Summer may not have ended yet, but I’m mentally over all my warm-weather clothes. Instead, I’m craving loose, flowy pants that skim my body and can carry my wardrobe straight into fall. I’m considering fall-appropriate styles with billowy legs, forgiving waistbands and comfortable silhouettes that are flattering at the same time.

Amazon has plenty to choose from, so I narrowed the options down to these 17 pairs worth putting on your radar. Find casual striped and gingham styles, polished work finds, stretchy travel picks and dressier options that can handle dinner and drinks. Prices start at $17, which makes retiring your shorts for the season even easier.

17 Loose and Slimming Pants for Fall 2026

Casual, Everyday Picks

1. My Favorite: I’m kicking off my fall pants rotation with this striped drawstring style. Between the loose wide-leg silhouette, elongating vertical stripes and easy elastic waist, they nail that comfy but flattering sweet spot.

2. Gingham Girl: I’m already thinking of ways to style these gingham balloon pants with a fitted white tee, ballet flats and a cardigan. The exaggerated legs add fashion-girl appeal and an ultra-comfortable feel.

3. Easy Breezy: These cotton-linen pants are basically the antidote to stiff fall trousers. Made with 70% cotton and 30% linen, the barrel-leg pants are light, breathable and rich-looking.

4. Leg-Lengtheners: The floor-skimming cut on these wide-leg pants gives them an instantly elongating look. Better yet, the elastic drawstring waist keeps them comfortable enough to become an everyday staple.

5. Prints, Please: Basic jeans can sit this one out. These polka dot pants have a playful print that makes a simple tee feel instantly more styled. Plus, the loose, cropped silhouette won’t cling a bit.

6. Volume, Please: Skinny pants could never. These pleated balloon pants lean all the way into a billowy silhouette, with tapered ankles that give the oversized shape some much-needed definition.

7. Espresso Stripe: These striped palazzo pants are basically fall’s answer to breezy summer bottoms. The rich chocolate brown instantly feels seasonal, while the vertical stripes and extra-long legs work together for an elongating effect.

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Office-Ready Styles

8. My Favorite: Casual Friday outfits shouldn’t be boring, and these polka dot trousers will give your wardrobe a boost. The sage print brings fun to your work wardrobe, while the tailored waist and sweeping legs keep everything looking professional.

9. Secretly Stretchy: No one at the office needs to know these wide-leg pants have an elastic waistband. Their clean cream finish and softly tapered legs deliver a polished look while keeping you comfortable through a full workday.

10. Promotion Pants: There’s something about these tailored wide-leg pants that says ‘corner office.’ The camel shade and structured waist feel polished enough for big meetings, while the roomy legs offer considerably more breathing room than traditional fitted trousers.

11. Meeting to Martini: These straight-leg trousers can easily pull double duty on days when work dinners turn into happy hour drinks. The tailored high waist keeps them professional, while the relaxed legs feel cool enough to style beyond the office.

Airport-Ready

12. My Favorite: Settle into your seat without sacrificing the ‘fit with these side-stripe pants. Loose legs and an adjustable waist make them flight-friendly, while the racing-red stripe gives them an off-duty celebrity feel.

13. Cloud-Level Comfort: Sitting through a three-hour flight sounds a lot more manageable in these wide-leg sweatpants. The soft, slouchy legs leave plenty of breathing room, while the high drawstring waist keeps them secure without feeling restrictive.

14. Long-Haul Hero: Hours in the air call for pants that won’t dig, squeeze or cling. This wide-leg pair combines a stretchy drawstring waist with roomy legs and pockets, checking practically every box on my airport outfit list.

Date Night Picks

15. My Favorite: Lace-trimmed hems give these flowy balloon pants a softer date night feel than typical loose trousers. Style them with a fitted tank and kitten heels for a look that feels romantic without trying too hard.

16. Date Night Dots: These polka dot pants have a flirty feel that’s perfect for dinner and drinks. The low-rise drawstring waist keeps the silhouette relaxed, so you wouldn’t mind wearing them around the house, too.

17. Retro Romance: Lean into the vintage charm of these polka dot barrel pants with a fitted top and kitten heels. The soft pleating adds shape around the waist, and the cropped balloon leg keeps the look playful and unexpected.

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For over 50 years, Saturday Night Live has been entertaining viewers, delivering laugh-out-loud moments and parodying just about everything under the sun. And while Lorne Michaels‘ series has been a consistent mainstay for NBC over the years, with some seasons being more beloved by fans than others, the show has an issue on its hands that should be addressed by the time Season 52 comes along.

When looking back at the recent departures from the show, there’s one problem that’s becoming glaringly obvious: the lack of representation. So while SNL seems to have made a conscious effort in the last decade to make its cast more representative of modern America and society, the latest wave of departures has left the show facing the possibility of reversing some of that progress. It’s a problem that needs to be fixed, now rather than later.

The Lack of Diversity Is Becoming a Problem for ‘SNL’

Saturday Night Live‘s most recent departure was Chloe Fineman, who had been a favorite on the show for seven seasons. “I have decided it’s time for my next chapter,” she wrote in a July 16 post on Instagram. “It’s cliché to say this, but working at SNL has been the greatest privilege of my life. I still can’t really believe I got to be a part of it. I fell in love with the place the second I walked through the door.” Fineman’s departure follows the shocking exit of Bowen Yang, who left midway through Season 51 and had been on the show for seven seasons, Ego Nwodim, who left after seven seasons in September 2025, and Heidi Gardner, who left in August 2025 after eight seasons. Each of these exits not only showed how quickly SNL was losing its most veteran cast members, but how the show has, slowly but surely, lost its diversity in both female actors and LGBTQ voices (Bowen was the first openly gay Asian-American cast member in SNL history).

Diversity issues aren’t exactly a new issue on the show either. Per the Los Angeles Times, SNL has only had eight Black female cast members in its history: Yvonne Hudson, Danitra Vance, Ellen Cleghorne, Maya Rudolph, Sasheer Zamata, Leslie Jones, Punkie Johnson and Ego Nwodim. “Ya’ll gotta hurry up and you gotta find somebody, this is a ‘break glass in case of emergency,’” TV host Sherri Shepherd urged after Nwodin’s departure. “It is an emergency.”

In Season 51, while diversity between its cast members was becoming an increasingly more obvious issue, celebrity hosts and cameos quietly filled in the gaps. Among the hosts for the season were Bad Bunny, Teyana Taylor, and Colman Domingo. But while hosts can fill those diversity gaps, it’s only a temporary, short-term fix and is far from being a substitute for representation within the current ensemble. The ensemble itself determines what stories get told, who gets recurring characters, develops chemistry, and eventually becomes the next generation of SNL stars. Female and LGBTQ actors are less and less a part of that group, and that’s troubling, to say the least.

The Diversity in ‘SNL UK’ Only Highlights the Issue

Image via Sky/NBC Universal; Crave

Of course, when looking at the diversity issue in SNL, one can’t help but compare it to the newly assembled cast of SNL UK, which first premiered on March 22, 2026, and is already renewed for Season 2. SNL UK has an original cast with a stronger representation of women, women of color and LGBTQ voices without treating diversity as a special event or relying on guest stars to provide it. Cast members include Hammed Animashaun, Ayoade Bamgboye, Larry Dean, Celeste Dring, George Fouracres, Ania Magliano, Annabel Marlow, Al Nash, Jack Shep, Emma Sidi and Paddy Young. Their diversity as a whole makes the disparity in SNL harder to dismiss, and an even more egregious problem in need of solving.

Ultimately, while Lorne Michaels and the SNL team aren’t fully in charge of all the departures from the show, this gap between Season 51 and Season 52 presents the production team with the opportunity to fix the lack of diversity in the cast. After all, new cast members are added to the show every season, and SNL is in need of fresh, diverse voices and points of view now more than ever.

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Release Date

October 11, 1975

Showrunner

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Lorne Michaels

Directors

Dave Wilson, Don Roy King, Liz Patrick, Andy Warhol, Linda Lee Cadwell, Matthew Meshekoff, Paul Miller, Robert Altman, Robert Smigel

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Writers

Will Forte, Bill Hader, Tina Fey, Kristen Wiig, Chris Parnell, Asa Taccone, John Lutz, Tom Schiller, Simon Rich, Michael Patrick O’Brien, Nicki Minaj, Herbert Sargent, Matt Piedmont, John Solomon, Chris Kelly, Alan Zweibel, Kent Sublette, Ari Katcher, Marika Sawyer, Sarah Schnedier, Scott Jung, Justin Franks, Jerrod Bettis, Rhiannon Bryan

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Lady Gaga and her fiancé, Michael Polansky, are expanding their partnership into biotech by investing in a company focused on advancing skin research. The new venture, Outer Bio, reportedly uses human tissue and artificial intelligence to study aging, inflammation, damage, and other skin-health concerns. The company claims its AI can dramatically speed up the search for promising new skin ingredients by predicting which compounds are worth testing.

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Lady Gaga is stepping further into the science of skin health with her fiancé, Michael Polansky. The singer shared details about Outer Bio on Friday, August 21, a research company she co-founded with her future husband.

Rather than selling skincare products directly to consumers, the firm focuses on discovering and testing new approaches to skin health.

Outer Bio’s research platform, YUNA, reportedly combines machine learning with full-thickness human skin tissue that can remain viable for more than 30 days. The company says this lets researchers study issues such as chronic inflammation, aging, collagen remodeling, environmental damage, and wound healing over longer periods.

Its technology also uses automated screening and AI to identify promising compounds before testing them on human tissue. According to Outer Bio, the resulting data then feeds back into its models to improve future predictions.

How Outer Bio’s AI Hunts For New Skin Ingredients

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Outer Bio’s artificial intelligence is essentially being trained to make better bets about which chemicals could benefit human skin.

According to TechCrunch, Polansky claims the model predicts how previously untested compounds might affect a particular skin function. Researchers then test those predictions and use the outcomes, including failures, to sharpen the system’s next round of selections.

Polansky says the approach has dramatically accelerated the hunt for potential ingredients. Before adding AI, researchers reportedly spent about 18 months using a more labor-intensive process that produced only a couple of leads.

How Lady Gaga And Michael Polansky Became Business Partners

Gaga and Polansky’s business partnership appears to have grown out of their personal relationship and a shared creative rhythm. According to Rolling Stone Australia, after the couple began dating, Polansky encouraged Gaga to take greater control of her music.

She eventually began asking for his input, which led him to offer ideas on lyrics and songs during the making of “Mayhem.” Some of those suggestions made the final album, earning Polansky songwriting credits. He later joined Gaga and producer Andrew Watt as an executive producer on the project.

Gaga has described the pair as best friends who are “always being creative,” and Polansky went on to work with her across planning for the Mayhem Ball. He was credited alongside Gaga as a creative director and executive producer on the tour.

Gaga Already Built A Beauty Business With Haus Labs

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Outer Bio is not Gaga’s first attempt to turn her interest in beauty into a business. The singer launched Haus Laboratories in 2019, initially building the brand around the bold makeup she knew from stages, red carpets, and fashion shoots.

By 2022, however, Gaga admitted she had entered the industry without being a beauty expert. She also realized most customers weren’t trying to recreate her performance looks.

That prompted a major overhaul. Haus Labs returned with a stronger focus on products that combined high-impact makeup with skincare ingredients. Gaga said the revamped formulas included proprietary ingredients and excluded thousands of substances the brand considered undesirable.

Lady Gaga Embraces AI Without Leaving Humans Behind

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While clearly not afraid to invest in this latest AI venture, Gaga has previously defended the importance of human creativity in her own work.

In 2025, her music video for “The Dead Dance” faced online accusations that some of its unusual visuals were AI-generated. The Tim Burton-directed clip featured eerie dolls whose distorted movements prompted suspicion from some viewers.

However, one animator on the project denied using AI to animate the dolls, saying a VFX studio created them. Production company The Roots also published an extensive list of credits detailing the artists and designers behind the video.

Months later, Gaga addressed AI more broadly during an interview with Zane Lowe. She said she was not afraid of the technology, but stressed that human connection remained essential, even as pop music becomes increasingly polished and technically precise.

“Being a human being isn’t going to go out of style anytime soon,” Gaga said.

Magnesium has quietly become one of the most talked-about supplements for sleep and recovery, and Scarlett Johansson is among the celebrities who swear by it. The Black Widow actress has described her magnesium routine in multiple interviews, framing it as a small evening habit with a big payoff for how she sleeps, digests and winds down.

Her endorsement lands at a moment when magnesium is trending across social feeds and pharmacy aisles. Here is what Johansson actually takes, why she takes it and how it fits into the rest of her nighttime lineup.

How Scarlett Johansson’s Magnesium Routine Works

Johansson takes magnesium at night as part of a stripped-down evening ritual. Speaking with TZR, she said the supplement has become a fixture in her wind-down.

“I take magnesium at night. It helps me sleep. I feel like it’s good for recovery. It’s good for your entire central nervous system,” she told the outlet.

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She pairs it with a low-effort skincare routine built around her own line, including a micellar cleanser, a prep serum, a night cream and an occasional boosting oil.

Why Magnesium Sleep Benefits Appeal to Johansson

The magnesium sleep conversation has gone mainstream, and Johansson has been open about why the supplement clicked for her. She told Byrdie that the effect goes beyond bedtime.

“I take magnesium. I know that everybody is taking magnesium now. It’s so helpful, it really makes a huge difference, especially in my digestion and my recovery, it’s awesome,” she said.

Johansson, who has been married to Colin Jost since 2020, also relies on a cold, dark room and a white-noise machine to stay asleep. She told Air Mail she falls asleep easily but has had a harder time staying asleep as she has gotten older.

The Form of Magnesium She Stopped Using

Not every version of the supplement made the cut. Johansson previously experimented with topical magnesium before switching to an oral version.

“I’ve been taking magnesium, which I think helps me sleep more soundly. I used to use a [magnesium] spray that you put on the bottom of your feet, but it dries your skin out,” she told Air Mail.

She has kept magnesium in her self-care rotation in another form, though. Johansson told W Magazine her at-home pedicure starts with a magnesium foot soak, followed by a salt scrub, filing, moisturizing and polish.

“My favorite form of self care is probably doing my own pedicure,” she said. “I am good at it.”

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Where Magnesium Fits Into Her Broader Supplement Lineup

Magnesium is not the only supplement in her rotation. After noticing she felt depleted following breast-feeding, Johansson told Refinery29 she built out a fuller stack.

“I just started because I noticed that overall I was depleted, likely as a result of breast-feeding, so I now take vitamins C and D, calcium, magnesium, B-complex and omega-3s,” said the actress, who is a mom to kids Rose and Cosmo.

She has also added vegan collagen on a friend’s recommendation, even as her dermatologist has pushed back on the idea that ingestible beauty products deliver real results. Johansson told TZR she is trying it anyway to see whether her hair grows in thicker, faster and shinier.

Taylor Swift is taking Us fans behind-the-scenes of filming The Eras Tour: The Final Show.

“One of the things that I was so impressed by, and the needle Glenn [Weiss, the director] threaded so effortlessly, is that the Eras Tour was such a phenomenon because of so many factors,” Swift, 36, told 2026 Emmys voters on Wednesday, August 19, in Los Angeles, per Deadline. “One that I know that is really important is that it was a source of great escapism for the people who were there. Glenn and I had conversations about ‘How do we preserve this experience?’”

Swift embarked on an ultimately record-breaking Eras Tour in March 2023, which wrapped in December 2024. One year after the curtain closed on the three-hour concerts, Disney+ released footage of the final show and an accompanying behind-the-scenes docuseries.

The Eras Tour: The Final Show, directed by Weiss, received five nominations at the 2026 Emmys for Best Variety Special (Prerecorded), Best Directing for a Variety Special, Outstanding Picture Editing For Variety Programming, Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Variety Series or Special and Outstanding Technical Direction and Camerawork for a special.

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As the Eras Tour winds down, Taylor Swift is getting emotional about saying goodbye to everyone who made it a special journey. After a standing ovation for her performance of “Champagne Problems” on Saturday, November 23, the 34-year-old pop star attempted to thank fans on behalf of herself and members of her band. Swift, however, […]

Celebrating the honors, Swift joined Weiss and sound designer John Ross at Los Angeles’ Ross House on Wednesday to discuss the project and how they initially wanted to replicate the same excitement felt inside stadiums in the documentary.

“If you lose the feeling of relaxation and freedom for the fans there, then you’ve lost a huge element of what makes this concert experience so special,” the pop star, rocking a floral sundress, mused. “Glenn created a situation where the fans could be lost in the moment because of the rehearsals that he did with our dancers and me leading into the final show.”

She further quipped, “If you liked the choreography that you saw of our dancers, you should have seen the footwork of our Steadicam operator.”

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Taylor Swift’s month just keeps getting sweeter with a 2026 Emmy Awards nomination days after her wedding to Travis Kelce in New York City. The Television Academy announced on Wednesday, July 8, that Swift, 36, is nominated in the Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded) category for Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour — The Final Show, which […]

Swift, who previously won the Outstanding Creative Achievement In Interactive Media trophy at the 2015 Emmys, has recently enjoyed a low-key summer aside from her star-studded wedding to NFL star Travis Kelce. Swift and Kelce, 36, said, “I do” on July 3 inside Madison Square Garden after three years of dating.

“It was a fun offseason, man. [Our] wedding was the best night of my life,” Kelce gushed during a Kansas City Chiefs press conference held earlier this month. “I appreciate everybody who came out and celebrated and had fun with us. That’s about all I really got from that night. It was a crazy night. It was full of a lot of celebration.”

Weeks later, Kelce debuted his gold wedding band at the team’s August 15 football game. That same day, Swift showed off her ring while attending a pal’s wedding in England.

Spoiler Alert: This list contains spoilers for My Life with the Walter Boys Season 3.Another season has passed in Silver Falls, and it was filled with love, heartbreak, and pain. Welcome to Season 3 of My Life with the Walter Boys! Developed by Melanie Halsall, the hit Netflix teen drama is adapted from Ali Novak‘s beloved novel. The story follows Jackie Howard (Nikki Rodriguez) as she moves to Colorado and lives with the giant Walter family following the death of her parents and sister. Along the way, she finds herself entangled in a love triangle with siblings Alex (Ashby Gentry) and Cole (Noah LaLonde).

In the ten episodes of Season 3, My Life with the Walter Boys has seen drastic changes of heart, the arrival of shocking people from the past, and devastation destined to rock the entire community. But it’s also opened up some brazen mysteries that Season 4 must answer. These burning questions are destined to make the next season just as addictive as the first three! Bring on the ever-shifting love triangles! Oh, and will we get an answer on the mysterious growth spurt from Jordan (Dean Petriw), the third from the bottom Walter, who now towers over the entire family, standing at 6’3″? It’s clear there is so much to do next season!

Will There Be Stable Love for Any Couple in Silver Falls?

Image via Netflix

It might be hard for those of us far removed from our teenage years to remember that love is not a guarantee of stability. In My Life with the Walter Boys, rarely is there a couple that lasts a single season without some sort of strife. This season marked a major shift in the primary love triangle. Alex seemingly bowed out of the Jackie race, leaving the door open for Cole to finally find something meaningful with her. But that was short-lived. Though you can’t really blame him when two major sources of outside influence—Uncle Richard (Alex Quijano) and blast-from-the-past Eliot (Naveen Paddock)—essentially both told him that he was not good enough for her and were preventing her from reaching her true potential.

Much of Cole and Jackie’s story is set in the pre-relationship phase, driven by magnetic chemistry. It’s never reached a completely healthy place where outside distraction and noise aren’t getting in the way. Instability seems to be the name of the game on My Life with the Walter Boys. For Jackie and Cole, their sick cycle of love and poor choices has anchored the series, and the only thing that might glue them together is another serious tragedy: Cole’s accident. As Halsall told Tudum at the start of Season 4 filming, “Our story’s about love and romance and love triangles and all those teenage trials and tribulations around those things, and we’re not going to divert from those—so much, much more of that to come in Season 4.” So maybe the push-and-pull of small town love isn’t going to change as much as we want it to?

What Is the Extent of Cole’s Injuries After the Car Crash?

Image via Netflix

Everywhere you look, tragedy strikes Jackie’s orbit. This time it was Cole on the receiving end. The season’s massive cliffhanger saw Cole being run off the road by his rival driver, Danvers (Jedidiah Goodacre). The reason? Cole forfeited the race to instead race to Jackie to tell her that he had made a major mistake. Unfortunately, his decision didn’t just affect him. By ditching the race, Danvers missed out on his cash-prize odds, so ramming the Walter boy off the road was his retribution. Is it attempted manslaughter? Not sure Season 4 will explore that subplot. Anyway, Cole’s ill-planned decision could have cost him his life, but killing Cole off is a non-starter, so what exactly are the extent of his injuries?

Cole is a character driven by regret and by the past, which prevents him from moving forward. His football career was ended due to a knee injury. His racing career may be done because of a crash. For Cole to experience another loss would be soul-crushing. But to also lose Jackie again? Can he ever recover from heartbreak? While he was the one who ended things for the pair, he did it with her future in mind, despite her refusal to accept that. Cole’s injuries could either bring Jackie back or be a massive setback on two fronts. She might give Eliot a chance, or Alex might reveal the truth as to why Cole broke up with her. That said, based on the source material, we know the endgame, but the journey there has already strayed. Needless to say, it’s going to be a rocky road to recovery for Cole.

Will Jackie and Eliot Become an Item?

Image via Netflix

Teenage love is a tricky thing to navigate. Once you get a taste for it, you simply crave more. So, when it’s taken from you, any chance at a new flavor, you take it. In Season 3, My Life With the Walter Boys shook things up by re-adjusting the love triangle temporarily by swapping out Alex for Eliot, Jackie’s New York teen love. Introducing a cog into the narrative is common practice, and a boy from the past was the obvious decision. To be fair, the Silver Falls dating pool is quite limited. If there was another boy in town, he probably would have entered the picture by now. Eliot is a romantic antagonist of sorts, not just because he’s a bit smarmy and a city elite, but because he’s just not as charming as the Walter boys! As much as Jackie has tried her best to move past her old life, it’s back in the picture, and she’s simply not going to deny giving it a chance.

As Halsall told Swooon, Eliot represents safety and the life she might have had. “But equally, that also means walking backward, which isn’t necessarily what she might want to do,” the showrunner explained. “So, I think interesting things are happening with Eliot, where they are right now by the end of Season 3 and possibly in the future. It’s a difficult thing for her to navigate, in a different way than Alex and Cole were difficult. It’s almost bigger in a way.” Sounds like we know who might be Facebook Official with Jackie at the start of Season 4, if that’s even still a thing!

Will Danny and Erin Tie the Knot?

Image via Netflix

Just as a reminder, Alex and Cole are not the only Walter boys under the roof of the ranch! The brilliance of a large ensemble cast lies in its ability to tell additional stories about the other siblings and friends. One of the more fascinating relationships on the show comes from Cole’s fraternal twin, Danny (Connor Stanhope), and Erin Collins (Alisha Newton). During Season 1, Erin was the epitome of a mean girl, introduced as Jackie’s antithesis. Oh, and she was Cole’s ex-girlfriend. If you can get past the part that Danny has his twin’s sloppy seconds, Danny and Erin are one of the purest pairings in Silver Falls. They were a very unlikely duo at first, seeing as Erin was a popular girl and Danny was a theater kid, but it’s the love for the arts that brought them together!

Having both been eager to pursue college acting, their paths are leading in different directions. That didn’t stop Danny from romantically and drunkenly asking Erin to marry him! Though college is going to split them up and force a long-distance relationship, that may not mean a wedding comes first. It has been two seasons since a Walter wedding; who says Jackie can’t plan another? The entire family just has to find out first, and, well, Danny’s opportunity to tell them about their engagement may not come for a while because of Cole’s accident. There could be a scenario where a secret ceremony comes into play. To be fair, these teens do like to do things on a whim!

Can Alex and Kiley Ever Be Friends Again?

Image via Netflix

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Cole may be the heartthrob, but Alex is actually the epitome of a green flag. While we wish Jackie could see that, we’re just happy that Alex can pursue his own romantic path. That said, the boy is very unlucky with love. After losing Jackie to his older brother, he found a love for the radio and the intrigue of his trainer, Blake (Natalie Sharp). When he joined her father’s team, he put the brakes on a potential relationship. And then, when he quit the team, it severed the connection they formed. So, he was left with his oldest friend, Kiley (Mya Lowe). Having been friends since kindergarten, she was always in his orbit, but as young romance goes, the revelation that feelings were attached came a little too late.

Alex and Kiley have a magnetic bond unlike any other male-female duo on My Life with the Walter Boys. But, somehow the series decided to play with another unlikely duo by having Cole’s star quarterback replacement Dylan (Kolton Stewart) move in on the pizza girl. Even she was perplexed that he might be into her, but while Alex was on horseback, she needed someone. This love triangle centered around comfort regarding Kiley’s troubled grandmother. She always turned to Alex for help because she was not ready to bring Dylan into it. Until she did, then Dylan essentially told Alex to back away and give Kiley space. This also stemmed from his insecurity with Alex being around as the third-wheel. He could sense the unresolved tension. It seems as if, with Dylan as her romantic partner, Alex has to go. But are they both really willing to throw away more than a decade of friendship for a jock? It’s likely this might just be a roadblock.

Will Uncle Richard Give His Niece Space?

Image via Netflix

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There aren’t really bad guys or antagonists on My Life with the Walter Boys, but you could call Uncle Richard the opposition to fun. He is the walking manifestation of buzzkill. His place in the series is quite interesting. He is the only blood relative Jackie has left, but due to her mother’s will, he was not granted guardianship over her. Yet, he does everything in his power to insert himself into his niece’s life. That includes forging a romantic relationship with her high school guidance counselor, Tara Jacobs (Ashley Holliday). Not weird at all! The dating pool must be quite small! He’s also a thorn in the Walters’ side, whom he claims to want to help. Money is the root of all evil. Richard plays the role of maternal uncle, but he’s not suited to execute it perfectly. He thinks he’s always in the right. It’s a flaw he cannot see himself.

Nevertheless, with Uncle Richard now having residence in town, he continues to be ever-present in Jackie’s life. But is he actually just stifling her ability to heal and grow? What would it take, aside from defiance and asking to be left alone, for Richard to realize that he needed to give Jackie space? His biggest error was bringing Eliot around as his intern. Whether he knows of Jackie and Eliot’s relationship in New York or not, Richard continues to push Jackie into a place she doesn’t want to be. He may loathe the idea of the rugged terrain of Colorado—country life isn’t for all city-dwellers—but Richard needs a redeeming moment. It seems unlikely to come anytime soon. He’s the ultimate “I told you so” kind of guy.

Will the Walter Family Survive With the Kids Leaving Home?

Image via Netflix

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We must give credit to Katherine (Sarah Rafferty) and George (Marc Blucas) for being the poster children for exceptionally loving parents. They know they’re not without flaws, but their family has thrived and survived, even with some terrible incidents happening over the course of three seasons. From their financial woes to George’s strokes, they have faced their own strife, but they’ve maintained a strong, united front. But they’re about to face their greatest challenge: slowly becoming empty nesters. Danny is heading to college. Nathan (Corey Fogelmanis) is going overseas for a band opportunity. Will and Haley (Johnny Link and Zoë Soul) are heading to Atlanta for a work opportunity. The house is going to be a bit less crowded.

Season 4 gives the Walter parents a chance to focus on their three little ones—Jordan, Parker (Alix West Lefler), and Benny (Lennix James)—while also letting loose. We saw them live for a rare date night! It’s not that Katherine and George neglect the younger kids; it’s the narrative that doesn’t give them enough story time. It’s no secret that Katherine and George will always be playing parents, and possibly grandparents, sooner than they think; Season 4 needs to give them more. They are a beacon of perfect love, so maybe the offspring may finally fix their own problems by seeing what enduring love looks like.

Will Isaac and Lee’s Dad Return Home?

Image via Netflix

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The Walter roof also has the cousins living underneath! Though Lee and Isaac Garcia have been relegated to the sidelines, Season 3 introduced a major plot point that gave them great depth and insight: their mother, Hannah (Erin Karpluk). To the shock of the entire Walter clan, George’s sister meandered into town, hoping to pick up where she left off. That is, having ditched her boys with Katherine and George when they were younger. Hannah came with great intent, trying to make things better and start anew, but that experiment failed when she nearly killed her nut-allergic son with pancakes. With the realization that Katherine and George were more suited to serve as their guardian, she left again.

So, that leaves their father, Mike Garcia (Hugo Raymundo). Isaac and Lee’s father is a soldier who was deployed long before the events of Season 1. We saw him very briefly in Season 1 during a Christmas Zoom. While we don’t know how long his deployment will be, there could be a universe in which he returns home and fills the void in their lives. That said, they are both very well integrated into the family and, as seen with Hannah, they are not fond of being disappointed by their parental unit. Either way, with some characters leaving town, there might be more freedom to expand their story.

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My Life with the Walter Boys

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Release Date

December 7, 2023

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Netflix

Directors

Jerry Ciccoritti, Winnifred Jong, Nimisha Mukerji

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Writers

Melanie Halsall, Ali Novak

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  Nikki Rodriguez

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  Jackie Howard

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Hayden Panettiere’s death at 36 has renewed troubling questions about what happens when children are given access to fame, adult environments, and substances before they are emotionally equipped to handle them. The “Heroes” actress spent nearly her entire life in the entertainment industry, appearing in her first commercial at just 11 months old. In the months before her death, Panettiere revealed that she was introduced to drugs as a teenager by someone working on her team. While authorities have not determined whether drugs or alcohol contributed to her death, addiction experts say former child stars can face a dangerous combination of early access, intense scrutiny and blurred boundaries.

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Panettiere was 16 and preparing for a red carpet event connected to “Heroes” when she said someone on her team handed her a pill to increase her energy. The actress described the experience in her memoir, which was released months before her death. “Within minutes, a wave of energy washed over me, like I’d just woken up from the most refreshing night’s sleep of my life,” Panettiere wrote.

She later described the pill as “the gateway drug that ushered me toward the good of pharmaceuticals and the downfall of addiction”.

The moment reportedly occurred as the success of “Heroes” was transforming Panettiere into one of television’s most recognizable young actresses. Along with that fame came an exhausting schedule and enormous pressure to perform.

Panettiere subsequently struggled with alcohol and substance abuse. She also publicly discussed postpartum depression, the death of her younger brother, Jansen Panettiere, and the emotional consequences of growing up under constant scrutiny.

Experts Say Child Stars Can Face Unique Addiction Risks

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Lucas Trautman, medical director of the Oxford Treatment Center in Mississippi, explained that young performers can be exposed to adult situations without receiving the protection normally offered to children. “But it’s important to remember that they were also exposed during a developmental time to many adult aspects of life that the rest of us weren’t – including traumatic experiences, and so that gives them unique risk factors for addiction,” Trautman told the BBC.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, beginning to use alcohol or other substances at a young age can increase the likelihood of later developing a substance use disorder. The agency also notes that adolescent brains are still developing in areas responsible for judgment, motivation and behavior control. That development can make teenagers more vulnerable to peer pressure and less able to accurately assess the dangers associated with drug experimentation.

Those risks could become more severe when a teenager is surrounded by adults who have access to prescription medications, alcohol or illegal substances. Trautman said young stars can have “adult access” to drugs and alcohol without the safeguards that should accompany it. “We aren’t equipped at a young age to be able to say no to it, to manage it, to correctly stay away from it altogether,” he explained.

Fame Can Make Recovery More Complicated

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William Moyers, vice president of public affairs for Hazelden Betty Ford, praised Panettiere for publicly discussing her addiction. However, he suggested that the scrutiny surrounding her life may have made it difficult to address her struggles privately. “Her entire life from the beginning was centred in the intense public spotlight, and this didn’t give Hayden much in the way of a respite,” Moyers said.

Early fame can also become part of a young performer’s identity. When jobs slow down or public attention shifts elsewhere, former child stars may struggle with the loss of the praise, money and excitement that once defined their lives. “At the same time many of them self medicated… so their brain is still reliant on that, and it’s really really hard to stop using,” Trautman said.

Panettiere is not the only former child star to describe being exposed to substances at a young age. Drew Barrymore has said she entered rehabilitation at 12, while Demi Lovato previously discussed becoming dependent on prescription medication as a teenager.

“I got into a car accident and they prescribed me opiates. My mum didn’t think she would have to lock up the opiates from her 13-year-old daughter, but I was already drinking at that point,” Lovato said during a 2022 appearance on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast.

Hayden Panettiere Discussed Pressure From Her Mother

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Experts say the line between family and business can become dangerously blurred when a parent is also managing or helping direct a child’s career. Panettiere previously discussed the pressure she felt from her mother while pursuing acting opportunities at an early age.

“You always want to think the best of your parents and see them in the brightest light,” she told The New York Times in May. “But there were a lot of things done with an approach that was not about my mental health or what was emotionally or mentally safe for me to do.”

Former Disney star Christy Carlson Romano also reflected on the psychological toll of early fame following Panettiere’s death. “We have almost no language for what happens when stress, scrutiny, rejection, adult pressure, and the collapse of privacy become the architecture of a childhood,” Romano wrote.

‘Quiet On Set’ Exposed The Risks Facing Child Performers

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The concerns surrounding child stars gained renewed attention in 2024 with the release of “Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV.” The Investigation Discovery docuseries examined the alleged toxic culture behind several popular Nickelodeon programs from the 1990s and 2000s. Former actors and employees described an environment in which young performers faced adult pressure, limited protection and troubling behavior from people working around them.

Drake Bell also publicly identified himself as the child actor who was sexually abused by dialogue coach Brian Peck, who was convicted in 2004. Bell has since discussed how the abuse affected his mental health and contributed to years of self-destructive behavior.

Panettiere was not featured in “Quiet on Set,” and her experiences were separate from the allegations involving Nickelodeon. However, the documentary exposed the same broader concern now surrounding her story: Children working in entertainment can be placed in adult environments while depending on parents, managers and studio employees to protect their physical and emotional well-being.

Addiction Is A Treatable Chronic Condition

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Panettiere told PEOPLE in 2024 that addiction was “in the rear-view mirror,” although she revealed in her memoir that a doctor had once warned she would be “dead within five years” if she continued drinking. The National Institute on Drug Abuse describes substance use disorders as chronic but treatable conditions.

Recovery can include periods of abstinence as well as relapses, which do not mean treatment has failed. “Living in recovery means doing the best we can, but doing it imperfectly,” Moyers said.

Anyone seeking help for substance use or mental health concerns can contact the SAMHSA National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP or visit FindTreatment.gov.

Amanda Seyfried is truly just like Us. How do we know? Her unexpected accessory.

Filming a Tiffany & Co commercial in New York City, Seyfried donned chic clothes and high-end accessories, plus a bright blue Owala water bottle. Clearly, this Amazon bestseller is a must-have for her real life.

The Owala FreeSip Water Bottle is the hydration status symbol of the moment, and Seyfried joins a long list of celebrities who keep it on (or in) hand. Honestly, it’s refreshing to see A-listers like Seyfried with a $35 water bottle. It’s a reminder once again that they’re just like Us.

Get the Owala FreeSip Stainless Steel Water Bottle for $35 at Amazon! Please note, prices are accurate at the date of publication but are subject to change.

The most clever bit is in the name. The FreeSip spout lets you sip upright through the built-in straw, or tilt it back and swig straight from the opening.

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Related: Penelope Cruz Paired This Luxe, Boutiquey Blouse Style With Jeans

We all get stuck in the tee-and-denim trap, but Penélope Cruz found an equally versatile yet much more polished alternative. Her red blouse screams ‘Hamptons boutique,’ and we found the expensive style on sale for $9! Spotted walking along the streets of Beverly Hills, Cruz looked effortlessly chic in a vibrant red blouse, baggy jeans […]

Better yet, it keeps water cold, pops open in a flash and withstands drops like a champ. This 32-ounce stainless-steel bottle has racked up nearly 113,000 five-star ratings on Amazon for a reason, and the reviews read like devoted fan mail.

One happy reviewer shared, “Working 12-hour shifts, I need something reliable, and this bottle keeps my water ice-cold the entire time. The push-button cap makes it incredibly easy to pop open for a quick drink during a busy day. It feels highly durable.”

“I have used so many cups (Stanleys, Yetis, Hydro Jugs, Hydroflasks, etc.) and the Owala is still my favorite,” another shopper wrote, calling out the leakproof design and “the best spout” they have “ever used.”

Pick a shade that flatters your wardrobe, toss it in your tote and consider yourself styled. (We’re eyeing Seyfried’s eclectic blue version.) If it’s good enough for a Tiffany set, it’s good enough for the school pickup line and everything after!

Get the Owala FreeSip Stainless Steel Water Bottle for $35 at Amazon! Please note, prices are accurate at the date of publication but are subject to change.

Looking for something else? Explore more water bottles, and don’t forget to check out all of Amazon’s Daily Deals for more great finds!

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Ryan Reynolds had a playful response after Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey” claimed a major box office record previously held by “Deadpool & Wolverine.” The actor celebrated the film’s success with a cheeky video and an equally humorous message to its cast and crew.

“The Odyssey” has emerged as a theatrical phenomenon, fueled by strong demand for IMAX screenings and a strong audience reception.

Ryan Reynolds is taking the loss in stride after Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey” knocked “Deadpool & Wolverine” off its perch as the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time.

Nolan’s epic has reportedly pulled in about $1.34 billion worldwide, edging past the $1.338 billion earned by Reynolds and Hugh Jackman’s Marvel blockbuster during its theatrical run. “The Odyssey” is also now the biggest box office hit of Nolan’s career, with screenings still underway.

Reynolds marked the milestone with a cheeky social media post that mashed together footage from both films. The clip cuts between Matt Damon’s Odysseus moving quietly through the woods and Deadpool battling Wolverine inside a Honda Odyssey minivan.

At one point, an exhausted Deadpool declares, “The Odyssey f-cks hard.”

Reynolds then offered his congratulations while keeping the joke going. “Congratulations to the entire cast and crew of The Odyssey for becoming the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time,” he wrote, before adding, “That is one helluva car.”

How ‘The Odyssey’ Has Become A Box Office Juggernaut

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A major part of “The Odyssey” phenomenon appears to be Nolan’s ability to turn the movie itself into a theatrical event. The epic became the first feature released entirely shot with IMAX film cameras, and audiences responded immediately.

Its opening weekend generated $52 million from IMAX alone, accounting for 20% of its worldwide debut. By August 10, that figure had climbed to $289 million, making it the biggest IMAX release ever.

Demand was especially fierce for the coveted 70mm presentation, available at only 41 IMAX locations worldwide. Those screenings produced weeks of sellouts, while nearly $40 million in future IMAX tickets had already been sold by early August.

Universal has also credited Nolan’s reputation for helping drive the turnout. Distribution chief Jim Orr said the filmmaker has built audience trust by repeatedly delivering movies worth seeing in theaters.

Strong reviews, an A CinemaScore, a 97% Rotten Tomatoes audience score, repeat viewings, and a cast packed with major stars have only added to the momentum.

Christopher Nolan’s Box Office Record Speaks For Itself

As impressive as his latest run is, however, this is not Nolan’s first experience in the billion-dollar territory. His “The Dark Knight” became a global phenomenon with just over $1 billion, while 2012’s “The Dark Knight Rises” pushed that figure to roughly $1.085 billion.

Nolan’s biggest successes have not been limited to Batman, either. “Inception” amassed nearly $840 million worldwide, and “Interstellar” brought in more than $642 million. Even the World War II drama “Dunkirk” finished with about $528 million.

Then came “Oppenheimer.” Helped by the “Barbenheimer” craze, the R-rated historical drama collected about $983 million worldwide, an eye-catching result for a three-hour film centered on the physicist behind the atomic bomb. “Tenet,” released amid the pandemic in 2020, managed more than $366 million globally.

Taken together, Nolan’s films have now grossed more than $7 billion worldwide.

Ryan Reynolds’ ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Had Its Own Historic Box Office Run

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Long before giving up its crown, “Deadpool & Wolverine” had rewritten the record books for R-rated movies. The Marvel blockbuster opened to $211 million domestically in July 2024, becoming the first R-rated film ever to crack $200 million in a North American opening weekend. It was also the biggest July debut on record and the sixth-largest domestic opening at the time.

The film was just as formidable overseas. Its global opening eventually reached $445.4 million, setting another record for an R-rated release. Its biggest milestone came weeks later when it overtook 2019’s “Joker,” which had previously held the worldwide record with about $1.036 billion.

By January 2025, Guinness World Records put “Deadpool & Wolverine” at $1,338,071,348 worldwide.

Ryan Reynolds Has Made Friendly Trolling Part Of His Brand

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Reynolds has become known over the years for his ability to inject humor into nearly any situation. The actor once gave Lively a birthday tribute that barely showed her at all. For her 30th in 2017, he posted a photo of the couple with more than half of her face cropped out, pairing it with the message, “Happy Birthday to my amazing wife.”

Hugh Jackman has been another frequent target. Their mock feud has spanned birthdays, holidays, fake insults, and social media stunts for years, long before “Deadpool & Wolverine” finally reunited them on screen.

Reynolds has also kept the bit going with Rob McElhenney. According to Variety, the Wrexham co-owners reportedly trade joke videos throughout the day, and Reynolds once made an entire music video showing people how to pronounce McElhenney’s surname.