‘White Lotus' Star Jason Isaacs Says Duke ‘Clearly' Wanted to ‘Go Viral' With T-Shirt Backlash: ‘Fanciful and Ridiculous'
'[The White Lotus] not only uses our brand without permission, but in our view uses it on imagery that is troubling, does not reflect our values or who we are, and simply goes too far,' Duke VP of communications, marketing and public affairs Frank Tramble told The New York Times.
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Isaacs, in pseudo-retaliation, appeared at 'The White Lotus' Season 3 finale event sporting a Duke shirt. In an interview with the Prestige Junkie podcast, Isaacs admitted he was looking to 'cause a little mischief' following Duke's overblown reaction.
'I bought the t-shirt because the airline canceled my flight and took my bags away, and I had nothing to change into in the morning,' Isaacs said. 'It was the only outlet there [at the Charlotte Airport]. And I also thought it might cause a little bit of mischief.'
'I mean, I found the whole thing faintly amusing,' he continued. 'I don't like anyone getting upset about anything, but clearly, it was just someone fancying seeing their name online and wanting to go viral. Their real-life alumni are such a rogue's gallery, many of them, that the notion that one of the spiritually enlightened [characters] on television causes them any trouble is fanciful and ridiculous.'
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Geek Tyrant
2 hours ago
- Geek Tyrant
Retro Trailer For The 1997 Gangster Crime Drama HOODLUM with Laurence Fishburne and Tim Roth — GeekTyrant
This weeks retro trailer is for the classic 1997 film Hoodlum , a gritty crime drama that dives deep into the dangerous underworld of 1930s Harlem. Directed by Bill Duke, the film stars Laurence Fishburne as the infamous gangster Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson. The story follows Bumpy's rise to power after his release from prison as he battles against rival mobsters Dutch Schultz, played by Tim Roth, and Lucky Luciano, played by Andy García, for control over Harlem's lucrative numbers racket. The film takes us back to a time when organized crime was woven into the social fabric of the community, with power struggles, loyalty, and brutal violence driving the action. This movie has a great mix of style, substance, and powerful performances. Fishburne brings quiet intensity to the role of Bumpy, creating a character who is both ruthless and principled. The film's period detail is rich and immersive, backed by a moody score and sharp cinematography that captures the era's tension and glamour. This is a gangster flick and a character-driven story about honor and survival in a corrupt world. If you're into classic crime dramas with a strong sense of history and a powerhouse cast, Hoodlum delivers.

Miami Herald
7 hours ago
- Miami Herald
Sydney Sweeney is not Hitler. Do we have to do this over a jeans ad?
Until she speaks up about the absurd controversy swirling around her, it is hard to figure whether Sydney Sweeney is dreading it or enjoying it. It can't be fun to have your ad for jeans smeared as a Nazi dog whistle, but on the other hand, millions now know more about her than we would have otherwise. I was already aware of Sweeney as an 'it' girl of the early 2020s, but beyond her appearance in the first season of 'White Lotus' and her praiseworthy job hosting 'Saturday Night Live' last year, I had not consumed much of her work. While it contains a sleeper-hit 2023 rom-com ('Anything But You'), her résumé also includes some serious and successful turns at acting and, more recently, producing. While she cannot be dismissed as a shallow sex symbol, she has no intention of ignoring the role her appearance has played in her success. This is more than evident in her American Eagle jeans ad, which has caused some sectors of society to spin off the planet entirely. The 15-second clip that has occupied our lives for days contains her use of the homophones 'jeans' and 'genes.' A frame-by-frame recap: We see a pair of jeans worn by a reclining woman as the camera pans up to reveal she is buttoning them. As she begins speaking, the context suggests 'genes;' she says they are 'passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality and even eye color.' The camera pans up, across her denim jacket to her face, as she turns toward the camera and says, in the context of what she is wearing: 'My jeans are blue.' As are her eyes, which is the clever wink to the audience. Get it? As if there is any doubt as to the word play involved, big white letters fill the screen with an accompanying voice-over: 'Sydney Sweeney has great jeans.' Well, yes, she does, whichever spelling you use. The double entendre is designed to draw attention to two things: the quality of the clothing and the attractiveness of the model. That second one is apparently a problem, at least for unhinged trolls. They find the genetics imagery instantly reminiscent of Hitler-era eugenics, and they are rattled to their core by a campaign that avoids the apparently necessary boxes that must be checked off in modern advertising. She is white. She is not overweight. She is clearly a woman and acutely aware of it. Three strikes, you're Hitler. Understand that the silly leap toward Third Reich stigma is wholly because American Eagle did not get the memo of what leftist cranks will and won't allow in ads these days. It is wonderful that people of all colors are now found in commercials. It is also good when people are called out for fat-shaming. But have these pendulums swung too far, from praiseworthy acceptance to obnoxious bullying? As recently as 2013, a Cheerios commercial featuring a mixed marriage drew a wave of online surprise. Now such representations are so ubiquitous that a comedian recently observed: 'I saw a commercial last night, and I had to pause it to make sure — the married couple was the same race!' It's as if the culture rushes to counterbalance past neglect but overshoots by miles. Take the issue of weight. Remember when models were too skinny and calls arose for portrayals that looked like 'real women?' That was good. But the recent fad has extended that standard from 'real women' to 'really large women.' And there's no harm in that, either. Beauty does not require a certain weight. But as it will do, the modern scolding community began to defame anyone who would dare suggest that obese people should lose weight. Lizzo, a profoundly talented singer who was also profoundly overweight, has begun a weight-loss journey that has attracted attacks from those who feel she has abandoned the movement to confer 'body positivity' at the expense of wise health advice. Into this crazy mix, insert an ad campaign featuring a famously beautiful actress who happens to be white, and who happens to meet what has forever been a valued standard for an attractive body type. In a world that says ads can feature all races and that beauty can be found in all sizes, this would be a non-issue, just one of countless ad campaigns that swirl around us constantly. But in these twisted times, any drop in the advertising ocean that does not conform to the obligatory trends of the moment must be dragged and mischaracterized. If there is a 1930s Germany analogy to be found in this story, it is not in the innocent content of the ad, but in the excesses of the woke Gestapo that seeks to silence any messaging that gets under its famously thin skin. Mark Davis hosts a morning radio show in Dallas-Fort Worth on 660-AM and at Follow him on X: @markdavis.


New York Post
14 hours ago
- New York Post
Sydney Sweeney's voter registration revealed amid American Eagle's ‘good jeans' ad backlash
Her jeans are red. Actress Sydney Sweeney's voter registration has come to light amid the woke backlash surrounding her controversial American Eagle denim campaign. The 27-year-old 'Euphoria' actress has been registered with the Republican Party of Florida in Monroe County since June 2024, according to public voter records viewed by The Post. 4 Sydney Sweeney in American Eagle jeans. American Eagle The starlet's party affiliation was first reported by Buzzfeed News Saturday, after a viral post on X that read: 'was about to make a whole youtube video exploring sydney sweeney's choices not defending her but going through her career context and i just found out this lady is an actual registered member of the republican party as of 2024.' 4 The 'White Lotus' starlet is a registered Republican voter in Florida. Getty Images for Armani beauty The post was part of a fierce firestorm ignited by lefty critics over the provocative ad featuring the blonde-haired, blue-eyed 'White Lotus' starlet — with some even comparing it to 'Nazi propaganda' that's promoting racism and eugenics. In one video released as part of the marketing campaign, Sweeney explains that genes are passed down from parents to offspring 'often determining traits like hair color, personality and even eye color,' before proclaiming, 'my jeans are blue.' A narrator then chimes in, 'Sydney Sweeney, has great jeans.' 4 Illustration of the Republican and Democratic party logos. eMIL' – In another ad, the actress approaches a billboard with her likeness and the phrase, 'Sydney Sweeney has great genes,' which she alters to cross out 'genes' and write 'jeans.' American Eagle shot back at critics Friday, defending its denim campaign and the 'Anyone But You' star. ''Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans' is and always was about the jeans,' the company said in a statement. 'Her jeans. Her story.' 'We'll continue to celebrate how everyone wears their AE jeans with confidence, their way,' the statement said. 'Great jeans look good on everyone.' 4 The ad sparked debate over 'Nazi propaganda,' racism and eugenics. American Eagle Even the White House jumped into the fray, with President Trump's communications director, Steven Cheung, coming to Sweeney's defense in a post late Tuesday that called the left-wing blowback 'cancel culture run amok.' While Sweeney herself has yet to respond to the public reaction, this is now the second time the Emmy nominee has ruffled feathers in liberal circles. Sweeney faced sharp criticism in 2022 after her family threw a 60th birthday party for her mother, where revelers wore red caps that played on the MAGA slogan – 'Make Sixty Great Again' — and 'Blue Lives Matter' shirts. She said at the time the family hoedown was misinterpreted as an 'absurd' political statement. Sweeney's reps didn't immediately return requests for comment.