Here's everything that's been happening in the world of Pop Culture this past week... in case you missed it! Feel free to comment on any of the stories and info shared here, add any news bits that you caught going on that may have been missed, or at least show us some love if you read the post but have nothing to comment on by clicking on that little heart icon at the bottom of the post...

GENERAL POP CULTURE NEWS:

- Paramount has agreed to put its $111 million deal to buy Warner Bros. Discovery on hold for several months. The company, which had hoped to close the deal by August to avoid paying penalties, has effectively conceded that it was not likely to beat out the injunction being sought by 12 state attorneys general to halt the merger. Paramount will instead hope to beat the states in court. The document filed last week by the company states the company will hold off on consummating the acquisition until June 2027 or five days after the court issues a ruling on the case, whichever comes first.

- The sneakers worn by Canadian pop star JUSTIN BIEBER when he performed during the FIFA World Cup Final Halftime Show were sold at auction for almost $30,000. The sneakers were a custom look by his own apparel brand, Skylrk, from the brand’s Matter Daddy line that has not yet been released to the public. Bieber donated the Skylrk sneakers to Christie’s Auction House for the One Goal auction, which benefits the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund.

- Actor BEN AFFLECK and recent “Jeopardy!” champion JAMIE DING became the latest $1 million winners of ABC game show “Who Wants to be a Millionaire”. The pair’s earnings will go toward Affleck’s Eastern Congo Initiative, the first US-based advocacy and grant-making organization dedicated to supporting people living in the African region.

- NAMES, HASHTAGS, MEMES, AND TRENDS FROM THIS PAST WEEK –

JARED LETO sexual assault allegations; RFK JR.’s YouTube cooking show

THIS PAST WEEK IN SPORTS -

- NBA: Free agent NBA player LEBRON JAMES announced he decided not to retire yet and instead would sign with the PHILADELPHIA 76ERS in the hopes of winning one more championship. James’ contract is reportedly for 2 years.

- Soccer: The Asian Football Confederation has joined the European and Americas football bodies in rejecting FIFA’s proposal to sell stakes in tournaments to private investors. The proposed minority stakes would reportedly raise $4.6 billion for the non-profit FIFA. The UEFA first announced its intentions to have all 55 of its member countries boycott the World Cup if FIFA pushes on with the controversial plan (six of the eight quarterfinalists at this year’s World Cup were UEFA members including eventual winners, Spain), they were followed within hours by Concacaf and AFC in flatly rejecting the plan; the number of countries comprising the three soccer federations is equal to more than 140, which is well above the majority needed to reject the plan.  

GOVERNMENT 101 -

- US: President DONALD TRUMP has ordered the installation of warning signs at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History to alert visitors about what he claims are inaccurate depictions of American history. The new executive order directs Interior Secretary DOUG BURGUM to erect warning signs along National Park Service-controlled sidewalks and walkways leading to the museum and indicated the new signs should inform visitors of the White House’s objections to certain displays in the museum and direct people to “locations and resources for accurate information regarding America’s history.” The move comes on the heels of Trump’s Domestic Policy Council releasing a report accusing the Smithsonian of presenting history that is not “inspiring, unifying, and worthy of our great republic,” and congressional hearings in which the director of the museum was grilled by Republican legislators about the Smithsonian’s framing of the country’s history, to which she at one point retorted, “When historians talk about reframing a traditional narrative, we don’t mean erasing it. We mean adding the evidence, the voices, the objects that earlier tellings left out so that more Americans can see themselves reflected in the national story.” Trump does not have the authority to demand changes to the Smithsonian’s exhibits which is why his executive order requires the signs be placed next to the outdoor sidewalks. No date was given for the signs to be installed.

ON BROADWAY/ THE WEST END -

- Scissor Sisters lead singer JAKE SHEARS and actors LORNA COURTNEY and KEVIN MCHALE will join the Broadway cast of “The Rocky Horror Show” later this summer. Shears will take over the role of Frank-N-Furter from actor LUKE EVANS; he will step into the role September 11^th. Courtney and McHale will take over the roles of Janet and Brad, respectively, from outgoing actors STEPHANIE HSU and ANDREW DURAND, respectively, on August 25^th.  Evans, Hsu, and Durand will play their final performances in the show on August 23^rd; actor PAUL SOILEAU, who plays the role of Phantom in the musical, will play Frank-N-Furter in select performances prior to Shears’ arrival.

- A stage musical adaptation of the 1984 PRINCE-starring film “Purple Rain” is coming to Broadway in 2027.The production - which will feature more than 20 Prince hits including “When Doves Cry”, “I Would Die 4 U”, and “Take Me with You” – will be staged at New York’s Majestic Theatre, with previews set to start on March 12, 2027. Opening night is set for April 12^th. No casting has been announced yet.

MOVIE NEWS: 

- Disney’s animated sequel “Toy Story 5” surpassed $1 billion in worldwide box office revenue, becoming the third movie this year to hit that milestone (following Lionsgate’s MICHAEL JACKSON biopic “Michael” and Universal’s animated sequel “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie”).

- Director/screenwriter RYAN COOGLER announced that a third “Black Panther” film is officially in the works, with Marvel Studios already setting December 15, 2028 for its theatrical release. Actor DAVID JONSSON has been tapped to play Prince T’Challa II, the grown son of T’Challa (played by the late CHADWICK BOSEMAN in the 2018 original) who was introduced at the end of “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”, the second “Black Panther” film. Actors LETICIA WRIGHT and WINSTON DUKE were also confirmed to be returning for the third film as Shuri and M’Baku, respectively.  

- Lionsgate’s highest grossing movie of all time, the MICHAEL JACKSON biopic “Michael”, will stream on Starz beginning August 10^th.

- MOVIE CASTING UPDATE -
- Actor RYAN GOSLING is officially joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The actor will play Johnny Blaze aka Ghost Rider, the fiery, motorcycle-riding antihero, in a standalone “Ghost Rider” film directed by SHAWN LEVY for Marvel Studios.

- Actresses WHOOPI GOLDBERG, JENNIFER LEWIS, VANESSA WILLIAMS, and VIVICA A. FOX will costar in the Netflix comedy “Women like Us”.

TV NEWS:

- Newly renewed AMC drama series “Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire”, which went by the title “The Vampire Lestat” for its third season, announced that its fourth season will go by the title “Queen of the Damned” and will be based on ANNE RICE’s third novel in the series (also titled “Queen of the Damned”). It was also announced that the one-night-only rock concert held at the Beacon Theater in New York City that featured lead actor SAM REID performing as Lestat and singing many of the songs featured in the third season of the series will officially be available to stream on AMC+ starting August 23^rd. 

- CBS unveiled its fall season schedule this week, with the fall slate set to kick off on September 23^rd with the start of season 51 of reality competition series “Survivor”. Scripted shows make their return with new episodes starting October 4^th with the return of dramas “Marshals” and “Tracker”. New shows premiering this fall include comedy series “Eternally Yours” and dramas “Cupertino” and “NCIS: New York”. For a look at the complete CBS fall schedule, check out the following link: https://www.tvline.com/2224252/cbs-2026-fall-premiere-dates-boston-blue-marshals-ncis-full-schedule/

- ABC announced its fall season schedule this week, starting the season on September 15^th with a brand new season of reality competition series “Dancing with the Stars” (which also has a special Wednesday episode that week) and the season 2 premiere of drama series “RJ Decker”. Comedy returns September 30^th with a two-episode season 2 premiere of the revival of “Scrubs”. The network, which renewed its entire slate from last year, has no new shows scheduled for the fall. For a complete ABC fall schedule, check out the following link: https://www.tvline.com/2224402/abc-2026-fall-premiere-dates-911-dancing-with-the-stars-scrubs-full-schedule/

- AMC Global Media announced a co-exclusive global licensing pact with Netflix to allow the entire “Walking Dead” drama series franchise to stream on both Netflix and AMC+ beginning in 2027 as part of a new five-year licensing deal. The deal covers the original “The Walking Dead” as well as all six of its spinoffs, including “Fear the Walking Dead” and “The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon”, for a total of 371 episodes. Licenses for each series will begin on different dates in different geographic territories.

- TV CASTING UPDATE –

- Actress ROBIN GIVENS will join the season 3 cast of the Amazon Prime Video drama series “Cross”. She will recur as Senator Mulrooney, an intellectual conservative.

- Actor CHRISTIAN HOWARD has joined ABC daytime drama series “General Hospital”, taking over the role of Ethan Lovett. Howard replaces actor NATHAN DEAN, who returned to the soap in April after a six-year absence to the role he originated; At the time Dean only agreed to return for four months and opted not to sign a new contract after writers decided to keep the character around longer. It is not yet known how long Howard will remain in the role.

- CBS newsmagazine series “60 Minutes” has hired conservative New York Times columnist ROSS DOUTHAT, “The Perfect Storm” author SEBASTIAN JUNGER, and Vice News veteran/filmmaker GIANNA TOBONI to add to its on-air staff following the firing of several correspondents and contributors at the end of the last season. Douthat will serve as a correspondent while Junger and Toboni will serve as contributors. Additionally, NORAH O’DONNELL, who has served as a contributor on the series for years, will reportedly have an increased presence on the series and CBS News senior global affairs correspondent TREVOR PHILLIPS will also be a contributor. The join returning correspondents BILL WHITAKER, LESLEY STAHL, and JON WERTHEIM.

- Actor JOE MINOSO announced he will be leaving NBC drama series “Chicago Fire” during the upcoming 15^th season. Minoso, who is an original cast member, will appear in a handful of episodes at the start of the season to wrap up his character’s story.

- Actors JAY BARUCHEL, KEVIN DURAND, AMANDA IP, and CIARA BRAVO have been added to the season 5 cast of Amazon Prime Video drama series “Reacher” as series regulars.

- TV RENEWALS* AND PICKUPS/EXTENSIONS** -

* “Art Detective”, Acorn TV, renewed for season 2

* “President Curtis”, Adult Swim, renewed for season 2

* “Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire”, AMC, renewed for season 4

- TV CANCELLATIONS* AND TRIMMED/NOT-EXTENDED SEASONS** -

* “Wonder Man”, Disney+, cancelled after one season

* “Crutch”, Paramount+, cancelled after one season

MUSIC NEWS:

- Swedish pop duo ROXETTE announced their planned tour stops in North America this year to celebrate the group’s 40^th anniversary have been cancelled by tour promotor LiveNation US due to “logistics and hugely increased touring costs”. Roxette founder/co-lead singer PER GESSLE and his current singing partner LENA PHILIPSSON (who joined the lineup in 2024; original co-lead singer MARIE FREDRIKSSON died in 2019 of brain cancer) shared their disappointment in the decision, noting that the US is “by far our biggest streaming market” and expressed hope that they might be able to tour in the US and Canada at a later date. The 40^th anniversary amphitheater tour was also set to include ‘80s-era pop stars TAYLOR DAYNE and NICK LOWE. 

- KPop group BTS announced they would not be submitting their music for Grammy consideration this year after the Recording Academy decided to create a new Grammy category specifically for Asian pop music. The group stated on Instagram that they “hope that music can be heard and loved for what it is, rather than being divided by region or language.” The Recording Academy CEO was “saddened” by their decision but understands and respects it and then clarified that “the Asian Pop category was created to celebrate the depth, diversity, and extraordinary growth of pop artistry coming out of Asia. The spirit of this new category is to shine a dedicated spotlight on these important artists.”

- LAST WEEK’S NEW #1 SINGLES AROUND THE WORLD –

Germany/ Italy/ Sweden: “Dai Dai (FIFA World Cup Official Song)” by SHAKIRA x BURNA BOY

Greece: “TETTEH” by STRAT, ARAB, & TRANNOS

Japan: “Zehi Ni Oyobazu” by NOGIZAKA 46

Malaysia: “The Hijau” by TULUS

South Korea: “Normal” by BTS

- LAST WEEK’S NEW #1 ALBUMS AROUND THE WORLD –

Australia/ Canada/ Ireland/ UK/ US: “Daughter from Hell” by GRACIE ABRAMS

Greece: “Foreign Tongues” by ROLLING STONES