Entertainment

King Charles, More Royals React to Prince Andrew’s Arrest and Epstein Ties

Published

4 hours ago

22 February 2026

Royal watchers learned in October 2025 that King Charles III stripped his younger brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor — formerly known as Prince Andrew — of his royal titles and evicted him from his lavish home.

The former prince’s spectacular fall from grace has been tied to his friendship with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Mountbatten-Windsor told BBC’s Newsnight in 2019 that he met Epstein through the disgraced financier’s girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell, though he denied any wrongdoing. (Epstein was convicted of procuring a child for prostitution and soliciting a prostitute in 2008 and was later arrested on federal sex trafficking charges weeks before his death by suicide in August 2019. Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking charges.)

In that same 2019 interview, Mountbatten-Windsor insisted he did not regret his friendship with Epstein despite the damage to his reputation.

“Now, [I] still [do] not [regret it] and the reason being is that the people that I met and the opportunities that I was given to learn either by him or because of him were actually very useful,” Mountbatten Windsor told Newsnight. “He himself not, as it were, as close as you might think, we weren’t that close. So therefore I mean, yes, I would go and stay in his house but that was because of his girlfriend, not because of him.”

The fallout from Mountbatten-Windsor’s 2019 interview led him to step back from his royal duties in November 2019, though he was eventually stripped of his titles by King Charles in October 2025 as continual revelations emerged. In February 2026, Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested by Thames Valley Police on his 66th birthday on suspicion of misconduct in public office, with King Charles later calling for a “full, fair and proper process by which this issue is investigated.”

Keep scrolling for more about the way Charles and other royals reacted to Mountbatten-Windsor’s friendship with Epstein.

How Is Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor Connected to Jeffrey Epstein?

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor told BBC Newsnight host Emily Maitlis in a 2019 interview that he met Jeffrey Epstein through the convicted sex offender’s former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell. (Ghislaine’s father, Robert Maxwell, was part of the media establishment in the U.K. as owner of the Daily Mirror and The London Evening News prior to his death at age 68 in 1991.)

While Mountbatten-Windsor never faced criminal charges over his alleged involvement with Epstein, he was sued for sexual assault and intentional infliction of emotional distress by Virginia Giuffre in 2021. Giuffre alleged that Epstein and Maxwell trafficked her to Mountbatten-Windsor following a night at Tramp nightclub in London in 2001.

“I have no recollection of ever meeting this lady, none whatsoever,” Mountbatten-Windsor insisted to Newsnight.

However, Mountbatten-Windsor reached a private settlement with Giuffre in 2022 after she sued him for sexual assault and battery. (He did not admit any fault as part of the settlement agreement though he agreed to make a substantial donation to Speak Out, Act, Reclaim, a charity supporting sex trafficking victims.)

Mountbatten-Windsor claimed that he visited Epstein at his New York penthouse in December 2010 to formally end their friendship. At the time, Epstein had recently completed his 18-month prison sentence for procuring a child for prostitution and soliciting a prostitute.

“I have always … ever since this has happened and since this has become, as it were, public knowledge that I was there, I’ve questioned myself as to why did I go and what was I doing and was it the right thing to do?” Mountbatten-Windsor told Newsnight. “Now, I went there with the sole purpose of saying to him that because he had been convicted, it was inappropriate for us to be seen together.”

GettyImages-477232104 How King Charles III and Royals Reacted to Prince Andrew Ties to Epstein — Andrew and King Charles III in 2015 Peter Nicholls – WPA Pool /Getty Images

Mountbatten-Windsor admitted that he’d had “a number of people counsel” him over whether it was appropriate to visit Epstein’s home in the wake of his conviction.

“I took the judgement call that, because this was serious, and I felt that doing it over the telephone was the chicken’s way of doing it. I had to go and see him and talk to him,” he said.

He added, “I said to [Epstein] … ‘Look, because of what has happened, I don’t think it is appropriate that we should remain in contact,’ and by mutual agreement during that walk in the park we decided that we would part company and I left, I think it was the next day. To this day, I never had any contact with him from that day forward.”

His friendship with Epstein faced a new level of scrutiny when a paparazzi photo from Mountbatten-Windsor and Epstein’s Central Park conversation was published by the New York Post in 2011. As a result of the scandal, Buckingham Palace announced in July 2011 that Mountbatten-Windsor had resigned as a U.K. trade envoy.

Any attempt by Mountbatten-Windsor to put the scandal behind him with his 2019 Newsnight interview failed. The TV special only intensified coverage of the scandal, leading to Mountbatten-Windsor formally stepping back from his royal duties in November 2019.

“It has become clear to me over the last few days that the circumstance relating to my former association with Jeffrey Epstein has become a major disruption to my family’s work and the valuable work going on in the many organizations and charities that I am proud to support,” he said. “Therefore, I have asked Her Majesty if I may step back from public duties for the foreseeable future, and she has given her permission.”

While Mountbatten-Windsor was slowly reintegrated into royal functions a few years later, a new round of allegations erupted with the publication of Andrew Lownie’s tell-all 2025 book Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York.

Multiple U.K. outlets published private emails that Mountbatten-Windsor allegedly sent to Epstein in 2011, which contradicted his statement that he’d cut off communication with the financier after visiting his New York City home in December 2010. In one purported email, the prince allegedly wrote to Epstein that they were “in this together and will have to rise above it.”

Mountbatten-Windsor said in October 2025 that he would stop using his royal title as the Duke of York.

“In discussion with The King, and my immediate and wider family, we have concluded the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family,” Mountbatten-Windsor said in a statement to Us on October 17, 2025. “I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first. I stand by my decision five years ago to stand back from public life.”

He continued, “With His Majesty’s agreement, we feel I must now go a step further. I will therefore no longer use my title or the honors which have been conferred upon me. As I have said previously, I vigorously deny the accusations against me.”

Once again, his pledge did little to quiet the scandal, so Buckingham Palace confirmed days later that King Charles III planned to strip his brother of his royal titles and force him to move out of his home at Royal Lodge, which Mountbatten-Windsor acquired in 2003 as part of a “peppercorn lease.”

Later that year, Mountbatten-Windsor was accused of asking his taxpayer-funded security detail to investigate Giuffre prior to their 2022 legal settlement. The Metropolitan Police announced in December 2025 that it would “take no further action” against Mountbatten-Windsor over the historic accusation.

“The Met remains committed to thoroughly assessing any new information that could assist in this matter,” a police spokesperson said.”To date, we have not received any additional evidence that would support reopening the investigation. In the absence of any further information, we will be taking no further action.”

There were new disclosures in January 2026 as part of three million documents released by the Justice Department in compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which included a photo obtained from the Epstein estate of Mountbatten-Windsor kneeling on all fours over an unknown woman. (The Justice Department provided no context on where or when the photo was taken. The unidentified woman’s face was redacted to protect her privacy.)

Mountbatten-Windsor reportedly moved out of Royal Lodge in February 2026. He is residing in a temporary property on his brother Charles’ privately-owned Sandringham estate while his permanent home is undergoing renovations.

Thames Valley Police confirmed to Us on February 19, 2026, that its officers had “arrested a man in his sixties from Norfolk on suspicion of misconduct in public office.” Mountbatten-Windsor’s name was not mentioned in the police statement due to national guidance.

Mountbatten-Windsor stands accused of sharing confidential information with Epstein while acting as a U.K. trade envoy from 2001 to 2011. Per the Crown Protection Service, those found criminally liable of “serious wilful abuse or neglect of the power or responsibilities of the public office held” can face a maximum punishment of life imprisonment.

What Did Queen Elizabeth II Say About Prince Andrew’s Connection to Jeffrey Epstein?

The Telegraph reported that Queen Elizabeth II partially funded her son Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s $16 million settlement to dismiss his sexual assault accuser Virginia Giuffre’s lawsuit in 2022. The queen’s contribution reportedly came from her private Duchy of Lancaster estate so as not to draw criticism about public funds being used.

However, a spokesperson for Queen Elizabeth told People in February 2022 that Buckingham Palace “never commented on the financial aspects of the Duke’s private legal affairs and won’t be now.”

One month earlier, Buckingham Palace revealed that Queen Elizabeth was revoking Mountbatten-Windsor’s military titles. Her rebuke came after more than 150 British military veterans wrote an open letter to the monarch asking her to strip Mountbatten-Windsor of his service awards.

“With the queen’s approval and agreement, the Duke of York’s military affiliations and royal patronages have been returned to the queen,” the palace said in a statement in January 2022. “The Duke of York will continue not to undertake any public duties and is defending this case as a private citizen.”

Queen Elizabeth died at age 96 in September 2002.

How Did King Charles III React to Prince Andrew’s Connection to Jeffrey Epstein?

King Charles III initially held back from addressing the growing scandal around his brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, amid new allegations in Andrew Lownie’s bombshell 2025 book Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York.

While Mountbatten-Windsor agreed to stop using his royal title in October 2025, the king finally stepped in days later with his own royal decree. The king confirmed that he was essentially evicting Mountbatten-Windsor from his home at Royal Lodge, where the former prince lived since 2003.

“Prince Andrew will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor. His lease on Royal Lodge has, to date, provided him with legal protection to continue in residence,” reads a Buckingham Palace statement shared with Us Weekly on October 30, 2025. “Formal notice has now been served to surrender the lease and he will move to alternative private accommodation. These censures are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him.”

In a February 2026 statement, the palace noted, “The King has made clear, in words and through unprecedented actions, his profound concern at allegations which continue to come to light in respect of Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor’s conduct.”

The palace continued, “While the specific claims in question are for Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor to address, if we are approached by Thames Valley Police, we stand ready to support them as you would expect. As was previously stated, Their Majesties’ thoughts and sympathies have been, and remain with, the victims of any and all forms of abuse.”

Following Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest in February 2026, King Charles released a statement confirming that he’d “learned with the deepest concern the news about [the arrest of] Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and suspicion of misconduct in public office.”

“What now follows is the full, fair and proper process by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities. In this, as I have said before, they have our full and wholehearted support and cooperation,” King Charles said in a statement to Us. “Let me state clearly: the law must take its course. As this process continues, it would not be right for me to comment further on this matter. Meanwhile, my family and I will continue in our duty and service to you all.”

How Did Prince Edward React to Prince Andrew’s Connection to Jeffrey Epstein?

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s younger brother, Prince Edward, became the first member of the royal family to personally address the Epstein scandal in February 2025. During a Q&A for the World Governments Summit in Dubai, he was asked how he was “coping” with the continual controversy.

“I think it’s important always to remember the victims,” Prince Edward answered. “And who are the victims in all this? A lot of victims in all this.”

How Did Prince William and Kate Middleton React to Prince Andrew’s Connection to Jeffrey Epstein?

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s nephew Prince William and his wife, Princess Kate Middleton, released a statement as new documents from the Epstein files continued to go public.

“I can confirm The Prince and Princess have been deeply concerned by the continuing revelations,” a spokesperson for the Prince and Princess of Wales shared in February 2026. “Their thoughts remain focused on the victims.”

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Steve Irwin’s Family Honors Him on Would-Be 64th Birthday

Published

5 minutes ago

22 February 2026

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Steve Irwin
Happy birthday, We miss you

Published
February 22, 2026
8:33 AM PST

The Irwin family is keeping the Crocodile Hunter’s spirit alive.

Sunday marked what would have been Steve Irwin‘s 64th birthday, and his family made sure the day didn’t pass without heartfelt tributes honoring the late wildlife icon.

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Bindi Irwin shared touching throwback photos of her dad and her brother, Robert Irwin, during their childhood days at the Australia Zoo. In her message, Bindi reflected how much she misses her dad and revealed her 4-year-old daughter, Grace, sweetly calls Steve her “guardian angel” … a nod to the way his legacy continues through the next generation.

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Robert also posted a nostalgic snapshot from when he was a young boy sitting with his dad, writing Steve remains a guiding light and daily inspiration in his life. It’s no secret Robert has followed closely in his dad’s conservation footsteps … and moments like this show just how personal that mission still is.

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Terri Irwin joined in on the celebration as well, sharing her own loving words about her late husband and encouraging fans to continue supporting wildlife conservation in his honor.

Steve tragically died in 2006 at age 44 after a stingray struck him while filming in Australia.

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For 3 Seasons, This Unexpected ‘Friday the 13th’ Show Had Nothing To Do With the Classic Horror Franchise

Published

18 minutes ago

22 February 2026

NewsAdmin

The first time you see Friday the 13th in a TV listing in the late 1980s, your brain does what horror-conditioned brains do: It conjures a dock, a machete, and a hockey mask catching moonlight in a woodsy setting. Then Friday the 13th: The Series premieres on October 3, 1987, and takes a route that no one expected.

There, you won’t find Jason Voorhees, Camp Crystal Lake, or any attempt to recreate the films scene-for-scene. Instead, there’s an antiques shop called Curious Goods and a collection of everyday objects that behave like they’ve signed paperwork in blood. From 1996 to 1999, Poltergeist: The Legacy borrowed its name from the Poltergeist film franchise. However, that show dealt with a secret organization battling supernatural forces. In both cases, the title opens the door. What’s inside is something else entirely.

‘Friday the 13th: The Series’ Tricked Its Audience

On syndicated television, attention is currency. A title like Friday the 13th does half the marketing for you. The show was originally going to be called The 13th Hour, but the final name carried instant recognition. That awareness got viewers to sample the premiere, and what kept them engaged was the intriguing structure.

The premise is deceptively flexible: Lewis Vendredi makes a deal with the devil, the antiques in his shop become cursed, then he dies. His niece Micki (Louise Robey) and distant cousin Ryan (John D. LeMay) inherit the store, sell off the inventory, and only afterward learn what those items actually are. With the help of occult expert Jack Marshak (Chris Wiggins), they begin tracking the antiques down and locking them in the shop’s vault.

The Friday the 13th Franchise’s Silliest Kill Has a Terrifying Backstory

You won’t be making fun of it any longer.

Each episode revolves around a different object. A glove that heals by transferring illness in “Faith Healer,” a locket that resurrects the wearer at a cost in “Mesmer’s Bauble,” or other things like a music box, a camera, and a doll. The show becomes a rotating study of desire and consequence. The antiques don’t chase victims, but rather, they wait for someone to want something badly enough, putting them on the main characters’ radar.

Curious Goods Turns Human Weakness Into the Story Engine

friday-13th-series-louise-robey — Louise Robey as Micki on Friday the 13th: The Series.

What gives the series its staying power isn’t spectacle, but its repetition with variation. Every object offers a shortcut, the user takes it, and the metaphorical price escalates. Many times, the character possessing a cursed object must use it to kill people, often with Jack, Micki, and Ryan coming in to prevent further deaths, such as in “Crippled Inside,” or “Vanity’s Mirror.” Because the objects are ordinary, the horror slides into domestic spaces like kitchens, bedrooms, or even office desks. A cursed antique isn’t a masked killer lumbering through the woods.

Over 72 episodes across three seasons, the trio accumulates scars. Ryan changes the most, drifting from wide-eyed heir to someone who understands how heavy the work is. Micki sacrifices relationships to stay on the hunt. Jack carries a lifetime of occult knowledge like a man who knows every wrong door in town and keeps knocking anyway.

The format almost functions like an anthology, but the core cast anchors it. Their weariness builds as their vault to contain the cursed objects fills. The shop remains open, selling only non-cursed goods, like a storefront trying to look normal while containing something profoundly not.

There Is a Very Loose Connection to the Friday the 13th Franchise

Jason Voorhees dons a hockey mask and stalks his victim

Even though the show has no narrative ties to the films, the production lineage rings in the background. The series was created by Frank Mancuso Jr. and Larry B. Williams, and Mancuso had produced multiple Friday the 13th movies.

Then LeMay walked into Jason Goes to Hell: the Final Friday, and suddenly the separation felt thinner. Not because the stories connected, but because the same face carried history from one corner of horror into another. It played less like a crossover and more like an echo, proving that distant corners of horror culture can meet in subtle ways across time.

Behind the camera, other creative overlaps reinforced that sense of proximity. Writer/director Tom McLoughlin and music composer Fred Mollin worked on the films as well as the series. Even horror auteur David Cronenberg appeared in Jason X, and directed the episode, “Faith Healer.” Thus, the series carried the atmosphere of the film franchise, even while the stories walked a separate path.

‘Friday the 13th: The Series’ Is an Overlooked Horror Gem

The show ran from 1987 to 1990, producing 72 episodes. In the syndicated ecosystem of the late ’80s, that kind of episode count allowed a series to settle into living rooms and stay there. Viewers encountered it weekly — sometimes accidentally — and slowly recognized its rhythm.

As the seasons progressed, the storytelling deepened. Guest stars rotated in and out. Directors experimented with the formula. The cursed-object concept supported everything from body horror to psychological unraveling. Some episodes leaned pulpy while others lingered in moral dread, and that elasticity kept it from feeling stale. The series ended in 1990, and fans who hoped a final episode would bring Jason Vorhees and Camp Crystal Lake into the mix were sadly disappointed.

What remains is one of horror television’s strangest artifacts: a show that carried one of the most recognizable titles in slasher history and quietly built its own mythology instead. The real menace wasn’t a hulking figure in the woods, but the idea that evil could sit on a shelf, waiting for someone to believe they deserved more than fate had given them.

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Man Shot and Killed by Secret Service At President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago

Published

31 minutes ago

22 February 2026

NewsAdmin

President Donald Trump
Man Shot and Killed at Mar-a-Lago

Published
February 22, 2026
6:32 AM PST

A man in his early 20s was shot and killed by U.S. Secret Service agents after breaching the secure perimeter at President Donald Trump‘s Mar-a-Lago property early Sunday morning.

The U.S. Secret Service says the incident unfolded around 1:30 AM near the north gate of the Palm Beach estate.

According to officials, the man was observed near the property carrying what appeared to be a shotgun and a fuel can. Secret Service agents, along with a deputy from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, confronted him and shots were fired during the encounter.

The President was not at Mar-a-Lago when the incident occurred. He’s currently in Washington, D.C.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene. His identity is being withheld pending notification of next of kin.

Authorities tell us no Secret Service personnel or Palm Beach County deputies were injured.

The shooting is now under investigation by the FBI, the U.S. Secret Service and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office.

In accordance with agency policy, the Secret Service agents involved in the shooting have been placed on routine administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.

Story developing …

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Hailey Bieber Donates $20K to Eric Dane’s GoFundMe After ALS Death

Published

44 minutes ago

22 February 2026

NewsAdmin

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Hailey Bieber
$20K Donation To Eric Dane’s GoFundMe As Hollywood Rallies

Published
February 22, 2026
7:45 AM PST

Hollywood continues to rally around Eric Dane‘s family in a major way following his death and Hailey Bieber just made one of the biggest moves.

The model and beauty mogul quietly dropped $20K into a GoFundMe set up to support Dane’s loved ones following his death after a battle with ALS.

Hailey isn’t the only high-profile name stepping up financially. Gwyneth Paltrow‘s husband, Brad Falchuk, donated $10K. Madonna‘s longtime manager Guy Oseary contributed $5K, while Disney president Dana Walden also gave $5K. Producer Randall Emmett, known for his past relationship with Lala Kent, matched Falchuk with a $10K donation.

Dane died Thursday after fighting the progressive neurodegenerative disease. In a statement released by his family, they said he passed peacefully, surrounded by those closest to him, including his wife Rebecca Gayheart and two daughters, Billie and Georgia.

During his battle, Dane became vocal about ALS awareness and research, using his platform to shine a light on the disease and advocate for those facing similar diagnoses.

The wave of support underscores just how respected and connected Dane was in the industry. From A-list actors to top executives, friends and colleagues are putting real money behind their condolences — helping ensure his family feels the love in a tangible way.

Dane was 53.

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Margot Robbie’s 136-Minute Gothic Romance Tops Guy Ritchie’s Subversive Spy Thriller at the Box Office

Published

58 minutes ago

22 February 2026

NewsAdmin

Despite losing the domestic box office crown to the animated film GOAT, director Emerald Fennell‘s controversial Wuthering Heights continues to lead the race globally. Both movies opened on the same day last week, with Wuthering Heights emerging as the clear frontrunner over the weekend. However, GOAT appears to have stronger legs, which isn’t entirely unexpected considering its mass appeal. Meanwhile, Wuthering Heights‘ divisive reviews appear to have exhausted the initial surge of attention. Debate over the film’s interpretation of Emily Brontë‘s classic novel has propelled interest over the last few days, but there’s a flip-side to controversy: those who miss the moment likely won’t have any urgency to watch the movie any longer. That said, Wuthering Heights continues to be the number one English-language movie at the worldwide box office, which was dominated this weekend by a handful of Chinese New Year releases.

Produced on a reported budget of $80 million, Wuthering Heights stars Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi in the lead roles, alongside Shazad Latif and Alison Oliver. Robbie, who also serves as one of the film’s producers, is coming off three box-office underperformers whose poor hauls were offset by the global success of Barbie. Wuthering Heights managed to overtake all three underperformers — Babylon, Amsterdam, and A Big Bold Beautiful Journey — in its opening weekend alone. The film’s producers were offered a reported $150 million by Netflix, but they chose to go with Warner Bros.’ lower bid because they were determined to give the movie a theatrical release. W.B. is said to have spent $100 million on marketing the film, which means that it would need to gross around $350 million worldwide just to break even.

Here’s the Subversive Spy Movie Overtaken by ‘Wuthering Heights’

With more than $150 million at the worldwide box office so far, Wuthering Heights is the year’s highest-grossing English-language film, even though purists have criticized Fennell for misrepresenting the main themes of the source novel. It has now overtaken another period movie that subverted its genre: director Guy Ritchie‘s spy thriller The Man from U.N.C.L.E. Released in 2015, the movie was designed as a franchise-starter, but its underwhelming box office performance and mixed reviews put an end to those plans. Starring Henry Cavill, Armie Hammer, Alicia Vikander, and Hugh Grant, the movie ended its global run with $110 million against a reported budget of $84 million. It holds a 68% score on Rotten Tomatoes, while Wuthering Heights has dropped to 59% after 10 days of release. You can watch Fennell’s film in theaters. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.

Release Date: February 13, 2026
Runtime: 136 Minutes
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Director: Emerald Fennell
Writers: Emerald Fennell, Emily Brontë
Producers: Advertisement

Margot Robbie, Tom Ackerley, Emerald Fennell, Josey McNamara

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Shia LaBeouf Kisses Mystery Woman After Mia Goth Split

Published

1 hour ago

22 February 2026

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Shia LaBeouf
I Got A New Boo!!!
.. Packs on PDA at NOLA Bar

Published
February 22, 2026
7:00 AM PST

TMZ.com

Shia LaBeouf is back in the dating game … and he’s playing it out in public nearly a year after his split from Mia Goth.

TMZ has obtained video and photos of the actor getting handsy with a mystery woman during a flirty Saturday night out in New Orleans just days after his recent arrest.

Shia was at a bar just off Bourbon Street, where he spent more than 45 minutes locked in with a brunette who clearly had his full attention. The two stood hand in hand under the club lights on an upstairs balcony overlooking the bar.

At one point, she rested her hand on his chest while smiling up at him and Shia leaned down to whisper in her ear before sealing it with a kiss.

The pair shared multiple kisses, held hands tightly and stayed glued to each other throughout the night. In the footage, Shia appears relaxed and affectionate, pulling her close, murmuring in her ear and going back in for more.

Witnesses tell us he was drinking and seemed a little tipsy, but in great spirits.

The PDA packed night comes on the heels of a rough stretch for the actor. As we reported … Mia, who split from Shia nearly a year ago, wants him to seek rehab and manage his drinking.

We also broke the story … LaBeouf was arrested in New Orleans last week and charged with two counts of simple battery following an altercation with a group of men.

But Saturday night? All signs pointed to fun … not fallout.

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Netflix’s 10/10 Cyberpunk Sci-Fi Series Is a Forgotten Masterpiece

Published

1 hour ago

22 February 2026

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Joel Kinnaman in Altered Carbon behind glowing lights, looking worried.

Although it’s one of the most celebrated subgenres of science fiction, cyberpunk is criminally underrepresented in live-action TV. Fans have a hard time finding any long-form content to watch that’s not animated, and are generally still waiting for a series that does it justice. The thing is, there is already one that most people forget about: Altered Carbon. Starring Joel Kinnaman and Anthony Mackie as the same character, this groundbreaking Netflix series left an indelible mark on streaming over its two seasons and is proof of the unexplored potential of the genre on TV. There may be more cyberpunk stories on the way for different streaming platforms now, but it all began with mercenary Takeshi Kovacs being re-sleeved.

‘Altered Carbon’ Has One of the Most Creative Worlds in Science Fiction

When thinking about cyberpunk, it’s usually the neon haze, fast-paced action, and interconnectedness between humans and technology that come to mind. All this is present in Altered Carbon, of course, but it also highlights other essential tropes of the genre, like the ever-expanding social gap between the rich and the poor, and how death isn’t the end in a world where the line between the human soul and raw data is blurred. In the series, this is mostly represented by the cortical stack, a disk-like device that stores one’s consciousness and may be inserted into different vacant bodies called sleeves.

That’s where protagonist Takeshi Kovacs comes in. Once part of a rebel group called the Envoys, he is re-sleeved and brought back to life after 250 years at the request of a man named Laurens Bancroft (James Purefoy). Part of the wealthy elite known as Meths (like Methuselah, not that other thing), Bancroft recruits Kovacs to investigate his own murder, which didn’t fully succeed thanks to his remote satellite backup (something only made available to absurdly rich individuals). If Kovacs succeeds, he gets to live again in his new sleeve, which is one hell of a prospect after centuries of pretty much not existing.

The series is based on the Richard K. Morgan novel of the same name, posing many of the same philosophical questions. While Meths live in impossibly tall buildings high above the clouds and may be perpetually re-sleeved inside clone bodies, people like Kovacs deal with different sleeves (that is, if they even get new ones) and live precariously in the darkness of the surface. Because of all that, notions like identity and morality become fluid, since death isn’t necessarily final, and your current body may very well not be the only one you’ll ever have.

‘Altered Carbon’ Broke New Ground in Live-action Cyberpunk on Streaming

There’s a reason there aren’t many live-action cyberpunk series around: the genre usually thrives in animation, which favors the surreal aesthetic and fast-paced narratives. Replicating it in live-action is a huge financial risk, since production costs are often higher than the average series’ budget, thanks to setting and CGI, for example. As Joel Kinnaman revealed at the time, Altered Carbon itself had “a bigger budget than the first three seasons of Game of Thrones.” That’s a risk not many are willing to take, of course, an investment that’s usually reserved for feature films with blockbuster potential.

So, when Netflix released Altered Carbon in 2018, it felt almost like a statement that not only could it compete with premium cable in both scale and tone, but also give audiences something they wouldn’t find on TV. It was the first proper live-action cyberpunk series in decades, effectively opening the doors to the genre for fans and newcomers alike. The series checks nearly all of cyberpunk boxes, including the pulpy noir feel of Takeshi Kovacs’ story, the existential sublayer that is intrinsic to it, and an R-rating mostly due to its gritty action sequences and adult themes.

Thanks to all that, Altered Carbon shaped what cyberpunk could be in a series. Its first season was acclaimed by audiences and critics thanks to its impressive visuals and futuristic pulpy detective story. Only in cyberpunk would you find the story of a man in a body that isn’t his, using an abandoned hotel managed by an Edgar Allan Poe AI (Chris Conner), for example. All that happening in live-action with live actors sets the series apart from other works of the genre in visual media. Season 2 then doubled down on what made the series special, but, unfortunately, it didn’t work out as well as Season 1 did.

Despite Being Short-Lived, ‘Altered Carbon’ Has Become a Cult Favorite for Fans of Cyberpunk

Altered Carbon‘s sleeves are a unique narrative device, and having different actors playing the same character over the seasons seemed like a great way of keeping things fresh and adding star power to the series. Two years after Season 1, Kinnaman was replaced by Anthony Mackie as Takeshi Kovacs, and, while that would seem like a great idea at first, it didn’t translate on screen. Mackie’s version of Kovacs is more charming than Kinnaman’s brooding take, and many behind-the-scenes changes also affected how Season 2 felt to the audience, leaving behind the neon-drenched setting and pulpy noir atmosphere.

Altered Carbon is still regarded by fans as one of the best cyberpunk stories on streaming, despite its flaws, and rightly so. Perhaps if Season 2 had been given the same conditions as Season 1 to tell its story, the series could have gone on longer and become a classic. In the end, instead of the bold statement it was supposed to be about streaming’s potential, it became almost like a cautionary tale about how unstable the whole system may be. Regardless, Altered Carbon is still very much worth the watch, and is still the standard for what live-action cyberpunk can achieve.

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Steven Spielberg’s 10/10 Cult Sensation Reaches Free Streaming Next Month

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2 hours ago

22 February 2026

NewsAdmin

The 1990s were a major decade for Steven Spielberg, who not only delivered the record-breaking blockbuster Jurassic Park, but also cemented himself as a “serious filmmaker” with movies such as Schindler’s List and Saving Private Ryan. Known to juggle multiple projects at the same time — he worked on Schindler’s List and Jurassic Park concurrently — Spielberg also put his stamp on a project few would remember he was involved with. The project in question is an animated series, which, like scores of other Cartoon Network gems from that era, is heading to a free streaming service this March. Several hits, such as Dexter’s Laboratory, The Powerpuff Girls, and Ben 10 are returning to streaming after being removed by HBO Max over the last few months.

Among them is the show on which Spielberg served as an executive producer: Pinky and the Brain. Created by Tom Ruegger, the show aired 65 episodes across four seasons, from 1995 to 1998. Such was Spielberg’s popularity at the time that the show was marketed as “Steven Spielberg Presents: Pinky and the Brain.” The cartoon followed the adventures of two mice who were first introduced as supporting characters on Animaniacs, another show that’ll return to streaming in March. One of the mice, Pinky, serves as a simple-minded sidekick to his megalomaniac companion, The Brain, who has only one goal in life: to take over the world. The Brain’s personality was modeled on the larger-than-life Orson Welles, while Pinky was given a Cockney accent.

When and Where To Watch ‘Pinky and the Brain’

Episodes generally revolved around The Brain coming up with a harebrained scheme to take over the world and invariably failing because of his own hubris or Pinky’s ineptitude. The characters later appeared in the single-season show Pinky, Elmyra & the Brain, which aired from 1998 to 1999, and in the Animaniacs revival that aired from 2020 to 2023. Pinky and the Brain will debut on the free Tubi streaming service on March 1, along with scores of other Cartoon Network titles, including fellow cult classics such as Courage the Cowardly Dog and Ed, Edd n Eddy. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.

Release Date: 1995 – 1998-00-00
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The WB
Directors: Kirk Tingblad, Charles Visser, Russell Calabrese, Al Zegler, Mike Milo, Audu Paden, Michael Gerard, Alfred Gimeno
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Writers: Tom Sheppard, Wendell Morris, Gordon Bressack, Earl Kress, Jed Spingarn, Brett Baer, John P. McCann, Dave Finkel, David Finkel, John Ludin, Tom Minton, Rich Fogel, Bill Canterbury, Bill Matheny, Reid Harrison, Patric M. Verrone, John Loy, Gene Laufenberg, Bill Braunstein, Paul Rugg, Norm McCabe, Wayne Kaatz, Elin Hampton, David Fury