Latest news with #Jessa
ABC News
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- ABC News
Girls creator Lena Dunham returns with Too Much starring Meg Stalter
A year or so ago, I was hanging out with two friends when one of them started raving about this obscure series she'd just stumbled on — Girls. "And did you know one of them actually wrote the show?" said Gen Z friend continued. "Maybe it was Hannah?" I wordlessly locked eyes with my other friend, a fellow millennial, as we came to the shocking realisation that a key piece of our history had already been forgotten. The unflinching early 2010s comedy-drama, which Lena Dunham wrote, directed and starred in, followed four 20-something white women as they struggled to form meaningful relationships while trying and failing to make it in New York City. Hannah (Dunham), Marnie (Allison Williams), Jessa (Jemima Kirke) and Shoshanna (Zosia Mamet) were each distinct but ultimately of the same ilk: privileged, mediocre, cringeworthy and incapable of seeing themselves accurately. Over six seasons, Girls attracted rave reviews and intense scrutiny, but my friend's oblivious TV recommendation made one thing clear: this new generation didn't view Girls with the same lens we were forced to look through. They didn't see Dunham's rise and fall from grace in real time. They could simply watch her most famous creation today and see it, completely separated from the artist, as a genius satirical representative of millennial narcissism and post-2008 recession malaise. To mark Dunham's return to scripted TV with her new show Too Much, we look back at how she, for better or worse, became the voice of a generation. Girls premiered in April 2012 to rave reviews heralding Dunham as a wunderkind. Dr Jessica Ford, a senior lecturer in media at the University of Adelaide who has written extensively on the show and Dunham, says it was "a watershed moment in American television". "A lot of people responded to seeing a version of millennial, urban life on screen that wasn't aspirational like Sex and the City," she says. "I think the appeal was that it was mundane and lowkey in its approach, and deeply ironic; it was both portraying these characters and critiquing them." Imelda Whelehan, professor emeritus at the University of Western Australia who specialises in popular culture and feminism and co-edited a 2017 collection of essays about Girls, agrees. "There were interesting vignettes of good and bad relationships, and how they don't stay the same," she says. Despite rave reviews and soaring ratings, Dunham and her TV show were loathed as much as they were loved in the 2010s. From its first season, Girls fielded criticism over its lack of racial diversity — which its creative team defended. Dr Ford thinks this critique was valid, "considering this was a show set in New York". But, she quips: "The idea we want Lena Dunham to write Black people should have been refuted with that whole 'Donald Glover [as a Republican]' storyline, which proved she's not the right person to write those stories." And Professor Whelehan says there were plenty of people who felt "confronted by the way Dunham performed Hannah [and what some saw as] her 'random acts of nudity'". "People were also vexed by the portrayals of sex and the idea that all the characters were unlikeable and obsessively focused on themselves, even though it was very knowingly doing that," she adds. But perhaps the series' biggest sticking point was its creator. Dunham, who had pitched Girls as a semi-autobiographical series aged just 23, was conflated with her obnoxious character Hannah from the moment the series started airing. "For so long, people were, like, 'You are Hannah. Hannah is you.' They had no sense that there was any level of satire in it," Dunham told The New Yorker last year. Dr Ford says this is something we've long been trained to do as audiences: "I Love Lucy is the proto example — we've been doing this for 70-odd years." But she thinks it was particularly fervent when it came to Dunham: a young woman telling a version of her own niche story. She was increasingly perceived as over-hyped, over-privileged, and the spokesperson for women no-one asked for as a result of her show's generic name. It became more of a problem as Dunham started attracting bad press. An incident with her sister, recounted in Dunham's 2014 memoir Not That Kind of Girl, was interpreted as child abuse. Dunham rejected this. Then, in 2017, she accused a woman of lying about being raped. Professor Whelehan and Dr Ford say the conflation of Hannah and an increasingly tactless Dunham meant the satire of Girls was lost. "It was taken at face value instead of as an experimentation of thinking through the limitations and the problems with being a white woman in that era," Dr Ford says. Both experts think misogyny had something to do with this — though neither of them excuse the things Dunham has said or done. Around the time that Gen Z friend of mine started watching Girls for the first time, a whole bunch of other people were consuming it too. A spokesperson for HBO told The New York Times Girls' viewership doubled between November 2022 and January 2023 compared with the previous three months. Recap podcasts started cropping up, from Girls Room to Girls Rewatch, and the discourse shifted online. Girls was no longer a love-hate watch, but a series to unironically enjoy. Hannah and Marnie weren't cringeworthy beyond belief, but deserving of adoration. Dr Ford thinks the Girls resurgence has a lot to do with the fact we've managed to get some distance; today's viewers see it as an absurd time capsule that never needed to be everything or speak for everyone. "I'm guessing people watching it now would be in their late teens [and above], thinking about what their own lives might look like post-recession, amid continuing world conflict, and [thinking] they have been sold short of their dreams too," Professor Whelehan adds. A lot has changed for Dunham since Girls wrapped in 2017. Long-term romantic and creative partnerships have ended, and she's swapped New York for London, where she married her husband, Luis Felber, in 2021. She's spoken of how her body was treated as an "object of scorn" after she bared it on Girls, and opened up about her experience with chronic illness. But while she's continued making film and TV, she's veered away from the personal. Until now. Dunham's new Netflix series Too Much, co-created with Felber, marks her return to the semi-autobiographical genre. This time it's a rom-com loosely based on her and Felber's love story, and follows Jessica Salmon (played by Hacks breakout Meg Stalter), a 30-something New Yorker with a similar foot-in-mouth tendency to Hannah. Jess runs away to London with her hairless dog Astrid after being dumped by her insufferable boyfriend (Michael Zegen) and feeling unfulfilled at work. She imagines her new life will look like the "British" Jones Diaries. But she can only afford an ex-council flat with no soundproofing, and her one romantic prospect is a failing musician with substance use issues named Felix (Will Sharpe). Jess and Felix almost immediately enter into an extremely co-dependent relationship despite the red flags and the fact there's a lot they seem to dislike about one another. When asked about the decision not to star in the series, Dunham told The New Yorker last year: "I think sometimes when people associate you so recently with another character, they're not able to see [you as a new one]." She also decided she wasn't up for having her body "dissected" again. Dunham appears in the show as Jessica's dramatic older sister Nora, who is largely unable to get out of bed following her own recent break-up with husband Jameson (Girls star Andrew Rannells). It's a wink to her own oeuvre — and it's not the only one. But while it marks a return to her roots, Dunham's new show feels lacking, in many ways, of the realism and lo-fi grit of her HBO debut. It goes too heavy on the Netflix look. And Too Much struggles to depict believable people of colour despite all the backlash Dunham faced over this with Girls. Even so, it has moments of brilliance, in the dialogue-driven exploration of the millennial experience, and in its sex scenes, which are just as unflinching and raw as Girls'. If Girls was about how deeply uncomfortable it is to be a mediocre woman in your twenties, Too Much is about how that trend continues into your 30s, and how you try to make it work and be with the people you've chosen while sorting through your baggage — good idea or not. This ultimately does not make for a very romantic or funny watch. But, after 13 years of considering and reconsidering Dunham and her creations, at least it's immediately clear that was the intention. Too Much is streaming now on Netflix.
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Jessa Duggar, 32, Details 'Scary' Mindset After Pregnancy Loss
Jessa Duggar, 32, Details 'Scary' Mindset After Pregnancy Loss originally appeared on Parade. Jessa Duggar revealed why it can be "hard" to be "emotionally invested" in pregnancies after suffering from miscarriages. While appearing on the Wednesday, July 9, episode of Jinger Duggar's 'Jinger & Jeremy' podcast, Jessa, 32, Jinger, 31, and sister Joy-Anna Duggar discussed pregnancy, baby loss and grief. When Jinger asked about navigating fear and anxiety after a miscarriage, Jessa admitted that the experience can be "scary." 'I think it's hard to allow yourself, early on, to feel excited when you see that positive pregnancy test because you feel like you're bracing yourself. You're like, 'This may go how it went last time,'" she said. Jessa and her husband, Ben Seewald, share kids Spurgeon, 9, Henry, 8, Ivy, 6, Fern, 3, and George, 18 months. She has been open about suffering miscarriages in 2020 and 2022, while she is currently pregnant with her sixth baby. 'I've had friends who have had back-to-back losses and it is just devastation upon devastation,' the mother of five continued. 'I feel like my losses were separated. They weren't back to back, but I definitely felt that, until I was past the marker of where I lost my last baby, it was very hard for me to feel like, really emotionally invested, or to, like, get attached because I was, like, 'Any second, this could be gone,' and you're terrified. I mean, just, like, basically every time you go to the bathroom, you're like, 'Is there blood? Like, am I? Am I losing this baby?' And so that's, like, the hard side.' Parade Daily🎬 SIGN UP for Parade's Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox 🎬 While miscarriages are extremely difficult, Jessa has been able to find silver linings such as feeling "a lot more grateful" for the kids she already has. 'I took a lot less for granted,' she said. 'You know, when those pregnancy symptoms of, like, nausea or whatever, like, went past into the second trimester with one of my babies, I was like, 'This is going on really long.' But then I thought, 'But it stopped short with the other baby that I lost. And like, I wouldn't have it any other way.'" She continued, "I'm thankful even for, like, hard aspects of pregnancy because your baby's still there and you're still pregnant. I feel like it just caused me to be so much more grateful and to cherish life even more.' Jessa Duggar, 32, Details 'Scary' Mindset After Pregnancy Loss first appeared on Parade on Jul 9, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 9, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Jessa Duggar Shares Super Rare Video With All 5 Kids & Fans Are Saying the Same Thing
Counting On star recently shared a super rare video with all five of her kids—and fans are saying the same thing in the comments. On Friday, May 9, the former TLC personality took to Instagram with a clip of her children, Spurgeon, 9, Henry, 8, Ivy, 5, Fern, 3, and , 16 months, whom she shares with her husband, Ben Seewald. 🎬 SIGN UP for Parade's Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox 🎬 "A delectable food and beverage adventure at the newest Onyx location in downtown Springdale, AR!" Jessa captioned her update. In the video, Ben and Jessa took their brood of young kids to the restaurant for tasty treats. The children enjoyed ice cream with their parents and looked pretty darn adorable in the process. Folks in the comments couldn't get over how grown-up Jessa's kiddos suddenly looked in the rare footage with all of them together. One person declared, "Kiddos have grown, WOW! They're all so precious! Loves Henry's glasses! 😁." Someone else echoed, "They're all getting so big!" Another marveled, "Wow those boys look like little men, over night. So handsome, beautiful girls, beautiful family," as a different Instagram user exclaimed, "They're really growing up!" Meanwhile, other followers praise Jessa and Ben for their kids' impressive manners. One lauded, "Beautiful family and very well behaved children!! Great job mom & dad!" Another pointed, "Well behaved kiddos. 🙂." Yet another echoed, "Your children are beautiful and polite❤️." In March, Jessa announced she was expecting baby No. 6, due this summer. (And she's not the only Duggar sibling expecting another little one.) Hopefully, everything is going well with her pregnancy as she soaks in these last few months as a mom of five! Next:
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Jessa Duggar Opens Up About Handling ‘Rude' Comments Amid Her Current Pregnancy With Ben Seewald
Jessa Seewald (née Duggar) opened up about some of the 'rude' comments aimed at her as she and her husband, Ben Seewald, get ready to welcome baby No. 6. The former 19 Kids and Counting star, 32, said that while she's never had someone 'come up to her face and be nasty or rude,' she has experienced negativity from critics in the comments section of her YouTube videos. 'I have heard a lot of rude and unnecessary comments but generally those are just online,' Jessa said in a Q&A she posted on YouTube on Thursday, May 8. 'You know people may comment under this YouTube video and be like, 'Oh, you're breeding like rabbits,' or 'You're crazy,' or 'Are you trying to follow in your mom's footsteps? Are you going to have 19 kids?'' She continued, 'But, honestly, my mom is my hero. I love her, I adore her, she is my role model in so many ways. Her patience, her love, her gentleness [and] her kind speech. She is the golden example of a mother, in my opinion. So, when people say, 'Do you want to be like your mother?' I'm like, 'Yes, please, Lord, help me.'' Jessa said that she was grateful that no one she was close to ever gave her 'flak' or offered up unwanted advice and opinions. The former reality star then offered up some tips she'd received on how to handle naysayers on the internet. 'Some advice that I recently heard on this topic that was super helpful to me was somebody saying that oftentimes, we can set the tone for how people receive our news,' Jessa explained. 'When we say something like, 'Oh, we're expecting,' or 'We're so thankful for this baby. We're so grateful,' that definitely sets a different tone for how it's received versus [saying], 'We're definitely done after this one.'' She went on, 'I don't think it's wrong to say certain things, but I know that sometimes we can cater to how we think other people might receive the news in the way that we present it. So, if we think people might judge me for having another baby, we might be quicker to present the information in a way that's, like, backpedaling or apologizing for where we are in life.' Jessa also admitted that it helps that she and Ben, 29, know that they can't 'fully control' opinions from other people and said that recognizing that helps them not stress about the negative comments. 'We don't live for those,' she shared. 'It's not other people's approval that we should want most, but I think that we can definitely influence in the way that we share information [and] maybe how other people will perceive and receive.' Jessa and Ben first got engaged in August 2014 before marrying just three months later. They welcomed their first child, son Spurgeon, in 2015, and over the next several years, they continued to add to their growing family with Henry, Ivy, Fern and George. In March, the couple announced that she was pregnant with baby No. 6.
Yahoo
17-03-2025
- Yahoo
Women Ditch Friend on International Vacation After She Has Visa Issues. Then She Asks Them for a Refund
A woman has turned to Reddit for advice after she and her friend left their third travel mate behind due to visa issues. It all happened when three friends planned an exciting trip to Egypt and Switzerland with a layover in London. But, their adventure rapidly crumbled when one of them was denied entry into the United Kingdom. The poster recounts how she warned her friends, Jessa and Ellie, to complete their Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) before leaving. Unfortunately, neither listened to her advice. It wasn't until they arrived in London that they understood the gravity of the situation. 'Border agents told them they needed to do the ETA immediately or they would have to be back on the next flight to the US,' the poster explains. While Ellie's ETA was approved within minutes, Jessa's application dragged on for hours. 'It turned into one hour and then two hours and then almost three hours later of us waiting at the airport. [Then] she's hit with a denial,' the woman writes. Related: Woman Who Ditched Chronically Late Friend Who Missed Party Bus Says She Was Called 'Selfish' for Leaving After an Hour The denial of Jessa's ETA threw their carefully planned trip into chaos. The friends had their flight to Egypt scheduled for the next day. However, border officials informed Jessa that she would not be allowed to transfer and would have to return to the United States to apply for a standard visa. Jessa suggested that her friends abandon their trip and return with her to the United States. But, the two friends were reluctant to do so as their next tickets were non-refundable. The poster writes, 'Mind you, we are on the basic economy tickets with Delta, so if we leave, we lose money that we can't get back.' After careful consideration, the two friends made the difficult choice to continue their trip without Jessa. This decision affected everyone involved as the poster details the financial arrangements they had made for the trip, including shared accommodations, flights and excursions. Related: Teenager Leaves Parents on Caribbean Island to Get Back to Cruise on Time: 'They Missed the Departure. By a Lot' The situation was further complicated when Jessa requested reimbursement for her share of the non-refundable expenses. 'I was able to cancel 3 excursions for a full refund but she wants us to come out of pocket and repay her and I don't think it's fair,' the woman states. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Now the woman is struggling with feelings of guilt and uncertainty on whether she and Ellie did the right thing leaving Jessa behind. Many Redditors have sided with the woman and Ellie on their decision to continue the trip without Jessa. 'You warned her, so her mistake isn't your financial responsibility. Nonrefundable costs should be hers, not yours,' writes one user. Another shares, 'Her not taking action is her responsibility. No reason for everyone else to suffer just because she got denied. She goes home and learns a lesson. Next time get all the approvals before leaving for another country.' Read the original article on People
