Beyoncé recently celebrated 10 years of “Lemonade” on her Instagram, and in her hand were three lemons, a subtle hint fans are taking to mean her next album is on the way.

ACT III will be the third and final act in a trilogy by the superstar singer, following “Renaissance” in 2022 and “Cowboy Carter” in 2024.

Before Beyoncé shares more information about her upcoming project, the Destiny’s Child alum first celebrated a major milestone for one of her most decorated projects.

Beyoncé ran to Instagram to celebrate a decade of one of her most decorated albums, “Lemonade.”

On April 23, the singer shared a slideshow of images featuring her holding her whiskey, SirDavis, in one hand and three lemons in the other.

“Cheers to ten years!” she captioned the photo. “With love and deep gratitude.”

While the comments were filled with love and adoration for the 12-track project, some users were more focused on what she could’ve been trying to tell the BeyHive than what she actually said.

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“3 LEMONS … ACT 3,” someone wrote, while another said, “10 years of Lemonade in the year of ACT III.”

On X, formerly known as Twitter, another user said, “The only reason why I actually believe Beyoncé holding three lemons is significant to act iii coming is because all three acts were birthed from Lemonade.”

‘Lemonade’ Was A Cultural Movement

“Lemonade” was released as an HBO film on April 23, 2016. It was another of Beyoncé’s surprise visual albums, featuring music videos for every track.

The project gained widespread attention for its themes of generational trauma, feminism, and reclamation.

Beyoncé ushered fans into the “Lemonade” era with the album’s lead single, “Formation,” one day before performing it at Super Bowl 50.

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“Lemonade” became Beyoncé’s sixth consecutive No. 1 album, earning the singer two Grammys and global attention.

Rolling Stone ranked the project the No. 1 best album of the 21st Century, calling it “more than just an album.”

“It’s a music film as layered, gorgeous, and haunting as a canonical drama, a matrix of generational heartbreak, a celebration of legacy, and a hand-drawn map to the intersections of many Black women’s interpersonal and political lives,” the outlet said.

Beyoncé Released ‘Renaissance’ 6 Years After ‘Lemonade’

In 2022, Beyoncé re-entered the music space with “Renaissance,” the first act of a three-act project.

The dance album is an open love letter to the LGBTQ+ community, highlighting queer culture, slang, and the Black pioneers of house and disco.

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The mother of three began the era with “Break My Soul”—the ’90s-inspired house single that became an instant dance-floor staple and a call to reclaim personal peace.

On Instagram, Beyoncé teased the project, revealing that she learned a great deal about herself during the creative process.

“It allowed me to feel free and adventurous in a time when little else was moving,” she wrote. “My intention was to create a safe place, a place without judgment. A place to be free of perfectionism and overthinking. A place to scream, release, feel freedom. It was a beautiful journey of exploration.”

‘Cowboy Carter’ Came After

Years later, Beyoncé made headlines again with the release of her country-inspired project, “Cowboy Carter,” which soared to the top of streaming platforms, earning her several awards on the Hot 100 and Hot Country Songs Billboard charts.

“This album took over five years,” Beyoncé said about the project, according to Billboard. “It’s been really great to have the time and the grace to be able to take my time with it. I was initially going to put Cowboy Carter out first, but with the pandemic, there was too much heaviness in the world. We wanted to dance. We deserved to dance. But I had to trust God’s timing.”

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What’s Next For Beyoncé?

While fans wait for the next set of catchy singles from the 44-year-old, they can rest assured knowing that she’ll deliver something totally unexpected.

“The joy of creating music is that there are no rules,” Beyoncé said about her music-making journey. “The more I see the world evolving the more I felt a deeper connection to purity.”

Storage Wars stars Laura and Dan Dotson have claimed that Darrell Sheets feared for his life due to alleged cyberbullying before his death.

“His family told us that this has been happening for three years,” Laura, 57, exclusively tells Us Weekly. “[It happens to] even strong men that you think aren’t gonna get their feelings hurt. Cyberbullying is a real thing. This made him feel less than, and it really obviously bothered him. He was terrified for his life [and] for the people around him. He didn’t know why he was being targeted.”

Laura and husband Dan, 63, worked with Sheets on Storage Wars before his retirement from the A&E reality series in 2023. Sheets died at age 67 after an apparent suicide on Wednesday, April 22, in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, a spokesperson for the Lake Havasu City Police Department confirmed to Us.

An official cause of death has not been confirmed. Us reached out to the Mohave County Medical Examiner’s office for comment.

Related: How Did Darrell Sheets Die? Inside the ‘Storage Wars’ Star’s Death

Darrell Sheets — the fan-favorite Storage Wars cast member known to viewers as “The Gambler” — died at age 67 in Lake Havasu City, Arizona. Us Weekly confirmed the news on April 22, 2026, that Sheets died by an apparent suicide. His death has prompted grief from costars and a police investigation into cyberbullying claims […]

“He had other things also,” Laura continued. “His health and certain things that might have contributed to [his death]. Relationships, love interests and stuff that would go up and down, but [he] truly, truly was a wonderful, loving person who believed in God.”

Laura and Dan also recalled Sheets’ reaction to another friend’s death by suicide, with Dan noting that Sheets was in disbelief.

“He says, ‘I can’t believe anybody that could do that,’” Laura said. “‘They must have so much pain.’ So it was so hard for us to really believe that this happened.”

Weeks before his death, Sheets called out alleged cyberbullies in a post shared via Facebook.

“I have been hacked by a very evil person,” he wrote in March. “The clown. [The posts] are not done by me, they are being done by … very evil people. I’m not gay, I have made no posts about any children’s arcade owner, etc. I’m extremely sorry and sick over this.”

Related: ‘Storage Wars’ Cast Reacts to Darrell Sheets’ Death by Suicide at Age 67

The cast of A&E’s reality series Storage Wars has come together to mourn their late costar Darrell Sheets following his death at age 67 from suicide. Lake Havasu City, Arizona, police confirmed to Us Weekly on April 22 that officers responded to calls about a “reported deceased individual” earlier in the day and subsequently “pronounced […]

Sheets continued, “He said he would, please understand it is not me. People are showing up to my work and wanting to harm me. The police are aware of this but [their] hands are tied because Facebook allows this and it is very bad.”

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Days later, Sheets claimed his “cyberbully stalker” allegedly victimized others via social media.

“He has been going after other small businesses in town and harassing them, using my name,” he wrote. “It is not me! He has extorted money from many people in this town acting like a handyman. This has been going on for three years with him, and the things he says are very damaging. This is a felony called cyberbullying.”

The Lake Havasu City Police Department told Us in a statement that it is “aware of the cyberbullying accusations involved in this incident and these claims are a part of the active investigation.”

If we had it our way, our homes would be packed with cute, whimsical decor from Anthropologie. The only issue? The price. Even if we wanted to, shopping for multiple items would leave a dent in our bank accounts too large to justify. That’s why you’ll find Us scoping out Wayfair’s sale section, selecting pieces that are similar in style but much more budget-friendly.

With Wayfair’s Way Day happening April 25 through 27, now is the time to stock up on stylish Anthropologie-inspired items for a reasonable price. The retailer truly has it all: glamorous floor mirrors, sleek bookshelves, throw pillows that provide a pop of color and even quirky kitchen essentials. We rounded up our favorites ahead, but hurry! The sale is over almost as soon as it starts, and you won’t want to miss out on these great prices.

Anthropologie-Style Decor Pieces on Sale at Wayfair

1. Adorable Accent: If your home could use a little seasonal sprucing, add a colorful throw pillow. While Anthropologie is full of playful, printed options, this orange and white alternative captures the same vibe for under $30 — was $85, now $23!

2. Pretty Printed Rug: Something is up with area rugs — they’re either kinda ugly or ridiculously expensive. That makes this Lark Manor find a unicorn in our books. The classic blue floral print looks extremely elevated, and we can personally vouch for the high quality (it’s currently sitting in this editor’s living room and still looks like new a year later!) —  was $134, now $63!

3. Furbaby-Approved Lamp: Anthropologie’s Icon Table Lamp: Dog Edition is what pet parent dreams are made of, but the $298 price tag? Woof. The good news is, this Doodle Dog Lamp is eerily similar and surprisingly chic, even featuring a golden pup. It’ll still make quite the conversation piece. . . for a lot less! — was $75, now $58!

4. Sweet Seat: Admittedly, we were skeptical of this velvet accent chair — until we read the reviews. With a 4.8-star rating, it’s clearly a hit with customers who have used it for a reading nook or added it to their bedrooms, with many saying it was easy to assemble and feels comfy yet sturdy — was $399, now $173

5. Cool Cabinet: This rattan cabinet doesn’t just look way more expensive than its price — it’s also celebrity-approved. The Kelly Clarkson Home find is ideal for storing dishes, books and even baby toys, elevating your space while remaining practical and sleek — was $550, now $186!

6. ‘It’ Girl Mirror: It’s hard to find a quality, full-length mirror that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg, but this arched option is a solid choice. Complete with gold detailing, it can be hung or leaned against your wall, giving you an influencer-approved aesthetic for under $100 — was $350, now $68!

7. Darling Darkening Curtains: Our favorite Anthropologie curtains are made from linen-blend material, so this linen-like alternative quickly caught our eye. The muted blue shade adds a pop of color while still feeling neutral, and shoppers not only praise the quality but say they’re great at blocking light — was $89, now $30!

8. Bedroom Essential: If you’re tired of collapsing onto a dull, boring bedspread, spice up your sleep space with Bedsure’s floral duvet and pillow shams set. The same style comes in multiple cheerful shades, from mineral blue to terracotta, and the best part is, it’s hundreds less than ones that look just like it — was $130, now $40!

9. Chic Sips: Anthropologie has become famous for its fun juice glasses, but you can get four of these vintage-inspired crystal tumblers for the same price as one. That morning chug of water never looked so good — was $31, now $17!

10. Double Duty: The most gorgeous bookshelves can cost upwards of $1,000, so imagine our surprise when we saw this expensive-looking arched option discounted down to just $220. What makes it a real steal is the tiny storage cabinet at the bottom, allowing it to show what you want to display. . . and hide what you don’t — was $320, now $220!

11. Café-Inspired Stool: Are we at a bistro in France? No, just your kitchen, which now has the same vibe, thanks to these elegant woven stools stationed at the counter — was $559, now $94!

12: Vintage-Like Art: It’s up to you whether to tell guests you got this pricey-looking swan painting on sale at Wayfair. It could easily be mistaken for something you discovered while thrifting. . . which is exactly why we love it! — was $35, now $22!

Related: Wayfair Dropped a Rare 5-Day Sale on Patio Furniture, Spring Decor and More

Wayfair is already a hub for affordable home upgrades, but add a sale into the mix, and you can redecorate your entire place, patio included, with zero guilt. The retailer just dropped a major five-day sale on all things spring, including outdoor furniture, planter boxes, indoor greenery and even comfy chairs for hosting. Our favorites […]

Taylor Frankie Paul is currently in the middle of a wave of good news after prosecutors declined to press domestic violence charges against her. However, the details of the physical altercation between her and ex-boyfriend Dakota Mortensen continue to be revealed.

In Paul’s March witness statement in the dropped case, “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” star alleges that Mortensen has a long history of sabotaging her.

In documents from the Draper County Police Department obtained by Us Weekly, Paul alleged “Dakota has a history of creating these situations and there is a pattern of him trying to sabotage anything big or exciting happening with my life,” she said in her March 4 witness statement.

“Things like a new season [of ‘The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives’] coming out or in this case the trailers for ‘The Bachelorette’ starting to run always seem to set him off,” she continued.

The reality star also claimed that Mortensen continued to text her about falling in love on “The Bachelorette.”

“His messages to me talked about how he can’t watch me fall in love with the rest of the world and give other men a side of me he’s craved every day,” Paul alleged in the statement. “He is the one coming to my home, begging for us to be together, and now claiming that I assaulted him.”

After being in the middle of a legal and media firestorm throughout the last few weeks, Paul’s luck has turned around. However, despite being active on social media throughout all the drama (and after), it appears that now she is officially taking a step back.

Fans realized on Thursday, April 23, that Paul deactivated her Instagram and TikTok accounts.

A source close to Paul told PEOPLE that her decision to deactivate her accounts is not permanent.

“Taylor is taking a breather,” the insider told the outlet. “It’s been a lot the last couple months to consume and [she] will be back shortly to continue sharing her story. She’ll decide when the time is right to return to filming on ‘Secret Lives.’”

Text Messages Revealed Mortensen Asked Paul For Sex After Physical Altercation Left Her Bloodied

In text messages obtained by TMZ on April 16, Mortensen asked Paul if she wanted to have sex with him after the two were involved in a physical altercation, a request which she firmly declined.

“You don’t wanna f-ck?,” Mortensen texted Paul on February 22. She responded with a clown emoji and replied “F-ck? My nose won’t stop sushing blood. The f-ck is wrong with you.”

Mortensen then responded to her rejection saying that she previously mentioned sex in a prior phone call. However, she corrected his recollection of events, “I said talk the f-ck.” 

Mortensen replied with a series of angry texts, culminating with him writing to Paul, “GOODBYE. F-ck your abuse,” to which she replied “F-ck YOURS.” Mortensen then added, “See ya in court.”

The ‘Mormon Wives’ Star Was Granted A Temporary Restraining Order

On April 8, Paul was granted a temporary restraining order against ex Mortensen, alleging that he was physically abusive toward her, which is the same claim he made when filing an identical protective order against her that was also granted by a judge.

According to the court documents, Mortensen is not allowed within 100 yards of Paul until their next court hearing later this month.

The documents also reveal that Mortensen cannot email, text, call, or otherwise communicate with Paul. During the upcoming court hearing, the court will determine if a permanent restraining order should be put in effect against either of them.

Production Welcomes Paul Back To The Show When She Feels Ready

Per The Hollywood Reporter, the “Mormon Wives” production team is letting Paul take the lead on when (and in what capacity) she wants to return to the show.

An inside source close to her also revealed to the outlet that production continues to remain supportive of Paul, and is ready to film with her at her own pace “if and when she is ready.” 

Paul previously shut down claims from PEOPLE that the show would resume production without her, writing in the Instagram comments of the post, “Interesting, that’s not the call I got.”

By Robert Scucci
| Published 28 seconds ago

Part of me wonders how tremendous a short film 984: Prisoner of the Future could have been if it had a production budget that didn’t feel nonexistent. It falls into the same wheelhouse as The Twilight Zone, The X-Files, and 1984 in its breakdown of government overreach, conspiracy theories, and how easy it is to forget what it means to be human when the powers that be believe they’re above the law. Originally meant to be a TV pilot, 984: Prisoner of the Future is instead a one-off effort from director Tibor Takacs that tells a complete story, as disjointed as it may be.

Despite its poor production value, 984: Prisoner of the Future is interesting enough to keep you watching, but it will also make you wish it actually was a 30-minute television pilot because, as a feature, the longer it runs, the more it falls apart. If you can take a step back and imagine what could have been, the concept is chilling, the acting is what I’d call “adequate” for the kind of project it is, and the story mostly lands even when the execution struggles.

Lock ‘Em Up And Throw Away The Key! 

984: Prisoner of the Future is set in the not-so-distant future from when it was filmed in 1978. We’re introduced to a convict named Tom Weston (Stephen Markle), imprisoned by a totalitarian regime known as The Movement. He’s accused of making a number of business deals before his incarceration that were meant to disrupt the oppressive regime. Tom maintains his innocence, even after enduring years of torture from Dr. Fontaine (Andrew Foot), one of the higher-ups working for The Movement.

The Warden (Don Francks) has reason to believe that Tom is, in fact, innocent, but continues following orders and abusing him anyway. Through flashback sequences Tom experiences while being drugged and tortured, we learn what he was up to before being locked up. Even then, it’s still unclear whether he technically did anything wrong, or if The Movement’s version of events is exaggerated so they can maintain total control over anybody who dares speak out against them.

Dr. Fontaine asserts that if Tom just admits his wrongdoing, he can be forgiven, reprogrammed, and reassimilated into the new world order. Tom, even after 10 years of continuous torture and manipulation under horrific living conditions, refuses to admit fault. But as the years march on, he begins to lose his grip on reality, finding it difficult to discern between real life and what he’s hallucinating.

Hoping one day to breach the prison walls and start a new life, Tom remains optimistic despite his conditions. But a man can only take so much before he completely breaks, becoming just another statistic in a post-apocalyptic society where humanity’s well-being is an afterthought.

Aggressively Low Budget, But Not Without Potential

The best way I can describe the production values of 984: Prisoner of the Future is by comparing it to a DIY musician’s demo tape. The artistic direction and intention are clear, but there simply aren’t enough resources to pull it off. There are recurring motifs, but the demo itself feels both bloated and incomplete. Had the screenplay been tightened up and trimmed of its excess, I could see this working as a one-off X-Files or Twilight Zone episode. But at 76 minutes, it plays like a TV special trying to stretch into something it isn’t.

Don’t get me wrong, 984: Prisoner of the Future is a solid watch for anybody who’s into dystopian sci-fi, but you need to go in knowing it’s rough around the edges. If you can see through the production limitations, there’s a lot of promise behind the grit. The setting and overall vibe are perfect for hard lines like, “Those who don’t believe will eventually perish from their own horrific visions,” but moments like that are few and far between. I’d argue that if somebody dumped this into editing software and cut it down to a tight half-hour, it would be much better received because every standout moment would actually have room to hit.

984: Prisoner of the Future SCORE

As of this writing, 984: Prisoner of the Future is streaming for free on Tubi.

Sydney Sweeney, in her regular fashion, is leaving the “Euphoria” noise in the dust as the numbers rise.

The actress’ return to the screen as Cassie Howard on the famous HBO series has been welcomed with sky-high ratings despite huge backlash against her character’s career path in the series third season.

Sydney Sweeney’s performance on the second season of the critically acclaimed show landed her a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series in 2022.

The actress is earning her bragging rights as a serious contender for one of Hollywood’s best talents following the impressive ratings that have followed the second episode of the HBO show. The second episode has hit 5 million viewers across HBO and HBO Max in its first three days, tallying with the number of viewership recorded for the premiere episode. Talk about consistency! 

According to Warner Bros. Discovery, the second episode in the United States alone performed better than the second episode of the previous season by nearly 35%. The second episode of season 2 peaked at 6.4 million viewers in three days, and it made stars like Sweeney, Jacob Elordi, Alexa Damie, Maude Apatow, Hunter Schafer, and Zendaya bigger household names.

The first episode of the current season has now taken a quantum leap from its first three-day viewership of 8.5 million to over 12.3 million viewers in the U.S. Variety reported that the global total has also exceeded 20 million viewers, which represents a 68% jump on the global total recorded for the season 2 premiere within three days.

The Model’s Co-Star Criticized Her Character For Taking A Shocking Career Turn

Sweeney’s on-screen character, Cassie, was off to a very dramatic start on the third season of the show, and her co-star, Chloe Cherry, who plays Faye Valentine, had things to say about the Cassie character development. As shared by The Blast, Cherry commented on Cassie becoming an OnlyFans content creator on the show, noting that it felt unbelievable that someone from a privileged background like Cassie would take that route.

Cassie was portrayed as someone from a relatively stable, suburban background on the show, with reasonable economic and social privilege compared to other characters on the show. Sweeney’s character has particularly pushed boundaries of explicit scenes on the show even further this season.

Cherry discussed that the economy is horrible, and it has pushed people into the adult content creation industry in real life. While she has had a bit of experience in the adult film industry before transitioning to mainstream acting, Cherry still believes Cassie’s privileged background sharply contrasted the path she chose in the series.

Sydney Sweeney’s Suggestive Scenes On ‘Euphoria’ Had Megyn Kelly Livid

Female characters on the show’s third season have kept the trend table working all week due to their highly sexualized content, especially a scene where Cassie unleashed an infantile roleplay move. The scene became one of the most talked about for the season, drawing commentaries from media personality Kelly.

Kelly described the scene as the character and creators of the show giving infancy an unnecessary undertone, stating, “She’s dressed as a baby… she’s sucking on a binkie… and her legs are completely spread. This is sexualizing infancy.” Last year, the actress was in the news for posing with guests at her mother’s birthday party while wearing themed hats and shirts aligning with a certain political party.

She broke her silence on the backlash, insisting that she had no control over what people would wear to the party and how people online would process it. She urged people online to stop attaching unnecessary political undertones to such a milestone ceremony, insisting that their assumptions do not directly translate to the intention of attendees at the event.

The 28-Year-Old Raved About The Extent Of Her Character’s Desperation On The Show

The media personality was beyond excited to show what stuff she was made of on the show’s third season before it was released. As shared by The Blast, she described her character as a crazy type who would go to the ends of the earth to be famous this season, while making questionable decisions and interesting choices.

Sweeney has previously addressed the issue of appearing in raunchy scenes on the series, stressing that she does not have any problems playing such roles, as it is also an outlet for her to condemn the stigma against actresses who do nude scenes. “Euphoria” has also been poorly reviewed by critics like the New York Post, who claimed the storyline was poorly written, sacrificing depth for mundane, absurd scenes.

It also emerged as the lowest-rated season of the series on Rotten Tomatoes, sitting at 40%, which is about half the rating of seasons one and two. Another critic from IndieWire, Ben Travers, declared that “Euphoria” in its final season has grown old instead of growing up because characters have refused to change, nor have they been motivated to influence their viewers to also change.

Sydney Sweeney Did Not Get A Win For ‘Devil Wears Prada 2’

The media personality was reportedly a part of the film set to hit the theatres on May 1, 2026, featuring alongside Emily Blunt at her Dior office as Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, and Stanley Tucci arrive to ask for her help.

Unfortunately, Sweeney could not appear as herself in the three-minute-long scene because it was removed. An insider claimed that the producers of the show felt her cameo did not work structurally with the rest of the show, leading to a creative decision to leave her out of the show.

Sam Levinson explained his reason for the trajectory of Cassie’s character, explaining that the entire idea was to find another layer of absurdity that the show is able to tie into so that viewers are not too inside a make-believe world.

Will the backlash ease up for Sydney Sweeney and “Euphoria” soon?

Nearly a year and a half has already passed since the dust settled on the second and final season of Netflix‘s smash-hit League of Legends series, Arcane, and since its inception, it still stands as a bit of a rarity. The series was created by Christian Linke and Alex Yee, two members of the Riot Games team who originated the characters of Vi (Hailee Steinfeld) and Jinx (Ella Purnell) well before the possibility of a show was on the table. Despite a lack of experience in constructing television animation, they managed to produce an Emmy and Annie-winning juggernaut viewed as one of the greatest video game adaptations ever made, with jaw-dropping visuals by Studio Fortiche. As actors J.B. Blanc and Jason Spisak can attest, the lengthy process of getting there was far from typical for a project of its kind.

The voices of Vander/Warwick and Silco attended Calgary Expo this weekend for a panel moderated by Collider’s Maggie Lovitt that dug deep into all things Arcane. At one moment, they were asked about how the writing from Linke, Yee, Amanda Overton, and the team, combined with the overall high production value, pushed them to new heights in the booth. The biggest factor in the series’ favor, Spisak said, was time. The demands of streaming tend to be at odds with the painstaking nature of animation, especially in the case of a show like Arcane with its boundary-pushing work, but that simply wasn’t a worry for the production, which was given the room to perfect everything down to individual scenes with everyone involved in the process.

“Simply the amount of time that they had was a luxury. Typically in animation, it’s a bit more… it’s not a factory, but they’re pressed for time, so you don’t have the diligence to really, truly explore a scene or even revisit it at times if they thought that you did something that didn’t quite work with what this person did, and they bring it back, and they ask you to do it again. One of the biggest gifts we got on the show was just the luxury of taking our time. We got a chance to do a scene multiple times in multiple ways and really feel it out. And then Christian or Alex, or David [Dunne], would ask us, ‘What do you think about that?’”

‘Arcane’ Was the Result of Nearly a Decade of Work

Linke’s idea for Arcane stems back to 2015 and Riot’s general expansion of the League of Legends brand beyond the world-famous MOBA. For much of the time since then, Blanc and Spisak have been involved, with the former recalling getting to work on it roughly “nine years ago. Ten years ago, we first recorded.” Back then, the version of the show that Linke and Yee were making was a far cry from the final fateful conflict between sisters and cities that the show ultimately presented. The pilot alone evolved to an unprecedented degree for a typical television show. “There were 60 drafts of the pilot,” Spisak chimed in. “That’s unheard of!”

It wasn’t just drafts that got tossed in the bin, either. “They made a whole pilot, and scrapped it!” Blanc revealed. Alas, he couldn’t share many details from what that first opening looked like, though not because he’s required to keep quiet. “I wouldn’t remember because I’m old and stupid.” Spisak, for his part, wasn’t even present at the time. “No, because I wasn’t in here for the pilot. There was a pilot before the pilot I was in, so I was in the second one.”

The mere existence of another first episode, aside from what viewers see with Powder and Vi being taken in by Vander after their parents’ death and featuring material that didn’t make it to the screen at all, is a testament to how committed to perfection everyone involved in Arcane was, from the creators to Netflix, Riot Games, and Fortiche. Shows don’t typically throw away pilots and decide to make a new one that often, especially not in the case of an already wildly expensive project like this. Just so you know, this is unheard of,” Blanc asserted. “No one has that much money and time, right?” Spisak joked that it was all thanks to Riot’s oodles of cash from cosmetics and other little purchases around League. “We thank you for all your microtransactions!”

The Cast and Structure of ‘Arcane’ Were Ever-Evolving Early On

Image via Netflix

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Both Spisak and Blanc are among the earliest surviving cast members to make it into the final cut of Arcane, led by Steinfeld and Purnell with Katie Leung, Mick Wingert, Kevin Alejandro, Toks Olagundoye, Harry Lloyd, and more. “They changed the cast a number of times, and Jason and I seemed to keep surviving that, and we’d be quite uncomfortable, like, ‘You know that thing we did? Is that still a thing?’” Blanc recalled ‘”Nope, I haven’t heard I’m off the show, have you?”‘ his co-star added, remembering the long waits between updates. If the constant changes weren’t unusual enough, the lack of communication as the gears turned behind the scenes was especially confusing for the veteran voice actors. Blanc spoke to how long of a wait there was after doing the pilot, adding, “We recorded that, then didn’t record anything for a year and a half. So you kind of go, ‘That doesn’t feel like I have a job anymore.’”

There was an extreme level of secrecy to the whole affair, Spisak recalled. “It’s not like they were like, ‘Oh, don’t worry, you’re still in the show. You would never get that from them. No communication at all.” Unlike Blanc, his experience doesn’t even come from the very beginning of Arcane‘s inception. Before he was cast as the Zaunite crime lord Silco, the actor known for everything from Young Justice to Piranha 3D, and Fallout: New Vegas, had no idea who was originally tapped for his role, or if Silco, as we know him, even existed in his current state back then. “I don’t know the answer to that. I think there might have been another actor playing him.”

When he was brought on board, Spisak recalled the second pilot looking more familiar to what viewers eventually saw, albeit in a different order. The version he saw featured the same gorgeous animation, though it also contained a memorable speech from Silco that wouldn’t be heard until Episode 3. In fact, the entire episode would be folded back into the first batch release that viewers received back in November 2021.

“By the second round of the pilot, the opening of the entire pilot was actually the monologue at the beginning of episode three. So they made a pilot, and then chopped it into the first three episodes. So a whole pilot opened with ‘Do you ever wonder what it’s like to drown? It’s the story of opposites.’ And I mean, when they played that pilot on the screen, it was just mind-blowingly beautiful. It was the most beautiful piece of animation I’d ever seen. And then we heard nothing. We watched the pilot on-screen, then heard nothing for like a year.”

‘Arcane’s Unique Creative Duo Made for an Unusual Production

Image via Netflix

Perhaps the most unusual part of the project was Linke and Yee themselves. It’s not entirely unheard of for a video game creator to helm its adaptation — see Naughty Dog’s Neil Druckmann with The Last of Us. However, the pair, despite being woven into the very fabric of who Vi and Jinx are, did not have the resumes of creators ready to make the jump into constructing an entire television show. Now the head of Riot’s animation department, Linke is a company lifer, starting as just a customer service agent in its early days before eventually being tasked with building up the music division. He and Yee are responsible for the original lyrical song for Vi in-game, as well as the music video for Jinx’s track, “Get Jinxed.”

Yet, as their career arc showed, they’ve always been capable of defying expectations, even before delivering their magnum opus. Their lack of experience in the job certainly threw Blanc, whose voice-acting career stems back to classic anime like the original Hellsing and games like Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, for a loop. Nonetheless, he was fascinated in a completely new way by what Linke and Yee were creating, even if they inevitably had a lot of learning to do and a few stumbles along the way.

“The truth is that you’ve got two people from the music department to write the angles, who’re starting to conceive and build an animated series, which has nothing to do with video games. It’s just a completely different beast. So, very early on, it was like, these guys really don’t know what they’re doing. We worked in animation for years, they didn’t know, but they were on to something. I didn’t know what it was, I couldn’t quantify it, I couldn’t say, ‘Oh, this is going to be brilliant,’ no. There was just something that was like a little thread that you start pulling on.”

Spisak was hit with a very similar feeling and chalked it up to the sheer determination of the duo. “You felt as though they wouldn’t give up until it was right. That was it. Even though they were fumbling around it a bit — they didn’t really have an animation pipeline; they had never made an animated series — you felt it when you were in the room with them.” They approached the process of creating an animated show unlike anything he had experienced. Perhaps the greatest example was when Spisak was in the booth as Silco, and both Linke and Yee were there to hear him give his sinister delivery up close and personal to ensure he infused it all with the exact feeling they wanted from the purveyor of Shimmer.

“When you go into a callback for a voiceover job. You’ve read at home, you’ve read the audition, whatever, you’ve listened to them. And they call you back in, you go to the studio, the creators and writers are there, and you’re typically on one side of the glass. There’s glass and the sound engineers and writers and everybody… you, as the voice actor, are inside the booth, on this side of the glass. We get ready to do the callback, and Christian and Alex, the creators of Arcane, walk up to the door of the booth, open it, and they come in and sit inside the booth with me. That is not how it is done. I don’t think I’ve ever had… because they wanted to see in my eyes, and they wanted to make sure they knew and understood. They’re like, ‘We want his voice to envelop you like smoke and convince you to do his bidding.’ That’s one of the things they said about Silco. And I’m like, ‘This is awesome.’ It’s so beautiful to have people who are creatively invested and dedicated to the point that they don’t want to be on the other side of the glass.”

Despite Its Evolution, the Vision for ‘Arcane’s Characters Remained

Image via Netflix

Linke and Yee’s creative dedication to finding the right people to bring to life Piltover and Zaun’s most important figures shows how serious they were about making Arcane as perfect as it could be and how clear a vision they had for each character. For Blanc, there were very few changes to how Vander was characterized from the first time he was introduced to Vi and Powder’s adoptive father. Moreover, as a League of Legends veteran, the team was ready and willing to let him aboard right off the bat. “The character was the same from the beginning for me,” he revealed. “I don’t think I auditioned. I have this long history with League of Legends. I play a character called Braum in League of Legends, and I thought, ‘They’re making an animated series based on League of Legends, this is going to be crazy!’

What did change, however, was his expectations for what a League series could be. The Rift is full of over 170 colorful champions that range from the imposing, like Vi or Warwick, to the zany, like the eccentric Yordle scientist Heimerdinger. Having voiced the jolly Braum, Blanc came in with an energy that, initially, did not fit the dramatic, tragic, prestige storytelling that would make Arcane a critical darling. Yet, once he was in the door and on the same page with what was required of him, it all clicked. “It was immediate — and this is so rare, I can’t tell you how rare that happens — it was an immediate affinity for the character. I immediately got him, I immediately understood him, I immediately wanted to make him as fully developed as I could. And that just doesn’t happen. You’re always trying to fit around characters, and I just knew who he was.”

Again, that experience wasn’t unique to Blanc. “Yeah, same here,” Spisak added. “The first moment I had Silco in front of me, that’s fairly what you see.” His Episode 3 monologue, which he also read for his audition, helped him buy into the character immediately, and the complicated journey he would go on, from his reign over Zaun to his relationship with Powder/Jinx, which, despite his manipulation, was founded on genuine care.

“The moment I read that, that was the audition material. The audition material was the monologue from the beginning of Episode 3, which was the beginning of the pilot at the time. ‘Ever wondered what it’s like to drown?’ And the words in that monologue are so specific, and they say so much about who Silco is, and the moment I read it, I just connected with it. And that is quite rare. Sometimes you have to dig, you have to bring your intuition in some manner.”

Both actors also agreed that their respective parts were practically made for them, something Blanc insinuates Linke and Yee might’ve recognized themselves. “That’s also very clever of people to find the right role at the right time, right when you’re ready to play it. I had just been through a horrible divorce, I was fighting for custody, and all of that stuff is like, ‘Whoa, life really doesn’t take…’” Before he could finish, Spisak chimed in, adding, “Yeah, it arrived into my life at the right time as well. So, I don’t want to say we were meant to play these roles, but it’s kind of hard to argue any other way.” That said, Blanc did jokingly mention that Spisak wasn’t there for the first pilot, so perhaps there was someone else who would’ve been perfect for the part. “Yeah, that’s true. But anyone else who can say that isn’t here!”

Spisak also mentioned that he didn’t know exactly what Silco would look like when he began filming, only that he had his scar and other key physical elements. It was only later — after they recorded him in the booth and sent that footage away to the animators — that he would learn what Silco’s final appearance would be: his own face. “That is the biggest compliment that could ever be made. To have your visage immortalized by the most talented artists on the planet.”

Arcane is now streaming on Netflix. Stay tuned here at Collider for more coverage from Calgary Expo throughout the rest of the weekend.

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Release Date

2021 – 2024

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Network

Netflix

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Showrunner

Christian Linke

Directors

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Barth Maunoury, Marietta Ren, Christelle Abgrall

Writers

Amanda Overton, Nick Luddington, Mollie Bickley St. John, Ben St. John, Giovanna Sarquis, Henry G.M. Jones

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Franchise(s)

League of Legends

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Priscilla Delgado’s character, Angel, floated into Euphoria during season 3 and quickly became a fan-favorite after making her debut in episode 2 titled “America My Dream.”

Delgado captivated viewers while portraying Angel, a chaotic yet wildly intriguing stripper, who works at the Silver Slippers strip club run by shady owner Alamo (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje).

Angel nearly stole the show from the moment she crossed paths with Rue (Zendaya) after the latter got a job with Alamo and escaped the clutches of drug dealer Laurie (Martha Kelly) — at least for now.

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Related: ‘Euphoria’ Cast: See the HBO Show’s Stars Then and Now

Euphoria fans have watched the cast change on and off screen since the series first debuted. Based on the Israeli series of the same name, Euphoria follows troubled high school student Rue (Zendaya) as she struggled to remain sober after rehab. The series also explores topics including mental illness, toxic relationships, sexuality and more. After […]

Things went awry for Angel after Rue finally revealed the tragic fate of her missing best friend and fellow dancer, Tish, admitting in a private bathroom exchange that she overdosed from fentanyl-laced drugs.

As a result of her overwhelming grief, Angel becomes reckless and Alamo sends her off to Hope Springs rehab. Rue drove Angel to the rehab establishment that Alamo paid for but fans couldn’t help but notice how sketchy the place was, considering they didn’t need paperwork and it was located in the middle of nowhere, leading to many theories about what happened to Angel.

Some Fans Believe Angel Is Dead After Her ‘Euphoria’ Debut

“I couldn’t shake the feeling that I had made a deal with the devil. But at least I was free,” Rue said during episode 2, which aired on April 19, 2026.

There are theories that Rue’s line was a hint about what could be in store for Angel, especially considering the biblical wordplay.

Many fans speculate that Alamo will get rid of Angel since she was costing him money during her downward spiral by not keeping the customers happy. Some viewers believe she’ll be a “loose end” to Alamo since she’s not afraid to speak her mind.

Furthermore, a vast amount of viewers sensed that Alamo’s rehab center choice seemed to be a cover for something sinister, especially considering the woman at the front desk. Cameras focused on her dirty nails as she prioritized playing on her phone instead of welcoming Angel to the facility. The halls were also dimly lit, giving off a dark and dreary vibe.

“Please say that Angel is alive. Love that diva #Euphoria #EuphoriaS3,” a fan posted on X.

Some Fans Believe Angel’s Organs Will Be Harvested or That She’ll Be Trafficked

Rumors are swirling that Alamo will be profiting off Angel’s death by harvesting her organs or sex-trafficking her due to the ambulance seen rolling up after her arrival. Adding to the suspense was a glimpse of someone across the street watching from afar.

Some fans are hopeful she will be spared as Alamo may see value in keeping her around.

Related: Why Is Musician Labrinth Slamming ‘Euphoria’ Amid Season 3? Drama Explained

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Musician Labrinth has been slamming Euphoria amid its third season — but what led to the offscreen drama? Since Euphoria debuted on HBO in 2019, Labrinth has become synonymous with the hit series. The music producer, whose real name is Timothy Lee McKenzie, collaborated with creator Sam Levinson and formed a friendship with star Zendaya […]

“Angel is beyond beautiful. Beauty is money,” one Redditor wrote. “So I could see that saving her and her rehab ‘is real’ but it’s just letting her detox on a dirty shower floor and doing the bare minimum for her so she sees what Alamo can do for her if she doesn’t ‘act right.’”

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Some Fans Hope That Rue Will Come to Save the Day

Rue “promised” Angel that she would pick her up when her stint in rehab was complete. Although she would likely fear getting on Alamo’s bad side, there are certainly indications that Rue won’t let Angel go unattended, especially after their steamy van hookup and what happened to Tish.

“Rue yk what leave ur ass in that rehab too girl or save my girl angel I better see her on my screen again #Euphoria,” one fan vented in a post on X.

New episodes of Euphoria air Sunday nights on HBO Max at 9 p.m. ET.

Sister Wives star Kody Brown might be gone from Janelle Brown‘s life, but her new post reveals that he’s not easily forgotten while in her new Taeda Farms home. Then Janelle went even further by sharing what these memories made her realize about herself.

Sister Wives: Kody Brown Memories Unwrapped

After all the excitment of building her new home, Janelle Brown is now in the decorating stage. Sister Wives fans express how excited they are for Janelle’s new beginning after leaving Kody Brown.

In a recent post Janelle shared what she is planning to hang on her walls. Some of these things she hasn’t seen since she packed them away and moved into the RV a few years back.

Her brand new sprawling home has lots of walls to decorate, and Janelle has plenty of things to do so. But as she started to unwrap her wall-worthy art, it dawned on her that many of these paintings and prints came to her as a gift from Kody Brown through the years.

Her mood was upbeat when first starting to talk about decorating her new home. But then a bit of a melancholy tone seemed to seep into her voice as she shared the pieces of art on her video post.

Janelle Brown’s Bitter-Sweet Epiphany

Sister Wives fans learned something new about Janelle while watching her short post. At the same time Janelle learned something new about herself. She hadn’t noticed this before, but she has a theme going with her art.

And drumroll, please… that theme is “cowboys.” Much of the artwork Janelle has to hang upon her walls contains images of cowboys on and off their horses.

Hmmm… maybe that is Janelle’s type of guy? It seemed to surprise her once she realized she had a lot of cowboy images in her decor.

Sister Wives: Who Created the Theme – Janelle or Kody?

Janelle divulged to her Sister Wives fans that many of these pieces of artwork came from Kody Brown. They were presents he gave her for her birthday and other occasions through the three decades they were together.

So, because Kody gifted various cowboy artwork to Janelle, fans wonder if this was her theme or one that Kody created for her.

Janelle shared that she loved her cowboy paintings and prints. So, whether or not Kody gave her a head start in this theme doesn’t seem to matter if she loves them.

The fact that she plans to display them on the walls of her new house seems to speak to her love of the cowboy theme. Fans joke that this could be the precursor to Janelle’s next relationship.

But the big question from the Sister Wives fans today is… Where is Janelle Brown’s cowboy boot lamp going to go in her new Taeda Farms home?

Head back to Soap Dirt for the latest buzz on Sister Wives.

2026 is only four months old, but it’s safe to say that Wuthering Heights, Emerald Fennell‘s risque adaptation of Emily Brontë’s beloved 1847 novel, is the year’s most controversial movie. (Sorry, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.)

With sex scenes not included in the novel, and numerous suggestive shots of ripe, juicy fruits standing in for assorted body parts, the overwrought romantic drama struck a chord with viewers, propelling it to an impressive $241 million worldwide box office gross.

Not everyone fell in love with Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi‘s torrid romance, but if you haven’t seen it yet, you’ll soon get a chance to decide if it was worth all the social media flame wars and hand-wringing op-ed pieces.

Wuthering Heights is about to debut on streaming, and Watch With Us has all the details you need to know.

Related: Jacob Elordi, Margot Robbie’s ‘Wuthering Heights’ Trailer Gets Mixed Reaction

Jacob Elordi and Margot Robbie’s undeniable sexual tension explodes in an official trailer and a brand new poster for Wuthering Heights. The duo star in Saltburn writer-director Emerald Fennell’s adaptation of the 1847 romance novel by Emily Brontë as one of the most beloved couples in literary history — Catherine Earnshaw and the orphan heartthrob […]

When Can I Stream ‘Wuthering Heights’?

You won’t have to wait too long to see two of Australia’s best actors fall in love with each other in late 18th-century England. Wuthering Heights is slated to debut on May 1.

What Streaming Platform Is ‘Wuthering Heights’ On?

Because it was released by Warner Bros., Wuthering Heights will debut first on HBO Max. In the distant future, it could become available on rival streamers like Prime Video or Netflix pending studio-to-studio licensing deals, but you can bet HBO Max will be the movie’s streaming home for 2026 and beyond.

What Is ‘Wuthering Heights’ About?

Wait, you didn’t read Wuthering Heights in high school? Well, lucky you. Here’s how WB describes the 2026 version:

“A bold and original interpretation of one of the greatest love stories of all time, Emerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights stars Margot Robbie as Catherine ‘Cathy’ Earnshaw and Jacob Elordi as Heathcliff, whose forbidden passion for one another turns from romantic to intoxicating in an epic tale of lust, love and madness.”

Why is their love forbidden? Well, Heathcliffe starts out poor, and Cathy is loaded. Also, they’re kinda brother and sister? They aren’t related by blood, but they do grow up together, which makes their subsequent romances feel a little … odd.

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Is ‘Wuthering Heights’ Worth Seeing?

Yes. I’m not going to lie to you — I didn’t think it was all that successful. Robbie is a little too old and vibrant to play Cathy, the epitome of the young heroine in Gothic literature. (There’s a reason why Kate Bush‘s song “Wuthering Heights” was such a hit — you believe the brunette Bush was singing as Cathy, pining for her Heathcliffe.) Elordi fares better, but his casting is problematic, too.

Related: Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi’s Chemistry Sizzles in ‘Wuthering Heights’

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Emerald Fennell’s “Wuthering Heights” begins with a sexually charged public hanging. Needless to say, it’s obvious from the opening seconds anyone who missed the memo from the horny trailer will quickly understand that this version of the English classic will take some liberties. That’s what those quotes around the title are for, after all. Book […]

Still, the movie looks great, and it’s never boring. It’s always throwing wild ideas at the screen, even if most of them don’t stick. The pop soundtrack by Charli XCX is killer as well, with the song “Chains of Love” becoming an anthem for all lovelorn souls around the world. If you’re looking for a bold adaptation that is both faithful to the source but updates it with a modern sensibility, check out Andrea Arnold‘s terrific 2011 adaptation on Tubi and YouTube.