Justin Baldoni’s legal team has rejected claims that he caused Blake Lively’s alleged financial losses, arguing her challenges stem from pre-existing reputation issues.

As their dispute over “It Ends With Us” heads to trial, both sides are clashing over claims of reputational harm and projected earnings.

Justin Baldoni’s lawyers also dispute the scale of Blake Lively’s losses, calling them unrealistic, while the actress’s team maintains she suffered significant career and financial damage.

Baldoni’s lawyers are pushing back against claims that he is responsible for Lively’s reported financial setbacks, arguing instead that her challenges stem from a pre-existing public image and business track record.

At a recent pre-trial hearing, Baldoni’s lawyers pointed to Lively’s past public behavior, including her criticism of Kate Middleton, as evidence that any reputational damage did not originate from events surrounding “It Ends with Us.”

According to the Daily Mail, they argued that her actions during the March 2024 photo-editing controversy contributed to public backlash well before the film’s release.

Lively had responded to the incident with a satirical, heavily edited image of her own, which drew criticism. She later issued an apology after Kate revealed a cancer diagnosis.

The Director’s Lawyers Slammed Blake Lively’s Claims Of Hefty Financial Losses

Baldoni’s side also challenged Lively’s claims of major financial losses, dismissing estimates from her team as exaggerated.

The actress’s attorneys have suggested she lost tens of millions in endorsements and potentially hundreds of millions in projected earnings.

However, Baldoni’s lawyer, Amir Kaltgrad, described these figures as “pie in the sky,” describing what he called “unrealistic assumptions” about Lively’s future workload and income.

According to court arguments, Lively earned about $21 million from four film projects over eight years before the movie’s release.

In contrast, projections from her expert suggested she could have earned over $140 million in the following five years, a jump Baldoni’s team characterized as implausible, citing what they described as “scattered work history.”

Blake Lively’s Financial Claims Under Scrutiny As The Former Co-Stars’ Trial Looms

Amid claims of financial losses, Baldoni’s legal team pointed to Lively’s business ventures, particularly her beverage brand Betty Buzz, as evidence that her issues were not tied to any alleged smear campaign.

Court filings indicated that concerns about the brand’s long-term profitability existed independently, with internal discussions suggesting challenges in sustaining growth in the U.S. market.

As a result, more focus was reportedly placed on expanding her alcoholic line, Betty Booze, as the “anchor product.”

The dispute is part of a broader legal battle between the former co-stars, with a trial scheduled for May 18.

Both sides are expected to argue over claims of reputational harm and financial damages tied to the fallout from their film collaboration, while the court also considers whether to release currently sealed evidence and set limits on the trial’s duration.

Justin Baldoni’s Side Disputes Online Narrative As The Bring Up ‘Bully’ Allegations Against The Actress

Baldoni’s legal team continues to challenge Lively’s claims, with another of his attorneys, Fabien Manohar Thayamballi, arguing that negative online comments labeling her a “bully” were not purely the result of any coordinated digital interference.

He pointed to Lively’s own past actions, including her 2024 remarks about Kate during the edited photo controversy, suggesting that public perception of her behavior had already been shaped before the current dispute.

Meanwhile, speaking outside the courtroom, Lively’s lawyer, Sigrid McCawley, downplayed the chances of a last-minute settlement. She emphasized that Lively is focused on having her side of the story heard in court.

McCawley confirmed that the actress is prepared to testify and expects to take the stand. According to her, Lively has been anticipating this moment and is ready to present her account, expressing confidence as the trial approaches.

“She’s feeling really good… she’s finally at a point where she will be able to tell her side,” she said, per the Daily Mail.

Hollywood Reportedly Keeps Its Distance As Blake Lively Faces Fallout From ‘It Ends With Us’ Dispute

Meanwhile, industry reaction appears to be shifting. As the legal fight continues, Lively is said to be facing an increasing distance from parts of Hollywood.

Much of the conversation has moved beyond the courtroom to what this situation means for her career standing. Sources suggest studios are proceeding cautiously, wary of the controversy surrounding alleged on-set issues, with one insider describing her current position as that of a “persona non grata.”

Despite that characterization, there has been no formal effort to blacklist her. As reported by The Blast, NewsNation journalist Paula Froelich shared that the label reflects industry sentiment rather than any official action.

She notes a growing reluctance among agents and executives to get involved while the case remains unresolved, with many opting to keep their distance from the actress for now.

By Robert Scucci
| Published 24 seconds ago

Confession time: ever since Mad Max: Fury Road came out in 2015, the fantasy of getting beaten up by Charlize Theron was born. Just two years later, Atomic Blonde hit theaters, and all bets were off. While I’ve always appreciated Theron’s dramatic range, with 2003’s Monster showing her menace and 2011’s Young Adult showing how brilliantly she could portray a woman’s ongoing mental health crisis and alcoholism, I will check out any action thriller she ever stars in because, like Keanu Reeves with the John Wick films, she’s clearly put in the work to be a total badass on screen.

Which brings us to her latest outing, a Netflix Original action thriller that dropped April 24, 2026, called Apex. After watching, the fantasy still stands. I would love to get into a fistfight with Charlize Theron and lose. I’m not a masochist, and this isn’t normal territory for me, but if I found out I only had six months to live, I’d make it a bucket list item and go out on my own terms by encouraging her to fight me on top of a skyscraper or a moving train.

You may say that I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.

As for the movie itself, Apex is solid. It’s a chase thriller. It’s The Most Dangerous Game for a modern audience. Charlize Theron plays a grieving widow who is hunted for sport in the Australian wilderness by a total psycho with a home-field advantage, and she has to rely on grit and intuition to survive. If you’ve seen one of these movies, you’ve basically seen them all, but the performances here cannot be overstated.

Like The Ice-T Movie, But In The Forest 

One of my favorite “hunting humans for sport” plots can be found in 1994’s Surviving the Game, starring Ice-T, Rutger Hauer, and Gary Busey. In this film, Ice-T’s Jack Mason is hunted by a group of wealthy men who regularly get together to let a human loose on their sprawling property designed for exactly this kind of activity. They give him a head start, then roll out on their ATVs, armed to the teeth and ready to kill.

It’s an inherently ridiculous premise, but it’s totally unhinged and worth your time because everybody knows the assignment.

Apex takes a more grounded approach while still exploring that same familiar territory. Context is everything, though, and it plays out as a much more serious film. Here, Sasha (Charlize Theron) takes a solo trip to the Grand Isle Narrows just months after her husband Tommy (Eric Bana) fell to his death during a climbing expedition in Norway.

During her travels, she has an unwholesome run-in with a couple of hunters, as well as a kindly stranger named Ben (Taron Egerton). While briefly talking shop at a petrol station, Ben tells her to start her trip at Blackwater Bay if she really wants to experience next-level hiking and kayaking. She takes his advice, but quickly learns she shouldn’t have when she crosses paths with him again the following day. This happens after she’s harassed by the same hunters from earlier and has her supplies stolen while sleeping in her tent.

At first, Ben is hospitable. He offers her warmth by the fire, food, and water. Sasha quickly realizes he’s the one who stole her bag, and his demeanor shifts immediately. He pulls out a crossbow and a boombox and tells her that her head start will only last as long as the song he’s currently playing. From here on out, the chase is on. Ben is the hunter, and Sasha has to move fast if she wants to avoid getting executed in the middle of nowhere by somebody who’s clearly engaged in this kind of activity before.

Far From Original, But Beyond Adequate 

Apex does not offer anything new in this subgenre, but it’s still worth your time if you like movies with this setup. Plot-wise, there’s not much to it. You get some drama leading up to the hunt, and from that point forward it’s Sasha versus nature versus Ben. The real tension comes from the fact that Ben knows the terrain and Sasha doesn’t, while the fun comes from watching Sasha adapt and prove she knows how to survive in harsh environments.

The third act tension is palpable when things stop going according to plan for either of them, forcing a fragile truce when options run out. It’s a small twist on a tired setup that I appreciated. Add in some beautiful nature shots, and you almost forget this is a Netflix Original because the lighting actually holds up.

If you’re a fan of the tried-and-true chase thriller formula, you’ll likely find Apex satisfying. It’s in and out in 95 minutes, establishes its conflict quickly, and doesn’t overstay its welcome. Charlize Theron and Taron Egerton have strong chemistry as things escalate toward the inevitable breaking point.

Truth be told, if you’ve seen one movie like this, you’ve seen them all. But that applies to most subgenres that are this hyperspecific. If you know what you like and this is your lane, Apex should be your next Netflix watch, and you won’t be disappointed.

By Chris Snellgrove
| Published 24 seconds ago

Buffy the Vampire Slayer fans are still reeling from the bad news that Hulu canceled the reboot of this iconic ‘90s show. The streamer had ordered a pilot, and things seemed to be going well: not only was Sarah Michelle Gellar returning to star in the new series, but the showrunner was going to be Oscar-winning director Chloe Zhao. The fandom had visions of Buffy returning as a prestige TV show, but Hulu’s cancellation put a stake through those dreams, leaving us only with dust.

As usual, battle lines were quickly drawn when it came to discourse about this show’s failure. Some (including Gellar herself) thought this was just a matter of out-of-touch executives not getting what Buffy was all about. Hulu, meanwhile, reportedly claimed the problem was that the show was too small, too focused on younger audiences, and (perhaps most importantly) didn’t have enough Gellar in it. Personally, I tend to believe Hulu, as they wouldn’t throw away a golden IP for no reason. With respect to Zhao (who has done some excellent work), the cancellation of the Buffy reboot clearly proves why Oscar-winning directors should stay in their own lane.

High “Stakes” Drama

What was the Buffy reboot about? While official details are relatively minimal, the show was reportedly going to focus primarily on a new Slayer played by Ryan Kiera Armstrong. She was going to have to deal with a new vampire menace that popped up in a very familiar location: Sunnydale. Like Buffy, this new Slayer named Nova was going to have a hard time learning the ins and outs of dusting vamps. Fortunately, Buffy herself was going to serve as this young warrior’s mentor, helping her keep the forces of darkness at bay. 

Hulu didn’t like the initial pilot, believing that it was too small for an IP this big and that it had too much kiddie stuff and not enough Sarah Michelle Gellar. They demanded reshoots, but those weren’t enough to save this ambitious reboot. The streamer ended up canceling the new Buffy show, which Gellar ultimately blamed on an unnamed executive. As she told People, this exec “was not only not a fan of the original, but was proud to constantly remind us that he had never seen the entirety of the series and how it wasn’t for him.”

Getting The Bad News

Part of why Gellar is so upset with the cancellation is that she had worked with director Chloe Zhao for years to develop this reboot. To the Buffy actor, bringing the show back was a real no-brainer. One of the most beloved IPs of all time getting rebooted by an Oscar-winning director; what could go wrong? However, Hulu’s cancellation of the series (and, make no mistake, they wouldn’t cancel the show if they thought it would make money) reveals a simple truth: like most Oscar winners, Zhao is good at making a particular type of film, and her skills don’t necessarily transfer to the small screen.

Chloe Zhao is an excellent director of such films as The Rider, Nomadland (which won Oscars for Best Picture and Best Director), and Hamnet (which was nominated for a whopping eight Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director). But Zhao is best when making indie films that focus on relatively unknown actors (Hamnet turned rising star Jessie Buckley into a Best Actress Oscar winner). But she seems to struggle when it comes to creating bigger films with more mainstream actors. This is most evident in The Eternals, her Marvel movie that ended up being a wall-to-wall snooze fest.

Eternals Was Our Warning

Obviously, hindsight is 20/20, but it seems like the failure of The Eternals effectively foretold the failure of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot. Audiences hated this film because it lacked the mainstream appeal of the MCU. The pace was slow instead of brisk, the writing was serious instead of funny, and the villains were abstract rather than clearly defined. It just didn’t feel like a superhero movie for most of its runtime. Instead, it felt like a typical Chloe Zhao joint: an introspective indie film that just didn’t fly with fans of tights-and-flights films.

The exact same thing happened with the Buffy reboot on Hulu. Executives reportedly thought the show wasn’t “mainstream enough” for the audience. Those same execs worried the new show was trying to chase too much of a youth demographic compared to the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which appealed to both children and adults. Finally, they worried about the relative lack of Sarah Michelle Gellar, who reportedly had only one line of dialogue in the original pilot.

Letting The Past Die

To sum it up, the show was going to be a Buffy reboot that had hardly any Buffy in it. No other legacy cast members were in the pilot, so fans weren’t going to get to see any reunions between the Slayer and fan-favorite characters like Willow or Spike. That means most of the show would focus on the new Slayer and her new Scoobies, which is (let’s be honest) a bit like making an entire show out of Dawn’s Season 7 adventures with her forgettable Sunnydale High clique.

Left to her own devices, Chloe Zhao creates breathtaking works of cinematic art, the kind of awesome indies that remind you why you fell in love with movies in the first place. But she is clearly a poor choice when it comes to genre entertainment. The Eternals was dead on arrival, and the Buffy reboot died before it streamed a single episode. Ironically, Zhao found out the reboot was canceled on the same weekend that she attended the Oscars to see how many awards Hamnet would take home. It’s a juxtaposition that drives home a simple, stake-like point: this Oscar winner should stay in her own indie darling lane and stop dabbling in genre entertainment she clearly doesn’t understand.

Ted Lasso is making a return to the small screen.

The hit series, which premiered in 2020, centers around American football coach Ted (Jason Sudeikis), who moves across the pond to coach a British soccer team.

After helping AFC Richmond nearly win the Premier League, Ted returns to the U.S. and Coach Beard (Brendan Hunt), Roy Kent (Brett Goldstein) and Nathan Shelley (Nick Mohammed) take over the team’s coaching duties. Rebecca Welton (Hannah Waddingham) and Keeley Jones (Juno Temple), meanwhile, consider the idea of launching an AFC Richmond women’s team.

After season 3 wrapped in 2023, Sudeikis initially claimed that the beloved “story is done.” He confirmed two years later that a season 4 was actually already in the works.

“Ted’s coaching a women’s team. So there, that’s [happening],” Sudeikis teased during a 2025 episode of the “New Heights” podcast.

Scroll down to learn more about Ted Lasso season 4:

What Is ‘Ted Lasso’ Season 4 About?

Sudeikis teased that season 4 would revolve around Ted coaching a women’s team, which was confirmed in an official press release.

“In season four, Ted returns to Richmond, taking on his biggest challenge yet: coaching a second division women’s football team,” a synopsis reads. “Throughout the course of the season, Ted and the team learn to leap before they look, taking chances they never thought they would.”

Has There Been a 1st Look of ‘Ted Lasso’ Season 4?

Apple TV released a first look at Ted Lasso season 4 in January 2026, showing Sudeikis back in his signature outfit as he coaches a group of women alongside Coach Beard and a new assistant coach, played by Tanya Reynolds.

In one image, Ted hands off his familiar pink box of homemade biscuits to Rebecca beside an aircraft, while another shot captures Ted seated at the Crown & Anchor pub.

Has There Been a Teaser of ‘Ted Lasso’ Season 4?

AppleTV dropped a teaser for Ted Lasso season 4 in April 2026, featuring Ted returning to the pitch amid a warm welcome. At the end of the clip, Ted shares his new abbreviation, “ASAP PP,” which he calls “as soon as possible, pretty please.”

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Who Is Returning for ‘Ted Lasso’ Season 4?

Deadline reported in August 2024 that Warner Bros. Television renewed contracts for Sudeikis, Waddingham, Goldstein, Hunt, Temple and Jeremy Swift.

New cast members include Reynolds, Grant Feely, Jude Mack, Faye Marsey, Rex Hayes, Aisling Sharkey and Abbie Hern.

Has a Premiere Date Been Announced for ‘Ted Lasso’ Season 4?

Ted Lasso season 4 premieres on AppleTV on August 5, with new episodes dropping weekly on Wednesdays.

By Jennifer Asencio
| Published 30 seconds ago

Basketball season is winding down and at the time of this writing is in the first round of its playoff tournament. Before that could begin, there was also a play-in tournament meant to fill out the rest of the playoff brackets through one-game matches whose winners would continue to the next round. The games have been frenetic, with most of them decided in the last minutes.  Basically, basketball is hurtling down the canyon, about to drop the torpedo into the Death Star.

Imagine you are watching Luke Skywalker just about to use the force to make his shot, when all of a sudden the streaming service you are watching it on interrupts the action for “technical difficulties.” That is exactly what happened to basketball fans on not one but two streaming services.

Peacock and Amazon Prime are splitting the duty of airing the NBA postseason. Amazon Prime aired the play-in tournament, while the two networks are swapping the playoff games back and forth. During three different games, both within the final minute of very close matches, both streamers suffered technical difficulties that interrupted the broadcast.

Technical Interruptions Interfere With Gameplay

On April 14, 2026, the Orlando Magic and Charlotte Hornets were in a match-up for all the marbles. The winner would go on to the next round of the play-in tournament, while the loser went home. With 30 seconds left in the game, the score was 123-120, which, if you know basketball, means the Hornets only needed one shot from the right part of the court to tie the game, and they had the ball. Suddenly, Prime, which aired that game, put up a “technical difficulties” card, during which the Hornets did score another basket, making the score 123-122 while no one could see on television. The contentious game ended with the Magic winning, 127-126, but fans only got to see it because the teams called a time-out while Prime fixed its issue.

A week later, on April 20, 2026, the New York Knicks played the Atlanta Hawks on Peacock. The game ended with the Knicks losing 107-106, but once again, the final minute was interrupted by a “technical difficulties” card. This time, the difficulties were offset by a time out and viewers didn’t miss any of the action, but the Knicks-Hawks game wasn’t the only difficulty Peacock had that night.

Also playing that night after the Knicks-Hawks game were the Denver Nuggets and the Minnesota Timberwolves. For most of the game, the teams traded the lead, ending halftime tied. But in the last quarter (12 minutes of active game time), the ‘Wolves started a major comeback. In the final minute, it was anyone’s game, with both teams bringing their best play to the match … and then technical difficulties struck again.

To the credit of the NBA teams playing these games, all three called time-outs when the technical difficulties overtook the broadcast. Often, interruptions like this cause viewers to miss the action, and the broadcast usually just resumes when it is fixed rather than showing viewers what they missed. The rules of basketball serendipitously offset this with time-outs and frequent breaks for players who are literally running at full speed for minutes at a time, but a lot of live broadcasts do not have breaks like that.

The Streaming Blob Absorption Conundrum

Paramount+ also suffers issues with its streaming services often lagging, and the live TV function on that service is also often inaccessible. Survivor 50 fans lost 15 minutes of the premiere episode because the live TV feature was frozen for many viewers as numerous people tried to watch the show. MLB.TV bills itself as the home of all things baseball, but it also lags and freezes during live broadcasts of games.

With more live broadcasts getting absorbed by the streaming blob, interruptions like this mark an infuriating turn. It is bad enough that many services have interruptions to movies or demand high prices to eliminate commercials from their content. As streaming services become ubiquitous, they are also demonstrating that they can’t handle the load brought on by live television events.

The Balkanization of streaming services has made subscribing to them similar to subscribing to each cable channel individually (can you imagine having to pay separately for CNN, TNT, AMC, USA, and TBS, on top of premium channels like ESPN, HBO or Showtime?). As it is, to watch post-season basketball out of market requires two different premium streaming services (the Peacock games are also aired on NBC, but only regionally). Watching the NFL postseason this past winter required four. Watching the Oscars is going to require a YouTube subscription starting in 2028.

Past Is Prologue, But We Still Haven’t Learned

Interruptions in the middle of live events are so unpardonable from any channel that it was made official policy to show the entirety of a game and preempt the shows following after the infamous “Heidi Bowl” incident in 1968. During this New York Jets NFL home game, the then-Oakland Raiders were dominating the field of play, so the network decided to switch to a made-for-TV version of the German folk story “Heidi.” The Jets came back to win the game in an exciting upset that only fans in the stadium got to see. While this was a bad network decision and not a technical difficulty, it set a precedent for live broadcasting that existed all the way until the Prime-Peacock NBA postseason broadcasts.

What streaming customers are getting isn’t as consistent as what we got from comparable cable channels. The more broadcasting, live or not, that moves over to streaming, the more the services are going to have to address these problems. Streaming was supposed to be a superior alternative to television. Instead, as the NBA playoffs debacle has demonstrated, they are becoming more of a monster than cable and can’t even provide the same level of service.

Here’s a rundown of Us Weekly‘s top stories making headlines in celebrity news, sports and entertainment on April 28, 2026. Here are key takeaways:

• Taylor Frankie Paul reconnects with Doug Mason: The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star is “trying to make it work” with Bachelorette contestant Doug Mason, sources told Us Weekly. The pair reconnected after her season of the dating show was pulled by ABC following an alleged February domestic violence dispute with ex Dakota Mortensen.

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• Steven McBee Jr. and Allie Eklund discussed engagement before split: The McBee Dynasty star and Eklund had talked about getting engaged this year before McBee publicly accused her of cheating at the Stagecoach Festival on April 27. Eklund denied the allegations and shared screenshots of messages in which McBee allegedly called her a “hooker.”

• Taylor Swift wears Travis Kelce’s birthstone: Swift stepped out in New York City on April 27 wearing opal jewelry honoring her fiancé Kelce. Opal is Kelce’s birthstone and inspired her Life of a Showgirl song “Opalite.”

Edited by Samantha Benitz. Story produced with AI assistance

Billie Eilish is publicly addressing speculation that she and brother Finneas had a “falling out.”

“I heard somebody say, ‘Did you guys hear Finneas and Billie had a falling-out?’” Eilish, 24, told Elle in a joint interview with her sibling and collaborator, 28, published on Tuesday, April 28.

“Finneas and I have never and will never have a falling-out, ever in our lives,” she continued. “We’ll get in the biggest f***ing fight you’ve ever heard of in your life, and five minutes later, we’re back, laughing and making music. It’s sibling s***. There’s nothing else in the world like sibling relationships.”

Eilish added, “If I never saw Finneas at all, I might literally never make a song again.”

Rumors of a feud between the famous siblings arose after Finneas (real name Finneas Baird O’Connell) skipped Eilish’s Hit Me Hard and Soft Tour, which ran from September 2024 to November 2025.

Related: Why Was Billie Eilish’s Acceptance Speech Bleeped Out at the 2026 Grammys?

Billie Eilish took home the prize for Song of the Year at the 2026 Grammy Awards — and the hitmaker didn’t hold back in her impassioned acceptance speech. “Thank you so much. I can’t believe this,” Eilish, 24, said to the crowd while accepting the trophy alongside her brother, Finneas O’Connell, for their work on […]

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“It was a few years in the making,” Eilish said of the decision for Finneas to skip the shows, a mutual choice between the pair. “We got so busy that we would only see each other right before going onstage. Finneas and Andrew [Eilish’s touring drummer], who were the only band members I had back in the day, performed on some sort of platform that was hard to leave. Finneas was stuck in a tower — like Rapunzel! He never said it, but I was feeling like, ‘You have more to be doing than being my band member in the back.’”

Finneas added, “It’s basically true that I don’t like touring, but I love the show part of it. And I love being around Billie. This past year, when she would be on tour for months, I missed her a lot.”

In the trailer for the Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D) movie, Eilish cried as she read a note from Finneas wishing her good luck before she went out on the road.

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Related: Billie Eilish Accuses Reporter of Outing Her on Red Carpet

Billie Eilish accused Variety of outing her over the weekend after she discussed her sexuality in a cover story for the magazine. “Thanks variety for my award and for also outing me on a red carpet at 11 am instead of talking about anything else that matters,” Eilish, 21, wrote via Instagram on Sunday, December […]

“Almost 7 years ago to the day we started your first headline tour of North America,” Finneas wrote to his younger sister. “It’s been the joy of my life to travel the world with you three times over and watch you hold every person who comes to your shows in the palm of your hand. Good luck tonight but you don’t need it, no one does it like you. Can’t wait to see you soon. Love, Pinch.”

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Eilish said to the camera, “It’s gonna be my first show ever without him.”

Finneas and Eilish have been collaborating since her 2015 breakout single, “Ocean Eyes.” The siblings have gone on to win 10 Grammys together, including their most recent Song of the Year win for Eilish’s song “Wildflower.” They became the first three-time winners in the history of the category following their previous wins for “Bad Guy” in 2020 and “What Was I Made For?” in 2024.

In addition to working with Eilish, Finneas embarked on a solo career in 2019 with his debut EP, Blood Harmony. He later released the albums Optimist (2021) and For Cryin’ Out Loud! (2024). He also released The Dream, a record with fellow singer-songwriter Ashe under the group name The Favors, in 2025.

By Chris Snellgrove
| Published 1 hour ago

Gene Roddenberry is rightfully considered one of the most visionary creators in television history. He brought us Star Trek: The Original Series, kickstarting a franchise that has lasted over 60 years through various movies and spinoff shows. Through the medium of sci-fi, Roddenberry explored major issues ranging from Civil Rights to Cold War tension. In fact, he put almost everything into the first Star Trek show except for himself.

Unlike his wife, Majel Barrett Roddenberry, Gene Roddenberry never gave himself a major role in any Star Trek project. This is why you never see his face onscreen at any point. However, what most fans don’t realize is that Roddenberry secretly made a single, uncredited appearance in one episode of Star Trek: The Original Series. In “Charlie X,” the second episode ever broadcast on TV, he served as the voice of the galley chef aboard the Starship Enterprise.

Talking Turkey With Captain Kirk

“Charlie X” is an episode of Star Trek: The Original Series that would arguably be more at home in The Twilight Zone. The Enterprise rescues a 17 year old who is the sole survivor of a crashed ship. The boy soon exhibits extreme powers of telepathy and transmutation, which take a sinister turn when he does things like make people who annoy him disappear from reality. Captain Kirk and his crew are unable to contain the boy, but the godlike aliens who gave Charlie his powers eventually show up and take custody of the dangerous young man.

Based on that description, you’re probably wondering why the heck the Enterprise galley chef even pops up in the episode. “Charlie X” takes place on Thanksgiving, and Captain Kirk wants his crew (who are almost entirely human) to get into the holiday spirit. Earlier in the episode, he tells Charlie that if the crew “has to eat synthetic meat loaf, I want it to look like turkey.” Later, the galley chef talks to Kirk over the ship’s intercom and tells him that even though he put meatloaf in the oven, it has been replaced with actual turkey meat. Charlie laughs, effectively cutting off their conversation.

Making Way For A Woman At Warp

It’s a very short interaction, one that is meant to subtly underscore Charlie’s reality-warping powers. We see the chef at one point, who is played by an unknown actor who doesn’t speak. When the chef speaks over the intercom with Kirk, he is voiced by Gene Roddenberry, making his one and only appearance in a Star Trek episode. William Shatner may have actually acknowledged this cameo on screen, calling the man “chief” instead of “chef.”

The fact that this is Gene Roddenberry’s only onscreen appearance in Star Trek is ironic because his wife became a mainstay actor throughout the franchise. Majel Barrett Rodenberry played Number One in the original pilot episode and Nurse Chapel in The Original Series. She also voiced the ship’s computer in The Original Series and The Next Generation and many other roles (including Spock’s mother, Amanda Grayson) in The Animated Series. For fans of the Golden Age of Star Trek, though, Majel will always be best known as Lwaxana Troi, mother to beloved TNG character Deanna Troi.

Gene Avoided The Screen

As for Gene Roddenberry, he never appeared onscreen in any future Star Trek shows or movies. However, later creators did their best to retroactively make him a part of franchise history. In reference books like the Star Trek Encyclopedia and the Star Trek Chronology, you can see a Photoshopped image of Roddenberry in an older-style Original Series uniform under the listing for Robert April. April is the very first Captain of the Enterprise (before Captain Pike took command) and is played by Adrian Holmes in Strange New Worlds.

We may never know exactly why Gene Roddenberry voiced the lowly, one-off character of the chef in “Charlie X.” In the early days of the show, it might have simply been easier to have him voice the character in the one scene than to hire an entirely new actor. At any rate, this has always been one of the best early episodes of Star Trek: The Original Series. But the fact that it represents Roddenberry’s one and only appearance in any version of Trek makes this episode a bona fide part of franchise history.

Criminal Minds star Paget Brewster is recalling her brief departure from the show after being fired and subsequently brought back.

“I think it was season six or seven or something,” Brewster, 57, said during the Monday, April 27, episode of Kristin Davis’ “Are You a Charlotte?” podcast.

The actress, who has portrayed Emily Prentiss since season 2 of the CBS crime drama, explained that Criminal Minds did a backdoor pilot for another series, meaning that the episode served as an introduction to a spin-off series and helped determine whether the spin-off would move forward.

“Apparently, this is what I heard, when Les Moonves — who is the now famously ousted president of CBS — when he got the pilot inside of our episode, it was the first time he’d watched the show [in a while],” Brewster claimed. “We think he saw the show for the first time in years and just said, ‘Oh, I don’t like those women. Get rid of those women.’ And so, A.J. Cook and I were fired.”

Related: Matthew Gray Gubler — And Other OGs — Return for ‘Criminal Minds’ Funeral

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Moonves, 76, resigned from his position as chairman and CEO of the network in 2018 after allegations of sexual harassment, sexual assault and abuse.

Cook, 47, who plays Jennifer “JJ” Jareau on Criminal Minds, briefly left the series after season 5 in 2010, along with Brewster. The latter returned for several episodes in season 6 after her “agent went in and had a big fight” with CBS, Brewster alleged. Meanwhile, Cook returned as a main cast member in season 7.

Brewster claimed that although she was also asked to return full-time, she opted to leave the show after season 7 in 2012 because she was “so mad” at the network. She then ventured into comedy, including roles in the shows Grandfathered, Community and Another Period.

Eventually, Brewster reconsidered her decision to step away from Criminal Minds.

“I really did hold on to that anger for too long,” she recalled. “It was an unhealthy thing to hold onto. Because A.J. and I were like, ‘We were early, we knew our lines, we never got into fights.’ We were really angry. I held onto the anger for too long, and after four years, I finally thought, ‘Why am I not [on the show]? I love everyone there. I just don’t like Les Moonves, and I never have to see him because he doesn’t care about this show.’”

Brewster returned to the show during season 12 in 2016 following former costar Thomas Gibson’s firing for an altercation with a producer. Gibson, 63, played Aaron Hotchner, the chief of the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit. Brewster’s character replaced Gibson’s in the role.

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Before agreeing to return to the show, Brewster said she argued for equal pay.

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“I fought to try to get my episodic fee close to what the men were making ‘cause we were always paid less,” she explained. “I was like, ‘Well, I kind of have them over a barrel. They need me more than I need this show.’ So, I got my episode fee way up from what it was. Then, when the other female cast members, their contracts were up, so I said, ‘This is what I got. Go get more.’ … So then, they went in and they got big raises.”

Though Criminal Minds — which follows the Behavior Analysis Unit (BAU) as its team of profilers catch serial killers — was initially canceled after season 15 in 2020, the series was revived as Criminal Minds: Evolution in 2022. Brewster is among the cast members who returned for the revival.

Criminal Minds season 19 premieres on Paramount+ on May 28.