An ad posted by Converse on Threads on Thursday, September 3, has sparked controversy as the public says the image appears to feature KKK-like imagery.

RELATED: Target Apologizes For Jim Crow Minstrel-Style Children’s Halloween Costume Featuring Blackface Imagery

Converse Sparks Controversy With Ad

The Converse ad features a person wearing a white garment and black-and-white Converse sneakers. The person is also holding a pair of black and white all-star Chuck 70 X high-top sneakers as they stand on a star lit up with a spotlight.

One person shared the promo on Threads with the caption, “If you don’t know anything about what’s being said about this Converse photo ad on social media … Good. Tell me what you see with your own eyes.”

 

 

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As of Friday, September 18, the ad was still featured on Converse’ Threads’ page.

People React To KKK Promo

Folks weighed in with the quickness over the Converse ad on Threads, and everyone saw the same thing.

Target Also Shared Controversial Ad

As The Shade Room reported, Target apologized after the company shared an ad for a racist Halloween costume. Target promoted controversy with the “Kids’ Glows under Blacklight Circus Clown Halloween Costume Bodysuit” from Hyde & EEK! Boutique line.

The costume looks exactly like Blackface caricatures from the minstrel show and Jim Crow eras.

Minstrel shows were performed by white folks wearing shoe polish, burnt cork, or on their faces. They portrayed Black people as cowardly, ignorant, lazy, superstitious, hyper-sexual, and foolish. Additionally, they painted exaggerated smiles on their faces. The Target costume featured the same offensive images, and backlash ensued. Subsequently, Target issued an apology.

“As a company, we know we got this wrong, and we are deeply sorry,” reads the statement. “The costume is offensive and should never have been part of our assortment. It is no longer available for sale. We know this is especially hurtful for our Black guests, team members and partners. Removing the costume is an important first step, and the company is looking closely at how this happened and what needs to change to ensure this won’t happen again.”

Over 60 years, Doctor Who has carved out its place in science fiction history. Part of that longevity comes from the concept of “regeneration,” where the Doctor periodically changes into a new form. This means each actor who steps into the Doctor’s shoes can put their own definitive take on the character…and even come back to the series if they want to. Fan-favorite Doctors, including David Tennant, and icons like Tom Baker have returned to the franchise over the years. If one Doctor Who alum has his way, he won’t be making an on-screen return any time soon.

Michael Troughton, who is the son of Patrick Troughton — the second person to ever play the Doctor — was recently asked whether he’d ever portray the Second Doctor on screen in an interview with the Radio Times. Troughton immediately shot down the idea, as he felt like his time with the character was better spent behind the screen:

“No, I don’t think so. I love playing the role for audio, but no. The Doctor goes on, and I don’t think we want to see me playing it… I don’t think I’d consider it.”

Troughton previously voiced the Second Doctor in a series of audio adventures for Big Finnish, following in the footsteps of his father and other Doctor Who alums who’ve returned to the role. His comments about not playing the Second Doctor on-screen serve as a reminder that Doctor Who isin the midst of its next big transformation and needs a fresh start rather than looking back to the past.

Michael Troughton Is Right — ‘Doctor Who’ Should Continue To Evolve

Image via BBC

Right now, Doctor Who is at a crossroads. BBC is currently putting the series out to competitive tender following the dissolution of a streaming deal with Disney+. That means that whoever takes up producing reigns has the difficult task of delivering an entirely new approach that will draw in new viewers and longtime fans alike. It’s a tall order, but a necessary one. The Disney+ era had a less than favorable reception and ended on the strangest cliffhanger, so it’s better to follow Michael Troughton’s advice and wipe the slate clean.

There’s also another thing that Troughton didn’t touch upon in his review, and that’s the fact that if he did come back as the Second Doctor, most people wouldn’t know the significance of the role. Most Doctor Who fans came into the series via the 2005 reboot, and are more familiar with David Tennant or Matt Smith than the classic Doctors. Whoever picks up Doctor Who next is probably going to go for an approach that still keeps all the classic elements of the series intact, but pushes them forward into a modern context. As Troughton so eloquently put it, the Doctor goes on.

Michael Troughton Previously Appeared on ‘Doctor Who’ in a Different Role

In addition to voicing the Second Doctor, Michael Troughton did show back up on Doctor Who, albeit in an entirely different role. During the 2014 special “Last Christmas,” Troughton plays the role of Albert Smithe, a professor heading an expedition into the Arctic that’s sabotaged by crab-like creatures who attack him and his crew in their dreams. Thanks to the intervention of Peter Capaldi‘s Tweltfth Doctor, the crew is saved alongside his frequent companion Clara Oswald (Jenna Coleman). “Last Christmas” turned out to be a major success, earning rave reviews and high ratings.

Ironically, this isn’t the first time that a Troughton has taken on a unique role in the world of Doctor Who. Michael Troughton’s older brother, David Troughton, previously appeared in the original series as well as the modern era, particularly the chilling episode “Midnight”. Their involvement is proof that Doctor Who can touch upon its legacy in ways that don’t involve bringing back past Doctors. While the future of Doctor Who might be hazy, it will definitely feel fresh.

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Release Date

2024 – 2025-00-00

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BBC One

Directors

Alex Pillai, Peter Hoar, Ben Chessell, Julie Anne Robinson, Jamie Donoughue, Amanda Brotchie, Dylan Holmes Williams

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Writers

Steven Moffat, Pete McTighe, Kate Herron, Inua Ellams, Juno Dawson

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Doctor Who / Whoniverse

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“Malcolm in the Middle” alum Frankie Muniz revealed in July 2026 that he and his wife, Paige Price, were ending their marriage. Months later, in a vulnerable social media post, the 40-year-old actor and race car driver opened up about his recent struggles, revealing that he hit rock bottom. This comes after similar posts from the TV star.

Muniz took to his official Instagram account on the morning of September 18 to share a vulnerable message accompanied by a photo of himself. The picture shows the actor sitting on a couch with his hands folded, looking contemplative.

He then used the caption to give insight into his headspace over the past several weeks. He began, “The last 6 weeks of my life have been a nightmare I’m praying to wake up from. Everything felt heavy, unclear, and like it was falling apart at the same time. I wouldn’t wish this season on anyone.”

After that, he discussed the “unexpected gift” from recent weeks, saying, “I’ve had nowhere to hide.” Muniz continued, “I’ve had time to sit with myself, do real self-reflection, and finally see the areas of my life that need work if I want to become a better version of me. Not the polished version I show the world…the actual one.”

The ‘Malcolm in the Middle’ Alum Discussed Hitting ‘Rock Bottom’

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The actor continued his emotional post by sharing something he’d previously learned about hitting a life low. According to him, “I read that sometimes hitting rock bottom is the thing that wakes you up. It forces the changes you needed to make all along so you can live the best life possible.”

He then noted that he’s carried “that idea” with him through his recent personal struggles. Muniz continued, “In five years I believe I’ll look back at this exact low point and feel grateful for it, because the high I’ll be standing on then only exists because I went through this.”

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After that, the “Renner” actor vowed to stay the course, saying, “This isn’t the end of the story. It’s the part where I start doing the work…the uncomfortable, unglamorous, necessary work. I’m choosing to treat this season as the foundation, not the finish line.”

He added, “If you’re in a low place right now too, you’re not broken. You’re being rebuilt. Let’s keep going!”

Frankie And His Wife Were Together For 10 Years

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Muniz and Price initially met in 2016 at a celebrity golf tournament. Two years later, in November 2018, the actor proposed, and they then eloped in 2019 before having a formal wedding in February 2020. After that, they had a son in March 2021.

Muniz spoke openly over the years about his relationship with Price, including her support and his busy racing schedule. However, per PEOPLE, the couple announced on July 1 that they had made the decision to end their marriage.

Their statement read, “Life update! Following a period of separation that we kept private, Paige and I have decided to move forward with ending our marriage.”

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It continued, “After 10 beautiful years together, we’ve grown in ways that made us realize our relationship feels most natural and strong as a deep friendship and as co-parents. We share an incredible son who remains the center of our world, and we’re both happier, stronger parents because of the love and growth we’ve shared.”

Muniz also used the statement to thank Price, noting that she “put her own dreams on hold so I could chase mine, and she was always my biggest supporter.”

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Muiz took to X on August 19, 2026, to ask about slowing his heart rate and say he’d recently learned a lot about himself. He stated, “How do I get my heart to stop racing 150 bpm and that feeling like it’s hard to get a deep breath in to subside? Learning a lot about myself this week, a side I ignored.”

He then clarified, “The not so good side. Ready to put in the work to be the best version of me I can be for the world.”

Days later, on August 26, he posted to the platform again, this time discussing having a broken heart. He said, “Am I naive to say that I didn’t know that having a broken heart actually meant your heart physically aches. I’d rather break my back again.”

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Am I naive to say that I didn’t know that having a broken heart actually meant your heart physically aches. I’d rather break my back again.

— Frankie Muniz (@frankiemuniz) August 26, 2026

He also posted on X on September 1, saying he was “struggling.”

Frankie Muniz Made His TV Return In 2026

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Though still acting, Muniz’s primary career focus these days is his racing. However, “Malcolm in the Middle: Life is Still Unfair” premiered on Hulu and Disney+, with most of the original Fox cast returning. The revival series quickly became a hit; according to Deadline, it garnered 8.1 million viewers in its first three days of release.

Editor’s note: The below review contains a brief discussion of sexual assault.

Though Lizzie Borden is one of the most famous (accused) criminals in American history, no one seems to find her especially frightening. It’s difficult to imagine any other murderer getting their own cute action figure, or a Clue-style board game based on their supposed crimes. The building where Jeffrey Dahmer killed was infamously razed to the ground and remains an empty lot to this day; the building where Borden supposedly gave her fatal “40 whacks” to her father and stepmother, Andrew and Abby Borden, is now a bed-and-breakfast where you can book a ghost tour or a “Victorian tea party.” Borden might read more as a creepy piece of Americana than a vicious killer because her alleged crimes occurred so far in the past. It might be because she’s a woman, because she murdered unpleasant relatives rather than innocent strangers, or because there’s ambiguity around her guilt — was she just an oddball who got blamed for the crimes because she struggled to fit in, or did she actually get away with murder?

Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story, the newest volume of Ryan Murphy‘s Netflix series dedicated to the lives of infamous American killers, introduces a new theory: we don’t feel scared by Borden because she was justified. Across the show’s eight episodes, The Lizzie Borden Story suggests that Borden (Ella Beatty), a gentle nature lover who’s just as abused by Victorian social norms as she is by her brutish parents, had no path to survival except putting an axe into Andrew (Charlie Hunnam) and Abby (Rebecca Hall)’s skulls. Veering wildly from feminist theorizing to romantic melodrama to raw discourse on cycles of abuse, The Lizzie Borden Story is a campy, frustrating, and occasionally extremely moving show about what happens when people get pushed to their breaking point, and what it really means to be “innocent.”

What is ‘Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story’ About?

Lizzie Borden is no one’s idea of a murderer. In fact, at the show’s start, everyone else around her seems far more likely to be the one to take someone’s head off with an ax: her father, Andrew, is a wealthy, cruel, drunk, and misogynistic casket-maker who has no qualms about chopping the feet off a dead body to make it fit into one of his coffins; her stepmother, Abby, is a violently abusive narcissist who sees no issue in slaughtering Lizzie’s beloved pet doves because they coo too loudly. Guileless and socially awkward, Lizzie spends her days alternating between delighting in plants and animals and being humiliated by humans, until a new servant, Bridget, arrives at her home.

Played by Phantom Thread star Vicky Krieps, Bridget is a worldly feminist with a hairdo that makes her look more like someone who plays bass in Phoebe Bridgers’ backing band than a Victorian housemaid — a point later underlined when her cleaning is soundtracked by The Runaways’ “Cherry Bomb.” Bridget, who has lived in Europe and reads broadly, teaches provincial Lizzie about the science behind her painful menstrual periods, as well as Victorian sex toys, and eventually, the story of the infamous “blood countess” Elizabeth Bathory (played in flashback by Krieps in a Lisbeth Salander wig). Lizzie and Bridget fall for one another, and after both are repeatedly subjected to brutal and careless acts by Andrew, Abby, and others, they decide that the Bordens have to go. Though they get giddy with bloodlust during their planning, the reality of murdering Andrew and Abby is unexpected for both of them. Bridget finds that actual murder is different from her “blood countess” fantasies; and in killing her father and stepmother, Lizzie seems to finally come into her own.

Weaving in and out of the narrative is Aileen Wuornos (Sarah Paulson), America’s other most famous female murderer. Nearly 100 years after Borden, we watch Wuornos also hit her limit, murdering a client after suffering a violent sexual assault. Wuornos is depicted as a Lizzie fangirl who road-trips with her girlfriend to visit the Borden bed-and-breakfast; she sees her as a patron saint of survivors who turn the tables on their abusers. “This is how women have had it the whole time,” Wuornos declares while reading a book about Borden, in one of the show’s many way-too-on-the-nose moments.

We know how both Borden and Wuornos’ stories end, of course — Borden would be acquitted, inherit her father’s fortune, and spend the rest of her life as an outcast in her hometown of Fall River, Massachusetts, while Wuornos was executed by the state of Florida in 2002. But the show asks us to stay with each woman to the end, to see how they handle their respective fates, and what they each mean about the way society judges women.

‘Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story’ Doesn’t Quite Know What It Believes

Thematically, The Lizzie Borden Story is a mess. The show’s weakest moments are when it tries to make a political argument for revenge murder as a kind of feminist project; Wuornos’s multiple adoring monologues about Borden and Bridget’s similarly adoring monologues about Bathory feel almost embarrassing to watch, especially when the show attempts to soften Bathory (who was accused of murdering teenage peasant girls in Renaissance-era Hungary) by giving her a tragic backstory that isn’t backed up by historical record. The show’s periodic pushes to make Borden an uncomplicated feminist icon feel genuinely laughable.

This tendency also pops up in the fact that the show treats Borden as almost a Cinderella-esque character. There’s no darkness within her, no part that enjoys the violence of committing murder or the mass media attention that followed. She’s simply a sweetheart who would have happily spent her days romping among the cherry trees and caring for her pets, if only her family and society hadn’t been dead set on abusing her. It also does a similar clean-up job on Wuornos, viewing her as rough-around-the-edges but ultimately just doing what she had to in order to survive. Considering that a hallmark of previous seasons of Monster was a multi-faceted probing of characters who definitely were not sweethearts, the show’s approach to its heroines’ inner lives can feel simplistic. And in the classic tradition of many previous Murphy outings, the series ends with a strange, muddled episode that time-jumps forward and introduces new themes at the last second — in this case, true crime, the pain of infamy, forgiveness, women’s suffrage (!), and a reunion between Lizzie and Bridget, decades after the crime, that never achieves the emotional heft that it should.

But in the moments when The Lizzie Borden Story is just an emotional tale about women grappling with lives that seemingly require them to do terrible things to survive, it shines. Beatty’s performance gently telegraphs Borden’s innate dignity, in addition to her pain; when she finally speaks her piece about the lifetime of abuse she experienced at Abby’s hands, it’s almost impossible not to be moved. And her love story with Bridget is engaging and affecting; Krieps creates a strong and genuine emotional underpinning for an anachronistic character who could have easily appeared silly.

When Paulson’s Wuornos isn’t delivering a history lecture, she owns some of the show’s most emotionally brutal moments. An imagined confession to Borden about the abuse she survived in her own childhood moved me to tears, as did a conversation Wuornos has with a supporter shortly before being put to death. One of the show’s strangest moments, in which Borden, Bridget, and Wuornos all dance together to the ’80s queer anthem “Smalltown Boy” by Bronski Beat, sounds like it absolutely shouldn’t work, but is actually a prime example of what The Lizzie Borden Story gets right — when it rips off its intellectual packaging and just dives into the raw human experiences of pain, sadness, and longing for something better than what you were given, it is a joy to watch.

Also a joy to watch: Rebecca Hall, giving her campy, wicked stepmother best as Abby Borden. If anyone here gets the complex, layered treatment that Monster usually gives their subjects, it’s Abby; we both understand the lifetime of suffering that transformed her into a beast, and hate her for the person she’s become anyway. Hall is an actress of tremendous range, but The Lizzie Borden Story makes the case for her playing more villains. Abby is vile, yet a thrill to watch every second she’s on-screen. The over-the-top stage actress Nance O’Neill (Jessica Barden) is also a delight, even though it’s not always exactly clear why she’s there. A subplot in which she inserts herself into Borden’s life doesn’t necessarily make much sense, but that doesn’t make it any less entertaining — which might also sum up the best parts of The Lizzie Borden Story, too.

‘The Lizzie Borden Story’ Wants To Be Simpler Than It Is

Image via Netflix

The Lizzie Borden Story is just the latest in a recent deluge of Borden-related media, including Christina Ricci‘s high-camp 2014 Lifetime movie Lizzie Borden Took an Ax, which was followed by a 2015 series, and Chloe Sevigny‘s 2018 Lizzie, which treated the story as something of a grim erotic thriller. It will also be followed later this fall by Victorian Psycho, an over-the-top Lizzie Borden-influenced horror thriller about a governess who’s more Norman Bates than Mary Poppins. It makes sense that so many people would consider Borden’s story fertile creative ground —it’s packed full of issues related to sexism, class, and whether there’s such a thing as a justified crime. But in insisting on Borden’s overwhelming goodness, The Lizzie Borden Story engages in a much milder form of the sexism it spends its runtime railing against.

In a certain way, The Lizzie Borden Story is cut from the same cloth as the recent (and superior) Hulu series Furious, which also investigates how society turns a blind eye to women’s abuse, and what happens when women who have no access to traditional avenues of justice “snap.” But Furious is unafraid to make its female characters complicated and difficult, to ask viewers to take them as people who are both good and bad. The Lizzie Borden Story, on the other hand, seems to think we can only feel sympathy for Borden if we also believe that she is essentially a saint who had one very bad day.

Despite its many enjoyable moments, it’s tough to not imagine what The Lizzie Borden Story could have been if the team had been ready to show Borden as a more flawed, ambiguous individual. While it wishes it were a complex Thelma & Louise-style statement about women, abuse, and revenge, it doesn’t trust the audience enough and instead gives us a cross between a lecture and a fairy tale.

Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story is now streaming on Netflix.

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Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story

Ryan Murphy’s muddled Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story turns America’s most infamous ax murderess into a saint.

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Release Date

September 17, 2026

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Network

Netflix

Directors

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Max Winkler, Sarah Adina Smith

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Cast

• 

  Vicky Krieps

  Bridget Sullivan

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  Ella Beatty

  Lizzie Borden

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Pros & Cons

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• The performances are uniformly high-quality, with Ella Beatty and Rebecca Hall as particular standouts.
• When it gives itself over to emotional storytelling, the show shines.

• The show isn’t too interested in examining Borden’s dark side, or asking if what she did was wrong.
• Half-baked messaging about women and murder repeatedly brings the narrative to a halt.

There are so many movies out there that it’s no wonder that many of them have been forgotten. Not that they all deserve to be remembered: many forgotten movies are so cheap and poorly made that it’s no wonder why they’ve essentially disappeared. Then there are those forgotten movies that deserve to be remembered, those that should be a lot more popular simply for how much fun they have.

Westerns, raunchy rom-coms, and time loop action movies are all represented here. Among the most enjoyable forgotten movies are filmmakers who are among the most acclaimed. Their movies listed here may not always rank highly in their filmographies, but they clearly had a lot of fun making them. These are ten movies that have been forgotten, but have the most fun.

‘That Man from Rio’ (1964)

Image via Les Productions Artistes Associés

A French farce spy satire that pulls influence from everything from James Bond to The Adventures of Tintin, That Man from Rio is a comical globe-trotting adventure movie with all the right moves. Directed by prolific filmmaker Phillipe de Broca and starring Jean-Paul Belmondo, best known for Jean-Luc Godard‘s Breathless, The Man from Rio is light, breezy entertainment that’s a ton of fun for anyone who enjoys adventure movies like Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Belmondo plays Adrien, an airman on leave who gets pulled into an international conspiracy and treasure hunt involving an Amazonian statue MacGuffin when his fiancée is kidnapped. While That Man from Rio was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, its profile outside cinephile circles is far too low. It’s a stylish yet silly adventure movie that features hair-raising stunts and fun set pieces.

‘Going in Style’ (1979)

Image via Warner Bros

Heist films are always a good bit of fun, and when the heisters happen to be three grumpy old men, it’s a real treat. Going in Style is the oft-forgotten feature film debut of director Martin Brest, who would go on to direct the ’80s action comedy classics Beverly Hills Cop and Midnight Run. The same assured direction he brought to those films is on full display in his debut film as well, which stars the legendary trio of George Burns, Art Carney, and Lee Strasberg. It’s one of the earliest, and best, entries into the crimes of the elderly subgenre.

Burns, Carney and Strasberg are three retirees living in New York City who decide that the best way to break up the monotony of their golden years is to do a little armed robbery. Unlike some of the later films of this kind featuring over-the-hill criminals, Going in Style is more than just cheap jokes and actually becomes quite melancholy by the end. It’s a bittersweet comedy with three old pros giving perfectly pitched performances. Skip the bland 2017 remake, and have way more fun with the forgotten original.

‘Used Cars’ (1980)

Image via Columbia Pictures

Before they made one of the most essential comedies of the ’80s with Back to the Future, filmmaking duo Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale collaborated on two supremely underrated comedies. They debuted with the sweet Beatlemania movie I Wanna Hold Your Hand, and then followed it up with the sleazy salesmen comedy Used Cars. Featuring an early adult role for Kurt Russell, then mostly known for his work in Disney movies, it’s a raunchy madcap movie that’s just as fun as the other ’80s comedy classic which steamrolled it at the box office, Airplane!

Russell plays Rudy, a cunning, conning car salesman who works for the kindly Luke (Jack Warden). When Luke dies of a heart attack, Rudy and his co-workers must do everything in their power to keep the dealership alive and out of the hands of Luke’s evil brother Roy (also Warden). There’s a ton of fun to be had in Used Cars, from the brilliant set-ups and payoffs in Zemeckis and Gale’s script, the underrated comic cast, and the epic comic climax featuring 250 cars racing across the desert with student drivers behind the wheels.

‘Without a Clue’ (1988)

Image via Orion Pictures

Sherlock Holmes is certainly a character that can be mined for some fun material. The many movies based on the Arthur Conan Doyle character have offered a range of different interpretations. One of the most fun, and forgotten, interpretations of the character came in the ’80s comedy Without a Clue, starring Michael Caine and Ben Kingsley as Holmes and Dr. Watson, respectively. Directed by Thom Eberhardt, who also helmed the ’80s cult classic Night of the Comet, the film offers a delightful twist on the iconic characters that provides ample entertainment.

In this version of the mystery-solving duo, Watson is the actual crime solver who has hired an actor named Reginald Kincaid to portray Holmes in order to protect his medical career. Watson finds he can’t actually rid himself of the blowhard Kincaid due to the reputation built around the character of Holmes, and when a new case involving the infamous Professor Moriarty (Paul Freeman) arises, the two must reluctantly team up again. Without a Clue is a super fun inversion of its classic characters, and Caine and Kingsley have dynamite antagonistic chemistry together.

‘I Love You to Death’ (1990)

Image via Tri-Star Pictures

A completely forgotten black comedy, I Love You to Death is an underrated effort from acclaimed filmmaker Lawrence Kasdan with a completely stacked cast. From top to bottom, it features Kevin Kline (with an over-the-top Italian accent), Tracey Ullman, River Phoenix, Joan Plowright and, most memorably, William Hurt and Keanu Reeves as two stoner hitmen. Based on a bizarre true story of infidelity and attempted murder, the movie is the kind of macabre fun that should’ve guaranteed it the cult status that has so far eluded it.

Kline plays Joey, who owns a pizza parlor with his wife Rosalie (Ullman). Joey is also a habitual cheater, and when Rosalie finds out, she decides to kill Joey but discovers that the task is easier said than done. Multiple, increasingly comical, murder attempts ensue, and while the film’s pacing can sometimes drag, the talented cast holds it all together. Everyone is having a blast in their roles, with Kline, Reeves and Hurt getting the most moments to flex their comedic muscles. I Love You to Death will definitely appeal to any fans of similar killer cult comedies like A Fish Called Wanda and Throw Momma from the Train.

‘Matinee’ (1993)

Image via Universal Pictures

Director Joe Dante has had a wonderfully idiosyncratic directorial career. Adjacent to but distinct from his peers who came up in the same era, Dante shares the nostalgia of Steven Spielberg and the anarchic spirit of John Landis. His films often mixed B-movie genre elements with cartoon logic, sharp satire and meta-humor. Dante is a one-of-a-kind director, and while his films almost all range from genuine hits (Gremlins) to beloved cult classics (The Burbs), his most personal, the coming-of-age comedy Matinee, is a forgotten classic.

Set in Florida during the Cuban Missile Crisis, the film is Dante’s love letter to the atomic monster movies of his youth. John Goodman gives another overlooked performance as Lawrence Woolsey, a shock-and-schlock filmmaker modeled after the famous B-movie director William Castle. Woolsey goes to Key West to premiere his new movie, Mant. With a cast of hormone-addled teens and nuclear-panicked adults, the film is a charming homage to a bygone era of filmmaking and a loving recreation of a very specific time and place in America.

‘The Hudsucker Proxy’ (1994)

Image via Warner Bros.

Just as Dante paid homage to his cinematic influences in Matinee, the Coen Brothers do the same with theirs in the highly underrated screwball comedy The Hudsucker Proxy. Co-written with fellow filmmaker Sam Raimi, the film is a more successful attempt at mixing influences than their previous collaboration, Crimewave. Where that film was The Three Stooges meets Hitchcock, The Hudsucker Proxy is a more clever combination of Frank Capra, Preston Sturges, and Howard Hawks with boundless energy, incredible production design and fantastic performances. It doesn’t get much more fun than this.

Tim Robbins plays a small-town man with big ideas, Norville Barnes, cut from the same cloth as George Bailey in It’s a Wonderful Life. He’s gobbled up by the Sturges-esque cynical world of big business, where he becomes the proxy president at Hudsucker Industries, while he also catches the eye of fast-talking reporter Amy Archer (Jennifer Jason Leigh channeling Katharine Hepburn and Rosalind Russell). The Hudsucker Proxy was a box office failure and received mixed reviews from critics, and while its cult status is growing, it’s still one of the most forgotten films by one of the most influential directing duos.

‘The Quick and the Dead’ (1995)

Image via TriStar Pictures

The year after The Hudsucker Proxy bombed, Raimi himself had his own box office misfire with the wild, wild Western The Quick and the Dead. Featuring an incredible cast of stars who were both rising and at the height of their powers at the time, and Raimi’s characteristic inventive camerawork, it’s a crazy fun popcorn Western that has a one-of-a-kind style within the genre. Within Raimi’s career, The Quick and the Dead is dead center in the decade that’s most overlooked, coming after his cult classic Evil Dead trilogy and before his superhero Spider-Man trilogy.

Sharon Stone plays a mysterious drifter called the Lady who enters a small-town quick-draw competition as a means to exact vengeance on the mayor, John Herod (Gene Hackman). The competition also includes outlaw-turned-preacher Cort (Russell Crowe) and the slick-tongued Kid (a young Leonardo DiCaprio). There’s also a murderer’s row of character actors filling out the rest of the competition slots, and the sequences themselves are Raimi operating at his most visually exaggerated.

‘The Sweetest Thing’ (2002)

Image via Columbia Pictures

Raunchy, adult comedies made a big comeback in the late ’90s and 2000s, built on the backs of filmmakers like the Farrelly Brothers and movies like American Pie. These films would almost universally focus on men behaving badly, all the way until Bridesmaids broke the filthy glass ceiling in 2011. Except that The Sweetest Thing did it nine years earlier. Combining the dirty talk of Sex and the City with the juvenile humor of South Park, which writer Nancy M. Pimental wrote for, the film is unapologetic, low-brow fun.

Cameron Diaz plays the ringleader of her friend group, which includes Christina Applegate and Selma Blair, whose strictly single policy is threatened when she meets uglies with a charming man played by Thomas Jane. Thus, a chaotic road trip ensues along with various misadventures featuring glory holes, raunchy songs, and clothing montages. The Sweetest Thing received negative reviews and was generally treated more harshly than many of the male-led raunchy comedies of the era, but it deserves some love for blazing a fun, foul-mouthed trail for female-led films like Bridesmaids, Girls Trip, and Booksmart.

‘Undercover Brother’ (2002)

Image Via Universal Pictures

Blaxploitation as a genre has inspired a lot of far more intelligent discourse than will be offered here. Simply put, there’s a fair amount of debate over where the lines of representation and exploitation cross in those films and what their ultimate impact was. It’s had an undeniable effect on many filmmakers, and also inspired many parodies and homages, like I’m Gonna Git You Sucka and Black Dynamite. Belonging in the same class as those films is the forgotten 2000s comedy Undercover Brother.

Based on an animated internet series, the film treats Blaxploitation the same way Austin Powers treated ’60s spy movies: there’s a lot of love for the genre underneath its satire. Eddie Griffin plays the titular character, a radical hero recruited by the B.R.O.T.H.E.R.H.O.O.D. to help fight “The Man.” Obviously, there’s a lot of deliberately offensive humor in Undercover Brother—some of it has aged poorly, but there are also a lot of undeniably funny and clever moments. The cast is incredible, with great supporting roles for both Dave Chappelle and Neil Patrick Harris that predate the resurgence of both their careers.

Kim Kardashian is facing another health scare that carries a painful connection to her family history.

The reality star is shown in a hospital discussing a diagnosis tied to the cancer that killed her father, Robert Kardashian. The revelation appears in the trailer for season 8 of “The Kardashians.” It also shows Kris Jenner becoming emotional as the family faces another reminder of Robert’s death.

Kim Kardashian lost her father to esophageal cancer in September 2003. More than two decades later, his death continues to shape her health concerns, career choices, and memories of the father she deeply admired.

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The new “The Kardashians” trailer shows Kim in a hospital revealing that she has “something called esophagitis.” An offscreen voice immediately connects the diagnosis to her father. “Didn’t your father — isn’t that what he died of?” the person asks. Kris appears afterward and becomes emotional while discussing the diagnosis.

According to Mayo Clinic, Esophagitis involves swelling and irritation of the tissues lining the esophagus. Untreated esophagitis can lead to Barrett’s esophagus, which can increase the risk of esophageal cancer.

Robert died at 59 in September 2003 after battling esophageal cancer. Khloé Kardashian recalled that he died only six or seven weeks after his diagnosis. She said he never used the word “terminal” with his children, even though she believed he struggled to accept the reality. 

Robert left behind Kim, Kourtney, Khloé, and Rob with Kris. In her 2015 memoir, Khloé recalled becoming so distraught that she passed out. She said she was told she had fallen to the floor, kicking and screaming, before being sedated, per US Magazine.

Kim Has Faced Other Health Concerns

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The new diagnosis comes after Kim previously faced another frightening medical discovery. She learned through an MRI that she had a brain aneurysm.

The aneurysm was described as a bulge in her brain that doctors believed was connected to stress. Kim said the condition could potentially rupture under severe stress, which is difficult to avoid given her lifestyle.

Her schedule includes running businesses, traveling for work, studying law, and raising four children. “I have four kids that depend on me,” Kim said, emphasizing why maintaining her health matters.

She subsequently underwent additional scans at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. The Blast previously reported that the aneurysm had been discovered during a general body checkup Kim takes seriously.

Kim has connected some of her health struggles to the intense pressure in her life. She also wondered whether her stressful marriage to Kanye West contributed to her aneurysm. The former couple divorced after seven years together and four children.

Kim has explained that walking away from the relationship did not mean completely escaping its pressures. “People think that I have the luxury of walking away,” she said. “My ex will be in my life, no matter what,” she added, because they share four children.

The Blast reported that Kim also continued dealing with psoriasis, a condition she has discussed publicly for years. Her flare-ups have appeared during periods of physical or emotional strain, including after losing weight for her Marilyn Monroe Met Gala dress and during filming for “All’s Fair.”

The Reality Star Once Called Her Father ‘The Best To Ever Do It’

Kim has continued honoring Robert publicly years after his death. She reportedly celebrated him during Father’s Day 2023 with a series of family photographs. The tribute also included Caitlyn Jenner, whom Kim recognized alongside her late father.

One photograph showed Robert holding Kim and Kourtney Kardashian in his arms. Other pictures captured him with the family, including a black-and-white image with Kim.

She captioned the tribute, “Best to ever do it! I wouldn’t be me if it weren’t for you two.” Fans noticed that Kim included both Robert and Caitlyn in her tribute.

One person praised her for recognizing Caitlyn as a stepfather, while another said it was nice to see step-parents acknowledged. Other commenters described the photographs as special and said the love between the family members was visible.

The Blast revealed that the tribute also came during a period when Kim was discussing motherhood herself. She described raising her four children as demanding but meaningful.

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She said motherhood had taught her the most about herself, “There are nights when I find myself crying to sleep,” she said. She described the experience as a “tornado” in her house, while still calling it “the best chaos.”

Robert’s Legacy Also Shaped Kim’s Business

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Robert’s influence did not stop at Kim’s interest in law. His personal style also became part of the inspiration behind one of her major business ventures.

The Blast previously reported that Kim credited her late father with inspiring SKIMS Men. She remembered Robert as someone who cared about looking cool and recalled buying him wax-coated Diesel jeans from the Los Angeles store where she worked.

Kim said her father would pair the jeans with a black T-shirt and loafers. She also remembered playing in his organized wardrobe as a young child before suffering a concussion after climbing onto a shelf.

Kris similarly remembered Robert’s strong connection to Gucci. She recalled that he often wore Gucci sport coats, pants and loafers during their relationship.

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SKIMS later introduced its men’s collection. Its launch reportedly generated 25,000 orders within its first five minutes. That performance marked the brand’s biggest sales day since its introduction in September 2019.

Robert’s influence was especially visible in the way Kim remembered his clothing. His preference for simple but polished outfits became one of the memories she connected to the men’s line.

Kim Kardashian Finally Reclaimed A Piece Of Her Father

Kim’s connection to Robert recently became even more tangible through an unexpected auction. In 2025, she was said to have secretly bid on a Bible that had belonged to her late father.

The Bible also contained Robert’s handwritten note, personal scripture, and his name in gold lettering. It had eventually come into O.J. Simpson’s possession after Robert gave it to him during the 1995 murder trial.

Kim reportedly won the auction after initially offering $15,000 to the Simpson estate. She later revealed that she had actually paid $80,000 for the sentimental item, nearly six times her original offer.

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Kim had used an alias during the auction to protect her privacy. She then surprised her family by revealing that she had won, before giving the Bible to Khloé.

The Simpson estate had rejected her original offer before putting the item up for auction. She later admitted that she had been willing to double her $15,000 offer. “I guess I had a little too much faith in humanity for a minute there,” Kim said.

The estate executor, Malcolm LaVergne, mocked her failed attempts to become a lawyer. Kim’s family also feared what other private items from Robert’s relationship with Simpson might surface. A source claimed the family was particularly worried about private correspondence between the two men becoming public.

Kim Kardashian’s latest diagnosis now brings her father’s memory into an intensely personal health conversation.

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On this episode of ‘Stepping Into The Shade Room,’ certified sex educator, sexologist, and relationship expert Shan Boodram is sitting down. This, for an unfiltered conversation on love, pleasure, and more! From her open marriage to trust and communication to the psychology of sex and the science behind “vabbing,” Boodram gets candid about it all in. This, in open conversation with host, Thembi.

Sexologist Talks Open Marriage & More

About three minutes into the conversation, Shan Boodram opened up about her open marriage. Contrary to the traditional understanding, Boodram explained that although she goes on dates, flirts, and has romantic connections with men outside her marriage, she has never been physically intimate with any of them.

“I choose that for myself, and my husband chooses that for him, which is important to know,” she explained, adding that her husband has had “versions of sex” with his extramarital interests. “… I trust his decision-making… it comes from a good place. And if he chooses to do something with his body, I think it’s probably what’s best for me. And the whole family and everybody else. Nothing that he has done ever has ever shown me that he doesn’t have me and the kids top of mind.”

Furthermore, Boodram acknowledged that the dynamic isn’t everyone’s standard. But called the experience “unique.” And part of her finding “her person.”

Shan Boodram Breaks Down “Vabbing” & Sex Hacks

According to Thembi, “vabbing” is the “practice of using one’s own vaginal fluids as perfume to attract others.” Per Boodram, the fluids likely contain pheromones which act as “scent signals to excite people.”

Scroll above to watch as Shan Boodram breaks down the phenomenon. Additionally, watch as she and Thembi discuss modern monogamy, “bad sex,” extreme kinks, and more!

RELATED: Claressa Shields Opens Up About Overcoming Childhood Abuse, Healing & Finding Her Strength | SITSR (Exclusive)

James Wehr’s family has announced a memorial for the car influencer and “his friend” Alexis “Lexi” Kramer following their deaths.

South OC Cars and Coffee, which James cofounded with his father, Simon Wehr, shared details of a special celebration of life for James, set to take place in San Clemente, California, on Saturday, September 19.

“Please join us as we remember our son James and his friend Lexi, who tragically lost their lives together,” the family wrote via Instagram. “This Saturday, we will be gathering to remember and honor James, who meant so much to so many in the car community.”

“A celebration of James’ life will take place at South OC Cars and Coffee this Saturday, September 19, from 8:30–11:00 a.m.,” the post continued. “Everyone is welcome to join us as we come together to remember James and celebrate the incredible impact he had on so many lives.”

Related: Car Influencer James Wehr’s Wife Emma Breaks Silence on His Death

Emma Wehr, the wife of late car influencer James Wehr, has broken her silence following his tragic death at age 27. James and another passenger were involved in a fiery car accident in Irvine, California, in the early hours of Sunday, September 13. Irvine police confirmed two fatalities after the driver of a 2019 McLaren […]

The post added, “In honor of James, we invite everyone to wear white sneakers. … Please drive safely, look out for one another, and join us in remembering James with the love and positivity he brought to those around him.”

James, who was 27, and Kramer, who was 22, were killed in a car accident in Irvine, California, in the early hours of Sunday, September 13. Irvine police said James was driving a 2019 McLaren supercar but “lost control” while traveling “northbound at a high speed.” James “struck a curb and a tree” before the car “split in two and caught fire.”

South OC Cars and Coffee, which describes itself as the “largest weekly car show in the world,” identified James as one of the two victims who perished in an Instagram post shared on Sunday. The post was reshared by his parents, Simon and Sarah Wehr, his sister, Sophia Wehr, and his wife, Emma Wehr.

“Unfortunately, we have some really heavy news to share with you all. This morning, just after midnight, we lost our darling son and brother James in a motor accident,” the post read.

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Related: Influencer James Wehr Was Driver in Deadly Crash, Pulled Over Hours Before

Car influencer James Wehr was in the driver’s seat of a 2019 McLaren that crashed on Sunday, September 13, killing him and Alexis “Lexi” Kramer, police confirmed. Wehr, 27, and Kramer, 22, suffered fatal injuries in the early hours of Sunday following an accident in Irvine, California, in which his supercar crashed into a tree, […]

“We respectfully ask for privacy as a family as we process this profound loss,” the statement continued. “We would appreciate all of your good thoughts and prayers, and for those of you who knew James, thank you for being his friends, his mentors and his peers. Thank you for being his clients and his loved ones. We are grateful for all of you.”

On Monday, September 14, a family member of Kramer’s identified her as the second victim in the accident.

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The relative told the California Post that Kramer had flown to California on Friday, September 11, to spend the weekend with James. The person also claimed that James had told Kramer he was in the midst of divorcing his wife.

James’ widow has hired attorney Corey Higgins to investigate the circumstances surrounding the influencer’s death.

“At the time of the collision, a significant amount of water was present on the roadway on an otherwise clear night, creating an extremely hazardous condition for any motorist,” Higgins claimed in an Instagram video on Wednesday, September 16. “The source of that water is yet to be identified, and our firm is actively investigating how that water came to be there, how long that condition had existed and who may ultimately bear responsibility.”

Perez Hilton’s longtime friend has launched a fundraiser to support the celebrity blogger’s three children and their grandmother as he continues receiving residential mental health treatment. Tom D’Angora said Hilton’s mother, Teresita Lavandeira, has put much of her life on hold to care for Mario, Mia and Mayte full-time while their father focuses on his recovery. The campaign aims to help cover the unexpected expenses of raising three children and maintaining their school schedules, activities, and routines during an extraordinarily difficult period.

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D’Angora explained his connection to Hilton, whose legal name is Mario Armando Lavandeira Jr., in the description of the family’s GoFundMe. “I’ve known Perez Hilton (Mario) for 14 years, and we have become very close friends, and during that time, he and his family have come to mean a great deal to me,” he wrote. “With the support of his friends, I’m organizing this fundraiser to help his mother and his three children, Mario, Mia, and Mayte, during his treatment and recovery.”

D’Angora confirmed that Hilton is receiving intensive care and said the process is expected to take time. “Perez is currently receiving full-time residential treatment while he focuses on his mental health and recovery. This process will take time. In the meantime, his mother has stepped in to care for his children full-time and give them the stability and support they need,” he explained.

Hilton was hospitalized following a concerning TikTok livestream on August 4 in which he appeared to harm himself. His family subsequently said that he had suffered serious physical injuries and would require continued medical and psychiatric treatment.

The Fundraiser Will Only Benefit The Children And Their Grandmother

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The GoFundMe description emphasizes that none of the contributions will be used for Hilton’s personal expenses or treatment. “All funds raised will benefit Perez’s mother and children only and help cover the additional costs of caring for three kids full-time. None of the money will be used for Perez personally,” D’Angora stated.

He explained that Hilton’s mother had unexpectedly taken on the responsibilities and costs associated with caring for three growing children. “Like any grandmother who suddenly finds herself responsible for raising three growing children, she’s also taken on significant and unexpected expenses,” he wrote. “She’s put much of her own life on hold to make sure the kids can continue going to school, participating in their normal activities, and having as much consistency as possible during an incredibly difficult time.”

D’Angora said Hilton’s relatives and close friends have already been assisting the family but wanted to provide a way for others to contribute. “Perez’s family and friends are helping however we can. We also wanted to give the many people who have asked how they can help a way to do so,” he shared.

Perez Hilton’s Mother Received Temporary Custody Of His Children

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Lavandeira sought temporary custody of Hilton’s children following his hospitalization. The court granted her temporary custody on August 18. The children are Mario, 13, Mia, 11, and Mayte, 8.

Hilton reportedly received supervised visitation rights, contingent on obtaining psychiatric clearance. The temporary arrangement also gives his mother responsibility for the children’s educational and medical needs.

The custody change was intended to provide the children with stability while Hilton remained unable to resume his normal parenting responsibilities.

His family later confirmed that the siblings have remained together and are doing well under their grandmother’s care.

His Family Says There Is ‘Still A Long Road Ahead’

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Hilton’s family provided an update on his condition in a September 14 statement posted to his website.

“We wanted to share an update with everyone who has continued to reach out, send messages, and share well wishes for Perez and our family,” the statement began. “After weeks in the hospital receiving treatment for his physical injuries, Perez entered a residential treatment program where he can focus fully on his mental health and recovery.”

Although his relatives described the transition as an “important step,” they cautioned, “There’s still a long road ahead.”

“Perez is expected to remain in residential treatment for several more weeks, potentially longer, depending on what his treatment team believes is best for his recovery,” the family continued. “He still does not have access to his phone or laptop, and his contact with family and friends remains limited so that he can focus fully on getting better.”

The statement did not provide a specific timeline for Hilton’s release. His treatment team will determine how long he remains in residential care.

The Family Addresses False Reports About His Condition

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Hilton’s relatives also used the update to dispute several rumors about his physical and mental condition. The family denied reports that the 48-year-old had lost 10 years of his memory, believed it was 2016, or had asked to see Katy Perry. “He is lucid and communicates clearly with his family,” they stated.

They also reassured supporters about the well-being of Hilton’s children. The kids “remain together, safe, and doing well in the care of their grandmother,” the family shared.

Their update emphasized that maintaining stability, routine, and a sense of normalcy for the children remains a priority while Hilton works through his recovery.

Tom D’Angora Hopes Perez Hilton Can Return To His Family

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D’Angora described the emotional toll Hilton’s mental health crisis has taken on the people closest to him. “It’s been heartbreaking to watch someone I care about very much, along with his entire family who I also care very deeply for, go through this,” he wrote. “More than anything, I want to see Perez recover and return to a happy and fulfilling life as a father, son, brother, and a great friend.”

The fundraiser organizer said donations of any size could help Hilton’s mother continue caring for the children during the months ahead. “Every contribution, no matter the amount, will help support the kids and their grandmother during the months ahead,” D’Angora explained. “If you’re not in a position to donate, simply sharing this fundraiser would also mean a great deal.”

He concluded, “Thank you for helping care for the people Perez loves most while he does the difficult work of getting better.”

Stephen Colbert recently addressed his former television network with a witty jab following his latest award victory. 

The comedian made a guest appearance on a rival late-night show shortly after securing major industry accolades for his canceled program. During the broadcast, he poked fun at the complete lack of outreach from executives after his show concluded its run on a massive high note.

Colbert’s “Late Night” show ended its years-long run on May 21 when its final broadcast aired. The network previously announced the cancellation of the show, citing financial difficulties as the reason for the shocking decision. 

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Making his return to evening television as a guest on “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” Colbert celebrated winning the prize for Outstanding Variety Series alongside five Creative Arts trophies for the final season of “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.” 

When Kimmel asked whether anyone from CBS had reached out to congratulate him on securing seven awards total for a show they recently took off the air, Colbert offered a swift, biting response.

“I am not familiar with that organization,” he retorted, per Entertainment Weekly.

Nevertheless, Colbert revealed he did receive an unusual parting gift from his former employer: 40 tailored suits from his 11-year stint on air.

He joked that the clothes are currently sitting in a spare room and also teased that newly graduated law students in need of formal attire should contact Kimmel to claim them.

Viewers Framed Stephen Colbert’s Prestigious Award Victory As A Final Triumph Over Critics

Colbert’s sarcastic remarks came shortly after he accepted numerous awards for his show. Taking the stage on September 14, the comedian accepted the honor for Outstanding Variety Series alongside his production team, marking a major milestone for the program. 

Fans quickly flooded social media to celebrate the moment, viewing the award as a symbolic triumph over corporate executives.

“A perfect signing off for The Late Show. Trump and his cronies might have gotten him canceled, but Colbert got the last laugh, as he took home an Emmy: just another award that Trump will never receive. Suck on that, MAGA,” one user wrote, per The Blast.

Another user gushed over the show and described it as “an island of relief in the ocean of Trump insanity.” Other users also expressed hope of seeing Colbert on their screens soon enough. 

The Canceled Franchise Dominated Creative Arts Categories With Multiple Victories

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Four months after broadcasting its final episode on CBS, “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” capped its 11-year run by earning multiple nominations at the 2026 Creative Arts Emmy Awards. 

The production swept technical and creative categories, taking home honors for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series against prominent late-night competitors, as well as awards for picture editing, lighting design, and technical direction. 

According to The Blast, the show also secured top directing accolades, while “Colbert Before Air” won Outstanding Short Form Series.

Stephen Colbert’s Finale Gag Left CBS With Financial Consequences 

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Along with his recent award successes, Colbert’s final moments on air also continued to make headlines after a bit during his farewell broadcast resulted in real financial consequences for the network.

During the May 21 series finale, Colbert openly teased potential legal issues while discussing copyright enforcement around Vince Guaraldi’s music from the classic “Peanuts” specials.

He jokingly warned viewers that trademark owners require anyone using the tunes without permission to “pay through the nose” and feigned shock when bandleader Louis Cato and his house musicians unexpectedly began playing the famous “Linus and Luck” track in the background.

“Oh no, I hope this doesn’t cost CBS any money!” He said, per The Blast.

However, the playful joke proved surprisingly accurate weeks later when Lee Mendelson Film Productions, Inc. confirmed that CBS entered into a formal post-broadcast licensing agreement to resolve the unauthorized performance. 

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Along with the legal resolution involving his broadcast finale, Colbert’s connections to the network are facing another shift as his family steps away from the organization.

Adding to the recent changes surrounding Colbert and the network, his daughter, Madeleine Carlisle, has reportedly stepped down from her position as an associate producer at “60 Minutes.” 

The Blast reported that her departure arrived amidst widespread internal disruption across the news division following a series of high-profile staff exits. 

The personnel turnover escalated following a newsroom shake-up in May, which saw the dismissals of correspondents Sharyn Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega, executive producer Tanya Simon, and executive editor Draggan Mihailovich.