It’s Wednesday, and this man is my new favorite person on Earth. I love him and the positivity he is putting into the universe is what we need right now. (@Kelz on TikTok)
@kelz #duet with @menwiththepot my mind was so blown I legit one them 😩
@kelz #duet with @cakegawd oh yes I need I need
@kelz #duet with @allrecipes hold up what!!!!! Someone please try it
@kelz #duet with @motunlo lawd all these men cooking lawd 😩
♬ The Way You Look Tonight – Remastered 2008 – Frank Sinatra
@kelz #stitch with @classiq.clips I am done 🤦🏾♂️
All Other TV News
One sign that our country has gone off the rails is the fact that the number of United States Senators — one of the most important and prestigious political roles in our government — that are currently publicly beefing with pop culture figures is not zero, and in fact, is more than one.
On Monday’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Jimmy Kimmel mocked Texas Embarrassment Ted Cruz for spreading Russian propaganda and attacking our military, and Cruz, God bless him, he took the bait:
Oh Ted… you get so sad after you masturbate. https://t.co/8fxCzUNwqg
— Jimmy Kimmel (@jimmykimmel) May 25, 2021
So how could Kimmy resist?
And then I guess Kentucky Senator Rand Paul was jealous of all the negative attention Cruz was receiving and decided to blame 80s singer and hilarious Twitter presence Richard Marx for a threatening package some other not-Richard-Marx lunatic recently sent him. It’s bonkers.
Supervillan Marx interrupted Stephen Colbert’s monologue discussing the mess (which begins at the 7:35 mark) to explain that all he wants is world domination:
Dear Dumb Republican Politicians:
Please stay in your lane.
Signed,
An Exhausted Electorate.
The Game of Thrones spinoff 10,0000 Ships has taken another step forward: they’ve hired Amanda Segel to write it. I mean, like Game of Thrones characters themselves, these pilots get killed off unexpectedly, so don’t start building your 10,000 Ships fan site just yet, but it’s a promising development.
HOW ABOUT THAT THIS IS US TWIST, RIGHT? Do not click if you haven’t watched yet.
Arthur Gunn didn’t show up to duet with Sheryl Crow in the American Idol finale for mysterious and unexplained reasons, and his Instagram post didn’t clear anything up:
Amazon is buying MGM for $8.4 billion, but The Wizard of Oz, Gone with the Wind and every other MGM film made before 1986 are not part of the deal because Ted Turner bought them and they now belong to WarnerMedia. As for the James Bond movies, which are part of the deal, they will still be released in theaters, and not be exclusively streamed, calm down.
Guy Fieri is the highest-paid chef on TV and you know what? Good for him.
again: All Guy Fieri does is drive around the country telling people their dreams are dope and helping them make more money. Legend.
— David Dennis Jr. (@DavidDTSS) May 25, 2021
Oh, and here’s one last sketch cut for time on Saturday Night Live:
Congratulations to Emily Rossum and Sam Esmail!
Going Viral
I haven’t posted about COVID-19 in a week, and in that time, we’ve gone from a 7-day average of 31,138 new cases down to 24,034. This is the fewest cases in 11 months. As far as vaccinations go, we have given 164.4 shots in this country. That’s 58.7% of the eligible population receiving at least one dose and 49.5% of the total population. Though the case numbers are going down, those who are unvaccinated remain at risk, so be careful.
That goes for you, Congressional Republicans, of whom only 95 out of 211 have been vaccinated. Not only do you still have to wear masks, YOU ARE THE REASON EVERYONE HAS TO WEAR MASKS. And for Christ’s sake, DO NOT COMPARE A MASK MANDATE TO THE HOLOCAUST, YOU FUCKING MONSTERS.
As for you, Lachlan Murdoch, I hope you can’t sleep at night.
Unexpected heroes actually trying to make things better? Larry Flynt’s Hustler Club, and dating apps.
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will be back in person with a fully vaccinated audience on June 14. John Krasinski was Colbert’s first in-person guest last week.
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon will also bring back a full audience in early June.
Dodger Stadium will be at full capacity on June 15.
The L.A. Rams intend to have full-capacity crowds in the fall.
The WWE is going back on tour beginning in July.
Disney thinks their parks could be back at full capacity by the fall.
The Tony Awards will be held on September 26.
The Cannes Film Festival will be held in person in July with safety protocols in place.
Glastonbury Music Festival will be back in person for one day in September.
OK, but what about the Tokyo Olympics? Things are looking dire. The country is being hit hard by the virus, Japanese doctors are begging the IOC to call off the games, the United States has issued a Do Not Travel advisory, and hospitals are being overrun. But the IOC and NBC are determined that the Games must go on, even as the country is in a state of emergency.
Dan Murphy, the COO of Magical Elves, discusses how they managed to pull off filming Top Chef: Portland in the middle of a pandemic. Basically, they took over an entire hotel and avoided coming into contact with any outside people. You know: they pulled a Bachelorette.
Salma Hayek says she very nearly died from the virus last year.
Kim Kardashian revealed that at least one of her children had the virus. (And this serves as a good reminder that children under 12 are still vulnerable to the virus and we are not entirely out of the woods yet.)
Bill Maher had to cancel last week’s episode of Real Time with Bill Maher, too, after having tested positive despite being vaccinated.
Prince William only received his first dose of vaccine LAST WEEK? How? What?
William Shakespeare, the first man to be vaccinated, has passed away of an unrelated illness. The man was 81, so.
There was a bit of a controversy when two NBA players were treated differently by the league though they both attended parties. Here’s why one was fine, and the other wasn’t.
One thing we’ve actually gained from the pandemic? To-go drinks.
A return to normality: Generic Folk Horror Island is reopening to visitors! pic.twitter.com/5l4psB1DOh
— Stephen Collins (@stephen_collins) May 23, 2021
Renewals
- Chef Boot Camp has been renewed at Food Network.
In Development
- The Battersea Poltergeist is being developed into a TV series.
- Anna Karenina is being turned into a series at Netflix.
- Temple Run might be turned into a game show.
- The spinoff of The 100 is still being developed at The CW, and may run on both The CW and HBO Max.
- The CW has announced three specials for fall 2021: The Waltons’ Homecoming; The Scooby-Doo Reunion Special; and Beebo Saves Christmas.
Casting News
- Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Mason Alexander Park, Donna Preston, Jenna Coleman, Niamh Walsh, Joely Richardson, David Thewlis, Kyo Ra, Stephen Fry, Razane Jammal, Sandra James Young, and Patton Oswalt have been cast in the Sandman series at Netflix.
- Wayne Gretzky is joining TNT as their lead analyst for NHL coverage.
- Tyner Rushing has been cast in The Terminal List on Amazon.
- Ji-young Yoo is going to star in Expats on Amazon.
- Vanessa Villela and Emma Hernan are joining the cast of Selling Sunset on Netflix.
- Emily Wickersham is leaving NCIS.
Mark Your Calendars
- The Tomorrow War will debut on Amazon on July 2.
- False Positive will premiere on Hulu on June 25.
- Epstein’s Shadow: Ghislaine Maxwell will stream on Peacock beginning June 24.
- Record of Ragnarok will premiere on Netflix on June 17.
- You, Me & My Ex premieres on TLC on June 20.
- Street Legal premieres on Ovation on June 8; The Brokenwood Mysteries on June 29; Mystery Road on August 24.
- Shock Docs: The Devil Made Me Do It will debut on Discovery+ on June 11.
R.I.P.
Samuel E. Wright, Actor who voiced Sebastian in The Little Mermaid
John Warner, Former senator, secretary and undersecretary for the Navy, and Elizabeth Taylor’s 6th husband.
Lois de Banzie, Tony-nominated Broadway actress
WATCH THIS
High on the Hog: How African American Cuisine Transform America: This four-part series explores the history of African-American food, from Benin to Houston, and how it changed how we all eat. Series premiere. Netflix
The Bold Type: Kat has a big decision to make in the season premiere. 9 p.m., Freeform
The Masked Singer: The final three perform for the last time in the season finale. 7 p.m., Fox
Chicago Med: A new heart becomes available for Carol in the season finale. 7 p.m., NBC
Chicago Fire: A mysterious stranger arrives at the firehouse. Season finale. 8 p.m., NBC
Chicago P.D.: The team takes down a criminal ring in the season finale. 9 p.m., NBC
SEAL Team: Bravo takes a hit in the season finale. 8 p.m., CBS
S.W.A.T.: A Los Angeles police station is bombed. Season finale. 9 p.m., CBS
Press Your Luck: Season premiere. 7 p.m., ABC
The $100,000 Pyramid: Season premiere. 8 p.m., ABC
Crime Scene Kitchen: Season premiere. 8 p.m., Fox
Late Night:
- Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Sofia Vergara, Jack Antonoff, Bleachers
- Late Night with Seth Meyers: John Krasinski, Donny Deutsch, dodie
- The Late Show with Stephen Colbert: Will Arnett, Brockhampton
- The Late Late Show with James Corden: Jonas Brothers, Leif Vollebekk
- Jimmy Kimmel Live: Emily Blunt, Diego Boneta, the winner of “American Idol”
- A Little Late with Lily Singh: Andrew Rannells
| WEDS. | 7:00 | 7:30 | 8:00 | 8:30 | 9:00 | 9:30 |
| ABC | Press Your Luck (new) |
The $100,000 Pyramid (new) |
A Million Little Things (new) |
| CBS | Kids Say the Darndest Things (new) |
SEAL Team (new) |
S.W.A.T. (new) |
| CW | Kung Fu (new) |
Nancy Drew (new) |
Local |
| FOX | The Masked Singer (new) |
Crime Scene Kitchen (new) |
News/Local |
| NBC | Chicago Med (new) |
Chicago Fire (new) |
Chicago P.D. (new) |