NEW YORK — “Barbenheimer” was a phenomenon impossible to manufacture. But, more than a year later, that hasn’t stopped people from trying to make “Glicked” — or even “Babyratu” — happen. The counterprogramming of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” in July 2023 hit a nerve culturally and had the receipts to back it up. Unlike so many things that begin as memes, it transcended its online beginnings. Instead of an either-or, the two movies ultimately complemented and boosted one another at the box office. And ever since, moviegoers, marketers and meme makers have been trying to recreate that moment, searching the movie release schedule for odd mashups and sending candidates off into the social media void. Most attempts have fizzled (sorry, “Saw Patrol” ). This weekend is perhaps the closest approximation yet as the Broadway musical adaptation “Wicked” opens Friday against the chest-thumping sword-and-sandals epic “Gladiator II.” Two big studio releases (Universal and Paramount), with one-name titles, opposite tones and aesthetics and big blockbuster energy — it was already halfway there before the name game began: “Wickiator,” “Wadiator,” “Gladwick” and even the eyebrow raising “Gladicked” have all been suggested. “'Glicked' rolls off the tongue a little bit more,” actor Fred Hechinger said at the New York screening of “Gladiator II” this week. “I think we should all band around ‘Glicked.’ It gets too confusing if you have four or five different names for it.” As with “Barbenheimer," as reductive as it might seem, “Glicked” also has the male/female divide that make the fan art extra silly. One is pink and bright and awash in sparkles, tulle, Broadway bangers and brand tie-ins; The other is all sweat and sand, blood and bulging muscles. Both films topped Fandango’s most anticipated holiday movie survey, where 65% of respondents said that they were interested in the “Glicked” double feature. Theaters big and small are also pulling out the stops with movie-themed tie-ins. B&B Theaters will have Roman guards tearing tickets at some locations and Maximus popcorn tubs. Marcus Theaters is doing Oz photo ops and friendship bracelet-making. Alamo Drafthouse is leaning into the singalong aspect (beware, though, not all theaters are embracing this) and the punny drinks like “Defying Gravi-Tea.” “Rather than it being in competition, I think they’re in conversation,” “Gladiator II” star Paul Mescal said. “This industry needs a shot in the arm. Those films gave it last year. We hope to do it this year.” And the hope is that audiences will flock to theaters to be part of this moment as well. It's a sorely needed influx of could-be blockbusters into a marketplace that's still at an 11% deficit from last year and down 27.2% from 2019, according to data from Comscore. “Competition is good for the marketplace. It’s good for consumers,” said Michael O'Leary, the president and CEO of the National Association of Theatre Owners. “Having two great movies coming out at the same time is simply a multiplier effect.” “Glicked” is currently tracking for a combined North American debut in the $165 million range, with “Wicked” forecast to earn around $100 million (up from the $80 million estimates a few weeks ago) and “Gladiator II” pegged for the $65 million range. “Barbenheimer” shattered its projections last July. Going into that weekend, “Barbie” had been pegged for $90 million and “Oppenheimer” around $40 million. Ultimately, they brought in a combined $244 million in that first outing, and nearly $2.4 billion by the end of their runs. It’s possible “Glicked” will exceed expectations, too. And it has the advantage of another behemoth coming close behind: “Moana 2,” which opens just five days later on the Wednesday before the Thanksgiving holiday. “Glickedana” triple feature anyone? “These are 10 important days,” O'Leary said. “It’s going to show the moviegoing audience that there’s a lot of compelling stuff out there for them to see.” There are infinite caveats to the imperfect comparison to “Barbenheimer,” as well. “Wicked” is a “Part One.” Musicals carry their own baggage with moviegoers, even those based on wildly successful productions (ahem, “Cats”). “Gladiator II” got a head start and opened internationally last weekend. In fact, in the U.K. it played alongside “Paddington in Peru,” where that double was pegged “Gladdington.” “Gladiator” reviews, while positive, are a little more divided than the others. And neither directors Ridley Scott nor Jon M. Chu has the built-in box office cache that Christopher Nolan’s name alone carries at the moment. The new films also cost more than “Barbie” ($145 million) and “Oppenheimer” ($100 million). According to reports, “Gladiator II” had a $250 million price tag; “Wicked” reportedly cost $150 million to produce (and that does not include the cost of the second film, due next year). The narrative, though, has shifted away from “who will win the weekend.” Earlier this year, Chu told The Associated Press that he loves that this is a moment where “we can root for all movies all the time.” Close behind are a bevy of Christmas releases with double feature potential, but those feel a little more niche. There’s the remake of “Nosferatu,” the Nicole Kidman kink pic “Babygirl” and the Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown.” The internet can’t even seem to decide on its angle for that batch of contenders, and none exactly screams blockbuster. Sometimes the joy is just in the game, however. Some are sticking with the one-name mashup (“Babyratu”); others are suggesting that the fact that two of the movies feature real-life exes (Timothée Chalamet and Lily-Rose Depp) is enough reason for a double feature. And getting people talking is half the battle. When in doubt, or lacking a catchy name, there’s always the default: “This is my Barbenheimer.” ___ Associated Press journalist John Carucci and Film Writer Jake Coyle contributed reporting.
Bitcoin has finally hit $100,000 . It took the world's largest crypto asset a decade and a half to go from being worth less than a cent to being six-figure. Bitcoin enthusiasts and investors are already on their next target— just how long would it take the world's largest crypto asset to be worth a million dollars? But while it took BTC seven years to 10x its value from 10K to $100K, meme coins have seen their value rise as much as 1000x in a matter of days to months. However, the reason for this is the market cap and liquidity. Bitcoin is a nearly $2 trillion market cap cryptocurrency that handles $160 billion in daily trading volume. Meanwhile, the entire crypto market capitalization is just $3.75 trillion, so BTC basically accounts for over half of that. Unlike BTC, a coin with a low market cap and trading volume is pretty easy to move. And because even small buy orders can send a coin to new highs easily, traders utilize them as a way to speculate and make quick profits. The likes of Bitcoin, unlike altcoins and meme coins, are utilized by traders and investors as a way to invest in the long term and secure their wealth. This is something that meme coin traders should never forget — meme coins are the gateway to having fun and making quick and sizable profits, but they better sell on time before it all becomes zero. That's not to say that your Bitcoin investment won't lose its value—it will when the bear market comes. However, if you end up not selling your Bitcoin, it's highly probable that you'll have a chance to sell it when the bull market returns. This is because Bitcoin has solidified its position as an asset class, having been battle-tested and now gaining broader institutional support via exchange-traded funds (ETFs) . But the same cannot be said for your meme coins, which may never see the light of the day once their time is over. So, for a trader to get better returns from meme coins, they must understand the difference between investing and speculation. Investing Vs. Speculation What separates an investment from a speculative trade is your mindset and the level of risk involved. That's the main difference, though the line between the two can often be very thin, as what's speculation for one could be an investment for another. Generally, if something is high-risk, it is categorized as speculation, while lower risk is attributed to investing. So, when you spend money with the expectation that the thing you put your funds on will return you a profit, that is investing. Essentially, you take an average or below-average risk to generate a satisfactory return on your capital. Here, you expect your investment to increase in value over time. Also, this approach is usually taken with a long-term perspective, which could be anywhere between over a year to decades, with an aim to build your wealth gradually. Moreover, your decision here is based on a reasonable judgment, which you have made after performing a thorough investigation and gaining enough understanding of your venture's soundness, which points to a good probability of success. Equity stocks, bonds, mutual funds, ETFs, real estate, and market instruments are some examples of investments. Now, if you take a position in an asset and expect it to move in a certain direction, you are speculating. If you enjoy the thrill of volatile market conditions and use the market momentum to capture price movements, you are again speculating. In this approach, you purchase and sell assets over a short period of time to generate profits. It involves frequent buying and selling of an asset, often jumping from one trend to another, which means emotions tend to play a big role here. Not only do you disregard any fundamentals, but you also see a high probability of failure. Success or failure here largely depends on external forces or events that are outside of your control. Unlike speculation, which usually means putting your money into something and praying for good results, investing involves analysis. You put in your time and energy to study fundamentals and use it as a basis for your investment. Speculation also does not have much to do with protecting your wealth but rather increasing it quickly. In contrast, with investment, wealth protection is as much part of the process as wealth creation. Derivative products like futures and options come under speculative investment options. Interestingly, for a non-crypto native, cryptocurrencies fall under speculative investment, but as we saw this year, with ETFs, Bitcoin has become a legitimate asset class, providing institutional investors a way to diversify their assets. For a crypto-native, majors like Bitcoin and maybe even Ethereum fall under investment, while the vast majority of altcoins, specifically meme coins, are just speculative trading. So, what makes meme coins so speculative? Also, what exactly are they, and where does their value really come from? A Look into Memes and Meme Coins' Value Meme coins are the most profitable narrative of this cycle, and they have captured a lot of attention. But before we get into meme coins, let's first understand the concept of memes. You may feel that memes are an Internet phenomenon, but that's not the case. Actually, memes can trace their origins to centuries before when they were used as a way to communicate. The term ‘meme' was first introduced by Richard Dawkins in his 1976 book, “The Selfish Gene,” to describe the concept of cultural transmission. According to Webster's New World College Dictionary, a meme is defined as “a concept, belief, or practice conceived as a unit of cultural information that may be passed on from person to person, subject to influences in a way analogous to natural selection.” The term' Internet meme', meanwhile, was coined by Mike Godwin in 1993 to describe how memes spread through online communities. The emergence and popularity of social media have accelerated the speed at which memes proliferate the online world. Today, memes are an integral part of Internet culture, which helps people come together through humor and gain a sense of belonging to a community. The key elements of memes are their viral distribution and constant evolution. Now, meme coins are simply the financialization of memes. A cryptocurrency, when named after animals, characters, or individuals in an attempt to attract a user base, is a meme coin. Much like any other crypto, the underlying technology here is blockchain. But, unlike utility coins like ETH, which serve a purpose in this ecosystem, meme coins have no purpose other than offering a fun asset to learn about crypto and invest in to generate huge returns. Meme coins promise no fundamentals or inherent value other than creating a vibrant community of like-minded individuals. Given that meme coins remove any pretense of utility and are simply driven by hype, FOMO, and momentum, they are extremely risky and highly volatile. And that's exactly what makes them so popular in retail. The meme coin frenzy first gained traction this cycle in 2023 when PEPE, an inspiration from the popular Internet meme' Pepe the Frog,' captured the market's attention and saw an explosive increase in its value. This ignited the meme coin mania, which only allowed it to grow substantially higher. This year, the meme coin craze has risen beyond the wildest of imaginations, with new coins popping up every hour. The cheaper and faster blockchains like Tonchain and Base have been helping the meme coin trend thrive, with Solana at the center of it all. As the biggest beneficiary of the memecoin frenzy, Solana-based memecoins account for almost a fifth of the market value of meme tokens. A New Breed of Meme Coins: Easy Come Easy Go Solana isn't alone in fueling the memecoin craze; rather, it's Pump. fun, which is the fastest-growing crypto app in history that allows anyone to create new tokens in a minute for completely free. The biggest driver of the ongoing meme coin madness is Pump. fun's growth wasn't gradual but rather sudden and explosive. In February, less than a hundred coins were being launched a day on it, which has since skyrocketed to tens of thousands every day nowadays. While Pump.fun made it easy to create new meme coins, DEXs were already there to help people start trading right away. Unlike a CEX, there's no need for listing; the project provides the liquidity, and you are good to go. And this led to an eruption of meme coin mania, which is amplified by social media posts showing individuals turning their dollars into millions. While it's easy to start feeling FOMO with people bragging about bagging millions, it's not as widespread as one might believe. In fact, the reality is that most people lose money by trading meme coins rather than making profits. As per data from Dune , fewer than 3% of traders made more than $1,000 profit from investing in these speculative coins, while 0.8% have made over $10,000, and the bulk of traders, at over 60% , are incurring losses. Meanwhile, the platform itself (Pump.fun) is raking in millions of dollars in revenue and is now planning to launch a pro-trading terminal and its own token. Among the new line of meme coins, there's another category: celebrity meme coins, which might be the most fleeting ones ever, as well as net negative for the crypto industry. One may think that they would help gain crypto adoption, but the fast-paced crypto's low barriers to entry only end up attracting bad actors. Celebrity tokens are nothing but crypto that derive their value from the personality who launched them or whose name they bear. However, despite carrying the name of a celebrity, it's possible they may not be launched or promoted by them. The total market cap of celebrity coins is $113.7 million, as per Coinmarketcap . Currently, the biggest celebrity coin is MOTHER from music artist Iggy Azalea. The $65.8 million market cap token is currency trading at $0.065, down 72.68% from its peak of $0.240 from six months ago. In 2nd place is the $45 mln market cap DADDY from Andrew Tate, and then the $395K market cap JENNER from Caitlyn Jenner is in 3rd place, down 74% and 95% from their respective ATHs. Much like these, most of the celebrity tokens have been launched only to be dumped soon after and are now barely worth anything. Most recently, Hailey Welch, a.k.a the Hawk Tuah Girl, launched her memecoin $HAWK on Solana, which didn't even survive for an hour before plunging hard. As soon as the token launched, the initial surge saw its market cap rising as high as $500 million before tanking to $60 million in a mere 20 minutes. The crash cost many their “whole life savings,” igniting the calls of “rug pull” and “pump-and-dump” crypto scam. Some buyers took to Crypto Twitter to accuse Welch of orchestrating an exit scam and said that they would take legal action against her. One X user talked about losing their “life savings and children's college education fund,” while the other one pointed out how a vast majority of coins were held by an insider, only to be dumped on the retail. While some feel for those who have suffered grievous losses, others can't help but point out how the very purpose of meme coins is to get in and out of a trade before others. “It's a game of musical chairs,” said crypto trader Huss in a post on celebrity tokens earlier this year. “When they're right, they're geniuses, but when they're wrong, they were scammed and want reparations.” – Huss recently said in another post on X. Back in June, X user Slorg created a list of these celebrity coins and found that they had an average decline of 94%. Most of these new coins are also released on Solana through Pump.fun. Celebrity-linked projects aren't anything new. Back in 2017, boxer Floyd Mayweather and actor Jamie Fox promoted ICOs. Much like meme coins in this cycle, over 80% of 2017 ICOs were scams, including those associated with celebrities. The same was seen during the 2021 bull season when Mayweather, again, along with the likes of Jake Paul, DJ Khaled, and David Dobrik, promoted scam NFT projects. So, this has been happening since the beginning of crypto and will continue to happen, but that's not to say that there aren't better and more honest ways to achieve this. Also, investors must be more careful when interacting with these speculative coins, as there are meme coins that tokenize culture and have value. Meme Coins That Stand Out Every meme coin is not the same. Much like how BTC has stood the test of time, there are a few meme coins as well that continue to survive year after year. The OG Dogecoin (DOGE) leads this pack, which was created eleven years ago as a joke but soon found its place in people's hearts and portfolios. This meme coin played a huge role in onboarding mainstream investors and traders to crypto, who were overwhelmed with the technical complexity of the space. Dogecoin gained significant attention during the last bull market when Tesla CEO Elon Musk came out in support of it. In fact, US President-elect Donald Trump has created a specific department, ‘Doge,' – The Department of Government Efficiency, which he wrote on his social media platform, “will become, potentially, ‘The Manhattan Project' of our time.” The department is to be headed by the tech billionaire and fellow entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who recently met behind closed doors at the Capitol to discuss the DOGE initiative and reportedly talked about keeping a ‘naughty and nice' list of those who will be part of the budget-slashing proposals and those who won't. Then, during the last bull run, we got many new meme coins, most of which are simply lost or irrelevant, but the likes of Shiba Inu (SHIB) and Floki have still managed to maintain their presence among the top 100 crypto assets and in people's minds. Interestingly, during the past cycles, meme coins pumped toward the end of the bull market, but this time around, they have been experiencing capital rotation throughout the cycle. Before even the Bitcoin halving occurred, meme coins continued to attract interest and capital, even when BTC had its consolidation between March and October this year. The meme coin market capitalization actually makes up 3.16% of the total crypto market cap, up from 1.3% at the beginning of the year. Excluding majors, such as BTC and ETH, this share rises to 11.21%, up from 4.2%. This makes sense, given that among the top 100 crypto assets, meme coins are the biggest gainers this year, with WIF's 2,165% year-to-date (YTD) gains and PEPE's 1,578% upside. These two have been among the most popular meme coins, along with BONK, FWOG, BRETT, PNUT, and POPCAT, during this cycle. Conclusion So, as we saw, meme coins are the hottest trend of this bull market, offering an enticing opportunity for retail to make the best of it. The fun element combined with their low entry point makes meme coins a magnet to new investors who get lured in by people flashing their big ‘1 SOL to $1 million' gains from meme coins. Instead of treating it like a game of hot potato, they mistake it for an investment or simply hold it for too long in the hope of bigger gains, and they eventually end up giving up all of their profits. It is important for those putting their money into meme coins to understand and remember that the vast majority of these meme coins become irrelevant when their underlying connection to social events becomes stale. So, make sure not to lose sight of your goal, which is quick profits. Speculation is a great way to make sizable returns in a very short period, but that's what it is. It's not an investment, and meme coins should never be treated as such because they are driven by hype and momentum, and when the music stops, you don't want to be holding them, or you'll be left with significant losses, “but as long as the music is playing, you've got to get up and dance”! Click here to learn all about investing in Bitcoin (BTC).Markets mixed as traders assess crises in South Korea, FranceThe US military is increasingly realizing that drones are a substantial problem it's going to need an answer for. The Pentagon has developed a new counter-drone strategy to address the growing threat that drones pose to US forces at home and abroad, from mysterious uncrewed systems troublingly hanging around American bases to one-way overseas. "In recent years, adversary unmanned systems have evolved rapidly," Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said in a statement as the Department of Defense rolled out the strategy Thursday. "These cheap systems are increasingly changing the battlefield, threatening US installations, and wounding or killing our troops." The new strategy reflects the Pentagon's evolving approach to the increasing and offers a plan for the military to defeat the threat, building on some existing initiatives. Drones have played a prominent role in the Ukraine war and throughout the ongoing Middle East conflicts. have been fired repeatedly at US forces stationed in the region over the past year; one serious incident in Jordan killed three American troops and wounded dozens more. In conflicts around the world, drones are being used for intelligence and reconnaissance, improved firing solutions, bombing missions, , naval warfare, mine laying and detection, and more by both state-level and non-state actors. The Pentagon has acknowledged that , making it more difficult to maneuver on the battlefield, giving adversaries easier methods of attack, and lowering the barrier for entry on precision strike capabilities. And as technology advances, these uncrewed systems will only increase in lethality over time. "The relatively low-cost, widely available nature of these systems has, in effect, democratized precision strike," the Pentagon wrote in a fact sheet on the new counter-drone strategy. It added: "Technological advances in the mid- to long-term will likely render unmanned systems increasingly capable, affordable, autonomous, and networked — able to loiter for longer timespans, to communicate better with other systems, move and act as swarms, and to carry larger payloads. These dynamics risk eroding deterrence and creating new and uncertain escalation dynamics." The fact sheet, which offers limited insight into the classified counter-drone strategy, sketches out five steps that the US will take to tackle the drone problem in the near, mid, and long term. The steps will include working to better understand the threat, increasingly focusing on degrading and disrupting "threat networks," improving active and passive defenses, investing in both the quantity and quality of , and emphasizing drone defense in future force development. The Pentagon said it will work with Congress and the defense industry and collaborate closely with allies and partners to implement the strategy fully. "Taken together, these approaches will allow the Department to maintain our advances and our ability to fight and win our Nation's wars, if called upon," the fact sheet says. The new counter-drone strategy builds upon a range of existing initiatives to not only boost US drone capabilities but also strengthen defenses. For instance, in early 2020, the US Army set up the Joint Counter-small Unmanned Aircraft Systems Office, which was tasked with developing anti-drone technology and training soldiers to . Another example is the Replicator 2 initiative, the directive for which was issued by the defense secretary in September. This project, a follow-on to the initial , is aimed at protecting key installations and force concentrations from small drone attacks. Despite these efforts, the Pentagon acknowledges that there's still work to be done considering the direction that drone warfare is headed. "The rapidly evolving nature of the threats posed by adversary use of unmanned systems means that the Department will need to continually reassess our efforts," the fact sheet said, but "this strategy sets a foundation for action to meet this challenge." Read the original article on
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SEANN Walsh lashed out at his Weakest Link co-stars and declared he was 'unfollowing them' after a disaster on the show. The comedian took part in a 'Party Special' of the BBC quiz but was left fuming after being voted off prematurely by his fellow celebrities. Seann had been the strongest link during the first round of the game but was voted out by his competitors after the second round. He was picked to leave by fellow competitors Babatunde Aléshé, Scarlett Moffatt and Richie Anderson . Even host Romesh Ranganathan said: "This is, for so many reasons, unbelievable. It was an incredible decision." Waving his finger in the air, Sean told the celebrities: "I'm unfollowing all of you!" READ MORE ON THE WEAKEST LINK Although Seann had answered one of his questions correctly, he had struggled with his second. Romesh had asked: "In politics , which motoring manoeuvre that refers to the driver of a vehicle changing direction is a term used for an abrupt reversal of policy?" Seann asked him to repeat the question, before hesitating and wrongly answering: "Indication." The correct answer was "U-turn". Most read in Reality Richie used the error as his reasoning for voting Seann out. "I think it was the time you took with the... I mean, you could have done a U-turn in that time!" he quipped. As the celebrities gasped, Seann hit back: "Very good." Looking annoyed, Seann told Romesh he had been "daydreaming" when he was asked the question. The actual weakest link for the second round was Ibiza Weekender and Celebrity Big Brother winner David Potts . David had been asked: "In fashion, the logo of which sportswear brand is officially known as a 'swoosh'?" He wrongly answered "Adidas". The correct answer is " Nike ". "I didn't know what a swoosh was. If you'd have said tick, I would have said Nike," David claimed to Romesh. Speaking to the camera after he was dismissed from the stage, Seann blasted David's 'swoosh' answer. He said: "I didn't feel I was the weakest link in the round. "I love David, but 'swoosh'? I would have got 'swoosh'. If you just make the noise it does the tick! Swoosh! Adidas?!" Unlike in many other countries, such as the US, HMRC allows cash prizes from competitions and the National Lottery to be tax-free. However, in order for the money to be seen as from a 'competition', there has to be a skill-based element, such as a quiz question, or the option of free entry. This is why some competitions ask incredibly simple questions that even a five-year-old could answer, as they are trying to get around the requirement to offer a free entry option. Former Gogglebox star Scarlett and radio and TV star Richie made it to the final round of The Weakest Link on Saturday night. Scarlett ended up winning the show following a sudden death round. She had been asked: "Which Prime Minister of the 21st Century has a surname that is an anagram of the word 'romance'?" Scarlett looked stumped before guessing: " David Cameron ?" READ MORE SUN STORIES She was stunned to be told it was the correct answer, meaning she had won £7,650 for her chosen charity , The Samaritans. Scarlett is an ambassador for the organisation.
Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi are seemingly loving life across the pond. Amid multiple reports that the couple has moved to England in the wake of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump ’s electoral victory over Vice President Kamala Harris , Ellen and Portia appear to be happily enjoying their time in England. Earlier this month, the couple stepped out for date night at Burford, U.K. pub The Farmer’s Dog, which is owned by U.K. talk show host Jeremy Clarkson , as seen in footage on the pub’s Instagram page . At one point in the Nov. 13 video, Jeremy’s girlfriend Lisa Hogan turned the camera to show the Arrested Development alum seated beside the former daytime star, who flashed a smile and gave a wave to the camera. The clip also featured “Torn” singer Natalie Imbruglia belting along as The Corrs gave an acoustic performance, while “You’re Beautiful” singer James Blunt was also tagged in the caption of the post. “What a great night in the pub with @thecorrsofficial,” the caption read. “The way a good pub night should be... acoustic set, a few drinks, great friends.” Ellen, 66, and Portia, 51, have owned several properties in the U.S. including a home in Montecito, Calif., which also boasts such high-profile residents as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as well as Oprah Winfrey . Now, the couple—who wed in 2008—have reportedly relocated to rural Cotswolds, England, and plan to sell their Montecito property, according to TheWrap and TMZ . While Ellen has taken a step back from the spotlight since the end of The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2022, she released what she called her final comedy special on Netflix in September addressing allegations of a “ toxic work environment ” at the show, joking she had been “kicked out of show business.” “I'm a comedian who got a talk show, and I ended the show everyday by saying, ‘Be kind to one another,’” she explained in Ellen DeGeneres: For Your Approval . “Had I ended my show by saying, ‘Go f--k yourselves,’ people would have been pleasantly surprised to find out I'm kind.” To see more stars who have left Hollywood behind, keep reading. Ian Somerhalder The Vampire Diaries alum hasn't sunk his teeth into a new role since Netflix's 2019 series V-Wars . Instead, the dad of two (with wife Nikki Reed ) has dug a little deeper into a passion project, namely his mission to combat climate change by improving the world's soil. "I stepped away from acting a little over four years ago to raise my kids, build my companies and get these films launched," Somerhalder told E! News in November 2023 of launching the 2020 documentary Kiss the Ground and its follow up Common Ground , each detailing the need for regenerative farming. When he looks years down the road, he continued, "I will be a rancher and building legacy brands, whether it's my bourbon or my health and wellness company, and the regenerative agriculture and healthy soil management practices that I live by and our family lives by. That's where my life was going. So when people say 'Why do you care?' That's why I care. Because that's who I am, that's what I'm going to become." Evangeline Lilly The Ant-Man and the Wasp star announced she's taking an indefinite hiatus from acting after 20 years in the industry. "I am so filled with joy and contentment today as I live out my vision," Evangeline wrote on Instagram June 3. "I feel so grateful for my blessings. Stepping away from what seems like the obvious choice (wealth and fame) can feel scary at times, but stepping into your dharma replaces the fear with fulfillment." But she isn't necessarily shutting the door, either, adding, "I might return to Hollywood one day, but, for now, this is where I belong." On a February 2021 episode of her podcast Empty Inside , the iCarly alum told guest Anna Faris that she decided to stop acting a few years back and is now focused on opportunities in writing and directing, in addition to hosting the podcast. "My experience with acting is, I'm so ashamed of the parts I've done in the past," revealed Jennette, who detailed her experience in her 2022 memoir I'm Glad My Mom Died . "I resent my career in a lot of ways. I feel so unfulfilled by the roles that I played and felt like it was the most cheesy, embarrassing. I did the shows that I was on from like 13 to 21, and by 15, I was already embarrassed. My friends at 15, they're not like, 'Oh, cool, you're on this Nickelodeon show.' It was embarrassing." Though she hasn't totally written off a second act. "I do feel like only through writing the book have I gotten to a place where I think there might be a way of exploring acting that doesn't carry that baggage that I carried with me for so long," she told E! News in October 2022. "Maybe if I write something for myself. I think that'd really be maybe one of the only ways I could kind of try exploring it again." This felt like something of a no-brainer. If we had a shot to marry Prince Harry , dedicate our life to the philanthropic causes that matter most to us and gain access to the Queen's impressive collection of tiaras, bidding ta-ta to Tinseltown would feel like an okay sacrifice. Following in the path Grace Kelly took from Hollywood to the Palace of Monaco, Markle left behind her home in Toronto—and her breakout role on Suits —for a life in The Firm. Though, now that she and Harry have shed their senior roles, she's edging back into the business thanks to business moves like their multi-year production deal with Netflix . Having made upwards of 40 movies since her debut in 1994's The Mask , the actress was long overdue for a break when filming wrapped on 2014's Annie . "I just decided that I wanted different things out of my life," she explained to pal Gwyneth Paltrow of her ultimate act of self-care. "I had gone so hard for so long, working, making films and it's such a grind. When you're making a movie—it's a perfect excuse—they own you. You're there for 12 hours a day for months on end and you have no time for anything else." And there was plenty more she'd like to explore, from writing (she followed up her 2013 New York Times best-seller The Body Book with 2016's The Longevity Book ) to starting a family with husband Benji Madden . But while she confessed to InStyle in 2019, "I don't miss performing. Right now I'm looking at the landscape of wellness and all that," apparently she could be swayed into making at least one encore. "We just begged and pleased on my knees, like, 'Just give the people one more again,'" Jamie Foxx told E! News of getting Diaz to sign on for the upcoming Netflix film Back in Action . "We love her, we've been waiting on her and this is just gonna be fantastic." The actor insisted there'd be no encore after he finished his five-year run on Empire . When Extra asked the Oscar nominee about his future ahead of the musical drama series' sixth and final season in 2019, he responded, "Oh, I'm done with acting. I'm done pretending." And though he returned to set for a handful of projects, he again announced his plans to quit acting while promoting his Peacock series The Best Man: The Final Chapters in 2022. "I've gotten to the point where now I've given the very best that I have as an actor," he told ET . "Now I'm enjoying watching other new talent come around, and I don't want to do an impersonation of myself." Once his time as King Joffrey came to a sudden, purple-faced end in 2014, the then-21-year-old told EW he was getting out of the game. "I've been acting since age 8," the Game of Thrones star explained of his decision. "I just stopped enjoying it as much as I used to." No longer a child star, a bit of the magic had worn off. "Now there's the prospect of doing it for a living, whereas up until now it was always something I did for recreation with my friends, or in the summer for some fun," he continued. "I enjoyed it. When you make a living from something, it changes your relationship with it. It's not like I hate it, it's just not what I want to do." But after a six-year break, he was ready to resume his reign , joining the cast of BBC's series Out of Her Mind in 2020. When Fast Times at Ridgemont High 's dream girl ( Jennifer Aniston took on her part in September 2020's virtual table read ) wed fellow actor Kevin Kline in 1989, they "agreed to alternate so that we're never working at the same time," he told Playboy of their plan to care for son Owen and daughter Greta (a singer who now goes by the stage name Frankie Cosmos ). However, he continued, "whenever it's been her slot to work, Phoebe has chosen to stay with the children." Though she made a cameo in pal Jennifer Jason Leigh 's 2001 indie The Anniversary Party , Cates devotes most of her time to operating her New York City boutique Blue Tree . At the height of his Ghostbusters and Honey, I ... fame, the '80s star stepped away from filmmaking not long after his wife passed away from breast cancer in 1991 to focus on raising his kids Rachel and Mitchell. Though he hasn't had a live-action role since 1997, even passing on a cameo in Paul Feig 's 2016 Ghostbusters remake, he's remained a treasured cultural icon, as evidenced by the outrage over reports that he'd been assaulted while walking in New York City Oct. 1. Thankfully there's good news for fans: he'll make his triumphant return alongside Josh Gad in the forthcoming Disney reboot Shrunk . Once she wed fashion designer Adam Kimmel in 2010, the Never Been Kissed standout hinted that she was maybe kinda done with movies. "Ninety percent of acting roles involve so much sexual stuff with other people, and I don't want to do that," she explained to Vogue . "It's such a strange fire to play with, and our relationship is surely strong enough to handle it, but if you're going to walk through fire, there has to be something incredible on the other side." Her decision was solidified after son Martin joined older sister Louisanna in 2014. "I don't do movie stuff anymore. I am totally an outsider! I ... am just a mom and an outsider," she noted to Us Weekly at a 2016 event, explaining that she helps Kimmel with his business and paints on the side. "I am just focused on my kids. I think that's mainly why I stopped." Portia de Rossi She'd done Ally McBeal . And Nip/Tuck . Then Arrested Development and finally Scandal when the Aussie realized that maybe she was ready to turn the dial . "I was approaching 45 and I just kind of...was wondering is there something that I could tackle now that I've never done before that would be really challenging and different," she explained on wife Ellen DeGeneres ' eponymous talk show in 2018. "I kind of knew what acting would look like for me for the next 10, 20 years, so I decided to quit and start a business." Her consumer-art company, General Public , already a work in progress, she had just one piece to finish. "I called Mitch Hurwitz , who's the creator of Arrested Development and I said, 'If there is a season 5, I won't be doing it because I quit acting. And he seemed really understanding and he totally got it. We had a great conversation, and then he wrote me into five episodes." To be fair, once you've won three Academy Awards, what's left to accomplish? Shortly after receiving his sixth Oscar nod for his final film, 2017's Phantom Thread , the thespian had his rep issue a statement informing fans that he "will no longer be working as an actor. He is immensely grateful to all of his collaborators and audiences over the many years. This is a private decision and neither he nor his representatives will make any further comment on this subject." But just when he thought he was out, his son pulled him back in, production company Focus Features announcing in October 2024 that the Oscar winner would star in Anemone , the film he wrote alongside son Ronan Day-Lewis , who will also direct. Bridgit Mendler The Good Luck Charlie alum took a step back from the spotlight in 2018 when she began pursuing a master's degree from MIT, later earning a PhD from the institution. She's also pursuing a law degree from Harvard Law School. And as if that weren't enough, Bridgit also launched her own startup Northwood Space, which aims to build ground satellite stations to help send and receive data from space, becoming CEO of the brand in February 2023 .KULR Technology Group, Inc. ( NYSEAMERICAN:KULR – Get Free Report )’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $3.42, but opened at $3.52. KULR Technology Group shares last traded at $4.36, with a volume of 27,779,337 shares changing hands. KULR Technology Group Stock Performance The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.12 billion, a P/E ratio of -38.83 and a beta of 3.17. Institutional Investors Weigh In On KULR Technology Group A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KULR. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in KULR Technology Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of KULR Technology Group by 44.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,555,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $443,000 after acquiring an additional 479,026 shares in the last quarter. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in shares of KULR Technology Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 21.23% of the company’s stock. About KULR Technology Group KULR Technology Group, Inc, through its subsidiary, KULR Technology Corporation, develops and commercializes thermal management technologies for electronics, batteries, and other components applications in the United States. It provides lithium-ion battery thermal runaway shields; automated battery cell screening and test systems; cellchecks; safecases; fiber thermal interface materials; phase change material heat sinks; internal short circuit devices; and CRUX cathodes. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for KULR Technology Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for KULR Technology Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .
Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey has been fined $11,255 for unsportsmanlike conduct (taunting) during their 34-17 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 16. NFL insider Tom Pelissero posted a clip of the incident to X. The NFL fined #Ravens CB Marlon Humphrey $11,255 for unsportsmanlike conduct (taunting) — holding the ball towards #Steelers WR Calvin Austin III on his pick-six last week. pic.twitter.com/nhxhjfSKkk Early in the fourth quarter, Humphrey picked off Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson and returned it 37 yards for a touchdown. The NFL fined Humphrey because it believed he was taunting Pittsburgh receiver Calvin Austin by holding the ball out towards him while running it back. However, after the game Humphrey claimed that wasn't the case. "I want to make this pretty clear," Humphrey said. "When I was running with the football, I saw [Ravens linebacker] David Njabo, a really great teammate of mine, and I was trying to pitch him the football. Some people brought up to me that it looked like taunting or something, but I was trying to pitch him the football. There was no taunting there at all. I just want to make that very clear." It is important to note that Humphrey was not flagged on the play. The lack of consistency between being penalized and fined for something has been very frustrating for players over the last several years. Both Austin and Njabo were behind Humphrey as he was running, so it's difficult to establish intent. Regardless, that's a pretty hefty amount of money for something that didn't hurt anyone. Humphrey has a good reputation as a standup person, making the fine even more harsh. The veteran defender is a former All-Pro and three-time Pro Bowler. In 15 games played this season Humphrey has 63 tackles, six interceptions (tied for second-most in the league), 14 passes defensed, and two forced fumbles. As unfortunate as this is, Humphrey will have to try to put it behind him and move forward. He and the Ravens are rolling, winners of their last three games. They clinched a playoff berth with their Christmas Day win over the Houston Texans, and can secure the AFC North title with a win over the Cleveland Browns in Week 18, or with a Steelers' loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.is that's become ' next big TV hit. It's no surprise though since Sheridan has a knack for creating riveting television with the likes of and to name a few. is based on the podcast , which focuses on the 21st century Texas oil boom in the Permian Basin and features Billy Bob Thornton as Tommy Norris, the overseer of an oil-drilling operation. The official synopsis for reads: "Set in the proverbial boomtowns of West Texas, is a modern-day tale of fortune-seeking in the world of oil rigs. Based on the notable 11-part podcast from Imperative Entertainment and , the series is an upstairs/downstairs story of roughnecks and wildcat billionaires fueling a boom so big, it's reshaping our climate, our economy and our geopolitics." So if you can't get enough of all the drama from the lately, check out these four suggestions with over 80% on Rotten Tomatoes. Joe Pickett Based on the book series by C.J. Box, the neo-Western crime drama follows the titular Wyoming game warden (Michael Dorman) as he and his family navigate various political and socio-economic challenges in the rural town of Saddlestring. is one hell of a ride (no pun intended) as he investigates murders and conspiracies involving poachers and developers. The murder mystery proves to be a thrilling and compelling watch, so move over there's another Western taking the reigns on one of the 1883 is the prequel to Paramount Network's behemoth and another show created by Sheridan. Set almost 140 years before the events of centers on John Dutton's great-grandfather James Dutton (Tim McGraw) and great-grandmother Margaret Dutton (Faith Hill) as they venture across the Great Plains and join a European immigrant wagon train heading towards their eventual home of the Yellowstone Ranch. wrote that is "an honest-to-goodness western that explores the heart of untamed America" and "brings a far greater understanding of what the Dutton family had to go through to secure their ranch, and why John Dutton (Kevin Costner) is so desperate to protect it in ." The second prequel, is also available to watch on the streamer. Tulsa King Another creation from the mind of Sheridan is the crime comedy-drama Superstar Sylvester Stallone plays the lead role of Dwight "The General" Manfredi, an aging mobster fresh out of a 25-year stint in prison. Realizing that there's no place for him back home in New York, his bosses exile him to Tulsa, Oklahoma where he starts to build a criminal empire with the help of some loyal associates. A perfect mix of comedy and mob drama, the first season of was the highest-rated series debut on cable in 2022 and shows off Stallone's stellar acting chops as he injects vulnerability into the no-nonsense gangster. Yellowstone While is still exclusively available on in the US, it’s available to stream on Paramount Plus in the UK and Stan in Australia. is where it all began for Sheridan's TV empire and has become a cultural phenomenon in the world of modern Westerns. The Kevin Costner–led drama follows the Dutton family and their sprawling ranch in Montana. But with extensive wealth and land comes conflict as the family battles to protect their home from encroaching neighbors. is an entertaining watch with complex family drama and plenty of punch-ups that make you wince at your screen.
There's nothing wrong with keeping things simple. Consider, for example, how a recipe can be ruined by straying too far from its original list of ingredients -- nobody wants a milkshake made with a heaping helping of brussels sprouts , right? Similarly, investing doesn't have to be complicated. Indeed, by allocating large portions of a portfolio to funds that track major indexes, investors can feel secure knowing that their portfolio will largely capture the stock market's growth. Are You Missing The Morning Scoop? Breakfast News delivers it all in a quick, Foolish, and free daily newsletter. Sign Up For Free » Let's have a closer look at one excellent index-linked exchange-traded fund (ETF) and see if it could be a millionaire-maker. What is the Invesco QQQ Trust Series I ETF? In the simplest terms, the Invesco QQQ Trust Series I ETF (NASDAQ: QQQ ) is an index-linked ETF that tracks the Nasdaq 100 index . That index, in turn, is made up of the 100 largest non-financial stocks that are listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange. Many of the stocks in the index are the mega-cap tech stocks you might expect to find: Nvidia , Microsoft , Apple , and Amazon . However, there are also much smaller, less well-known names like Ansys , MongoDB , and The Trade Desk . Finally, there are also companies from outside the tech sector, such as Starbucks , Kraft Heinz , and AstraZeneca . All in all, this fund offers investors the opportunity to own a broad array of stocks representing many sectors (except for financials). Granted , the index is heavily skewed toward the tech industry, with roughly 59% of holdings falling within that sector. Yet, given tech's outperformance over the last few decades, investors should ask themselves: Is it a bad thing to be relatively overweight in the tech sector over the long term? I would suggest -- particularly for younger investors -- that it is not. In fact, staying slightly overweight in the tech sector could prove to be a millionaire-making move. Here's why. Large investments in the tech sector have paid off Let's compare the relative performance across four index-linked ETFs: The Invesco QQQ Trust Series I, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust , the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF , and the iShares Russell 2000 ETF . As you can see, over the last five years, the Invesco fund has significantly outperformed the other funds with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20.5%. What's more, the difference is even more pronounced if we examine the last 15 years -- starting with the end of the Great Recession bear market, which occurred in March 2009. Indeed, $50,000 invested in the Invesco fund in March 2009 would have grown to over $1 million today. In comparison, the same amount, invested on the same day, would have grown to only $560,000 in the S&P 500 fund, $454,000 in the Dow fund, and less than $386,000 in the Russell fund. The lesson? Even with near-perfect timing and very similar index-linked ETF funds, there is an enormous amount of difference in performance among these funds -- and the tech-heavy Invesco fund has proven to be the best. All that said, there is no guarantee that the Invesco fund will continue its outperformance. After all, there were periods, such as the dot-com bubble of 2001-2003, where tech stocks severely underperformed the broader market. However, even with that turbulent period included, the Invesco fund has ever-so-slightly exceeded the performance of its major index rivals since the start of this century. No investment is a sure thing, but index-linked ETFs are about as close as you can find . They offer investors a broad range of stocks and have a proven track record of delivering real returns over decades. Moreover, the tech-heavy nature of the Invesco fund offers investors a realistic chance to outperform the market, given the high growth and solid profitability of many of its major components. Investors looking for a smart and simple way to grow their portfolio to over $1 million should consider the Invesco fund. Should you invest $1,000 in Invesco QQQ Trust right now? Before you buy stock in Invesco QQQ Trust, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now... and Invesco QQQ Trust wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $898,809 !* Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than quadrupled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of November 18, 2024 John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Jake Lerch has positions in Amazon, Invesco QQQ Trust, The Trade Desk, and iShares Trust-iShares Russell 2000 ETF and has the following options: long December 2024 $615 calls on SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, short December 2024 $220 calls on iShares Trust-iShares Russell 2000 ETF, and short December 2024 $605 calls on SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, MongoDB, Starbucks, and The Trade Desk. The Motley Fool recommends Ansys, AstraZeneca Plc, and Kraft Heinz and recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy . Is This Outstanding Index ETF a Millionaire-Maker? was originally published by The Motley Fool
'Not the greatest situation': Chesney weighs in on snowballs thrown at JMU by App State fansGAINESVILLE, Fla. – Princely Umanmielen's return to the Swamp ended with a police escort . Umanmielen, who spent three years at Florida before transferring to Ole Miss, left the stadium with a number of officers surrounding him. And the defensive end still tried to get at heckling fans. Recommended Videos It started when Umanmielen left the sideline in the waning seconds of a 24-17 loss to the Gators . He was walking toward the visiting locker room when at least one fan yelled at him from the stands. Umanmielen clearly didn't like what he heard and made his way toward the seats. Officers quickly stepped in and escorted Umanmielen back toward the locker room. They then walked him directly to the team's waiting busses, but more fans were in the path and shouted at him again. Umanmielen turned and started toward the fans before officers stepped in and stopped him. It was the latest bit of oddness for Umanmielen, who wore an orange Gators ski mask through Ole Miss' practice facility late in the week. He finished the game with seven tackles, including a sack. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football'Jacks defense has their best performance of the season in 59-55 win over San Francisco State. Most Popular Trending NationallyMarkets mixed as traders assess crises in South Korea, France