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Theo James Reacts to Meghan Markle The Gentlemen Cast Rumors

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Theo James is reacting to the rumors that Meghan Markle could potentially be his costar on The Gentlemen.

“Yes, Fergie is joining. She’ll be playing my love interest,” the actor, 41, joked about the casting rumors, referring to royal family member Sarah Ferguson in an interview with Town & Country published on Wednesday, September 2.

Jokes aside, James added that he believes that the rumors about the Duchess of Sussex, 45, being cast in The Gentlemen season 3 were “mainly a lot of hot air.”

“At the moment, we’re just trying to get as many eyes on season two, and then season three will happen soon,” he told the outlet. “But in terms of story, we have the overarching ambition of where we’re going to go. We’re going to expand the world, go to different countries. But in terms of the minutiae, I mean, it’s still very much up in the air.”

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Rumors swirled last month that Meghan was in talks to join the cast of the Guy Ritchie series amid news of her and Prince Harry’s return to the United Kingdom. The Gentlemen appeared to be a perfect fit for Meghan to make her return to acting as the Netflix series films in the U.K.

However, it has since been reported by Tina Brown, former editor-in-chief of Vanity Fair and The New Yorker, that the former royal’s offer had been withdrawn due to backlash.

Days later, a Netflix executive cryptically responded to the rumors about Meghan’s involvement in the show.

“All bets are off,” Manda Levin, Netflix’s scripted chief in the U.K., said at the Edinburgh TV Festival on August 26, when asked about the rumors about Suits alum joining the series.

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News of Meghan’s potential involvement came before The Gentlemen season 2 premiere on Netflix. Ahead of its premiere, the streamer revealed the show was renewed for season 3.

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Related: Everything Meghan Markle Has Said About a Potential Acting Return

Meghan Markle quit acting ahead of her 2018 royal wedding to Prince Harry and before the pair relocated to the United States. Now that the couple are preparing to return to England, is an acting comeback in Meghan’s future? After securing a handful of TV and film roles, Meghan notably starred as paralegal-turned-attorney Rachel Zane […]

“Ambition can’t be tamed. The Gentlemen Season 2, starring Theo James and Kaya Scodelario, premieres NEXT THURSDAY,” Netflix wrote via its official X account in August. “As for Season 3? Consider it official.”

The Gentlemen follows James’ character Eddie as he makes the unexpected transition from duke to drug baron after inheriting a weed empire. Eddie ultimately partners with a criminal dynasty that has its own agenda. After establishing his criminal enterprise in the inaugural season, season 2 will follow Eddie as he expands on an international level. The Gentlemen season 2 will premiere on Thursday, September 3.

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“You still want the humor, but this season we wanted to take some of the wins of season one, but also learn from some of the things that we didn’t quite get to do on season one, which was push the characters into a bit more depth, give them moral quandaries that they can have regrets about and that can have lasting ramifications upon them,” James said of what to expect in season 2. “And also with my character, soften him, see him make mistakes and fall in love and be betrayed and everything in between, to evolve the show as much as we can.”

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‘Black Widow’ Meets ‘Ballerina’ in New Action Epic Officially Taking Over Netflix Globally

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With several recent movies from international territories finding success on Netflix, it is the turn of a large-scale action-adventure from India to keep the streak going. The movie in question found spots on the streamer’s global and domestic viewership charts following its debut on Netflix at the end of August. This comes after the stunning success of the Spanish-language crime movie Facing El Chapo, which emerged as Netflix’s most-watched hit globally a week ago. Before that, the Thai-language action film The Debt Collector emerged as a global hit as well.

The new Indian film was originally released in theaters on July 3; it underperformed at the box office and received poor reviews. It is a part of the sprawling Spy Universe franchise, which also includes the blockbuster films Pathaan and War. The series has been on shaky ground of late, however, with recent entries such as Tiger 3 and War 2 both falling short of expectations. The latest installment stars Alia Bhatt in the lead role of a genetically modified soldier who goes rogue and seeks revenge against the man who turned her into what she is. The film’s plot is set against geopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan, much like several previous installments of the series. But it also clearly owes a creative debt to movies such as Black Widow and From the World of John Wick: Ballerina.













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Collider Exclusive · Action Hero Quiz
Which Action Hero Would Be
Your Perfect Partner?

Rambo · James Bond · Indiana Jones · John McClane · Ethan Hunt
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Five legends. Five completely different ways of getting out alive — with style, with muscle, with charm, with luck, or with a plan so intricate it probably shouldn’t work. Ten questions will reveal which action hero was built to have your back.

🎖️Rambo

🍸James Bond

🏺Indiana Jones

🔧John McClane

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🎭Ethan Hunt

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01

You’re dropped into a dangerous situation with no warning. What do you need most from a partner?
The first few seconds tell you everything about who belongs beside you.





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02

You have to get somewhere dangerous, fast. How do you travel?
How you get there is half the mission.





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03

You’re pinned down and outnumbered. What does your ideal partner do?
This is when you find out what someone is really made of.





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04

The mission is paused. You have one evening to decompress. What does your partner suggest?
Who someone is when the pressure drops is who they actually are.





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05

How do you prefer your partner to communicate mid-mission?
Good communication is the difference between partners and a liability.





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06

Your enemy is powerful, well-resourced, and has the upper hand. How should your partner approach them?
The approach to the enemy defines the partnership.





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07

Things go badly wrong and you’re captured. What do you trust your partner to do?
Who someone is when you need them most is the only thing that matters.





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08

What does your ideal partner bring to the table that you couldn’t replace?
A great partner fills the gap you didn’t know you had.





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09

Every partnership has a cost. Which of these can you live with?
No one comes without baggage. The question is whether you can carry it together.





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10

It’s the final moment. Everything is on the line. What do you need from your partner right now?
The last question is the most honest one.





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Your Partner Has Been Assigned
Your Perfect Partner Is…

Your answers have pointed to one action hero above all others. This is the person built to have your back — for better or considerably, spectacularly worse.

Rambo

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Your partner doesn’t talk much, doesn’t need to, and will have assessed every threat in your immediate environment before you’ve finished your first sentence. John Rambo is not a man of plans or politics — he is a force of nature shaped by survival, loyalty, and a capacity for endurance that goes beyond anything training can produce. He will not leave you behind. He has never left anyone behind who deserved to come home. What you get with Rambo is the most capable, most quietly ferocious partner imaginable — one who has been through things that would have broken anyone else, and who chose to keep going anyway. You’ll never need to ask if he has your back. You’ll just know.

James Bond

Your partner will arrive perfectly dressed, perfectly briefed, and with a cover story so convincing it’ll take you a moment to remember what’s actually true. James Bond is the most professionally dangerous person in any room he enters — and the most disarmingly charming, which is the point. He operates in a world of layers, where nothing is what it appears and every advantage is used without apology. You’ll never be bored. You’ll occasionally be furious. But when it matters — when the mission is genuinely on the line and the margin for error has collapsed to nothing — Bond is exactly the partner you want. He has survived things that have no business being survivable. He does it with style. That is not nothing.

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Indiana Jones

Your partner will know the history, the language, the cultural context, and exactly why the thing everyone else is ignoring is actually the most important thing in the room. Indiana Jones is brilliant, reckless, and occasionally impossible — but he is also one of the most resourceful, most genuinely knowledgeable partners you could find yourself beside. He approaches every situation with a scholar’s eye and a brawler’s instinct, which is an unusual combination and a remarkably effective one. He hates snakes and gets personally attached to objects of historical significance, both of which will slow you down at least once. It doesn’t matter. What Indy brings is irreplaceable — and the adventures you’ll have together will be the kind people write books about. Assuming you survive them.

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John McClane

Your partner was not supposed to be here. He does not have the right equipment, the right information, or anything approaching the right odds. He has a sarcastic remark and an absolute refusal to accept that the situation is as bad as it looks. John McClane is the greatest accidental hero in the history of action cinema — a man whose superpower is stubbornness, whose contingency plan is improvisation, and whose capacity to absorb punishment and keep moving would be alarming if it weren’t so useful. He will complain the entire time. He will make it significantly more chaotic than it needed to be. And he will absolutely, unconditionally, without question come through when it counts. Yippee-ki-yay.

Ethan Hunt

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Your partner has already run seventeen scenarios by the time you’ve finished reading the briefing, and the plan he’s settled on involves at least two things that should be physically impossible. Ethan Hunt operates at the absolute edge of human capability — technically, physically, and intellectually — and he brings the same relentless precision to protecting his partners that he brings to dismantling organisations that shouldn’t exist. He is not easy to know and he will never fully tell you everything. But he will carry the weight of the mission so completely, so absolutely, that your job is simply to trust him — and the remarkable thing is that trusting him always turns out to be the right call. The mission will be impossible. He will complete it anyway.

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Here’s the New Action Epic Taking Over Netflix Globally

Bhatt will be best known to Western audiences for playing the villain in the Netflix movie Heart of Stone, starring Gal Gadot. Her new movie is titled Alpha. She is joined in the cast by the relative newcomer Sharvari, and the ’90s Bollywood icon Bobby Deol, whose career was given a shot in the arm thanks to the blockbuster film Animal. Alpha also features the veteran star Anil Kapoor, who appeared in Slumdog Millionaire, Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol, and 24. According to FlixPatrol, Alpha is currently among the most-watched movies on Netflix across the world and in the United States and the United Kingdom. It’s also the number-one movie in India and Pakistan, among other countries with large South Asian populations.

Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.

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Release Date

July 9, 2021

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Runtime

134 minutes

Director
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Cate Shortland

Writers

Eric Pearson

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How Jen Aniston’s Relationship With BF Jim Curtis Has Evolved

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Jennifer Aniston and boyfriend Jim Curtis have gotten “serious” since their relationship began last year, multiple sources exclusively tell Us.

“They’ve moved beyond the excitement of a new relationship and are developing a genuine partnership,” one source explains. “There’s an ease about them that’s infectious. It comes from feeling accepted rather than needing to impress each other.”

The source adds that Aniston, 57, and Curtis, 50, are “definitely making decisions with the other person in mind.”

“[Their connection has] become deeper. They are more trusting and less guarded,” the source continues. “They are just as comfortable discussing difficult subjects as they are being vulnerable with each other. It’s grown from an exciting connection to a dependable partnership.”

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The source notes that friends have been “surprised about how naturally their lives have blended together despite coming from totally different worlds.” (While Aniston became a household name with her role as Rachel Green on Friends in the ‘90s and has since earned Emmy and Golden Globe awards, Curtis works as a wellness expert, life coach and hypnotherapist.)

“Those close to them have been surprised about how quickly they developed a strong emotional connection as well,” the source says. “Those close to her really think their success is because he is not part of the industry. He’s been doing his own thing.”

As for the key to their successful relationship, the source also notes that Aniston and Curtis do not put “unnecessary pressure” on each other and have communicated clearly with each other. They have also “given each other room to maintain their own identities.”

Aniston and Curtis were first romantically linked in July 2025 and went Instagram official two months later. In November, she gushed over her beau with a sweet birthday shout-out, writing, “Happy birthday my love. Cherished ❤️.”

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“They are both different people, but they celebrate each other’s individualities, and that’s a big reason they are doing so well,” the source shares about their bond. “Jen has learned how thoughtful and emotionally intuitive Jim is in private, and Jim has seen that Jen is more introspective than her public image suggests.”

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Related: How Jennifer Aniston and Jim Curtis Celebrated Their 1st Valentine’s Day

Jennifer Aniston and her boyfriend, Jim Curtis, are continuing to check off important relationship milestones. Aniston, 57, offered a glimpse into the couple’s Valentine’s Day celebrations via her Instagram Stories on Saturday, February 14. In the snapshot, the Morning Show star held up a box of candy hearts as she and Curtis, 50, sat at […]

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“They have discovered they share a similar need for peace and humor and emotional honesty, and that is truly why they work,” the source continues. “They have been able to navigate distance, demanding schedules and public curiosity. The last year has proven their bond can withstand all that.”

The source also reveals that Aniston and Curtis have not “rushed into a conventional living arrangement.”

“They have their own individual properties, but they stay with one another whenever they are in L.A. or New York,” the source concludes.

A second insider tells Us, “They’re basically living together at this point and split their time between their places in L.A. and New York. They haven’t decided that they need to pick one coast and are happy going back and forth for now.”

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The insider also says that Aniston and Curtis are “in a really great place” and are “spending most of their time together now.” And though the two come from different industries, Aniston has been fully supportive of Curtis’ career and vice versa.

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Jennifer Aniston Shares Rare Glimpse Into Life With Boyfriend Jim Curtis


Related: Jennifer Aniston Shares Glimpse Into Life With Boyfriend Jim Curtis: Photos

Jennifer Aniston offered a rare look into her life with boyfriend Jim Curtis one year after they were spotted together. The Friends alum, 57, shared a “summer dumper” carousel via Instagram on Wednesday, July 1, which included multiple photos of her beau. One picture showed them strolling down the street, while another offered a cheeky […]

“Jen loves that Jim has his own career and ambitions,” the insider notes. “She’s really supportive of his work and believes in what he does. She’s read his work, and they talk a lot about [his] book and the ideas behind it. She’s been there for his events and is really proud of everything he has going on right now. She likes being able to support him and show up for the things that are important to him.”

The second insider concludes, “Jen is really happy. She feels supported by Jim and likes that they can have their own careers and interests but also have so much that they enjoy doing together. The relationship feels very easy for her right now.”

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Us reached out to reps for Aniston and Curtis for comment.

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Jennifer Aniston Reveals Fear Jim Curtis Helps Her Face

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For Jennifer Aniston, what began as a conversation celebrating Jim Curtis’ new book turned into something far more personal. 

The actress stepped onto a New York stage this week not only as a moderator but as someone willing to share a vulnerable side of herself in front of a packed audience. 

As the couple’s romance continues to attract attention, the evening offered a rare glimpse into the challenges, fears, and personal growth both Aniston and Curtis say have shaped their lives.

The event at Kaufmann Concert Hall at 92NY Residence was intended to spotlight Jim Curtis’ new book, “The Book of Possibility,” but Jennifer Aniston ended up making headlines herself. 

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During a fan Q&A following their onstage discussion, the actress was asked to share “one possibility” she was choosing in her own life. Her answer surprised many in attendance.

According to the Daily Mail, Aniston revealed that she was “choosing to overcome a very deep, deep fear of public speaking.” 

The confession carried added significance given that she had just spent the evening interviewing Curtis before a full theater audience.

The 57-year-old also opened up about how she managed pressure when stressful situations arose. Asked about her approach, she replied, “I think I’m doing really well. Deep breaths and meditation.”

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She later elaborated on the technique that helped keep her grounded, adding, “Truly. It is five deep, deep breaths. Focus. Take a moment.”

Aniston’s Boyfriend Opens Up About Life-Changing Diagnosis

While Jennifer Aniston spoke about fear, Curtis used the conversation to reflect on a battle that dramatically altered the course of his own life.

The author recalled being in his early twenties when doctors discovered lesions on his spinal cord, a diagnosis that resulted in partial paralysis and chronic nerve damage. 

Rather than focusing solely on the medical setback, Curtis discussed the mindset he developed while learning to live with the condition.

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“I’m not saying here that if the doctor tells you to do something, you should get up and leave,” he explained, adding, “What I’m saying is you don’t have to live as the victim. You don’t have to live in your suffering. It can become your power.”

He said his philosophy for navigating hardship centers on one principle: learning to “accept it and love it.”

Jennifer Aniston Watches As Jim Curtis Shares Personal Insecurities

One of the evening’s most candid moments came when Curtis discussed the emotional toll his condition had on his self-image.

The wellness coach admitted that for years he struggled to tell people the truth about why he walked with a limp. Instead, he often created an alternative explanation.

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“I would say I got into a motorcycle accident,” Curtis admitted. He explained that the story stemmed from feelings of embarrassment about his diagnosis. 

“I was so shameful that I had a medical condition. I was broken in some way. I thought the motorcycle accident was at least a little macho,” the 50-year-old shared.

According to Curtis, it took more than two decades of self-work to change that mindset. Over 25 years, he said he learned to “overcome” those insecurities through “self-acceptance and self-love.”

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Aniston’s Boyfriend Shares Rare Details About Their Relationship

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Before Jennifer Aniston stepped onstage with Curtis to discuss “The Book of Possibility” and reveal her fear of public speaking, Curtis had already begun pulling back the curtain on their relationship. 

Just days before the New York event, he appeared on “The Jamie Kern Lima Show,” where he gave one of his most candid interviews yet about dating the actress. 

As The Blast shared, Curtis didn’t hesitate to praise her when asked about Aniston. “My experience of her is so grounded and so open and caring and kind and loving,” he said. 

He also spoke warmly about the actress’s famously tight-knit circle of friends, describing them as “this group of best friends that are like family.” 

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One of the interview’s most notable moments came when Curtis admitted how welcomed he feels within that circle. 

“I feel incredibly blessed to be part of and welcomed into that family,” he noted, later calling it “such a beautiful community and group of people.” 

Jennifer Aniston’s Romance Was Already Becoming More Public

'The Morning Show' Season 4 New York Premiere In New York, USA
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Even before Jim Curtis’ podcast appearance, signs were emerging that Aniston was entering a new chapter in her relationship. 

Page Six reported that the actress was becoming noticeably more open about her romance with Curtis, a significant shift for someone who has historically kept her relationships out of the spotlight. 

According to sources who spoke with the outlet, Aniston and Curtis were “still very, very happy” after more than a year together. 

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Insiders pointed to a level of emotional security that Aniston had reportedly struggled to find in previous relationships. 

One source claimed, “This relationship is succeeding on so many levels because it’s got things that Jen’s never had before.” Another added that “she never ever questions where she stands with him — he has zero hesitation about letting her know that he is crazy about her and is totally devoted.”

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The Shards’ Igby Rigney on Bret Easton Ellis’ Sexual Assault

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The Shards

The Shards put effort into carefully — but accurately — portraying the fictionalized version of Bret Easton Ellis‘ sexual assault on screen.

During the Wednesday, September 2, episode of the FX show, Bret (Igby Rigney) is blackmailed with a tape that reveals he previously met up with girlfriend Debbie’s (Hayes Warner) dad, Terry (Wes Bentley), in a hotel room. As Bret narrated the memory, he acknowledged that his view of the situation has changed as he has gotten older.

“Wes was very specific and very active in the conversation,” Rigney, 23, exclusively told Us about how the cast and creative team approached the sensitive scene. “And I knew [cocreator] Ryan [Murphy] wanted that scene specifically to be treated with respect because it is unfortunately a situation that can and has happened and is very terrible for a young person to be placed in that particular situation.”

He continued: “We wanted to be really careful and just make sure that it wasn’t gratuitous or sexualized in any manner.”

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Executive producer Brad Simpson offered more insight into the conversations that took place.

“It’s a big part of the book. It’s a big part of the character Bret’s experience, and I think it was a big part of an experience especially [for] gay men of a certain generation,” he told Us. “[In many cases] their first sexual experiences were either forced on them or were available to them were older men.”

Simpson pointed out how the show followed the troubling dynamic between Bret and Terry, adding, “Bret has been groomed all season by Terry — clearly — even though he doesn’t see it as grooming. People at that time looked at it differently. Like, if it happened to you, you looked at it differently. There wasn’t the sort of language of, ‘You’ve been assaulted’ for teen boys with older gay men. But it was important to Ryan that we depict it and we depict it with sensitivity but also with accuracy to remain true to the book.”

The Shards
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He added: “What he came up with I think hopefully threads the line in a way that works. We see Bret enter the Beverly Hills Hotel and we see him enter Terry’s room and we see what led up to it. Then we were in the bathroom with him making a decision to go in and also in the aftermath of that.”

The series pulled heavily from real-life author Ellis’ book of the same name.

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“We really used a lot of the words from the book. A lot of the words he uses describe what happened instead of showing. It’s pretty graphic in the book, and we stayed pretty graphic because we thought that was important,” Simpson continued. “We adjusted some language to give the future Bret — the narrator — more self awareness over what this really was. Because I think the character in real time back in the 1980s, our character in the show is not seeing it as an assault. He’s seeing it as something he has to endure.”

The writing team wanted to balance how past Bret saw the incident with the way his adult self would describe the traumatic moment.

“Put your most intense stuff up-front, but we wanted the audience to be able to be prepared and be on Bret’s side. So hopefully, we handled it in the right way,” Simpson shared with Us. “There was never a conversation about not having it in. It was about knowing how to do it correctly, and nobody felt like we could actually show the sex act between this older man and this teenage boy on screen. We knew we couldn’t do that, but how do we get the graphicness of what happened to this character? And we decided going back to Bret’s words was the most effective way.”

The Shards, which airs Wednesdays, is an adaptation based on Ellis’ fictionalized memoir about his high school years. The 2023 release was Ellis’ first in 13 years and has a disclaimer stating that all the major players in The Shards are fictional — apart from the narrator.

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Ellis, 62, previously addressed how he wrote about an incident where the book version of him was taken advantage of by a Hollywood producer.

“Gay men are different. Sorry, the gay world is different,” he said on a 2023 episode of his podcast when asked about the mentions of the dynamic in the book. “I didn’t really want to do it, but no negative feelings about it except that I didn’t get an agent and I didn’t get my script made.”

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The Shards airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET on FX.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).

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The 8 Most Fun Best Picture Winners of All Time, Ranked

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The cast of Everything Everywhere All at Once sitting behind a desk

There’s a fallacy that anything recognized by the Academy Awards is the equivalent of “eating your vegetables.” Over the Oscars’ nearly 100-year history, this has never been true. Sure, the crop of Best Picture winners features its fair share of banal, forgettable historical biopics and turgid dramas, and the term “Oscar bait” exists for a reason. However, some of the most crowd-pleasing and entertaining movies of all time have been rightfully crowned Best Picture by the Academy. Voters understand that making the viewer feel alive and actively involved is a film’s most powerful trait, and these 8 honorees of the Oscars’ top prize are the finest examples of appealing to the masses while retaining their artistic merit.

8

‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ (2022)

The cast of Everything Everywhere All at Once sitting behind a desk
The cast of Everything Everywhere All at Once sitting behind a desk
Image via A24

Find another Best Picture winner that features the multiverse, butt plugs, hot dog fingers, and a conversation between rocks. Spoiler alert: you can’t. Everything Everywhere All at Once remains an anomaly among the crop of previous BP winners, and it set the trend for future unconventional movies to be taken seriously as awards contenders. The directing pair of Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert being Oscar darlings was shocking, but when you look at the final product they produced in 2022, it’s understandable why voters flooded them with awards. It’s just so fun to watch, after all.

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A film that won a whopping three acting awards, including for Jamie Lee Curtis, Ke Huy Quan, and Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All at Once sneaks up on you in surprising ways. Sincere at its most archaic, touching at its most silly, and expertly crafted at its most amateurish, the Daniels’ action/sci-fi/comedy/family drama captured the world by storm upon release, unlike any other strange and exotic arthouse experience churned out by A24. With the directors throwing everything and the kitchen sink at you, it’s easy to grasp on to something invigorating or rollicking.

Between its martial arts-inspired action and the romantic yearning of Wong Kar-wai, EEAAO is an active moviegoing extravaganza that makes the screen feel alive. With all its easter eggs, minor details, and other bells and whistles on the screen, the film rewards frequent re-watches. It doesn’t take a lot of encouragement to get a viewer to strap along for the Daniels’ multiversal odyssey. When watching EEAAO, you get the feeling of being transported not only to a new world, but to a whole new language of expressing cinematic ideas. That sure is exciting.

7

‘The Silence of the Lambs’ (1991)

Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lecter smiling sinisterly in The Silence of the Lambs (1991).
Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lecter smiling sinisterly in The Silence of the Lambs (1991).
Image via Orion Pictures
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A movie like The Silence of the Lambs, an adaptation of Thomas Harris‘ same-named horror-thriller about abductions and serial murders, not only winning Best Picture but also sweeping all five major categories, seemed impossible. However, Jonathan Demme‘s box office smash-hit and critical darling defied the odds in 1991, winning Oscars for its director and two stars, Jodie Foster as Clarice Starling and Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lecter. The film’s craft was so undeniable that the Oscars had to get over their bias against genre movies.

Demme, a versatile, journeyman director with a personal touch, unlocked his full potential with The Silence of the Lambs. Despite its lurid source material, the film is shockingly tender and understated as an intimate melodrama about the perverse human dynamics between opposite sides of the law. Demme’s signature close-up shots lend sympathy to these psychologically warped serial killers and imbue terror into Clarice, one of modern cinema’s most iconic female protagonists. With just roughly 15 minutes of screen time, Hopkins permanently shaped culture’s vision of cunning, slick, and fiendish serial killers.

The film’s craft was so undeniable that the Oscars had to get over their bias against genre movies.

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While its artful nature is a thing of beauty, The Silence of the Lambs certainly doesn’t sell short as a genre film. A quintessential case of a “B-movie with A-movie ideas,” Demme unleashes his chops from working under the Roger Corman school with his execution of chilling suspense sequences and shocking horror flourishes. The emotional dread and palpable terror shared by all parties in the movie explain how such a grisly film could win Best Picture, as the film is just as interested in breaking down the psychology of sociopaths as it is in exploiting their danger. The Silence of the Lambs offers everything you want in a movie.

6

‘West Side Story’ (1961)

Rita Moreno in the "America" number in 'West Side Story'
Rita Moreno in the “America” number in ‘West Side Story’
Image via United Artists
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When you think of Hollywood musicals, West Side Story is one of the first things that is likely to pop into your head. Every song, number, studio backlot set, and image is seared into the heart of American culture. While it began as a stage musical by Arthur Laurents, West Side Story became firmly cemented in the lexicon with Robert Wise‘s big-screen adaptation in 1961, which earned a whopping 10 Oscars and has endured as a landmark of movie musicals. Despite its age, the film hasn’t lost an ounce of its joyous entertainment value.

On the stage, West Side Story was already special, so it was a no-brainer for United Artists to re-use and reunite the previous collaborators, such as choreographer Jerome Robbins (who also co-directed the film), composer Leonard Bernstein, and lyricist Stephen Sondheim. As a result, the movie adaptation of the stage play was perhaps even more magical, giving this modern-day retelling of Romeo and Juliet a revamped energy thanks to the wonderful display of Technicolor and old-school romanticism. While Steven Spielberg‘s 2021 remake gives it a run for its money, there is still nothing as striking as Wise’s foundational film.

Ripe with flashy showbiz vigor, whimsical tonality, and aching heartbreak, West Side Story works on you in multiple ways, hitting every nerve simultaneously. Wise, whose origins as an editor made for some of the most seamless choreography ever portrayed in film, conducts a dazzling symphony that turns harsh subjects such as race and class divides into popular grandeur. Capturing the essence of New York City through a theatrical re-creation of the gritty streets, West Side Story upends the masculine urges of gang warfare with this exhilarating song-and-dance show. Most impressive of all, the film remains an unimpeachable work despite the less-than-stellar lead performances by Natalie Wood and Richard Beymer, both of whom are outmatched by their all-star supporting co-stars, notably Oscar winners George Chakiris and Rita Moreno.

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5

‘Titanic’ (1997)

James Cameron shouting, “I’m the king of the world!” after receiving Best Director at the Oscars was understandably met with some groans, but it’s hard to deny that self-proclamation. Everyone doubted him, but he came out of Titanic as the king of the box office in 1997, and the monumental romantic epic went on to win a record-tying 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Nitpick and sneer at it all you want, but Titanic is an undisputed masterpiece of major blockbuster filmmaking that wins over the most cynical viewers.

For months, extending past its 1997 release and awards run in 1998, the world had Titanic fever. From the swooning romance between Leonardo DiCaprio‘s Jack Dawson and Kate Winslet as Rose DeWitt Bukater to the grand sinking sequence, everyone had to have an opinion on the film. No one will argue that Cameron’s writing isn’t hokey and broad, or that its characters aren’t confined to rigid cultural stereotypes, but anyone who does argue that the film’s emotional impact and narrative construction doesn’t pay out like a slot machine is delusional.

Although the film is about a tragic disaster where over 1,000 passengers and crew members died, Titanic became a cultural juggernaut thanks to Cameron’s humanity, operatic romance, and personal strokes of triumph, most prominently seen with the redemption arc of the present-day Rose (Gloria Stuart). Its three-hour runtime flies by as fast as the titular ship’s propellers, and the film is filled to the brim with enough iconic quotes, scenes, and images to keep your imagination flowing constantly. Cited as the finest example of a four-quadrant movie, Titanic offers everything. Whether you’re looking for a fateful romance, period costume drama, historical epic, or action extravaganza, Cameron sampled all genres to create something truly indelible.













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Collider Exclusive · Oscar Best Picture Quiz
Which Oscar Best Picture
Is Your Perfect Movie?

Parasite · Everything Everywhere · Oppenheimer · Birdman · No Country
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Five Oscar Best Picture winners. Five completely different visions of what cinema can be — and what it can do to you. One of them is the film that was made for the way your mind works. Ten questions will figure out which one.

🪜Parasite

🌀Everything Everywhere

☢️Oppenheimer

🐦Birdman

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🪙No Country for Old Men

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01

What kind of film experience do you actually want?
The best movies don’t just entertain — they leave something behind.





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02

Which idea grabs you most in a film?
Great films are driven by a central obsession. What’s yours?





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03

How do you like your story told?
Form is content. The way a story is shaped changes what it means.





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04

What makes a truly great antagonist?
The opposition defines the protagonist. What kind of opposition fascinates you?





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05

What do you want from a film’s ending?
The final note is the one that lingers. What do you want it to sound like?





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06

Which setting pulls you in most?
Where a film takes place shapes everything — mood, stakes, what’s even possible.





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07

What cinematic craft impresses you most?
Every great film has a signature — a technical or artistic element that makes it unmistakable.





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08

What kind of main character do you root for?
The protagonist is the lens. Who you choose to follow says something about you.





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09

How do you feel about a film that takes its time?
Pace is a choice. Some films sprint; others let tension accumulate slowly, deliberately.





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10

What do you want to feel walking out of the cinema?
The best films leave a mark. What kind of mark do you want?





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The Academy Has Decided
Your Perfect Film Is…

Your answers have pointed to one Oscar Best Picture winner above all others. This is the film that was made for the way your mind works.

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Parasite

You are drawn to films that operate on multiple levels simultaneously — that begin in one genre and quietly, brilliantly migrate into another. Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite is a film about class, desire, and the architecture of inequality that manages to be darkly funny, deeply suspenseful, and genuinely shocking across a single extraordinary running time. Your instinct is for cinema that hides its true intentions until the moment it’s ready to reveal them. Parasite is exactly that — a film that rewards close attention and punishes assumptions, right up to its devastating final image.

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Everything Everywhere All at Once

You want it all — and this film gives you all of it. The Daniels’ Everything Everywhere All at Once is one of the most maximalist films ever made: action comedy, multiverse sci-fi, family drama, existential crisis, and a genuinely earned emotional core that sneaks up on you amid the chaos. You are someone who responds to ambition, who doesn’t want cinema to choose between being entertaining and being meaningful. This film refuses that choice entirely. It is overwhelming by design, and its overwhelming nature is precisely the point — because the feeling of being crushed by infinite possibility is exactly what it’s about.

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Oppenheimer

You are drawn to cinema on a grand scale — films that understand history not as a backdrop but as a force, and that place their characters inside that force and watch what happens. Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer is a film about the terrifying gap between what we can do and what we should do, told with the full weight of one of the most consequential moments in human history behind it. You want your films to feel important without feeling self-important — to earn their ambition through sheer craft and the gravity of their subject. Oppenheimer does exactly that. It is enormous, complicated, and refuses easy comfort.

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Birdman

You are drawn to films that foreground their own construction — that make the how of the filmmaking part of the what it’s about. Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Birdman, shot to appear as a single continuous take, is cinema examining itself through the cracked mirror of a fading actor’s ego. You respond to formal daring, to the feeling that a film is doing something that probably shouldn’t be possible. Michael Keaton’s performance and Emmanuel Lubezki’s restless camera create something genuinely unlike anything else — a film that is simultaneously about creativity, relevance, self-destruction, and the impossibility of ever truly knowing if your work means anything at all.

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No Country for Old Men

You are drawn to cinema that trusts silence, that refuses to explain itself, and that treats dread as a form of meaning. The Coen Brothers’ No Country for Old Men is a film about the arrival of a new kind of evil — implacable, arbitrary, and utterly indifferent to the moral frameworks we use to make sense of the world. It is one of the most formally controlled films ever made, and its controlled restraint is what makes it so terrifying. You want your films to haunt you, not comfort you. You are not interested in resolution if resolution would be dishonest. No Country for Old Men is honest in a way that most cinema never dares to be.

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4

‘Casablanca’ (1942)

Rick (Humphrey Bogart) and Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) look into each other's eyes and part in Casablanca, 1942.
Rick (Humphrey Bogart) and Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) look into each other’s eyes and part in Casablanca, 1942.
Image via Warner Bros. Pictures
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Arguably the most quotable movie in Hollywood history, Casablanca may seem like a staid relic of the classic studio system for younger audiences. However, anyone who thinks they can skip this towering achievement in filmmaking will regret ever holding that thought after watching it. Directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, Casablanca embodies the wonder, imagination, and breathless entertainment value of old Hollywood, and it’s time for modern viewers to embrace its enduring power over 80 years since its release.

While many iconic classics have been snubbed for the Best Picture prize, Casablanca was perhaps the ultimate “no-brainer” decision for the Academy in 1943. Set on the periphery of World War II at a titular nightclub, run by a cynical expat and former political activist, the film established the arc of the misanthrope-turned-saint. Bogart’s screen persona was born the minute we first see Rick Blaine’s hangdog, downbeat expression, and his relationship with his lost lover, Ilsa Lund, played by the luminous and transcendent Bergman. A story about an estranged romance and the stakes of WWII, Casablanca is a miraculous stroke of filmmaking.

On paper, something as dialogue-heavy and restricted as Casablanca shouldn’t be such an enthralling viewing experience, but what it lacks in traditional thrills is made up for by its scintillating writing. From a narrative construction perspective, the film flows with incredible ease, taking the viewer along the ride as we come to learn the emotional backdrop of Rick’s disillusionment and Ilsa’s agonizing conflict. Of course, the film’s script is famous for its vast array of legendary line readings, from “Here’s looking at you, kid” to “Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine.” While not a traditional noir, Casablanca‘s moody atmosphere and gorgeous visual language create a sense of endless intrigue surrounding this lavish but bleak world.

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3

‘The Departed’ (2006)

The Departed - 2006 (4) Image via Warner Bros. Pictures

Yes, this is a make-up award, and it’s ridiculous that it took this long for Martin Scorsese to win an Oscar, but these facts do not call for any disrespect thrown at The Departed‘s name. The film, which earned the renowned director his long-awaited Oscar for Best Director and Best Picture, acted as a “greatest hits” album for his entire career while also pushing his relentless energy and dramatic propulsion to new heights. For what it’s worth, it’s also one of his most addictively entertaining efforts to date, and that says a lot by Scorsese’s standards.

During the casting process, Scorsese wasn’t kidding around, as he assembled an all-star lineup featuring Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Mark Wahlberg, and Jack Nicholson. The flashiness of his cast is matched by the operatic and maximalist scope of The Departed, a frantic, vulgar, and deliriously manic Boston-set gangster saga based on the Hong Kong crime drama Infernal Affairs. Tackling the American Dream, Irish guilt, family heritage, loyalty, and the blurred lines between cop and criminal, The Departed didn’t reinvent the wheel, but it excited critics and audiences to profound degrees.

Despite its grit and bloodshed, The Departed is undoubtedly one of the funniest movies not just in Scorsese’s career, but of any movie in the last 20 years. The film is just as much a tribute to classic Warner Bros. gangster pictures as it is to the Boston accent and loudmouthed, hard-nosed Irish-American culture. Every crass insult and passionate interjection will leave you howling, even when the comedy is pitch-black and relates to gruesome acts of violence. Along with the humor, The Departed moves at such a relentless pace, jumping from one wild scene to another without hesitation. One hour will zip past you, and it will feel like 10 minutes as this gripping story unfolds and characters flirt with death.

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2

‘Oppenheimer’ (2023)

J. Robert Oppenheimer, played by actor Cillian Murphy, clutches his face, overcome by dread in Oppenheimer.
J. Robert Oppenheimer, played by actor Cillian Murphy, clutches his face, overcome by dread in Oppenheimer.
Image via Universal Pictures

The rare Best Picture winner in the modern age to be both a blockbuster and a triumphant critical success, Oppenheimer was the culmination of everything Christopher Nolan was building towards. After years of industry-changing milestones with hits like The Dark Knight and Inception, our greatest living blockbuster auteur was officially crowned as the Steven Spielberg of his time with Oppenheimer, a film that turns what should’ve been a “homework” movie into a visceral, propulsive, and devastating feat of cinema.

With Nolan’s The Odyssey currently dominating the culture, it’s clear that Nolan is losing relevance any time soon, but until this year’s Oscars, Oppenheimer, which won seven Academy Awards, including wins for Nolan, Robert Downey Jr., and Cillian Murphy, is his defining magnum opus. The film is a historical biopic on the surface, but Nolan’s probing examination of the titular physicist’s complex mind and deconstruction of his notorious legacy in American history make it a fervent psychological voyage unlike any other cradle-to-grave saga.

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Despite the tragic circumstances surrounding the film’s focal point, the development and weaponization of a nuclear bomb that was eventually dropped on Japan to end World War II, Oppenheimer has become an instant re-watchable classic. This is all thanks to Nolan’s effortless skills as a director of escalating suspense and tension, best displayed in the showstopping Trinity Test. Oppenheimer is Nolan’s most extraordinary directorial and screenwriting effort simply due to the fact that most of the “action” consists of people talking in rooms, but these security clearance hearings and Senate confirmation trials burst off the screen, aided by the staggering visual opulence of the IMAX cinematography.

1

‘Parasite’ (2019)

Park So-dam and Choi Woo-shik check their cellphones in a scene from Parasite
Park So-dam and Choi Woo-shik check their cellphones in a scene from Parasite
Image via Neon

The film that defied all the odds. Not only did an international/foreign language film win the coveted Best Picture prize in 2020 (perhaps the world’s last piece of good news before the pandemic), but Parasite proved to be a sensation that birthed an entire generation of cinephiles. The social satire/psychological thriller was the culmination of Bong Joon-ho‘s entire career. If Memories of Murder and The Host didn’t do so already, Parasite showed that Bong operates at an entertainment level unmatched by his contemporaries. Once and for all, the film got all skeptics to realize that subtitles weren’t a hindrance to fun.

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In keeping with Bong’s house style, Parasite is a mishmash of tones and genres, keeping viewers on the edge of their seats as they laugh at the vanity of the rich Park family, ponder the fate of the parasitic Kim family, and watch in awe as this social clash unfolds to shocking degrees in this film about South Korean culture and economics. Despite seeming like an insular subject for Western audiences, Parasite‘s infectious narrative construction and deft tonal balance were transfixing for mainstream audiences with little experience engaging with international cinema.

Bong’s control of the frame is legendary, and we’re hard-pressed to find a director with more precise control of their own movie than the South Korean auteur, who walked away from the Oscar ceremony with additional awards for Best Original Screenplay and Best Director. This sense of complete artistic virtuosity was palpable to any viewer without a Letterboxd, as the director’s use of expert blocking, camera shifting, and music cues captures the feeling of a third act in a comic book movie. Not to mention, Parasite is simply hilarious and invigorating, and its genre exceptionalism complements its deep thematic commentary.


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Parasite

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Release Date

May 30, 2019

Runtime
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133 minutes


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    Lee Sun-kyun

    Park Dong-ik

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Jennifer Aniston Pays Tribute to the Late Dolly Parton

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Stars React to Dolly Partons Death at 80 Kacey Musgraves, Kelsea Ballerini and More Pay Tribute

Jennifer Aniston honored the late Dolly Parton during a rare public appearance with her boyfriend, Jim Curtis.

The death of the late country music icon at 80 came up during Aniston, 57, and her beau’s panel at The 92nd Street Y in New York City on Wednesday, September 2, to promote Curtis’ new book, The Book of Possibility. While the format of the panel revolved around Aniston interviewing Curtis, 50, on stage, she also answered a few questions from the audience.

When a fan asked for the “best advice” she could give, Aniston shared some wisdom from a “dear friend of all of ours, Miss Dolly Parton.”

“It’s real. … We’re all in post-Parton, aren’t we?” she declared. “One of her many, many, many, many incredible quotes, and they’re endless, endless, endless, she would say, ‘I chased a few rainbows and I caught some.’ I would say, go chase your dreams and go catch some rainbows. You’ll catch a few. [Dolly] did that, for sure.”

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Stars React to Dolly Partons Death at 80 Kacey Musgraves, Kelsea Ballerini and More Pay Tribute


Related: Miley Cyrus and More Stars Mourn Dolly Parton After Her Death at 80

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 […]

The world has spent the last week in mourning following an announcement on August 25 that the legendary singer had died.

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“Global icon and humanitarian, Dolly Parton, known to the world as a beloved singer, songwriter, philanthropist, actress, playwright and author died peacefully today in Nashville, Tennessee,” a statement from Parton’s rep read. “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 like family.”

The statement continued, “Dolly Parton’s legacy is one of love, compassion and resilience. With a seven-decade career, she inspired multiple generations of artists and fans with her music and an unwavering commitment to making the world a better place. Her songs will continue to resonate with people of all ages, and her philanthropic work will have a lasting impact.”

GettyImages-482613034 Jennifer Aniston Pays Tribute to Dolly Parton During Rare Appearance With Boyfriend Jim Curtis

Dolly Parton
Rick Diamond/Getty Images

While a cause of death was not initially made public, Parton’s representative later confirmed that she’d had a “brief battle with cancer.”

Tributes from Parton’s family and friends — including 9 to 5 costar Jane Fonda, goddaughter Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift — have poured in from across the world.

On Friday, August 28, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee introduced plans to rename Nashville International Airport in Parton’s honor. The renaming proposal has the support of the Metro Nashville Airport Authority while Parton’s family has agreed to continue conversations about the tribute, per the governor’s office.

Dolly Parton Laid to Rest in Private Small Memorial Service


Related: Dolly Parton’s Loved Ones Visit Cemetery With Flowers 3 Days After Her Death

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Dolly Parton’s loved ones gathered at her burial site in Nashville three days after the singer’s death. Parton’s closest relatives, including her nephew and head of security, Bryan Seaver, were spotted arriving at Woodlawn Memorial Park and Mausoleum in Nashville on Friday, August 28, as seen in photos obtained by Page Six. Seaver reportedly coordinated […]

“Dolly Parton’s extraordinary life is forever woven into the fabric of our state,” Gov. Lee, 66, said in a statement on Friday, August 28. “From her rural mountain home in East Tennessee to global stages, Dolly carried the Volunteer Spirit with her. At a place where Tennessee welcomes the world, it is fitting that Nashville International Airport would bear the name of our state’s favorite daughter and greet travelers with the enduring legacy of Dolly’s music, generosity, faith, and kindness.”

Parton’s team has also confirmed that she was working on numerous projects — Dolly’s Life of Many Colors Museum and the SongTeller Hotel— prior to her death, thus ensuring that her legacy will continue far into the future.

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Guy Ritchie’s ‘The Gentlemen’ Transforms Into a Completely Different Show in Season 2

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James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano in the HBO series 'The Sopranos'

It’s been two years since Guy Ritchie‘s Netflix series, The Gentlemen, first hit our streaming screens, and its sophomore return is making an even bigger splash than Season 1. Based on his 2019 film of the same title, The Gentlemen follows the story of Edward Horniman (Theo James), 13th Duke of Halstead, former Army captain and newly minted gangster, as he navigates the world of drugs and crime upon returning to his family estate. While Season 1 focused on bringing Eddie into this new world as an aristocrat-turned-criminal, Season 2 pushes the character into deeper and darker waters. The new season brings in the Italian mafia, Peruvian cartels, the British House of Lords, and a sprinkling of mysticism and myth we’ve never seen before. It’s a tonal shift away from the comedy that was so evident in Season 1, but the move is for the better as The Gentlemen transforms and evolves into something completely new.

‘The Gentlemen’ Expands Its World of Crime in Season 2

If Season 1 of The Gentlemen was about easing us into the world of crime alongside Eddie, then Season 2 is about his quiet rise into becoming a kingpin in his own right. The season starts with the reveal that Eddie is trying to secure a seat in the House of Lords in an attempt to derail a bill set to decriminalize marijuana. At the same time, he’s expanded Bobby Glass’ (Ray Winstone) empire into Italy, bringing in more money and creating more weed farms. Of course, any criminal expansion into Italy will inevitably bring its own baggage, and both Eddie and Susie (Kaya Scodelario) have to face off against the mafia’s El Capo dei Capi (the boss of bosses), Marco Moretti (Sergio Castellitto).

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While Season 1 of The Gentlemen stuck to the blueprint of Ritchie’s film, Season 2 expands in all directions in the vein of his more sober crime drama, MobLand. Expanding into the international world of criminals means that whatever equilibrium was found after Season 1 has been undone. It’s clear that while Susie and Eddie might be able to keep their cool in London, leaving the safe confines of England means they are navigating more dangerous territory. While some shows struggle when the cast expands and the story with it, Ritchie has rooted The Gentlemen in a way that makes its evolution feel organic. This is still a story about class differences, about crime and morality, about power and ownership. We’re just seeing it on a grander scale. New players are added to the game and the season itself has bigger action scenes, more explosions, and devastating betrayals that will keep viewers on their toes.

‘The Gentlemen’s Season 2 Cast Shines, but Eddie and Susie’s Relationship Is Peak

At the core of The Gentlemen Season 2 is the partnership between Eddie and Susie. Although both characters get their own love interests in the season — Eddie falls for Bella (Benedetta Porcaroli), an Italian countess, and Susie reconnects with an old flame named Joe (Tyler Conti) — the chemistry between James and Scodelario still sizzles. Amidst tragedy and backstabbings, their palpable connection is the beating heart of the show and one of the few authentic relationships in a world full of dodgy characters. They still quip back and forth as old married couples do, but they also share rare moments of vulnerability that add extra spice to their charged conversations. It helps that everyone else seems to think that Susie and Eddie are destined for each other, even if they continue to insist it’s all professional.

Season 2 also gives returning characters a chance to shine, specifically Winstone’s Bobby, whose character takes a curiously superstitious turn that adds an element of whimsy and mystery to the story. Vinnie Jones‘ Geoff is once again one of the best parts of the show, and Jones gets a fantastic action sequence in the latter part of the season that shows the man can be deadly as well as considerate. His quiet romance with Joely Richardson‘s Lady Sabrina is something that I can never get enough of, and we can only hope that at the end of all of this they’ll just get to spend some quiet time in an English garden together.

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Among Season 2’s new additions, Porcaroli’s Bella is a veritable angel. She is sweet and beautiful, and her passionate and empathetic performance plays well off of James’ more stoic and restrained Eddie. Hugh Bonneville, as the complicated Lord Hawthorne, is a perfect fit to balance the series’ comedy elements alongside its more serious dramatic moments. Castellitto nearly falls into the realm of stereotype as a literal Italian godfather to Bella and a mobster, but his scenes with James give him the type of depth that saves him from being a caricature. Similarly, Benjamin Clementine‘s Nanny, husband to Charlotte (Jasmine Blackborow) and new father to their son Tarquin, nearly slots into the mold of clueless in-law who has no idea about the Horniman family’s illicit dealings. Yet Season 2 delivers just enough twists to show that there’s more beneath the surface than just an honorable soldier who happens to be the king’s equerry.

Season 2 of ‘The Gentlemen’ Delivers a More Evolved Guy Ritchie Story

Theo James and Daniel Ings in The Gentlemen Season 2
Theo James and Daniel Ings in The Gentlemen Season 2
Image via Netflix

One of the most surprising things about The Gentlemen‘s sophomore season is the fact that the show is fully leaning into a side of Ritchie that we rarely get to see in his gangster stories. There’s a new introduction of mythology and mysticism that adds just the right notes of weirdness. Both Bobby and Stanley Johnston (Giancarlo Esposito) lean into this, with Bobby seeing a mythical Bannick (a spirit who lives in a sauna) and Mr. Johnston being linked to the mysticism of the origin of England and its ties to Eddie. On the surface, it’s a little bizarre and out of left field, especially considering how grounded Season 1 is, but as the show digs deeper into the themes of power, class, and Eddie’s obsession with taking back his family’s land, these elements help to crystallize Ritchie’s overall vision.

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This quirky new element comes in place of the comedy that was far more apparent in Season 1. There are no travelers camping out at the duke’s estate, no men in chicken suits dancing for their lives. Although Ritchie directs three of the eight episodes, his typical slick and fast-paced style is far more subdued and slots in comfortably alongside Eran Creevy‘s four episodes and Nick Rowland‘s solo contribution. Comedic relief characters like Freddy (Daniel Ings) and Jimmy (Michael Vu) take more of a backseat this go around, which is unfortunate because they were both highlights in Season 1. Ultimately, it seems like Ritchie, who co-wrote every episode of Season 2 alongside Matthew Read, is dialing into something darker and even sinister for Eddie. As The Gentlemen sheds some of its flash, it’s replaced with a far more thoughtful and philosophical story, one that will carry it through to what is sure to be another outstanding season.

The Gentlemen Season 2 is now streaming on Netflix.


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Release Date

2024 – 2026-00-00

Network
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Netflix

Directors

David Caffrey, Guy Ritchie, Eran Creevy, Nima Nourizadeh

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Writers

Stuart Carolan, Guy Ritchie, Matthew Read, Billy Mason Wood, Haleema Mirza

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Pros & Cons
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  • The Gentlemen delves deeper into the core themes of the series in a philosophical way.
  • Theo James and Kaya Scodelario have palpable chemistry that drives the season.
  • The grander scale of Season 2 allows for a natural expansion of the story that feels organic.

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Jury To Return For Day 6 Of Deliberations

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Lindsay Clancy Jury To Return For Sixth Day Of Deliberations In Case Of Mom Who Killed Her 3 Kids (UPDATE)

Jurors in the Lindsay Clancy trial went home without a verdict on Wednesday (September 2), following a fifth day of deliberations. Twice, the jury said they couldn’t agree whether the Massachusetts mother is criminally responsible for killing her three young children.

RELATED: Massachusetts Mother Posted About Postpartum Depression Before Reportedly Killing Her Kids

Clancy, a 36-year-old former labor and delivery nurse, doesn’t deny strangling her three children in their home in 2023. But her attorney argues that postpartum psychosis led to her actions, while prosecutors say she knew what she was doing.

Before The Lindsay Clancy Jury Went Home & What Happens Next

As reported by The Associated Press, Judge William Sullivan told the jury to keep deliberating on Wednesday when they said for a second straight day that they couldn’t agree on a verdict. Clancy, meanwhile, stared at the jury without expression as Judge Sullivan informed the courtroom that the jurors were at an impasse. Sullivan told the jurors not to abandon their own convictions just to reach a verdict. Instead, he urged them to seriously consider opposing views and, if appropriate, reassess their positions.

No one knows, the judge said, that another jury would be “more intelligent, more impartial or more competent to decide it than you are.”

Afterward, Judge Sullivan sent them back out. The jury first said they were struggling to reach a unanimous decision Tuesday morning. They had resumed deliberations Wednesday after the judge questioned jurors one by one following the arrest of a woman on Tuesday who was accused of filming them as they left the courthouse. Judge Sullivan opened Wednesday’s proceedings with a warning to the courtroom about following his orders against filming, following, contacting, or tampering with jurors. Lindsay Clancy’s lawyer told The Associated Press that the judge called jurors up one by one to ask them if there was anything they saw that would affect their ability to be impartial.

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This continued impasse indicates there’s a growing chance of a hung jury and the trial ending without a resolution. That said, the jury will return again on Thursday for a sixth day of deliberations.

 

Mental Health Has Been A MAJOR Focus In The Trial

Lindsay Clancy’s livestreamed trial has generated intense interest, with reporters and spectators packing the courtroom. The case has also sparked deep public divisions over her culpability and the issues around maternal mental health after childbirth.

Jurors have heard testimony from relatives and doctors about how Clancy’s mental health declined in the months before the killings. Also, they’ve heard how her treatment included several medications and a short stay in a psychiatric hospital. However, medical experts hired by the prosecution and the defense reached sharply different conclusions about her psychiatric state when she killed Cora, Dawson and Callan Clancy, ages 5, 3 and 8 months.

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What Happens If There’s A Mistrial?

If jurors ultimately can’t agree on a verdict, the judge could declare a mistrial. Prosecutors would then have to decide whether to put Clancy on trial again, drop the charges or try to negotiate a plea deal with her lawyer.

If the jury decides Clancy was criminally responsible for her actions, it could convict her of either murder or manslaughter. If she is acquitted, a judge could still order her confined to a mental health facility if an evaluation determines that she poses a danger to the public.

After court ended Tuesday, Clancy’s attorney said it was a good sign that the jury kept working.

“The fact that they have not said that they’re done is very, very heartening,” Kevin Reddington said. “Obviously, they’re working very hard.”

What To Know About The Day Lindsay Clancy Killed Her 3 Kids

Lindsay Clancy strangled her three children with exercise bands in their home’s basement, then jumped from a second-floor window. She remains paralyzed from the waist down. Her lawyers say she heard a voice telling her to kill the children so she could end her own life. Additionally, they’ve argued the mother had bipolar disorder and postpartum psychosis, a rare mental illness that can follow childbirth.

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But, the prosecution argues she deliberately sent her then-husband on errands to get him out of the house that day. Also, prosecutors have questioned the seriousness of her suicide attempt.

Lindsay’s husband, Patrick Clancy, has said in interviews that he forgives his ex-wife, whom he views as ill rather than evil.


Associated Press writers Michael Casey and Dave Collins contributed to this report via AP Newsroom. 

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NBA YoungBoy Gifts Daughter Chanel, Dior Bags For 5th Birthday

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Rihanna Seemingly Addresses Baby Rumors, Talks "Little Pouch"

NBA YoungBoy is getting his lil’ lady’s designer closet together from a young age! Recently, he and Jazlyn Mychelle‘s daughter, Love Alice Gaulden, celebrated her fifth birthday. Rather than unwrapping toys made for her age group, YB surprised his mini-me with at least two high-end bags. The gesture immediately sparked online chaos as fans debated whether the Chanel and Dior goodies were appropriate for the kiddie milestone.

RELATED: Whew! NBA YoungBoy Shares Cryptic Message About Family And Fans Are Mentioning Jazlyn Mychelle (PHOTOS)

NBA YoungBoy Spoils Daughter With Designer Purses

A circulating video, seemingly filmed by a voice similar to Jazlyn Mychelle’s, shows Love Alice wearing a blue princess dress with a pink sash. She then starts unwrapping a black Chanel box, only to pull out a small silver purse. After showing it off to her dad, she gave him a high-five and then opened her next box and dust bag. This time, she pulled out a light-yellow Dior bag and appeared just as excited. Ultimately, she and her dad embraced and the clip ended.

Social Media Reacts To Luxury Gifts

After The Shade Room reposted the clip on Instagram, nearly 2,000 reactions filled the comment section. Some folks praised his ability to provide on that level, while others discussed whether the gift is age appropriate. A few other made jokes about snatching the luxury goods for themselves.

@mz_classyjazzysassy commented, “I wish I was her TT she wouldn’t even know I had it until I brought it back 😂😂 oh yea you left your purse at TT house baybay😂😍😍.”

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“He making sure she ain’t ever gotta worry bout no bags been there done that 😂 she goin be like boy a bag i don’t want no bag buy me a mansion 😭 it’s toys somewhere y’all just wait on it i guarantee it’s some toys we just seeing bags 🤝,” @casinodiamond wrote.

“And don’t get on here saying she wanted Barbie dolls! How yall know she didn’t get those too?? 👏👏❤️ also it’s not y’all’s daughter anyhow,” @inkd_by_omi added.

@kimfinelikeredwine said, “🥰I see no problem…Fathers are the first example for girls of how they should be treated by men and he has Chanel and Dior money so why not?? Lil Mama was especially pumped about that silver Chanel 🤣.” 

@m.yalfav added, “Lmao she don’t have to beg a ninja for one when you look on the bright side 🤷🏾‍♀️”

@princedre._ commented, “Big Paragraph Coming From Yaya Mayweather Soon😂”

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@_therealjazzz said, “All I see if him being a present father and giving presents 🎁 😌🙌 And taking care of his fam.”

“Say what you want about him , he is a great dad &super gentle ! A lot of these “aggressive “ rapper really be so gentle and open minded and I wish yall give them alot more grace,” @theerealisis wrote.

“She probably wanted a tea cup set to go with her dress🫠,” @yellow_dymond said.

“she bouta leave that on the playground and they’re going to gag,” @shemarfrederick commented.

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“He setting the bar high for his daughter and nobody caught he said thank you for being my daughter .. love to see fathers show that unconditional love 💕,” @stephy__202 added.

RELATED: Jania Meshell Asked For Baby Name Suggestions & Fans Threw NBA YoungBoy In The Mix (PHOTO)

What Do You Think Roomies?

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Jim Curtis Opens Up About His Heath Issues to Jennifer Aniston

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Jennifer Aniston and her boyfriend, Jim Curtis, gave fans a sweet glimpse of their romance during a rare event together in New York City.

The pair appeared at The 92nd Street Y in New York City on Wednesday, September 2, to celebrate Curtis’ new book, The Book of Possibility, with Aniston, 57, interviewing her beau, 50, on stage. In one powerful moment, Curtis reflected on his health struggles in his 20s when doctors found lesions on his spinal cord that caused partial paralysis and chronic nerve damage.

Curtis remembered that his whole body froze up in fear when he initially Googled his condition after being diagnosed.

“I’m not saying here that if the doctor tells you to do something, you should get up and leave,” he clarified. “What I’m saying is you don’t have to live as the victim. You don’t have to live in your suffering. It can become your power. As soon as you accept it and love it [you can move beyond it].”

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Related: Jennifer Aniston’s Boyfriend Jim Curtis Packs on the PDA in Birthday Tribute

Jennifer Aniston’s boyfriend Jim Curtis has shared a heartfelt tribute to the actress to celebrate her birthday. Curtis uploaded a carousel of rare photos via Instagram to mark Aniston’s 57th birthday on Wednesday, February 11. One photo showed the couple mid-laughter with Aniston arm softly resting on Curtis’ back. Another image featured Aniston and Curtis […]

Curtis spoke about often facing questions from friends and even “people on the street” about why he walks with a limp.

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“I would say I got into a motorcycle accident. Why would I say that?” he said. “I was so shameful that I had a medical condition. [I thought] I was broken in some way. I thought the motorcycle accident was at least a little macho. It was this identity of the ‘macho, strong man’ … it didn’t come with the connotation and shame of, ‘This can get worse.’”

Curtis stressed that he was only able to “overcome” those insecurities when he learned the value of “self-acceptance and self-love.”

“It was a long journey in which I realized I could have done it quicker … There are people who are just suffering because they don’t know what the next step is or they need a little bit of inspiration,” he said. “That was an easy choice for me.”

Aniston asked her beau what his advice would be if he were speaking to someone who was “stuck” in the “rat race of life.”

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“I’m not a proponent for ‘drop everything and leave,’” he responded. “That [acceptance] was 25 years in the making for me. There’s a reality of life too. I always say we’re a spirit having a human experience. We have to live the human experience.”

He continued, “You have rent to pay and medical bills to pay and kids to feed, all of your stuff. But I will say this: you don’t have to let fear stop you from living your dream. You can manifest at any time by placing your focus on the outcomes that you want.”

Days earlier, Curtis shed light on their relationship while appearing on the Monday, August 31, episode of “The Jamie Kern Lima Show” and shared that the couple “do a lot of meditation” and talking.

Curtis explained that there are “different tools” that are “really beneficial” at “different stages in your relationship,” adding, “Jen and I have been together a year and a half, so this tool isn’t the first tool that we go to.”

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When host Jamie Kern Lima asked whether the “first tool” they utilize is meditation, he replied,
“Yeah, meditation. Acceptance, understanding. Those kind of things. In a honeymoon phase, your tools don’t have to be big sledgehammers.”

Curtis and Aniston have been together since mid-2025, making their romance Instagram official later that year.

“If this is a dream I don’t want to wake up ❤️,” he wrote alongside a series of photos.

Months later, Curtis shared that the couple’s “origin story” began when they had mutual friends and started talking.

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Jennifer Aniston Sweetly Supported by Boyfriend Jim Curtis at Event 2172283688


Related: Jennifer Aniston’s Boyfriend Jim Curtis Sweetly Supports Her at Event

Jennifer Aniston’s boyfriend, Jim Curtis, was front and center to show his support for the actress at her recent event. Aniston, 56, promoted her haircare brand, LolaVie, in Los Angeles on Wednesday, August 20, and Curtis, 50, was spotted at the venue in a video shared via Instagram by Entertainment Tonight later that day. The […]

“We found out that we had mutual friends, and we started to just chat,” he said on a January episode of the Today show. “And it took a long time. We chatted for a long time, and we became close.”

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Aniston has similarly gushed over her romance with Curtis. In her November 2025 interview with Elle, she explained that the pair formed a bond over their wellness interests and described Curtis as “quite extraordinary.”

“Hypnotism is one of the many things that he does,” she said at the time, adding that Curtis is “very special, very normal and very kind.”

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Aniston and Curtis have since been spotted dining with several of her famous pals. Last month, the couple enjoyed an evening in Los Angeles with her former Friends costars Courteney Cox and Lisa Kudrow and longtime pal Jason Bateman.

Aniston was previously married to Brad Pitt from 2000 to 2005 and Justin Theroux from 2015 to 2018.

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