WELCOME TO THE B-LIST, YOUR WEEKLY ROUNDUP OF CELEBRITY MESS AND POP CULTURE. THIS WEEK: THE MANDALORIAN’S LONG-AWAITED SEASON THREE PREMIERING THIS WEEK, COCAINE BEAR’S SURPRISING SUCCESS IN THE BOX OFFICE, AND A SAG AWARDS ROUNDUP.
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THE MANDALORIAN, THE HIT STAR WARS UNIVERSE SHOW ON DISNEY PLUS, IS PREMIERING THIS WEDNESDAY – MARCH FIRST. THE SHOW IS COMING AT A PIVOTAL TIME IN THE STAR WARS FRANCHISE. WHILE OTHER SHOWS LIKE THE BOOK OF BOBA FETT AND OBI-WAN WERE MILDLY POPULAR AND ANDOR WAS A HIT WITH THE CRITICS, THEY WERE NOWHERE NEAR THE CRITICAL AND POPULAR SUCCESS OF THE MANDALORIAN.
THE SHOW IS ALSO COMING AT A TIME OF PEAK POPULARITY FOR THE SHOW’S LEAD ACTOR PEDRO PASCAL DUE TO HIS STARRING IN THE HIT HBO SERIES THE LAST OF US. THAT AND THE MERE 35-MINUTE RUNTIME OF THE DEBUT EPISODE SUGGEST A PREMIER THAT WILL DRAW IN MILLIONS OF VIEWERS.
THE LONG-AWAITED AND MASSIVELY VIRAL COCAINE BEAR FINALLY DEBUTED IN THEATERS THIS WEEKEND. DIRECTED BY ACTRESS ELIZABETH BANKS AND SURPRISINGLY BASED ON A TRUE STORY, COCAINE BEAR SNIFFED UP 23.1 MILLION BOX-OFFICE DOLLARS IN ITS OPENING WEEKEND, ACCORDING TO STUDIO ESTIMATES SUNDAY. MARVEL’S “ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA” SHRANK QUICKLY IN ITS SECOND WEEKEND.
“QUANTUMANIA” WAS STILL NO. 1 WITH AN ESTIMATED $32.2 MILLION IN TICKET SALES., BUT WAS HIT WITH SOME OF THE WORST REVIEWS AND AUDIENCE SCORES OF THE MARVEL CINEMATIC UNIVERSE. IT DROPPED A STEEP 69.7 PERCENT IN ITS SECOND WEEKEND – THE WORST DECLINE FOR AN MCU FILM, FALLING FASTER THAN “BLACK WIDOW”’S 67.8 PERCENT.
A24’S EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE TOOK HOME BEST CAST, BEST ACTRESS, BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR, AND BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS SUNDAY AT THE 29TH ANNUAL SAG AWARDS. BRENDAN FRASER TOOK THE BEST MALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE FOR A24’S THE WHALE. A24 WAS THE CLEAR WINNER ON THE FILM SIDE TONIGHT WITH FIVE TOTAL TROPHIES FOR EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE AND THE WHALE. NO OTHER STUDIO HAD MORE THAN ONE.
ON THE SMALL SCREEN, THE WHITE LOTUS TOOK THE AWARD FOR ENSEMBLE IN A DRAMA SERIES. ABC’S ABBOTT ELEMENTARY TOOK THE AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE IN A COMEDY SERIES. JENNIFER COOLIDGE WON BEST FEMALE ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES FOR WHITE LOTUS, AND JASON BATEMAN TOOK BEST MALE ACTOR FOR NETFLIX’S NOW-WRAPPED OZARK.
THE BEAR‘S JEREMY ALLEN WHITE THEN FOLLOWED UP HIS GOLDEN GLOBE AND CRITIC’S CHOICE WINS FOR MALE ACTOR IN A COMEDY. JESSICA CHASTAIN TOOK THE NIGHT’S FIRST AWARD FOR HER LEAD ROLE IN THE LIMITED SERIES GEORGE & TAMMY, FOLLOWED BY SAM ELLIOTT WINNING FOR 1883. OSCAR, EMMY AND SAG AWARD WINNER SALLY FIELD RECEIVED THE 2023 LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD, WHICH WAS PRESENTED BY HER AMAZING SPIDER-MAN CO-STAR ANDREW GARFIELD.
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THAT’S ALL FOR THE B-LIST THIS WEEK. CHECK IN NEXT MONDAY TO HEAR ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS THIS WEEK IN POP CULTURE. FOR WNUR NEWS, I’M ELLA BARNES.
