Billy Ray Cyrus is remembering Dolly Parton with an emotional tribute that perfectly captures the country icon’s humor, warmth and ability to handle tabloid attention. Following Parton’s death at age 80, Cyrus shared a collection of photographs documenting their decades-long friendship, including moments with his daughter and Parton’s goddaughter, Miley Cyrus. The “Achy Breaky Heart” singer also revealed that Parton had recently sent him a personal message expressing how deeply she loved him.

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Cyrus began his Instagram tribute by reflecting on how difficult it was to choose just one memory from their friendship. “I have so many moments and memories with Dolly, it’s hard to know where to start. Like every little boy, I grew up loving Dolly Parton. She was a part of our lives, on our TV’s, right in our living rooms,” Cyrus wrote alongside photographs of the pair throughout the years.

The carousel opened with a photo of Billy Ray, Parton and Miley Cyrus smiling together at a MusiCares event. Another black-and-white image captured a younger Billy Ray posing with Parton inside a recording studio, while a more recent photograph showed the longtime friends seated beside each other at an event. Cyrus also included a nostalgic image from their early musical collaboration, showing Parton performing alongside him in the “Romeo” music video.

Dolly Parton Had A Hilarious Reaction To Affair Rumors

Cyrus recalled one particularly unforgettable interaction from 1992, when tabloid stories falsely linked him romantically to Parton. Rather than allowing the rumors to affect their friendship, Parton responded with the wit that became one of her trademarks.

“In 1992, I’ll never forget walking into her dressing room to apologize for all the tabloid stories which claimed I was having an affair with her. In true Dolly fashion, she just looked at me, winked, and said, “Honey, this trash sells records!”” Cyrus shared.

The moment reportedly unfolded during the same period that Cyrus was experiencing his rapid rise to fame following the release of “Achy Breaky Heart.”

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The Country Singers Collaborated On ‘Romeo’

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Parton and Cyrus turned their friendship into a musical collaboration the following year. Cyrus appeared on “Romeo,” a song from Parton’s 1993 album “Slow Dancing with the Moon.” The recording also featured Mary Chapin Carpenter, Pam Tillis, Kathy Mattea and Tanya Tucker.

According to Parton’s official website, the album reached No. 4 on the Top Country Albums chart and No. 16 on the Billboard 200. “Romeo” also earned a Grammy nomination for Best Country Vocal Collaboration.

Their Friendship Extended To Miley Cyrus

Parton’s bond with Billy Ray eventually grew to include his daughter Miley, who affectionately called the singer “Aunt Dolly.” Billy Ray named Parton Miley’s honorary godmother, creating a relationship that became one of the most recognizable mentorships in entertainment.

Parton later appeared on Miley’s Disney Channel series “Hannah Montana” as Aunt Dolly, the godmother of Miley Stewart and a close friend of the fictional Stewart family.

Away from television, Parton continued to advise Miley as she moved from child stardom to an adult music career. The two women also performed together and collaborated on several songs over the years.

Dolly Parton Sent Billy Ray Cyrus A Final Message

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Cyrus concluded his tribute by revealing that he had received a deeply personal message from Parton shortly before her death. “Dolly recently sent me a beautiful message, telling me she loved me with her whole heart. I will always love her in the same way ….. with my whole heart … and I always will,” he wrote. His choice of words also served as a touching reference to Parton’s enduring song “I Will Always Love You.”

Cyrus did not disclose when Parton sent the message or provide further details about its contents. However, the revelation showed that their friendship remained strong more than three decades after the tabloid rumors first brought them unwanted attention.

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Billy Ray Cyrus Celebrates Dolly Parton’s Enduring Legacy

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Parton’s death was announced on August 25 by her nephew, Bryan Seaver, who shared a video on behalf of the Parton and Owens families. The singer leaves behind a career filled with landmark recordings, film roles, business achievements and philanthropic work.

She earned 11 Grammy Awards and was inducted into both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Her songs, including “Jolene,” “9 to 5,” “Coat of Many Colors” and “I Will Always Love You,” became enduring pieces of American music.

Parton also helped provide millions of free books to children through her Imagination Library and created an entertainment destination rooted in her East Tennessee upbringing through Dollywood.

There is no greater magnet for misfortune in the world of Marvel Comics than Peter Parker. Part of his charm is his ability to endure one tragedy after another — from losing his uncle Ben to failing to save Gwen Stacy and erasing his marriage to Mary Jane — and come out on the other end still more than willing to keep fighting for a better tomorrow. It’s an aspect visible across all versions of the character, whether on the page or on-screen in his latest theatrical outing, Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Yet, there’s one thing that the superhero giant has been reluctant to do to its beloved web-slinger in the main Earth-616 timeline — kill his Aunt May.

While the MCU broke ranks and killed Marisa Tomei‘s May Parker in Spider-Man: No Way Home and alternate universe comics have similarly imagined a world without her, the mainline Spider-Man comics haven’t been willing to pull that proverbial trigger, at least not definitively, to this point. The Amazing Spider-Man #400 seemingly saw the death of Peter’s dear mother figure, but it was later revealed to be an actress genetically modified to look exactly like her. Her near-demise was also the catalyst for the infamous One More Day storyline, where Peter sacrificed his marriage to Mephisto to save her. There have been a few other fake-outs too, but in a universe where characters die and come back to life all the time in some form or another, The Amazing Spider-Man May has been borderline invincible. That may not last, though.

‘The Amazing Spider-Man’s Latest Issue Sets Peter Up for Devastation

At the end of The Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 7, issue #35, penned by Joe Kelly, Peter is receiving a reprimand from Agent Griffyn of the Department of Damage Control. Something happened to Ghost-Spider that caused her to lash out against the city and endanger the lives of civilians until Spidey found her and snapped her out of it. Griffyn wants to take her into custody until the other Spiders swing in and whisk her away to get checked out by Norman Osborn. He is not pleased that the wall-crawler defended a criminal, considering him just as liable for aiding and abetting. Before the chewing-out can resume, however, Peter finally answers a call from Aunt May after being repeatedly dialed. However, it’s not his beloved family member, but instead her boyfriend, Ric, urging him to come to the hospital immediately because May had a stroke.

The look of pure shock and devastation on Peter’s face under the mask when he hears the news says it all. Few characters have been as continuously important to the web-slinger as Aunt May, who has been endlessly supportive of her nephew whether she knows of his identity as Spider-Man or not. Issue #9 only further drives home their relationship, with the two getting one last heart-to-heart about how he’ll always be her son, even with the reintroduction of her and Ben’s actual son, Cormac, into her life. Losing her for the first real time in the history of The Amazing Spider-Man would be a watershed moment in Marvel Comics. Whether she lives or not, though, it’s setting up for a very consequential 1,000th issue on September 30.

In the meantime, The Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 7 #35 is now available for purchase. Stay tuned here at Collider for more coverage of the latest comics from Marvel throughout the year.

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Release Date

July 29, 2026

Runtime

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145 minutes

Director

Destin Daniel Cretton

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Writers

Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers

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Producers

Avi Arad, Kevin Feige, Louis D’Esposito, Amy Pascal, David Cain

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Taylor Swift shared a heartfelt tribute to Dolly Parton after the country music icon’s death at age 80.

“A world without Dolly doesn’t feel possible, real, or right. But because of the eternally generous way she spent her time on this earth and the countless lives she changed for the better, her legacy will be an everlasting one,” Swift, 36, said in a statement obtained by Us on Tuesday, August 25.

“She was truly the gift that kept on giving. Dolly gave us someone to look up to while encouraging us to be who we are as individuals,” Swift continued. “Somehow she was able to give us her lessons about the world gently and honestly, simultaneously, and oftentimes hilariously. She managed to give the world the ultimate mystery and fantasy in some corners of her life, but to give full transparency in the ways that counted. Somehow she was true grace and true grit, all in one dazzling person. She possessed the softest heart when it came to the struggles of others and a backbone of steel to defend her own self-worth as an artist.”

The Grammy winner went on, “Along with her other fans, I am so grateful for all of it. For the melodies and lyrics she wrote that thawed even the coldest hearts. For the millions of books she provided children all over the world so that they might fall in love with stories the way she did. For the tightropes she walked so that young girls like me could grow up dreaming of joining the circus too.”

Related: Dolly Parton’s Nephew Addresses Her Death at Age 80 in Emotional Video

Dolly Parton’s nephew Bryan Seaver paid tribute to his late aunt while confirming her death at the age of 80 in a sentimental video. “I am representing the Parton and Owens family today, announcing the passing of my Aunt Dolly Rebecca Parton Dean,” Seaver began in the clip posted to Parton’s Instagram account on Tuesday, […]

“Dolly, I’ll think of you each step of the way,” the newly married pop star concluded her tribute.

Parton died in Nashville on Tuesday following a “brief battle with cancer,” a spokesperson for the star confirmed.

“Our beloved Dolly Parton spent her life and career bringing joy, laughter, hope and integrity into everything she touched. Her unmatched generosity reached the lives of countless people whom she would never meet, yet she was always there to offer a helping hand,” her rep told People. “Whether it be the hundreds of millions of books donated through her invaluable Imagination Library or funding research that helped create a lifesaving vaccine used around the world, Dolly’s unconditional love for all people was the guiding force for her lasting impact.”

“After bravely facing a brief battle with cancer, Dolly departed her Earthly life today at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center surrounded by loved ones,” the statement said.

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Related: Barack Obama and More Stars React to Dolly Parton’s Death at 80

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Hollywood is in mourning following the death of country music icon and actress Dolly Parton. “A rhinestone life that shone bright enough for the world to see, Dolly will forever stand as an inspiration not only through her timeless music and prolific songwriting, but also her wit, warmth and kindness that made us all feel […]

Before her death, Parton thanked Swift and husband Travis Kelce, 36, for a $2 million donation to her Imagination Library ahead of their July 3 wedding.

“I’m blown away and overjoyed with that gratitude,” Parton said in a video shared via Instagram last month.

Parton went on to joke, “Now, it’s evident that you have made giving back a key part of your lives, so hey, when you have your firstborn, can I have it? Because that is gonna be one special baby!”

Perez Hilton’s recovery journey is entering a new phase, but one of the biggest challenges he faces has little to do with physical healing. 

Weeks after his hospitalization following a disturbing August 4 incident, the celebrity blogger is reportedly eager to reconnect with the three children he has not seen since being admitted for treatment. 

While his wounds continue to heal, family members are taking a cautious approach, prioritizing the well-being of his children as Hilton navigates both physical and mental recovery.

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For Perez Hilton, the absence of his children has reportedly become one of the hardest parts of his hospitalization. 

Sources close to the family say the blogger has only been able to communicate with Mario, Mia, and Mayte by phone since entering treatment following the incident.

The children were inside Hilton’s Miami home when the episode unfolded. Although it remains unclear how much they witnessed before being taken outside by Hilton’s sister Barbara, family members are determined to avoid exposing them to further distress.

A longtime family friend told the Daily Mail that the 48-year-old’s injuries remain highly visible. “The cuts are bad. Still a lot of bandages. Wounds. They’re on his face and neck and arms. They’re everywhere,” the insider stated.

According to the source, that reality has significantly delayed any in-person reunions. The source revealed, “We don’t need to traumatize them all over again.”

While a Miami judge recently granted Hilton visitation rights, any meeting must be supervised by either an approved family member or a therapist, adding another layer of complexity to the situation.

Hilton Awaits Clearance Before Seeing His Kids Again

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Even though visitation has technically been approved, Perez Hilton still faces additional hurdles before reuniting with his children face-to-face.

Court records previously revealed that the blogger must receive psychiatric clearance from a mental health professional before visits can move forward. According to sources, that approval had not yet been granted as of the weekend, though family members remain hopeful that circumstances could change soon.

The delay is not only tied to Hilton’s mental health recovery but also to his physical condition. Family members reportedly want more time for his injuries to heal before the children see him.

“He’s still covered with cuts that are healing, stitches are dissolving and he’s still got some on his face. We’re hoping they can heal a bit more this week before he sees the kids,” a family friend explained.

In the meantime, another source said Hilton’s children are being cared for by their grandmother, Teresita, who currently maintains temporary custody. Family members have emphasized that the children are safe and supported while Hilton continues receiving treatment and working toward the next stage of his recovery.

Perez Hilton Faces Growing Financial Pressure While Hospitalized

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Beyond concerns about family reunification, Hilton is also reportedly dealing with mounting financial stress as his recovery stretches into another week.

According to a Las Vegas-based friend, medical expenses have become a major source of anxiety. “Poor Perez has been spending so much money on the hospital and doctors, it has really added up and it’s a nightmare for him,” the source said.

The timing has created additional complications because the father of three was reportedly already struggling professionally before the August incident. 

Sources claim several reality television pitches failed to move beyond early development stages, while activity on his celebrity gossip website, historically his primary source of income, declined after an initial spike in traffic following the livestream.

Although Hilton’s team has resumed posting entertainment news and celebrity updates online, insiders say it remains unclear whether the site’s audience will fully rebound.

As a result, those close to Hilton believe he may eventually explore other financial options. One insider suggested a paid interview discussing his experience could generate income, while another noted that his Las Vegas home has already been listed for sale for several months. 

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Hilton’s Sister Says She ‘Didn’t Recognize’ Him

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While Perez Hilton’s family has been focusing on his recovery and the difficult question of when he can safely reconnect with his children, his sister, Barbara Lavandeira, has provided a deeply personal account of the moment everything changed. 

As The Blast reported, Lavandeira described August 4 as “one of the darkest days my family and I have ever experienced,” recalling that her brother had locked himself in his bedroom, which she said was unusual because his door was almost always open.  

After he stopped responding, Barbara unlocked the bedroom and discovered him in the bathroom. “When I opened the door, my nightmare became a reality,” she said, adding, “Mario was standing in front of the shower, naked, cut up, covered in blood, with a box cutter in his hand.” 

Her most striking description came moments later as she noted, “What I can say with certainty is that I didn’t recognize my brother when I looked at him. I saw it in his eyes. They didn’t look the same. Then, a split second later, he smiled at me. It felt like I was staring at someone else.”  

Barbara said she immediately got Hilton’s three children out of the home, called 911 once they were safe, and then returned inside to help stop his bleeding until emergency responders arrived. 

She also revealed that Hilton had spoken with her and their mother about feeling “empty, hopeless, and like he was a burden on everyone” shortly before the crisis.

Perez Hilton’s Family Says Entertainment Remains Part Of His Future

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As Hilton’s family works through his recovery, another question is emerging: what happens to the career that has defined much of his adult life? 

As The Blast reported, his brother-in-law, Tom, revealed that the answer is not necessarily retirement. Despite everything that had happened, Tom believed Hilton still had an attachment to the entertainment world and to the celebrity-gossip business he had built.

“He does what he does because he loves doing it. He got into this because he loves celebrity gossip,” Tom stated while discussing Hilton’s professional future. He added that Hilton “still has love for the entertainment industry.”  

However, Tom acknowledged that returning to that world would require more than simply walking back into the spotlight. He said Hilton will need to work out “the best ways to cope with that” as part of his recovery. 

The family has not established a timetable for his return to work, and Tom indicated that his immediate focus remained on Hilton’s mental health rather than his career. 

That uncertainty comes as Hilton’s longtime website has resumed publishing through his team, allowing the business he created to maintain a presence while he remains away.

Superhero movies are inescapable now, and that’s a statement one’s been able to make for a couple of decades, maybe even a quarter of a century. So, they’ve been more than inescapable just “now.” You’ll sometimes hear rumblings that they’re going away, or waning in popularity, but then bam, something like Spider-Man: Brand New Day comes out and becomes one of the highest-grossing movies ever in a matter of weeks. Like, seriously, look at how much money that thing has made… it casts doubt on the whole “superhero fatigue” thing.

So, they’re popular. And they’re often crowd-pleasing, but not always. Some of the following superhero movies have been popular, but they’re all united by being kind of dark. They’re the most intense superhero movies ever made, basically, with a mix of ones that were largely successful and popular (despite some of the bleakness contained within them) and others that were more violent and less audience-friendly.

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‘Batman Returns’ (1992)

Image via Warner Bros.

Batman Returns has admirably bad vibes. The first Batman movie Tim Burton helmed was sufficiently dark, and certainly more intense than most other superhero movies had been up until that point, but Batman Returns was definitely next-level. “Grotesque” feels like an appropriate adjective here, mostly thanks to the villains, and then the dark atmosphere of the first movie is made darker, too.

There is a level of camp in both movies that prevents either from being as full-on as some of the films that’ll be mentioned in a bit, but if Batman Returns wasn’t here, it would feel like too great an omission. It walked (nastily) so other ambitious, mature, and not really kid-friendly superhero movies could run (also nastily; like, big, squelchy footsteps, all through mud) later on.

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‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ (2014)

Someone making the argument that Captain America: The Winter Soldier is more of a spy thriller than a superhero movie might be pushing things a little, but there is still a good deal of espionage-related thriller stuff here. It gets bigger and more superhero-y in its second half, and it is still a piece of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which might restrict it a little by way of what boundaries can be pushed, yet this does feel more dangerous than the majority of MCU movies for sure.

There is a way that Captain America: The Winter Soldier shakes up the status quo, to some extent, that is pretty neat. There’s only one other MCU movie that does more by way of disrupting the whole (generally stable) cinematic universe, and more on that one in a bit (it is definitely darker than The Winter Soldier, mostly when it comes to its ending).

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‘Chronicle’ (2012)

Image via 20th Century Studios

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Chronicle is a bit of a deconstruction of the whole superhero genre, or at least an attempt to try and do things realistically. It’s grounded, thanks to the found footage style, being about three teenagers who begin developing superpowers after coming across a strange object inside a cave. The abilities they have are fun at first, and then things inevitably get kind of bleak when one of them decides he can strike back at those who bullied him using the powers he has.

It almost feels like a stretch to label it a superhero movie, since there isn’t much by way of heroics, but Chronicle still qualifies… just. It’s good, too, and has proven to be a pretty effective time capsule for the 2010s (the first half of that decade being almost far back enough, now, to be genuinely nostalgic).

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‘The Batman’ (2022)

Image via Warner Bros. Pictures

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Hey, another Batman movie. The Batman was yet another reboot for the character, with Robert Pattinson being yet another actor to play Bruce Wayne/Batman, and he was a surprisingly good one, too. But yeah, like Batman Returns, and at least one other Batman movie that’ll be mentioned a little later, The Batman is moody and intense, and it feels that way for a long time, too.

The Batman is long, clocking in at almost three hours. There is genuine hope at the end of it all (the last words spoken being a sincere “Take care of yourself), and Bruce Wayne/Batman’s character arc here involves moving on from being purely defined by his darkest qualities. That being said, you do get a lot of darkness and an overall very grimy feel to it all in the lead-up to that eventual catharsis, so it still feels like one of the heavier superhero movies of the last decade or so.

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‘The Crow’ (1994)

Image via Miramax Films

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Based on a graphic novel that’s all about grief, The Crow (1994) had to be dark. And it went dark earlier than most superhero movies, admittedly coming out after Batman Returns, but being more emotionally raw and violent than that film, mostly thanks to its R rating.

As for the story here, a man comes back from the dead, and avenges his death and that of his fiancée with supernatural powers he has post-resurrection. And there are some other things that go on, but it’s pretty focused compared to the rawer and less narrative-heavy source material. Both are very good in their own ways, though, hitting hard emotionally. Of course, what happened to Brandon Lee during the film’s production inadvertently added to that sense of heaviness… it’s hard not to think about it while watching the movie, for obvious reasons.

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‘Super’ (2010)

Image via IFC Midnight

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While Super is technically a comedy, it’s about as dark as dark comedies get, and it also gleefully jumps around quite a lot tonally, especially by the time it reaches its final act. It’s also a deconstruction of the superhero genre, kind of like Chronicle, though going for a different thing genre-wise, obviously. Still, the approach here is more or less “Let’s do superheroes, but realistic.”

Here, the main character who aspires to be a superhero (of sorts) is going through a lot, to put it mildly, and his brutality as a vigilante is funny until it isn’t. Also, Super is extra interesting to watch post-2014, since that was the year James Gunn started directing more approachable and crowd-pleasing superhero movies, starting with Guardians of the Galaxy (even 2021’s The Suicide Squad doesn’t feel as brutal or cynical as Super).

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‘Avengers: Infinity War’ (2018)

Image via Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Speaking of Guardians of the Galaxy, the characters from that are featured in Avengers: Infinity War, alongside pretty much all the heroes who’d been introduced in the Marvel Cinematic Universe pre-2018 (no Hawkeye or Ant-Man until the sequel – Endgame – though). Everyone is needed because the film’s antagonist is particularly powerful, and because he wants to eradicate half of all life in the universe.

Thanos is probably the best villain the whole MCU has had to date, and the one to beat going forward. Speaking of being beaten… well, you probably know what happens in Avengers: Infinity War, and why it places here. The intensity of the ending is ultimately resolved, and the cinematic universe kept marching on, but in the moment, it was one hell of a mic drop, before the mic was eventually picked up again. Still…

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‘Watchmen’ (2009)

Image via Warner Bros. Pictures

Watchmen is the go-to superhero/comic book deconstruction story, and it takes the idea of superheroes realistically while still being quite bold as a work of science fiction. It’s an odd line walked, but it mostly does this by taking place in an alternate history, which lets it get a bit stranger – and not as grounded – as the likes of subsequent superhero deconstructions, like Chronicle and Super.

It’s interesting to compare it to the source material, too, which feels a bit more realistic in some ways (less stylish action and characters who don’t look as Hollywood as the actors who’d go on to portray them) but then you also have to address the giant squid in the room, which is a wilder place that’s gone to narratively than where the film goes. Both the graphic novel and the movie are good, though. If that’s a hot take. It’s hard to know, nowadays.

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‘Logan’ (2017)

Image via 20th Century Studios

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The only thing that’ll cause more despair than Logan is trying to work out where it fits into the whole X-Men timeline, or chronology, or lack thereof. It’s a hopeless endeavor, fitting for a movie that feels very hopeless for 95% of its runtime, The Batman-style (with a tiny bit by way of positive emotions felt by the end of it all, though you do have to work for that small degree of catharsis).

Logan takes place in a dystopian future, with the titular character (AKA Wolverine) dealing with his body finally physically breaking down and degrading, while Charles Xavier is dealing with his mind breaking down. And the whole of society is breaking down, and mutants are going extinct and being hunted. It’s all pretty miserable, but it’s all pretty good, too, so long as you don’t mind the bleakness of it all (or so much of it, at least).

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‘The Dark Knight’ (2008)

Image via Warner Bros. Pictures

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Sure, lots of the previously mentioned movies are more violent than The Dark Knight, which does squeak by with a PG-13 rating (it’s one of the more intense PG-13 movies out there for sure, though), but intensity isn’t directly proportional to the level of violence in a film. The Dark Knight is just relentless with how it feels and how it’s paced, and it was a shock to the system at the time, too.

Most of the previously mentioned superhero movies also came out post-The Dark Knight, and while it’s impossible to say that it definitely influenced all of them, it probably influenced – or paved the way for – at least some of them to go to the places they did, emotionally and thematically. The darkness here isn’t as surprising now, of course, but considering how explosive and game-changing it was back in 2008, this film deserves the #1 spot here.