sirens energy, a little escapist, sexy. And then before I knew it, it was a psychological thriller. And by the end I was so anxious trying to finish the script. because I didn’t know if it was gonna tilt into a full horror film or not.
CC: I love it too because there are aspects of horror that I love, the surprises, the jumps, the camp at times.
SB: I was just gonna say the camp!
CC: The camp makes you laugh and gives you a little bit of relief. But I cannot do, like, the slash in the arteries. It makes me queasy. So to be a part of something that edged on horror-light, I was very happy.
SB: Wait a second. You just said gore makes you queasy and you play a surgeon on TV!
CC: Well, yeah. [laugh] But I’m actually fascinated with medical! Also, we are on a network show. It’s very different from the gore you would see in a movie. There’s sputtering, but they keep it PG-13.
SB: Usually by the time you get into an OR, things are pretty cleaned up.
CC: Yeah. And I’m just the bone guy, man. I hammer. I just take my drill and hammer. Was it fun to revisit the world of cheerleading?
SB: You know what’s so funny? I didn’t really think about it! In the film, the sequence is amazing. We have these aerial flyers and we literally had the national championship collegiate cheer team on our set. So the day we shot all that stuff, they were working those routines and we were doing all the stunt stuff. It was, like, a 12-hour day for them. And I was off camera for most of it and watching a lot of it. But really, the coach ran all of that. And then I think I worked for 90 minutes when the camera turned around on me across two scenes. I didn’t really think about it in this massive way. But it’s been such a thing for all the One Tree Hill fans because Brooke Davis was the captain of the cheer squad. But we never tumbled, I never did an aerial or anything. We had no professional people on our show. They barely let us rehearse ever. They didn’t really give us a lot of time. So it felt so different to me, but I know it’s been really fun for the fans.
CC: It’s an exciting sequence. And I know a lot of One Tree Hill fans are gonna watch this movie and they’re gonna enjoy that.
SB: Totally. And it’s kind of a trip because Amiah Miller, who plays my daughter, looks so much like Hilarie Burton [Morgan]. Like if instead of being a punk rock kid, Peyton Sawyer had been a Taylor Swift fan. That could be Amiah in her little cheerleading outfit. So everyone is like, “Why does her daughter look like baby Peyton?” I do love that.
CC: Yeah!
SB: Speaking of the fandom that’s excited about this crossover, because one of the things that I loved the most about working on OTH and that I know the fans loved was my character’s arc. Brooke really got to start as one thing and then evolve into something that I loved that felt different. You got to do something really similar playing Luke on The O.C. Do you think we both just got lucky with story line? What was the journey for you carrying him through his arc?
CC: I think I got cast as Luke because I looked a certain way. I was on Abercrombie bags and underwear modeling and they even put a joke in the script about like, “Hey, Abercrombie,” so I was very sort of stereotypically this guy that they wanted to look like Luke. But our first season I think was, like, 25 episodes. [Editor’s note: It was 30!] It’s a lot of episodes, and we spent a lot of time together on set with the writers and producers. I think they got to know me as a person more and they started to layer a little bit more of the goofy, funny Luke and they enjoyed bringing him in this direction of a jock who had been putting up this front. When he became able to be himself around his new friends and the people who had been the outcasts, he suddenly was able to be his goofy self. That was a really fun way to take the character.
SB: I think it was a similar journey for me. As the writers got to know me, my character, she just grew. I think they realized that I was a really sensitive soul who might be able to show up in any room but would probably be really nervous on the inside and who shows up for friends no matter what. And there were certainly these bold and courageous, crazy amazing things that she did that I don’t know that I would’ve been able to. We always joke that every character on OTH had the most insane adult job. I became a fashion designer. [Nathan, played by James Lafferty], played in the NBA, like, it was insane. But I think there were certain things about the integrity and feistiness and passion that they certainly started to layer in there for me. It just made me feel like I could bring a little more of myself to her.
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CC: I think that happens over time. When you’re working on a series that lasts a long time, the writers get to know you and they start putting more of you. And when you’ve been on a show, like me on Grey’s for seven years now, I’ve seen a lot of myself on screen.
SB: I was gonna ask that. I love that. That’s so fun. [Fans are also] geeked that we’re in this movie together because I came and worked with you on Grey’s all last year. But what’s the thing they don’t know about the order of these jobs?
CC: Everybody seems to think that Grey’s happened first. But we filmed [Stranger in My Home] this last summer and then had the pleasure of working together on Grey’s afterwards. So Grey’s Anatomy was our reunion.
SB: It was, and even though we haven’t shared any scenes on the set of Grey’s, we’ve had a few days where, based on scheduling and locations, we do overlap coming and going from work. And so the first day we finally got to see each other in the Seattle Grace set, we sent a lot of photos of us in our scrubs to [our director] Jeff [Fisher] and the whole Stranger in My Home family. Everyone was like, “What is going on?!” But that was a sweet treat. We’re in a very good year together, you and I, my friend.
CC: Let’s keep the streak going.
SB: I know. What’s our third time’s the charm job gonna be? We’ve done drama, we’ve done thriller. Do we need to go do a rom-com?
CC: I like that plan.
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Paul Simon is on the road to recovery.
Days after severe back pain forced the “Graceland” singer to cancel two shows during his A Quiet Celebration Tour, the 83-year-old’s team shared an...Chase Chrisley is having some fun at his dad Todd’s expense!
The reality star, 29, shared an Instagram video of his father driving him to a meeting on Thursday, July 3, but he wasn’t too impressed with Todd’s driving skills.
“Going into a meeting and my dad doesn’t know how to drive, so now I have a stained shirt because of this,” Chase narrated the video, panning from a liquid stain on his shirt to his dad smirking in the driver’s seat.
“You should’ve taken driver’s ed while you were in there,” he then quipped, referring to Todd and mom Julie’s recent federal prison stints following their 2022 convictions on charges including tax evasion, bank and wire fraud and conspiracy. (Both Todd, 56, and Julie, 52, have maintained their innocence.)
Todd Chrisley Shares Wild Revelations About Prison Stay on New Podcast
Chase captioned the video: “This is what I deal with…. I still love you even though you are a pain in the ass @toddchrisley.”
In May, Todd and Julie received pardons from President Donald Trump over their respective convictions and were released from prison. Since then, the couple have reunited with their family, including sons Chase and Grayson, 19, and daughters Savannah, 27, and Chloe, 12.
The former Chrisley Knows Best stars reflected on their respective prison stints — Todd’s in Pensacola, Florida, and Julie’s in Lexington, Kentucky — on the latest episode of daughter Savannah’s “Unlocked” podcast.
“In my head, I was still free. I did not take up residence there. I was in prison, prison was not in me,” Todd shared on the Tuesday, July 1, episode of “Unlocked.”
“I prayed, I read my Bible, I worked out, I walked,” he continued. “I wreaked havoc on anyone that was mistreating somebody else.”
Everything We Know About Todd Chrisley’s New Reality Show With His Family
While an inmate at FPC Pensacola, Todd said he got into a verbal altercation with another prisoner, Rick Singer, the organizer behind the college admissions scandal.
“He was talking s*** about Savannah, because that’s when she had already started, you know, pulling the Barbara Walters and exposing everything in the [Bureau of Prisons]. He started talking smack,” Todd recalled. “I said, ‘I will rip your head off and s*** down your neck if you talk about my child again.’ And I meant what I said.”
Julie, meanwhile, recently claimed that her health deteriorated due to poor conditions in her penitentiary, FMC Lexington in Kentucky.
“I could see my health deteriorating,” Julie shared in an ABC News special that aired via Hulu on Sunday, June 29, claiming that she developed asthma during her time there.
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Jessi Ngatikaura’s marriage to Jordan Ngatikaura made headlines after she was accused on The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives of having an affair with Marciano Brunette.
The couple started dating and got married before the hit Hulu series premiered in September 2024. During the first season, Jessi’s personal life wasn’t in the spotlight, but that all changed after she filmed two episodes of Vanderpump Villa. From there, rumors spread about Jessi’s relationship with Marciano, which she denied was anything more than a friendship while filming season 2.
The season 2 finale, which aired in May 2025, took Us by surprise when Marciano claimed he slept with Jessi. She didn’t initially clarify the allegations but noted that there was more to the story, which would play out on screen.
“I’ll say I’m an open book. Even though there were things I hadn’t shared yet — once I was in the position to share them — I have nothing to hide,” she exclusively told Us Weekly in June 2025. “I was willing to just lay it all on the table.”
'Mormon Wives’ Couples Status Check: Who Is Still Together? Who Broke Up?
Jessi said it is important to “just be honest,” sharing, “I’ve made mistakes. My husband has made mistakes. Everyone in their life has made mistakes. I think sharing those is relatable and hopefully people can get something out of it.”
Despite the ongoing obstacles, Jessi sounded hopeful about her future with Jordan.
“Every relationship has ups and downs. But when you’re on reality TV, it puts a microscope on it and everyone sees everything and has opinions. It’s hard not to have it affect your friendships, your relationships and your family life,” she noted. “That was definitely hard.”
Jessi continued: “Now that we’re done filming for a little while, I’m just going to focus on my family, my kids and get back on track with all of that. Then hopefully I will be in a better head space for the next time we film — if we do.”
The reality star acknowledged how filming the show played a role in her and Jordan’s marriage issues, saying, “It was definitely probably the hardest time of my life filming the next season. I do think it’s going to help a lot of people. I’m excited to share my story and help with what some women go through. I do think that it’s going to be a good thing — as hard as it is.”
Keep scrolling to relive Jessi and Jordan’s romance:
Jessi was previously married to a man named Zach before moving on with Jordan, who was raising his first daughter, Peyton, from a previous relationship.
“Happiness is that feeling that comes over you when you know life is good and you can’t help but smile,” Jordan wrote in his and Jessi’s Instagram debut. “@justjessiiii makes me feel this way everyday. You started out as my friend and I’m so glad that blossomed into what we have today. I feel so lucky to have you in my life.”
Jordan proposed to Jessi two months later, writing, “The girl of my dreams; you’re my best friend and soul mate. I can’t imagine my life without you. We are tying the NGAT.”
The pair expanded their family with son Jagger.
“He is our perfect chunky boy!” Jordan captioned the post. “Unfortunately he’s having some problems with his lungs and is currently in the NICU getting some help. He is a fighter just like his momma and has been doing so much better today than last night. He’s such a blessing to our life and we feel so lucky he choose us to be his parents .”
How Many Cheating Scandals Were Explored on 'Secret Lives of Mormon Wives'?
After welcoming their first baby together, Jessi and Jordan exchanged vows later that year.
“Happy first anniversary to my sweet sweet wife! Thank you for being the best mom and wife that I could ask for,” Jordan wrote via Instagram. “We have been through so much in such little time and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for us; I love you @justjessiili.”
While reflecting on their marriage, Jessi praised her husband, writing, “Husband appreciation post for this guy because the sacrifice he’s making for our family is amazing to me. It’s not easy to leave your home and your family to do a job that requires leadership, resilience and a great work ethic.”
She continued: “I’m in awe of what he’s doing for himself and our family C I miss you more than life but l’m also the most proud wife. Love you baby!!!”
Jessi gave birth to her and Jordan’s second baby, daughter Jovi.
Hulu viewers were introduced to Jessi and Jordan when The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives premiered. In addition to the duo, the reality series focused on Jen Affleck and husband Zac Affleck, Demi Engemann and husband Bret Engemann, Whitney Leavitt and husband Conner Leavitt, Mikayla Matthews and husband Jace Terry, Mayci Neeley and husband Jacob Neeley, Taylor Frankie Paul and then-partner Dakota Mortensen and Layla Taylor. (Miranda McWhorter, meanwhile, joined the show in season 2 after her split from Chase McWhorter.)
“Happy 4th Anniversary to my ride or die ,” Jordan captioned his anniversary post. “Through all of life’s crazy ups and downs you’re the one I can always count on. I pick you forever and I love the life we have built and I can’t wait to see what the future has in store for us and our babies. Love you to the .”
Jessi celebrated the major milestone as well, adding, “Happy Anniversary @justjordddy 4 years has felt like 4 lifetimes, we’ve done so much and lived such a full life in such a short amount of time. We went back to the place we got engaged tonight and I think it’s safe to say we’ve gotten better with time love you babe!!”
The second season of Mormon Wives called Jessi’s marriage into question when Marciano claimed they had an affair. Jessi denied the allegations but later admitted she had issues she needed to address with Jordan.
“I will say that reality TV is hard on any relationship, whether it’s a friendship or a marriage,” Jessi revealed on “The Viall Files” podcast in May 2025. “We’ve been through a lot, and now it’s going to be public.”
Jessi was also asked about not wearing a wedding ring and noted that she and Jordan were “working through things,” adding, “We’re trying our best — but things are a little tricky right now. I’m excited to hopefully someday share more about that. But right now it’s just real life and it’s hard.”
Everything to Know About 'Mormon Wives' Season 3 After Affair Cliffhanger
“We’re back working on things. Every day is different,” Jessi exclusively told Us. “Marriage is hard. We still have ups and downs — and you will see a lot of that unfold in season 3.”
Jessi noted that she was hopeful about their future, adding, “I do think that overall it’s going to be inspiring to people. I hope that a lot of people can relate.”
According to Jessi, the pair “didn’t have a choice” or option to work things out privately, resulting in the cameras capturing their marital woes.
Jessi was directly asked whether she had sex with Marciano at the Mormon Wives reunion.
“A lot of this story is unpacked in season 3 so I can’t talk about it yet,” she said before assuming that Jordan felt “anxious, nervous and sad” hearing her discuss a possible affair. “We’re both going through a lot right now. But I think he’s willing to tell his truth too and he’s been very vulnerable throughout season 3. So we both just laid it all out there. There was a lot more to the story and it’s not what you think it is. There’s no secrets. Like, we are exposing it all.”
Jessi clarified that any interactions with Marciano happened “after” he allegedly spoke with Demi off screen. Later in the special, Jordan joined the group and revealed whether he thought he and Jessi would work through their issues.
“I knew what happened because of the conversations that I had had with Jessi, but it was really tough to have the allegations made,” he said about continuing to work through their issues. “I tried to talk to Bret [about Marciano]. It’s a really tough place to be. I see him a couple times a week. We wave at each other at the gym, but outside of that we don’t talk.”
In the season 3 trailer, Jordan’s immediate reaction to the rumors about Marciano and Jessi played out, with him saying, “If I find anything else out, I am done.”
Jessi, for her part, was later seen asking Marciano, “Why did you lie to Layla about us?” Marciano hinted that he was “influenced” by Demi and even agreed to a lie detector test with Jessi about what actually happened between them.
© Disney; Getty Images; Disney
The 4th of July may be a great time to celebrate the birth of the nation with family and friends, but it’s also an excellent time to catch up on your binge-watching.
The Watch With Us team has a few suggestions for the must-watch shows to watch on Netflix, Hulu and more streamers.
Admittedly, our selections are very heavy with action and action comedies because they play very well in the summer.
But if you want something different, our first selection is one of this year’s best TV thrillers.
5 Must-Watch Hulu Shows That Are Perfect to Stream in the Summer
Paradise doesn’t waste any time killing off the President of the United States, Cal Bradford (James Marsden). The promos for the series give that away, but there are plenty of twists that you won’t see coming. Sterling K. Brown stars in the series as Secret Service agent Xavier Collins. Once, Xavier and Bradford were very close and shared a bond. But that bond has been fractured in the present.
That may be why Xavier is one of the primary suspects in the murder of President Bradford. But it’s going to take some time to understand what really happened on the final night of Bradford’s life, and that’s time that Xavier may not have as he attempts to get answers.
Paradise is streaming on Hulu.
Lost‘s Josh Holloway is back on TV this summer with Duster, a throwback action crime thriller that takes place in 1972. Rachel Hilson stars as Nina Hayes, the first Black female agent in the FBI. And she’s made it her mission in life to take down Ezra Saxton (Keith David), a ruthless crime lord in the Southwest.
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What Nina needs is a man on the inside, and that’s where Jim Ellis (Holloway) comes in. Jim doesn’t initially have a personal stake in what happens with Ezra, and he’s the best getaway driver in his criminal organization. But once Jim is convinced to help Nina, they form an unconventional partnership that’s irresistible.
Duster is streaming on Max.
If you’ve ever seen True Lies, then you’re going to be very familiar with the premise of the action comedy FUBAR. Arnold Schwarzenegger plays Luke Brunner, a CIA agent who has hidden his real job from his family for decades. That makes things really awkward when Luke discovers that his daughter, Emma Brunner (Monica Barbaro), is also a highly-trained CIA agent — and no one in the agency told him.
Despite the lingering anger and tension between father and daughter over years of lies, they make a pretty good team. FUBAR season 2 debuted earlier this summer, and it introduced Carrie-Anne Moss as the show’s new villain, Greta Nelson. She’s hilarious and makes the new season worth watching.
FUBAR is streaming on Netflix.
Supernatural‘s Jensen Ackles gets back to his action roots with Prime Video’s new series, Countdown. Ackles plays Mark Meachum, an LAPD detective who is on loan to a special task force. Someone murdered a Department of Homeland Security officer in plain sight, and the government has put together a team to hunt down the killer.
What started as a simple murder investigation quickly escalates into a plot that may lead to a terrorist attack against the people of Los Angeles. If Mark and his new team can’t stop this in time, then the casualties will be immense.
Countdown is streaming on Prime Video.
Money isn’t everything for Andrew “Coop” Cooper (Jon Hamm), but it’s more than enough to drive him to a life of crime in Your Friends & Neighbors. In this darkly funny series, Coop used to be wealthy, but his divorce from Mel (Amanda Peet) and the loss of his high-paying job put that to an end.
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To keep his family afloat, Coop begins stealing from his rich neighbors as long as he can get away with it. It turns out that he has a knack for being an underhanded thief. He’s also got an on-and-off again relationship with Samantha “Sam” Levitt (Olivia Munn), his wife’s former best friend. But Coop can’t let Sam get too close, especially if it would jeopardize his newfound criminal activities.
Your Friends & Neighbors is streaming on Apple TV+.
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