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Queen Latifah Says ‘The Equalizer' Was ‘Everything I Hoped it Would Be' After Show's Cancelation: ‘Don't Worry, I'll Be Back'

Queen Latifah Says ‘The Equalizer' Was ‘Everything I Hoped it Would Be' After Show's Cancelation: ‘Don't Worry, I'll Be Back'

Yahoo04-05-2025

Queen Latifah shared her final thoughts about 'The Equalizer' after it was announced Friday that the CBS action series would end after five seasons.
On Friday, Latifah took to Instagram to share some parting words ahead of the 'The Equalizer' series finale on May 4. She wrote that taking on the 'kick-ass' role of a former CIA operative turned vigilante guardian angel, Robyn McCall, was 'everything I hoped it would be.'
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'Shakim [Compere] and I at Flavor Unit are always excited to bring these kinds of roles and projects to life — and then we just hope you love them as much as we do,' Latifah wrote. ''The Equalizer' blew past every dream we had for it, and having the opportunity to do this for five seasons honestly feels surreal.'
She continued, 'Thank you to our amazing cast, crew, and producers and writers! And I can't say enough about the FANS! Y'all have been so loyal, so loud, and so ride-or-die—and that's exactly why we keep doing this. We can't thank you enough. It means the world to us.'
Latifah went on to tease a project in the works that she 'can't wait to share.' To close out her message, she wrote, 'Don't worry—I'll be back kicking ass in something new real soon,' suggesting another action project on the horizon.
'The Equalizer' is only one of a handful of projects that CBS has newly canceled. The network also recently put an end to 'Poppa's House,' as well as 'FBI: International' and 'FBI: Most Wanted.'
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Olivia Rodrigo's Complete Dating History
Olivia Rodrigo's Complete Dating History

Elle

time41 minutes ago

  • Elle

Olivia Rodrigo's Complete Dating History

Olivia Rodrigo has transformed from Disney star to pop queen in just a few short years. In 2021, her debut album Sour became a hit record of breakup anthems for yearners and ragers of all ages. Part of the album's power is that each song is filled with clues that fans are thrilled to examine as they try to deduce who in Rodrigo's life inspired them. The 20-year-old has had several public romances so far, including some with high-profile co-stars. Below are all the men that she is known to have dated, up to her present boyfriend, Louis Partridge. Back in her Disney Channel star days, Rodrigo worked with actor Ethan Wacker on their show Bizaardvark, where they started off as friends. The show premiered in 2016, and in 2019, the couple shared in a now-deleted Instagram that they had been dating for six months. For a while, many pictures of the couple appeared on their respective timelines, but later in 2019, they all started disappearing. Yes, the young couple had split but remained friends. However, with the release of her hit song, 'Drivers License' in 2021, Rodrigo sparked rumours that the subject of the damning lyrics was Wacker. He denied it in a now-deleted TikTok video. From Bizaardvark, Rodrigo moved on to the Disney+ series, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series. Once again, love blossomed on set with her co-star Joshua Bassett. The pair dated from 2019 to 2020, so there was a lot of speculation that Rodrigo's songs were about Bassett as well. After they split, he went on to date pop star Sabrina Carpenter. On her song 'Driver's License,' Rodrigo sings, 'And you're probably with that blonde girl/Who always made me doubt/She's so much older than me/She's everything I'm insecure about.' Carpenter is blonde and four years older than Rodrigo. Still, Rodrigo denied that Carpenter was referenced in the track. In March 2021, the Sour artist told 'I think we've met once or twice in passing, but I've never had a conversation with her...I don't think I could write a song that was meaningful or emotional about somebody that I don't know.' Bassett is also a songwriter, and he added more fuel to the rumours. His track 'Crisis' is said to be about Rodrigo. In it, he sings, 'Half the shit you're saying's only half true/Messing with my life as a career move/I can't help but wonder why you won't make it end?' In June 2021, Bassett told GQ, 'The reality is it's kind of like a lost cause trying to talk about any of that stuff, and I refuse to feed into any of the bullshit, so I just don't. [Everyone] is asking me about Sabrina and Olivia. Why don't we focus on these women for who they are? Let's focus on the art that they're making and how great they are instead of their relationship to a boy.' Around the same time as Bassett's interview with GQ, Rodrigo started dating music producer Adam Faze. They attended the Space Jam 2 premiere together and were seen out and about being affectionate. In February 2022, they split after less than one year of dating. The former couple never confirmed they were together nor spoke about their breakup, but a source told People, 'They've been over for a bit now.' At least one fan suggested that 'Vampire' was about Faze because of the timing of the song's release. Rodrigo was spotted with Zack Bia in February 2022 at a Super Bowl party and then in New York City soon afterward. A source told E!, 'He invited her to Super Bowl parties that he was DJing that weekend, and she went to support him. They hit it off and have been casually hanging out.' By the summer, things seemed to have run their course. A source told Us Weekly in August 2022, 'Their relationship sort of fizzled. They were casually dating but haven't spent time together in a while. There were no issues—they both have different work schedules and different friend groups.' But there was of course speculation that Bia was the 'fame sucker' Rodrigo was singing about. In a September 2023 interview with GQ, Bia said, 'I don't think it's really about me. I think the internet just ran with it.' He added that he 'knows how a song gets made,' but didn't think there was any big drama in their connection. 'We hung out, we're both busy, and we ended up not furthering our relationship,' he explained. 'There was never any drama, you know?' Rodrigo and Enola Holmes actor Louis Partridge were first linked in October 2023 after being seen together in London looking very cuddly. At the time, The Sun reported that she traveled to England just to hang out with him. 'Olivia flew to London with her best pal, singer Conan Gray, but it was Louis who she came to see,' an insider said. 'They met through mutual pals earlier in the year and have been messaging quite a bit. She has spent a few days in the capital hanging out with them all, but it's been Louis who she has been inseparable from. They have been for dinners and nights out. They hit a club together on Friday night and were acting very coupley. It's really sweet to see her happy.' Partridge attended Rodrigo's Jingle Ball performance in December 2023 and was seen with her friends Conan Gray and Madison Hu. He was also at the Saturday Night Live after-party following her turn as a musical guest, and Just Jared reported they left in a car together. ELLE Collective is a new community of fashion, beauty and culture lovers. For access to exclusive content, events, inspiring advice from our Editors and industry experts, as well the opportunity to meet designers, thought-leaders and stylists, become a member today HERE. Aimée Lutkin is the weekend editor at Her writing has appeared in Jezebel, Glamour, Marie Claire and more. Her first book, The Lonely Hunter, will be released by Dial Press in February 2022.

Racing social media sensation Hailie Deegan: '10 Insta posts offsets price for my sponsor'
Racing social media sensation Hailie Deegan: '10 Insta posts offsets price for my sponsor'

Indianapolis Star

time2 hours ago

  • Indianapolis Star

Racing social media sensation Hailie Deegan: '10 Insta posts offsets price for my sponsor'

INDIANAPOLIS -- Hailie Deegan comes by her 3.3 million followers on TikTok, 1.7 million followers on Instagram and 605K YouTube channel subscribers honestly. She's a novelty. A 23-year-old woman racing cars on the open-wheel circuit in a sport overrun by men, a lot of those men who are generations down the line with longtime, readymade sponsors at their fingertips. She is also the daughter of Brian Deegan, one of the most successful athletes in X Games history with 16 medals -- 12 in motocross and four in rally car racing. He was the first athlete to land a 360 in a freestyle motocross competition. Racing consumers fell in love Brian Deegan (like father, like daughter) and his infectious personality. At 51, he has 1.3 million followers on Instagram, 613,000 on TikTok and 73,100 on X. She is also the daughter of Marissa Deegan, a woman who latched onto technology when others weren't. She had a cell phone before anyone had a cell phone. She was at the forefront of the Blackberry craze. She started her daughter's social media platforms long before that was a thing in the world of racing. And Marrissa Deegan has her own 200,000 followers on Instagram and 34,600 on TikTok. Deegan has been staring into the lens, being recorded, for as long as she can remember. She has been sharing her life from the time she started in racing at 8 to now, as a driver in IndyCar's primary developmental series Indy NXT for HMD Motorsports. "I was so used to having cameras around 24/7 that it was almost just like I expected that of myself. Oh, I gotta show my life on social media. Show everyone what I'm doing. Show everyone who I am," Deegan told IndyStar. "And I think people gravitated toward that." They did. And that has come with a lot of good. But it also has come with the bad. Given that iconic name in the sphere of racing, Deegan has gotten plenty of comments that aren't so friendly. Spoon fed. Spoiled. Handed everything on a silver platter. "I think people think, 'Oh, you race cars. You live in a multimillion dollar mansion, drive around in some million dollar car.' No, it's not," said Deegan. "Really, I live a very normal life. Yes, my job is racing. My job is to keep up with social media, keep sponsors happy, run a merchandise company. Like that's my job." And it is a tough job. "People don't realize how hard it is to bring in sponsors," Deegan said, to continue the dream she has to race for at least the next 10 years. That is why Deegan, known as racing's social media sensation, has turned to what she is most comfortable with -- facing the camera and telling the world her story -- to foot the monstrous bills that come with racing a car. "My dad was highly successful on the two-wheel side of motorsports, which is about two zeros less than what you need to be in four-wheel motorsports," she said. "I'm all sponsor funded. It is not driven by family money whatsoever. Yes, I have the family name, but my parents haven't contributed financially to my racing for a long, long time." They gave her the start, the unconditional love and the continued endless support. But now it's Deegan's time to carry forward her own dream. "That's why I've used my social media to bring another value to the table. I could sell a primary sponsorship for a race, but also backend 10 Instagram posts that kind of offsets the price and makes it more favorable for my sponsor," she said. "So they both work hand in hand for me." When it comes to securing sponsors, Deegan is picky. The money might sound good, but it has to fit. "I've turned down a lot of sponsor deals over the fact that it doesn't align with me as a person. And so if there's something that truly I would never use this product, I will not do the deal," she said. "It obviously isn't worth it for a company if I don't love the product." Which brings her to one of her main sponsors, Monster Energy. Deegan drinks an energy drink a day. Perfect match. She also loves cooking, baking and, especially, grilling which makes her deal with Pit Boss another win-win. "I hate selling stuff that I don't use. People can see right through that," she said. "With social media nowadays, people can see when stuff is so fake." And that is what makes Deegan's social media so popular -- its authenticity. Most of her posts are either shot at a race track or hanging out with family or her fiance, Chase Cabre, who she met competing against in the NASCAR K&N Series. Cabre has become not only the love of Deegan's life, but her partner in business. "He was badass driver and I'm lucky to have him because he's probably the best in-house coach I could have," she said. "He is so talented at racing, but he just didn't grow up with money." Deegan watches all her film with Cabre and plays a lot of iRacing with him. Cabre is also the man who turns the camera toward Deegan these days, helping to capture her life and racing career on social media. And like the reactions to her social media, the majority positive, Deegan gets similar reaction as an Indy NXT driver. Mostly positive, some negative. Deegan, who grew up in Temecula, Calif., immersed herself in motorsports. "My dad has broken about everything in his body, won championships in off-road racing, rally car racing," she said. "The only thing he never really touched was NASCAR. But also I think with his image, it wasn't necessarily, I guess it didn't fit on brand." Deegan calls her family "on the edgier side." Her two younger brothers both race. Haiden is a professional AMA supercross and motocross racer, and Hudson competes in youth motocross. As for her own career, Deegan has plenty of accolades under her belt. She is the only female driver in the Lucas Oil Off Road Pro series, as well as the regional series to win championships (2013, 2015, 2016). She was also the only youth to win the Lucas Oil Off Road Pro series Driver of the Year award (2016). In Hailie's first season driving in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West in 2018, she scored her first win at Meridian Speedway in Idaho and went on to capture two more checkered flags in the 2019 season, making her the only female to have won races in the K&N Pro Series. As a current driver in Indy NXT, she ranks 19th out of 25 drivers with 82 points. Not exactly where she'd like to be. But she's working hard and trying to drown out any of the naysayers. "I really don't value anyone's opinion unless they're above me success-wise. So if some big name driver told me I sucked or I was terrible at this, obviously that would affect me a lot more," she said. "But people who have never done it before, it doesn't really affect me at all. I don't understand how people can feel like they can have an opinion about that when they've never done it before." Even when she was winning in K&N, there was some negativity. "At the end of the day, on the outside, I don't know if racing is ready for a fully competitive female," Deegan said. "Everyone says they want to push it, but ..." Deegan looks up to and has great admiration for Danica Patrick, modern day racing's female trailblazer. "She's probably, in my opinion, she was the woman that really really made it and did a lot and so I give her full props," said Deegan, who said she knows Patrick faced similar negativity from people as a female driver. "But who cares? She's way more successful than everyone who's talking about her combined." And Deegan has something Patrick didn't have when she started her career. "I'm thankful that I did build my social media and invest a bunch of time into it at a young age and didn't just neglect it," said Deegan, "because it's paying off for me right now."

Movies to stream in July: our expert's 11 must-watch movies new to Netflix, Prime Video, Max and more
Movies to stream in July: our expert's 11 must-watch movies new to Netflix, Prime Video, Max and more

Yahoo

time4 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Movies to stream in July: our expert's 11 must-watch movies new to Netflix, Prime Video, Max and more

When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Looking for some new movies to stream in July? Well great news, there are plenty of options across the likes of Netflix, Max, Prime Video and all of the major streaming services this month. With that said, it can be a lot to scroll through, so allow me to offer my humble services in helping you find the new movies on streaming that you are not going to want to miss. The below list of movies are taken from the major streaming services: Apple TV Plus, Disney Plus, Hulu, Max, Netflix, Paramount Plus, Peacock and Prime Video. I'm also specifically picking movies that are new to streaming this month — in this case, these are 11 movies that are landing on one of the major streamers for the first time, or coming back to streaming services after only being available via on-demand. So without further ado, here are my picks for the 11 movies to stream in July. The Amateur slid a little under the radar in movie theaters, but the spy thriller starring Rami Malek did earn a "Fresh" score from critics and an 88% positive rating from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes. Those reactions point to this being a movie that likely deserves more of a look when it becomes easier to watch on streaming this month. In the movie, Malek plays a CIA analyst Charlie Heller, whose wife tragically dies in a terrorist attack. He wants to go after those responsible, but when his superiors deny that plan, Charlie goes out on his own using his analytical and technical skills at his disposal to get his revenge. Stream The Amateur on Hulu in the US starting July 17. Streaming plans for The Amateur in the UK are unconfirmed; movie is currently available via on-demand. Let's be honest, nobody likes taking tests. But what if a test decided whether or not you could have children. That's the premise of this sci-fi psychological drama that stars Elizabeth Olsen and Himesh Patel as hopeful parents and Alicia Vikander as person running the assessment and deciding if they get to become parents. The indie movie, which only saw a limited release in movie theaters, is officially "Certified Fresh." Stream The Assessment on Hulu in the US starting July 19; currently streaming on Prime Video in the UK. I had plans to see Billy Joel in concert this September before the Piano Man unfortunately announced that he would need time to recover from a medical condition and the concert was cancelled (bummer, but warranted). That just makes this upcoming HBO documentary about Joel more of a must watch for me (and any fan of his music). A two-parter that will release on Max in back-to-back weeks, Billy Joel: And So It Goes explores the love, loss, and personal struggles that fuel his songwriting, providing never-before-seen performances, home videos, personal photographs and one-on-one interviews. Stream Billy Joel: And So It Goes part 1 on July 18 on Max, with part 2 premiering July 25. There's no info on a UK premiere for Billy Joel: An So It Goes at this time. The language barrier on Netflix may be a thing of the past based on how many foreign language movies have become solid hits on Netflix so far this year. Whether they're watching dubbed versions or subtitles, Netflix subscribers have given movies like Exterritorial (from Germany) and Bad Influence (from Spain) their attention. We could have the next example of that this month in Brick, another German-made movie. Matthias Schweighöfer, the breakout star of Netflix's Army of the Dead, leads this sci-fi, mystery thriller where an entire apartment building becomes encased by a mysterious brick wall, forcing the residents to find a way out. Stream Brick on Netflix worldwide starting July 10. Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story is one of the funniest sports comedies of all time. The battle between Vince Vaughn and his team of misfits and the fantastically over-the-top villain played by Ben Stiller is, as the title suggest a classic underdog story, played out in hilarious fashion. With sports options a bit minimal at the moment, Dodgeball can help fill your competitive drive, while getting you howling. Stream Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story on Hulu in the US starting July 1; currently streaming on Disney Plus in the UK. Another classic sports movie highlights July's streaming options, with Adam Sandler's Happy Gilmore 2 teeing off on Netflix. The sequel to Sandler's golf comedy sees his hot-headed, long-driving character trying to reignite his golf career to help his daughter achieve her dreams. Original cast members Christopher McDonald, Julie Bowen and Ben Stiller, are back, while new to the scene are Sunny Sandler, Margaret Qualley, Bad Bunny, Travis Kelce and a number of real-life golf professionals. Can they all help recreate what made the original Happy Gilmore a fan-favorite? Stream Happy Gilmore 2 on Netflix worldwide starting July 25. In the new action comedy Heads of State, a pair of world leaders have a bit more of a hand in international affairs as John Cena and Idris Elba play the US president and UK prime minister that have to stop a global conspiracy on their own. Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Jack Quaid and Paddy Considine also star in the movie that hopes to bring some summer fun to Prime Video's streaming lineup. Stream Heads of State on Prime Video worldwide starting on July 2. Pick your preference on Mortal Kombat movies, as both the 1995 movie and the 2021 reboot return to Max in July. For, it's the 1995 movie all the way. In a nutshell, both movies involve some of Earth's strongest fighters being tasked with saving the planet from adversaries from an other world looking to the planet over, with its fate to be decided in a series of fights known as Mortal Kombat. The timing is good too, as a sequel to 2021's Mortal Kombat is set to be released later this year. So you can use this opportunity to refamiliarize with the new movie's characters. Stream Mortal Kombat (1995 and 2021) on Max in the US starting July 1. Both Mortal Kombat movies are available on-demand in the UK, with no streaming plans available at this time. It's been a long five-year wait for The Old Guard 2, the sequel to Netflix and Charlize Theron's hit action movie about immortal mercenaries. But that officially ends early in the month, with the added bonus of Theron and company taking on a new villain, played by Kill Bill icon Uma Thurman. This is one of Netflix's answers to the summer blockbuster season, and if it can live up to the first movie it should be a pretty good one. Stream The Old Guard 2 on Netflix worldwide on July 2. Max is adding a number of recent A24 movies to its library this month, including Opus and Death of a Unicorn. But the most intriguing will be On Becoming a Guinea Fowl, an international indie that has a rare 100% "Certified Fresh" score on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie follows a Zambian family whose secrets come out as funeral proceedings for their uncle take place. Interested? Stream On Becoming a Guinea Fowl on Max in the US starting July 4. Streaming plans for On Becoming a Guinea Fowl in the UK are unconfirmed; movie is currently available via on-demand. What I dubbed as the first great movie of the year, Sinners arrives on streaming in July, meaning there is little excuse if you're one of the few people that has not seen this excellent entry from Michael B. Jordan and Ryan Coogler. A blend of horror, action and music, Sinners is expertly made, written and acted, and should play just as well on your TVs at home as it did on the big screen. Stream Sinners on Max in the US starting July 4. Streaming plans for Sinners in the UK are unconfirmed; movie is currently available via on-demand.

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