Pop Culture Fix: “Thor: Love and Thunder” Says No Girlfriend For Valkyrie AGAIN
Here’s a mid-week Pop Culture Fix for you, my friends. Stay hydrated out there.
+ Well. Marvel’s back on their bullshit. Ha! JK! They never got off their bullshit in the first place! Despite all the conversations and hints and winks and promises, Valkyrie does not have a girlfriend in the new Thor, only a passing remark about a dead girlfriend. BOOOOOO!!!!
+ Queer as Folk stars on how the show is different from other LGBTQ+ content.
+ Emma Corrin on fluidity, fun, and dressing up to stand out.
+ Jasmin Savoy’s new music video for “goddammit” is, according to Valerie Anne, your chance to see “Taissa from Yellowjackets and Fatin from The Wilds make out!” With a super special guest appearance from Javicia Batwoman Leslie!
+ Tara Raani has joined season five of grown-ish as “a first-generation Muslim-American. She is a sophomore, type A overachiever with a lot of swagger. Zaara is queer and open with her sexuality.”
+ Hayley Kiyoko recreates Lea DeLaria’s iconic Out magazine cover.
+ A little more teasing about Issa Rae’s Rap Sh!t.
https://youtu.be/-_CotvQqCk4
+ Paramount+ has scrapped Why Women Kill.
+ Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi are on the cover of on the cover of #NBA2K23’s WNBA Edition, even though Diana Taurasi is playing like trash this season, la la la!
+ Kim Cattrall has joined Netflix’s new queer drama, Glamorous.
+ Another Leo Award win for Ali Liebert!
Huge congrats to @JeffreyCBallard and @AliLiebert for winning both guest star actor @leoawards tonight. Proud of a five year @SYFYVanHelsing legacy of providing great actors fun roles to sink their teeth into (pun intended). #leoawards2022 #VanHelsing
— Jonathan Lloyd Walker (@J_L_Walker) July 6, 2022
Pop Culture Fix: Every Queer Nerd’s Favorite Nerd, Ashly Burch, Is Pansexual!
Stay safe out there today, folks! And please enjoy this Pop Culture Fix!
+ You thought Pride was over? Think again! Every queer nerd’s favorite nerd, Ashly Burch, confirmed her sexuality on Friday. Maybe you know her as Rachel from Mythic Quest, or her guest appearances on Critical Role, or Mel from The Last of Us, or Parvati from The Outer Worlds, or Chloe from Life Is Strange, or Aloy from Horizon: Zero Dawn/Forbidden West. However you know her, it’s probably queer, and now she openly is too!
https://twitter.com/ashly_burch/status/1542935229567991808?s=21&t=gjSu4A9t4K7TL_oZYpDtUw
+ Disney’s Baymax includes an important moment for trans rep.
+ Bachelor Nation’s Elizabeth Corrigan comes out as bisexual.
+ Get out: The rise and rise of queer horror.
+ From Freddie to Heartstopper: GQ writers pick their landmark British queer cultural moments.
+ British Vogue’s August 2022 cover is a celebration of Pride, featuring 12 LGBTQ+ celebs, including Cynthia Erivo! That’s a big deal! Carmen says it’s not that far from the interview Erivo gave The Evening Standard a few years back — so it’s not NEW news, but it’s still GOOD news!
+ The Dorian Awards cast a queer eye on television.
+ Hayley Kiyoko is making the gay reality show of her dreams.
+ Fans are clashing over the gay representation in Stranger Things.
+ Brandi Carlile is back at it, and by “it,” I mean “making queer videos about her queer music that’ll make you cry!”
Pop Culture Fix: Harley and Ivy are Doin’ a Ton of Bangin’ in the “Harley Quinn” Season 3 Trailer
I put a bird feeder out in my yard for my cats’ entertainment and my landlady made me take it down FOR NO REASON! And now, every morning, one very angry bird keeps showing up to scream at the windows. At least my cats are still mesmerized. And I hope you will be too by your mid-week POP CULTURE FIX!
+ HARLEY QUINN SEASON THREE!!!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTTeK_f-arY&feature=youtu.be&ab_channel=HBOMax
+ Out In Hollywood released its lest of best unproduced pilot scripts by queer writers.
+ Nine movies based on LGBTQ books, ranked.
+ Today on NPR: The very hot marriage of Niecy Nash and Jessica Betts!
+ Ackley Bridge will be back on Channel 4 so soon.
+ Ten iconic omnisexual and pansexual characters in pop culture.
+ How Disney star Dove Cameron became the bad girl next door.
+ Here’s your Good Trouble mid-season four trailer!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAR3Cq49j_w&feature=youtu.be&ab_channel=Freeform
+ Five queer filmmakers weigh in on the future of LGBTQ cinema.
+ Can I interest you in a Hocus Pocus 2 teaser trailer?
+ Our own Niko Stratis interviewed Angel Olsen about coming out and learning to let go.
+ MUNA explore the joys and trauma of being queer on their new LP.
+ First Kill creator, stars sink their teeth into the lesbian vampire love story.
Pop Culture Fix: Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore to Fall in Love Carol-Style in “May December”
Feature image by Kevin Mazur/VF15/WireImage
It’s the last week of Pride! Do you think we’re getting to a place where rainbow clothes will be 50% off in July the way Easter candy goes on sale at Rite Aid the Monday after? Deep thoughts on this Monday. Less deep: Your weekly Pop Culture Fix!
+ Hmmm. Carol 2: I Still Know What You Did in Waterloo? Obviously I know that every prestige May / December romance starring straight A-List actors being directed by Todd Haynes is not Carol, but also… isn’t it?
Todd Haynes’ ‘May December’ starring Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore begins filming this fall.
It tells the story of a Hollywood actress (Portman) who travels to the coast of Maine to study the real-life woman (Moore) she’s set to play in a film.
(https://t.co/5dEvpFa59k) pic.twitter.com/3rwazzq9sI
— Film Updates (@FilmUpdates) June 22, 2022
+ E.R. Fightmaster showed out at the Connecticut Sun Pride game last week.
+ Jasmin Savoy Brown, Javicia Leslie, Angelica Ross, Sherry Cola, Alexandra Billings, and more talk about the LGBTQ stories that first made them feel seen. Sherry Cola coming through with the South of Nowhere shout-out.
+ Hunter Schafer has joined the Hunger Games prequel as Tigris Snow.
+ Jennifer’s Body is the glorious lesbian trash we deserve.
+ During the BET Awards, Janelle Monae invited SCOTUS to go fuck itself. :)
+ Vox says we need a new queer canon — and they’ve got some ideas.
+ Five queer video games on Steam to close out Pride.
+ Watching Queer as Folk but craving Heartstopper.
+ Margaret Cho on feeling invisible as a bisexual woman.
+ This is honestly the best selling tagline for any queer indie shortform project I’ve ever heard of: “There will be capers! chases! plot twists! intrigue! spy stuff! cop stuff! and romances!” It sounds like something I wrote in my dreams. And here’s how you can help make GUMSHOES a reality.
+ Meg Stalter is creating a Christian lesbian comedy with A24.
Pop Culture Fix: How Queen Latifah and Kate Moennig Made Jordan Hull Feel at Home on “Hustle”
You made it to the middle of the week, friends! This week, particularly, that feels like QUITE an accomplishment! Take a little break and enjoy this Pop Culture Fix!
+ Jordan Hull (aka Angelica Porter Kennard from Generation Q) did the cutest interview with Distractify about Hustle. Queen Latifah and Kate Moennig made her time filming in Philly really fun. They sang with her! And took her for cheese steaks!
+ Why lesbians and their himbo friends are the best relationships on TV.
+ Eight iconic bi characters who paved the way for better rep.
+ What the Queer as Folk reboot is missing.
+ Laci Mosley is so fun!
We sat down with @DivaLaci to discuss her @iCarly character, Harper, and queer representation 🏳️🌈 pic.twitter.com/zEZ9ZV5xch
— Nickelodeon (@Nickelodeon) June 20, 2022
+ Another list of queer video games to play during Pride (and beyond)!
+ Marvel’s new trans mutant puts a queer spin on a classic Bond ally.
+ Rhoyle Ivy King has been upped to a series regular for season two of All American: Homecoming.
+ Glee’s pioneering praise always ignored one major problem.
+ The importance of First Kill’s awkward lesbian vampire.
+ It’s TikTok’s world. Can TV live in it?
+ Hacks‘ costume designer on why Deborah Vance’s lesbian cruise outfit required legal to get involved.
+ Here’s to Yellowjackets and the rare TV shows that let teen girls be real, complex people.
+ The Umbrella Academy Showrunner explains why the show and graphic novel are on different lines now.
+ TVLine interviewed Motherland: Fort Salem’s EP about last night’s premiere and the final season.
Pop Culture Fix: Lightyear’s Lesbian Kiss Had Ted Cruz Checking Out Doll Genitals
If anyone has any idea why I wrote the word “booooo!!!” in my planner on this date, I would love to know. ‘Cause it seems like something’s happening today I don’t want! But I don’t remember what it is! In the meantime, I made you a Pop Culture Fix!
+ Killing Eve‘s Eve Polastri was almost played by Maya Rudolph??? What a wildly different show that would have been!
+ Lightyear hit theaters this weekend, complete with the restored lesbian kiss. Producers are saying Disney always supported the couple, just not the kiss? Either way these space homos have sent Ted Cruz over the edge; last time he checked out doll genitals (????), they didn’t exist? Chris Evans thinks that makes Ted Cruz an idiot. However, IMDB thinks a little animated lesbian peck deserves a severe sex/nudity warning??? I hope IMDB never stumbled onto Tumblr.
+ 21 actors who came out as queer after playing queer.
+ May I offer you a Westworld season four trailer?
https://youtu.be/2l4tuNYvPa4
+ Vico Ortiz is reclaiming their identity and the sparkly fairy they used to be.
+ Retired British track superstar/Olympic gold medalist Kelly Holmes has come out! V. cool!
+ Enjoy this vampire-themed ASMR with the First Kill cast.
+ Collider thinks you should watch DEBS for Pride this year, and I agree. You should always be watching DEBS.
+ Well, and here’s the trailer for Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin.
https://youtu.be/dBTCYk0gfsM
+ St. Vincent covered “Sweet Dreams Are Made of These” at the Songwriters Hall of Fame Ceremony.
+ Tofu happily flips the script for the trans community.
+ Hacks has been renewed for a third season.
+ Lzzy Hale reflects on the journey to being “unapologetically bisexual.”
+ TIME magazine’s got a big ol’ profile of Megan Rapinoe, in which she comes out swinging hard for trans athletes. Here’s just a part of her answer about trans inclusion in sports.
Frankly, I think what a lot of people know is versions of the right’s talking points because they’re very loud. They’re very consistent, and they’re relentless… I’m sorry, your kid’s high school volleyball team just isn’t that important. It’s not more important than any one kid’s life.
Show me the evidence that trans women are taking everyone’s scholarships, are dominating in every sport, are winning every title. I’m sorry, it’s just not happening. So we need to start from inclusion, period. And as things arise, I have confidence that we can figure it out. But we can’t start at the opposite. That is cruel. And frankly, it’s just disgusting.
So, we need to really kind of take a step back and get a grip on what we’re really talking about here because people’s lives are at risk. Kids’ lives are at risk with the rates of suicide, the rates of depression and negative mental health and drug abuse. We’re putting everything through God forbid a trans person be successful in sports. Get a grip on reality and take a step back.
+ Looks like Ellie Barone will play Jackie’s new girlfriend on Hightown.
+ Raveena on the reality of being queer and South Asian — and the transcendent power of fantasy.
+ The Vampire Diaries cinematic universe will continue beyond Legacies.
+ Finally! Some good news!
First table read of the season! #AbbottElementary pic.twitter.com/052byVcpux
— Brittani Nichols (@BisHilarious) June 16, 2022
Pop Culture Fix: Maisie Williams Says Game of Thrones’ Arya Stark Was Queer OBVIOUSLY
There’s a very angry bird outside my living room windows and it is screaming at my cats and my cats are screaming back and that’s New York City nature! And this is your Wednesday Pop Culture Fix!
+ Maisie Williams says you were correct all along: Game of Thrones fave Arya Stark is gaaaaay. (Makes sense, no straight person could ever hold onto a list of grudges that long and hard.)
“The first time that I was surprised by Arya I guess was probably in the final series where she whips off her clothes and sleeps with Gendry,” Maisie says. “I thought that Arya was queer, you know? So… yeah. That was a surprise.”
+ Cynthia Erivo on bonding with Ariana Grande for Wicked, and the future of Broadway.
+ Lightyear stars Uzo Aduba and Keke Palmer on Pixar’s “complex” themes—and that kiss.
+ The Handmaid’s Tale gets a season five premiere date and releases some first look photos.
+ Stranger Things 4 is Netflix’s top English-language TV season of all time.
+ Cynthia Nixon discusses Miranda’s style evolution on Sex and the City / And Just Like That.
+ First Kill stars Imani Lewis and Sarah Catherine Hook on their killer new Netflix series.
+ The trailer for Only Murders in the Building season two only hints at the sapphic shenanigans that Riese tells me are coming between Selena Gomez and Cara Delevingne.
+ The 22 best LGBTQ+ video games to binge-play during Pride Month.
+ The definitive Pixar universe dad rankings.
+ Elliot Page takes centerstage in The Umbrella Academy season 3.
+ Toni Storm talks being bisexual in the WWE.
+ Celebrating the casual bisexuality in Hacks.
+ Multiple countries ban Pixar’s Lightyear over a lesbian kiss.
+ 11 books to read if you’re yearning for more Heartstopper.
+ Dove Cameron says she’s “so much better” mentally since coming out as queer.
+ Sign me up!
The Rule of Sedona Prince.@RobinRoberts presents an intimate look at the rising basketball and viral media star who found fame beyond the court for using their social media platform to expose gender inequalities during last year’s NCAA tournament. pic.twitter.com/D0bye5CFzj
— ESPN (@espn) June 13, 2022
Pop Culture Fix: Did Rebel Wilson Get Bullied Into Coming Out by an Australian Newspaper?
Feature image photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Netflix
Happy new week, my friends! Have you ever heard about a pickle sandwich? Which is a sandwich made of pickles, like where the bread part is pickles and the pickles part is pickles and also there’s other sandwich fillings? ‘Cause I just discovered it and already my week is made.
I hope your week is just a tiny bit brighter ’cause of the pickles and also this Pop Culture Fix!
+ So it turns out Rebel Wilson maybe came out because The Sydney Morning Herald was threatening to out her??? Gross, newspaper!
+ Last night’s Tony Awards were huge for queer theater and Black theater! Six co-creator Toby Marlow became the first nonbinary composer-lyricist to win Best Score. A Stranger Loop — which the NYT calls “a scalding story about a gay, Black theater artist confronting self-doubt and societal disapproval” and RuPaul called “a big, Black and queer-ass musical” — won Best New Musical. And Ariana DeBose went full-on theater kid and won the night with her unreal talent and charisma.
+ Here’s our first look at Megan Thee Stallion in season two of P-Valley.
+ Margaret Cho calls the threats to Roe v. Wade and gay marriage “disgusting.”
+ Get ready for an ’80s time travel adventure with first look at the Paper Girls TV show.
+ Metrograph’s Muff Dives is “devoted to films that immerse viewers, if only for a scene or two, in social spaces that are now perilously close to extinction: nightspots catering to queer women.” You can even watch from home!
+ Abby Wambach and Glennon Doyle are the first queer women pictured in Architectural Digest in bed.
+ Former Christian singer Nicole Serrano comes out as a lesbian and non-binary.
+ This is some seriously excellent allyship: USWNT / Portland Thorns FC star Becky Sauerbrunn is donating $250 for every appearance, $100 for every goal her team scores, and $500 if she’s the one scoring it to Playing For Pride.
+ How Kissing Jessica Stein became a surprise hit 20 years ago.
+ Penny Taylor, former WNBA superstar and wife of Diana Taurasi, used her induction into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame to call for the release of Brittney Griner.
+ Tom Hiddleston champions bisexual Loki.
+ Behind the visible queerness in women’s sports — and why it matters. (In which Frankie de la Cretaz compares the WNBA to Alice’s chart on The L Word!)
+ The Queer as Folk reboot does a kindness to New Orleans’ imperfect real-life queer scene.
Pop Culture Fix: Ariana DeBose Is Crushing on Evan Rachel Wood in Westworld’s NYC-ish New Season
Feature image photos David M. Benett/Getty Images for Moschino // George Pimentel/Getty Images
You ever been just like super wrong about something? That was me with Starbucks salted caramel cold foam, which I called “a gimmick” when it first appeared but which I now call “my favorite morning treat.” I’m drinking an iced coffee with it right this second! I am also presenting you with your mid-week Pop Culture Fix!
+ Evan Rachel Wood’s new character on Westworld is “named Christina who is ‘from a city that looks like New York’ and lives there with a roommate played by Ariana DeBose who ‘may or may not have a crush on Christina.’ Sold!
+ Here’s your Motherland: Fort Salem season three trailer! And also here’s your announcement that Valerie Anne will be recapping this season!
https://youtu.be/O4tGfZQw3lU
+ The Outlaws season two premieres on Prime Video on August 5th.
+ This is my favorite Pride “headline” so far, from the Onion: Judi Dench Wondering Why She Never Became More Of A Gay Icon.
+ Hayley Kiyoko shares how Becca Tilley helped her discover her “authentic truth.”
+ Ms. Marvel is out on Disney+ today! I watched the first two episodes and loved loved loved it! And even more after I saw this tweet. For the uninitiated, Kamala Khan’s powers explained. And: Ms. Marvel feels like the future of the MCU.
+ Scream 6 won’t give Neve Campbell her paycheck so she’s not coming back and good for her! This isn’t gay, but Neve Campbell is my wife’s root, so… it’s kinda gay?
+ Do queer films like Fire Island need to pass the Bechdel test?
Okay, I just added a corollary to the Bechdel test: Two men talking to each other about the female protagonist of an Alice Munro story in a screenplay structured on a Jane Austen novel = pass. #FireIsland #BechdelTest
— Alison Bechdel (@AlisonBechdel) June 8, 2022
Pop Culture Fix: Janelle Monáe, JoJo Siwa, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez & More Show Out at WeHo Pride
Feature image photos: Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images / Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty Images / Sarah Morris/Getty Images
I had so much fun putting together today’s Pop Culture Fix because I love it when straight people at straight publications are forced to acknowledge Pride. The three best articles I stumbled across this morning were “Gay People Like… Video Games?” “It’s Not Literally Illegal to Say the Word ‘Gay'” and “You Can Buy Rainbow Mickey Mouse Ears at Disney World in June.” Oh, you straights!
+ Lynda Carter is here to remind you Wonder Woman is a bisexual icon.
Happy Pride! So excited to celebrate with all my LGBTQIA+ friends and fans 🏳️🌈 Art by Paulina Ganucheau for @DCComics ✨ pic.twitter.com/zpPKELsQkp
— Lynda Carter (@RealLyndaCarter) June 1, 2022
You're right. She's a superhero for bisexuals! https://t.co/G2m7guvmYc https://t.co/MLssq1yYiK
— Lynda Carter (@RealLyndaCarter) June 1, 2022
+ Related: Fire Island explores the fault lines that run through queer communities.
+ HBO has renewed A Black Lady Sketch Show for season four.
+ Billy Porter makes his directorial debut with the trans coming-of-age dramedy, Anything’s Possible.
+ Skyrim and Fallout mods can now include the words “queer” and “lesbian” — which is nice, I guess. Animal Crossing‘s been letting us say gay from day one, and I’ve been married to every eligible bachelorette in Skyrim at least once.
+ Michaela Jaé Rodriguez looks amazing and hilarious as my favorite kind of character — sexy sarcastic hardass with a gooey caramel center — in the trailer for Maya Rudolph’s Loot.
+ Heartstopper is the queer teen love story I didn’t know I needed.
+ Sara Ramirez is the one who wanted Callie Torres to be bi on Grey’s Anatomy
+ After Ellen (lol), who will become the next daytime talkshow darling?
+ Christine Chapel has revealed she’s bisexual in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.
+ Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is coming to Disney Plus on June 22nd.
+ I feel very confident you will be here for this! Hold tight for the Carrie Brownstein entrance!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdMxxttO1BI
Pop Culture Fix: Meet Gotham Knights’ Harper Row, Your New CW Bisexual
Happy Pride, friends! Here’s your first Pop Culture Fix for that time of year when straight publications also write about gay people! But first:
https://twitter.com/ancillarytext/status/1531972133961846790
+ I’m still too mad to really even look at the CW right now but here’s the trailer for Gotham Knights which I’m obviously not going to be able to help myself from watching. Fallon Smythe plays Harper Row, “a streetwise, acerbic and often underestimated, the blue-haired bisexual is a gifted engineer who can fix anything. But what Harper wants most of all is to repair the broken lives of her and her brother, Cullen, the only person she trusts.”
https://youtu.be/FnUkN3h9yQw
+ Lia Thomas confirms she’s aiming to compete at the 2024 Summer Olympics.
+ The test run of Netflix’s crackdown on password-sharing is not going well.
+ Five lesbian expressions from the 19th century to remember when watching Gentleman Jack. (“Grubble” remains my favorite.)
+ The euphoria of Elliot Page.
+ Sara Ramirez covers Variety’s pride issue and I really don’t know what to tell you except the cover is the most bananas thing I have ever seen and when I saw it on Twitter I thought someone on Autostraddle was making a joke.
+ Married at First Sight will finally feature a lesbian couple, which makes sense due to the fact that we do sometimes get married upon meeting.
+ Trailblazing Jeopardy! champion Mattea Roach reflects on 23-game win streak.
+ Cynthia Nixon says Miranda always had “lesbianic qualities” on Sex and the City.
+ Ella Hunt’s missing Dickinson as much as we are.
https://twitter.com/ellahunt/status/1531712333562761222
+ Brittney Griner’s supporters have a new strategy to free her: Make Noise.
+ Matthew Morrison was reportedly fired from SYTYCD for sending ‘flirty’ messages to contestant. Of course.
Pop Culture Fix: Kristen Stewart Says She’ll Make This Bisexual Movie or DIE TRYING!!!
Feature photo by Li Yang/China News Service via Getty Images
It’s a holiday Monday here in the U.S. but that doesn’t mean I’m slacking on my commitment to bringing you the most piping hot queer pop culture news fresh from the internet oven!
+ Kristen Stewart is doing the Cannes thing right now, including talking up The Chronology of Water, which she says she will get made by the end of the year OR SHE WILL DIE. God, I love how much more dramatic she’s gotten since she came out.
The Chronology of Water focuses on author Lidia Yuknavitch coming to terms with her bisexuality, addiction issues, and involvement with the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions movement opposing Israeli oppression of Palestine. Stewart called Yuknavitch’s writing “so physical and so fiercely, ragingly female.”
+ Wee-oooh! Wee-ooh! Gays in Disney+’s Willow series! An eagle-eyed A+ member says: “It looks like Erin Kellyman, whom my research shows is queer IRL, will have a girlfriend in the Willow series.”
+ Alexis Bledel is leaving The Handmaid’s Tale.
+ Jodie Foster will star in and executive produce season four of True Detective.
+ How the Black Pearsons became the first family of This Is Us.
+ The Good Fight will end with season six.
+ How Hacks hit the high seas on a lesbian cruise.
+ How A24 became the ultimate film cult.
+ The Minnesota Lynx retired Seimone Augustus’ jersey number yesterday.
#33 officially up in the rafters 🧡 pic.twitter.com/Cu7Qtzbnf3
— WNBA (@WNBA) May 29, 2022
+ Candace Parker is one of Time’s Most Influential People of 2022.
+ The Ellen DeGeneres Show ends by taking a stand … for celebrity.
+ Here’s something you definitely did not ask for: Official Bratz Pride dolls.
+ Ooooh, Loki director Kate Herron is fighting with Russell T. Davies, who one time told me the only people who care about dead gay characters are “hysterical women.” TEAM KATE!
What in the Lesbian Heck Is This? “The Princess Diaries 3” Feat. Zendaya?
Hello, trolley people!
Yesterday I received a PR email about some “branded content,” a “short film by Paolo Sorrentino” starring Anne Hathaway and Zendaya. It’s from Bulgari, which, frankly, I thought was an imaginary kind of necklaces that rich heist-doing ladies wear in movies, like the Acme brand dynamite Wile E. Coyote is always blowing himself up with. But no! It is real jewels! “Marvelous” jewels, according to Bulgari’s website. Jewels that “cost more than my annual salary,” according to Autostraddle femme bi icon, KaeLyn Rich.
Anyway, it doesn’t matter. The point is that this is not “branded content” — it is very clearly the trailer for The Princess Diaries 3 feat. Zendaya. The plot of which is: Mia Thermopolis falls in love with Princess Zendaya who is visiting Genovia on some kind of diplomatic business, and they spend the summer wearing marvelous jewels and eating Genovian pears and staring at each other and holding hands and generally being rich and fancy lesbians. It is, as they say repeatedly, “unexpected.” Something between a waltz and a tango. A bisexual wango.
Pop Culture Fix: Seriously Who Are We Supposed to Ship Valkyrie With?!
Holding you in my heart today, friends. Always and always. Here’s your mid-week Pop Culture Fix, for just a small brain break.
+ It gets so confusing shipping in the MCU! Like I want Carmen to have her Valkyrie/Captain Marvel dreams, but I also want my Maria/Carol dreams, but also the new Thor: Love and Thunder trailer is making me have Valkyrie/Jane dreams? Frankly this would be a lot easier to figure it out if Marvel would just make things actually gay!
+ The Avengers aren’t friends, they’re co-workers.
+ Black Girl Nerds interviewed the cast and showrunner of STARZ’s P-Valley.
+ How Hacks built a tour bus that puts Deborah Vance’s mansion on wheels.
+ Kehlani’s new music video that features their partner.
+ Heartstopper has been renewed for season three.
+ Keke Palmer has joined — get this! — Maya Rudolph and Natasha Lyonne’s animated series about “intergalactic surgeons” who treat “anxiety-eating parasites, illegal time loops, and deep-space STIs.”
+ Please enjoy this All-Rise season three trailer. It’s back so soon! June 7th!
Hey Risers! You asked for it & we're here to deliver! 🤩 Here is the #AllRise Season 3 trailer for your viewing pleasure… See you June 7 at 8|7c on OWN! pic.twitter.com/d8TxmPmvBk
— All Rise (@AllRiseOWN) May 23, 2022
+ What Kate McKinnon gave to Saturday Night Live.
+ Another day, another Netflix anti-trans “comedy special.” This time by — surprise! — Ricky Gervais.
Pop Culture Fix: Kate McKinnon Bids a Tearful, Hilarious Goodbye to SNL
Every time the seasons change, my Long Covid-induced dysautonomia has to readjust to the weather, which causes a couple of weeks of more intense brain fog than usual. This weekend, it was like 100 degrees so I was trying to order four bottles of Gatorade and ended up ordering four 32-packs of Gatorade — so if anyone needs some Lemon-Lime Zero or Glacier Freeze Zero, I’ve got plenty to share! My kitchen looks like a Costco. In the meantime, here’s your Monday Pop Culture Fix!
+ This weekend, Kate McKinnon said goodbye to Saturday Night Live. She laughed, she cried, I have no doubt she’ll go on to make a million movies. Also, I’m sorry, but Natasha Lyonne remains the most confusing straight person I have ever encountered. HOW?
+ The Owl House is becoming a queer-friendly Harry Potter alternative. (I’ve been saying!)
+ Joyland is a daring queer Pakistani drama about desire.
+ Auli’i Cravalho is more than Moana.
+ DeWanda Wise’s pilot is bisexual in Jurassic World Dominion.
+ Thirsty Sword Lesbians won a Nebula Award for best game writing.
+ Fans are hyped for Netflix’s new gay vampire anime.
+ Gentleman Jack’s costumes will feature in a Halifax exhibition about Anne Lister.
+ How Ellen DeGeneres won and then lost a generation of viewers.
+ The WNBA Player’s Association has doubled down on the call to bring Brittney Griner home.
“We must keep Brittney’s case on the forefront and make clear to the White House that her release should be one of the highest priorities for our government.”-Cherelle Griner about the new House resolution pushing for Brittney Griner's immediate release. #WeAreBG #BrittneyGriner pic.twitter.com/oXUPablEdk
— WNBPA (@TheWNBPA) May 20, 2022
Pop Culture Fix: JoJo Siwa’s “Crazy-Fun” Gal Pal Adventures Are Getting Their Own Show
Feature image photo by JC Olivera/Getty Images3
I don’t want to brag but I am totally having pancakes for lunch! First, though, I prepared for you a Pop Culture Fix!
+ JoJo Siwa will star in a “hybrid docuseries” on Facebook Watch.
In the show, Siwa will be joined by celebrity friends to partake in a range of activities she’s always wanted to experience — but hasn’t had the chance to, until now. “I’m so excited to partner with Facebook Watch for JoJo Goes,” Siwa said in a statement. “I will be going on some crazy-fun adventures, and I can’t wait for my fans to see what new things I try out with some of my best friends!”
+ Well Netflix is back at it. (Have they ever stoped being at it? Not really!) They’ve scrapped a bunch of new animated shows, including Ava DuVernay’s latest project and Antiracist Baby. And they slashed another 150 jobs. And obviously not just any jobs.
My former employer didn’t just decimate Tudum. Layoffs are also targeting social channels designed to bring marginalized viewers into the fold (Strong Black Lead, Golden, Most, Con Todo, etc.) There’s a deeper story here. I hope we’re all paying attention.
— Evette Dionne (@freeblackgirl) May 17, 2022
+ How about a little teaser for Niecy Nash’s The Rookie spin-off?
+ Heartstopper breakout Yasmin Finney will play (new) Rose Tyler in the next series of Doctor Who!
+ Margaret Cho on her TV/film triple play.
+ Heartstopper and the era of feel-good, queer teen romances.
+ Legacies‘ impending series finale includes mind-blowing surprises for longtime Vampire Diaries fans.
+ black-ish brought viewers truth, laughter, and a different American dream.
+ Disney’s upfronts gave us a new look at the Sanderson sisters in Hocus Pocus 2.
+ Well! The She-Hulk trailer is here and while I’m excited as heck for this, the CGI does leave a lot to be desired.
https://twitter.com/MarvelStudios/status/1526682986074124288
+ Tracy Flick vs. Toxic Masculinity.
+ Lizzo is getting the documentary treatment at HBO Max.
+ Ariana DeBose joins Chris Pine’s directorial debut, Poolman.
+ Fox has renewed 9-1-1 for a sixth season.
+ Brandi Carlile is among the top nominees for the 2022 Americana Honors & Awards.
+ Alexandra Billings to star and executive produce trans revolutionary indie feature Queen Tut.
Pop Culture Fix: Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi Scrap, Lesbian Aunt Megan Approves
Hello, my friends! Thank you for joining me for another Pop Culture Fix — and an extra special thank you to Valerie Anne for covering for me last week! It looks like there were two kinds of pop culture bloodbaths while I was gone. The bad kind: so many gay shows got cancelled! And the good kind: We finally got our first look at Netflix’s new lesbian vampire show, First Kill! Good thing it was Valerie who was here to report on that; she handles blood a LOT better than me.
+ Diana Taurasi and Sue Bird scrapped it out this weekend.
This interaction between Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi 😂 pic.twitter.com/c5zEU1L1sS
— ESPN (@espn) May 14, 2022
+ Your favorite lesbian aunt came out to cheer on her wifey in the Storm home opener last week.
You know @mPinoe had to be here for our homecoming! 😎#TakeCover pic.twitter.com/rwVl7EGbWH
— Seattle Storm (@seattlestorm) May 7, 2022
+ How these queer WNBA couples came to be. (Adorable alert!)
+ Stephanie Beatriz has joined Peacock’s live-action adaptation of Twisted Metal.
+ The official trailer for First Kill is here, which Carmen reported in last week’s Also.Also.Also — but I thought you’d like to see it again/wouldn’t want to miss it!
+ The Indigo Girls were on Debbie Millman’s Design Matters podcast last week. It’s one of the best interviews I’ve ever heard with them (and they’re from my college town; I’ve heard a LOT of interviews with them).
+ How Welcome to Flatch’s queer star Holmes fights sadness with humor.
+ Thirty years later, Star Trek Deep Space Nine’s queer coding has aged remarkably well.
+ Fox has cancelled Our Kind of People after one season.
+ The CW has now pulled the plug on Legacies. And also 4400. And Roswell, New Mexico. And Naomi and Charmed.
+ Speaking of all these cancellations, Natalie recently shared this really incisive — and depressing — look at what’s going on (and invites us, once again, to blame Netflix).
+ Niecy Nash’s spin-off of The Rookie has been picked up! One bright bit of TV news in this current cancellation hellscape!
+ Of course, Nic is also very correct here.
So that's…All American, All American: Homecoming, The Flash, Kung Fu, Nancy Drew, Riverdale, S&L, Walker, Walker: Independence, The Winchesters, Gotham Knights.
By my count that’s 8 male-fronted shows…with All American(s) and Kung Fu as diversity plays? Okay, CW. We see you.
— Nic 🍉 (@njnic23) May 12, 2022
+ ABC has renewed A Million Little Things.
+ Fox has also renewed Welcome to Flatch and 9-1-1: Lonestar.
+ Wonder Woman 3: The DCEU can’t ignore Diana’s bisexuality any longer. (I also hope they don’t ignore her as an actual character like they did in Wonder Woman 2.)
+ Heartstopper and the importance of queer joy.
+ Queer Country explores the origins of the growing genre of music.
21 Chrishell and G Flip Titles We Brainstormed After Losing the SEO Wars to a Corporate-Backed Media Company
Yesterday, we published an article about Selling Sunset’s Chrishell Stause appearing in G Flip’s new music video for “GET ME OUTTA HERE” (the collab that started the relationship heard round the world).
A few hours later, a big, corporate-backed media company published an article under the exact same title — the only change being that the words “Chrishell Stause” and “G Flip” had been switched. This happens sometimes, because describing a music video isn’t proprietary.
But the frustrating consequence is that because they are a larger, big named publication, Google favored their title — even though ours was first by hours — and it moved us from the first place SEO, down to not even ranking on the first page anymore. What a bummer!
Moments like this really hit home how hard it is to keep independent media alive — we get overpowered even when we do literally everything right. At the end of the day, we’re only here because of readers that believe queer stories — yes, even those about extremely mindless reality TV shows — should exist and be written about by queer people who get it. So if this title mirroring kerfuffle inspires you to join our A+ membership program (which starts at only $4/month), we’d be extremely grateful!
We are not one to wallow in self-pity. Nay, we used this opportunity to turn lemons into lemonade. And when I say that, what I really mean is we used this as an impetus/excuse to make titles so outlandish that no one would EVER have the exact same one. And because we love you so much, we’re sharing those titles with you, straight from our Slack channel.
1. G Flip and Chrishell Stause Play Hide the Salami in a Convenience Store
2. G Flip and Chrishell Stause Make Out in a Store of Convenience
3. G Flip and Chrishell Stause Are Living Kristen Arnett’s Dreams By Getting Frisky in a 7-Eleven
4. Choking!? G Flip and Chrishell Get Snacks, Make Out In New Music Video
5. Choke Her? I Hardly Know Her! Chrishell Stause and G Flip Make Out and Are Dating
6. Sold! Chrishell From Selling Sunset In Leather, Chokes G Flip In New Video
7. Are They Okay? Chrishell Stause and G Flip Made Out In A Convenience Store But Did Not Buy a Single Snack
8. I Just Remembered Vitamin Water Exists After Seeing Chrishell Stause and G Flip Make Out Next To It
9. Girl In Red: No It’s Chrishell of Selling Sunset Making Out With G Flip On a Couch, In 7-Eleven
10. I Bought Some of Those Energy Bars Yesterday: Now Crishell and G Flip Are Making Out On Top Of Them
11. Chrishell Shows Us How Babies Are Made With G Flip, And It All Starts In 7-Eleven
12. Chrishell Foregoes Convenience Store Hot Dogs To Ram G-Flip’s Hot Dog Up Her Highway in new Music Video
13. Chrishell and G-Flip Have Hot Sex Next To Hot Cheetos in Convenience Store
14. G Flip and Chrishell Stause Suck Face in a Convenience Store
15. Cleanup on Aisle 5: Crishell and G-Flip are Making Out There And Also The Top Shelf to Their Left is Completely Empty and Needs to Be Restocked
16. 7 Minutes in Heaven at the 7-Eleven: Crishell and G-Flip Show You How It’s Done
17. G Flip Chokes After Trashing Convenience Store with Chrishell Stause…But It’s Not on Snacks!
18. 7 Minutes in Heaven: Chrishell and G Flip Slam Slim Jims at a 7-Eleven
19. 7 Minutes in Heaven: Chrishell and G Flip Slam Slim Jims and Swap Spit at a 7-Eleven
20. 7 Minutes in Heaven: Chrishell and G Flip Take Big Gulps of Each Other in a 7-Eleven
21. 7 Minutes in Heaven: Chrishell and G Flip Slam Slim Jims and Swap “Slurpees” at a 7-Eleven
Like we always say and will always say: Autostraddle is majority reader supported and we wouldn’t be here without you. That’s why Autostraddle Plus members get access to behind-the-scenes conversations like this in the monthly A+ Insider. A+ starts at just $4 a month and in exchange for supporting indie queer media for everyone, you could be laughing like you are right now, on the reg. Join A+!
Pop Culture Fix: Cinematic Masterpiece “A Simple Favor” Is Getting a Sequel
Happy Wednesday, friends. Tis the season for cancellations and renewals; may the odds be ever in your favorite show’s favor!
+ Speaking of favors… A SIMPLE FAVOR SEQUEL. It’s no secret that we were at Autostraddle dot com love the gay American classic A Simple Favor so imagine our delight when a sequel was announced, with Anna Kendrick, Blake Lively, and their insane chemistry returning to us once again.
+ Dollface was canceled after two seasons because the universe hates me, specifically, apparently
+ It’s the Age of Ariana DeBose and we’re just living in it… next up: Westworld!!
+ SYFY brought Surreal Estate and its bisexual office manager back from the dead and continues to ignore our pleas to save Wynonna Earp
+ The much-anticipated Queen Latifah/Jordan Hull movie Hustle dropped a trailer
+ The Young and the Restless had their first same-sex marriage which is what I believe they call “sadgressive.” Technically progressive but sad that it took this long.
+ P-Valley dropped their Season 2 trailer
+ Also hi I know we’ve mentioned it before but can we talk about these first look images from First Kill aka the lesbian vampire show featuring Gracie Dzienny aka baby gay Greer from Chasing Life??
Pop Culture Fix: L Morgan Lee Is the First Trans Actor to be Nominated for a Tony!!
Feature image from L Morgan Lee on Instagram.
Oh hi there! It’s me, Valerie Anne! Here to cover for Heather and bring you a shiny, new Pop Culture Fix!
+ L Morgan Lee is the first openly trans person to be nominated for a Tony in an acting category EVER for her role as Thought 1 in A Strange Loop for the very awards Ariana Debose will be hosting WHAT A TIME TO BE A QUEER THEATRE DORK
+ ABC canceled Queens and Promised Land :(
+ Lesbian Jeopardy contestant Mattea Roach’s win streak ended after 23 games, hopefully now she has time to watch Buffy
+ Outfest partnered with Netflix to expand their screenwriting lab for LGBTQ+ creatives
+ The trailer to the upcoming Ms. Marvel series dropped! Is it June 8th yet??
+ Jodie Whittaker might be leaving but Sex Education’s Ncuti Gatwa will be the next Doctor, which is something I can get behind
+ Batwoman fans are trying to get HBO Max to #SaveBatwoman and lordy loo I hope they do
🔥 It looks like Gotham in NYC today!! Thanks to everyone who’s made a contribution so far for the billboards. We’re just getting started! #SaveBatwoman #HBOMaxSaveBatwoman @hbomax @warnerbrostv @Caseybloys @BatwomanWriters @JaviciaLeslie pic.twitter.com/cm9PWILZOy
— The Vaporz 🔥🎬 (@thevaporz1) May 6, 2022
+ Wanda Sykes’ The Upshaws will be back on June 29th
+ Never Have I Ever returns in August
+ And this last thing isn’t exactly NEWS necessarily but I wanted you to know: Heather Morris made a Tiktok imagining Brittany S. Pierce as the Glee Club teacher and it’s perfection.
@heathermorristv #greenscreen She’s never felt so seen