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First-time 'SNL' host Paul Mescal isn't afraid to have fun, and Church Lady returns

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First-time 'SNL' host Paul Mescal isn't afraid to have fun, and Church Lady returns

As pointed out in the first proper Please Don’t Destroy sketch to air this season that wasn’t a commercial, serious actors don’t always do great on “Saturday Night Live.” Either they’re not actually funny, or they get too in their head about being perceived as funny as they think they are, and the result is a guest-host turn that feels too effortful.

“Gladiator II” actor Paul Mescal escaped that fate with a breezy, fun performance in his “SNL” debut, doing what young actors should always do when hosting the show for the first time: surrender to the process and don’t be afraid to look foolish.

Mescal brought his acting intensity to sketches like one about a college student whose parents hate his new pierced ear, a scene about an actor struggling with a commercial for an Italian restaurant, and a pitch-perfect portrayal of his fellow countryman Bono late in the show.

But he was also quite silly in a sketch about a Spotify Wrapped playlist featuring little-known singer and podcaster Satoshi Gutman (Bowen Yang) with an appearance by internet celebrity Trisha Paytas, a courtroom sketch about a terrible lawyer (Andrew Dismukes), and one about a pirate-themed all-male dance revue. But nowhere was Mescal more game than in the two standout pieces of the night: a Please Don’t Destroy video in which Mescal falls in love with the “SNL” writers, and a “Gladiator II” trailer in which the movie is turned into a musical. Mescal is fantastic in both and it would be no surprise if he returned for a second hosting turn sometime in the future.

Musical guest Shaboozey performed “Good News” and “A Bar Song (Tipsy).”

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Dana Carvey’s Season 50 “SNL” residency continued with the revival of his Church Lady character in the cold open, the first time we’ve seen “Church Chat” on the show since 2016. Church Lady began by calling 2024 “the most Satanic year ever,” referencing Hawk Tuah Girl, the movie “Wicked” and pop star Sabrina Carpenter. “You know who’s the best carpenter?” she asked. “Jesus!” Church Lady welcomed former U.S. Attorney General appointee Matt Gaetz (Sarah Sherman), who was subjected to jokes about his facial features, and Hunter Biden (“SNL” alum David Spade, Carvey’s “Fly on the Wall” podcasting co-host) who said at one point, “Pardon me,” and leaned into comparisons to Jesus, another son forgiven by his father. The last guest was baseball phenom Juan Soto (Marcello Hernández), who earned a tweak on one of Church Lady’s catchphrases when she replied, “Well, isn’t that Spanish?” The cold open ended with the Church Chat dancers joining in for a song that may have been called, “Satan Had a Good Year.”

Mescal’s short monologue first focused on his reputation for very serious roles in movies such as “Aftersun” and “All of Us Strangers,” and not for comedy. He joked that he’s either doing nude scenes or crying scenes or nude crying scenes. A brief clip superimposed one of those performances on footage from “Gladiator II.” The actor then discussed his pride of being Irish, taking a few shots at England and U.S. mascots and greeting Hernández, who came on stage in short shorts to appear more Irish like Mescal.

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Best sketch of the night: ‘Gladiator II’ could really use 50 minutes of singing

“Gladiator II” was a hit, but not as big a hit as the new musicals “Wicked” and “Moana 2.” Thus, a re-release of the movie featuring 50 minutes of new, original songs, such as, “There’s No Place Like Rome: “Our streets are the cleanest / Our soldiers the meanest / And all of our statues have a tiny penis.” Mescal sings, “They call me slave, they call me a killer, but someday they’ll know my name!” as he slashes necks with his swords, and gets into a Lin-Manuel Miranda-written rap battle with Mikey Day, who plays a “Mad Emperor with the bad temperor.” It ends with the flossing dance, a broomstick ride and the perfect title: “Gladiator Twosical.”

Also good: Daddy time with the Please Don’t Destroy boys

For the first time all season, a full Please Don’t Destroy video made it on the air, and it was a good one. When guest host Mescal is told he’s loved by the writers, he takes it literally and decides he’s actually falling in love with them. But not so much romantically; he wants to care for them and protect them in a wintery cabin like a father would. But he’s not their dad: he’s Daddy. And the boys, wearing Old Navy pajamas, rejoice when he returns home from playing another sad, hot guy in a movie. Angry villagers who don’t understand the love they share come to attack, but Daddy and the boys stand up for their new family, at least in their cabin dream sequence.

‘Weekend Update’ winner: The Dookie family is living large

There was only one guest segment on “Weekend Update” this week: Heidi Gardner played “A Mom Whose Son Just Got Famous,” alongside Hernández, a rookie NFL player. Mom is as excited about her new Oakley sunglasses and her Louboutin shoes as she is about her son’s success given that he had to sacrifice his personality to get ahead. “Trust the process,” he says flatly. Mom is also excited to go backstage and hook up with the musical guest: “I’m about to show Shaboozey my Shapoozey,” she says. The family’s surname is “Dookie” and there are plenty of jokes about the family holding solid even when it gets squeezed. Maybe we could have used a second guest segment

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Trevor Noah caps off ‘generational run,’ will host Grammys for sixth and final time

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Trevor Noah caps off ‘generational run,’ will host Grammys for sixth and final time

Trevor Noah is gearing up for one last Grammys hurrah.

This year, the comedian and former host of “The Daily Show” will helm the awards show for the sixth and final time, CBS announced Tuesday. Noah has emceed the ceremony every year since 2021.

“I am beyond thrilled to welcome Trevor Noah back to host the Grammys for his sixth, and sadly, final time,” the show’s executive producer Ben Winston said Tuesday in a statement to the Hollywood Reporter.

Winston went on to call Noah “the most phenomenal host.”

“He’s so smart, so funny, and such a true fan of the artists and music,” the producer said. “His impact on the show has been truly spectacular, and we can’t wait to do it together one last time.”

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The official Grammys Instagram account also confirmed the news.

“It’s music’s BIGGEST night and he’s on a generational run,” the caption reads.

The 68th Grammy Awards will return to L.A.’s Crypto.com Arena on Feb. 1, and will broadcast live on CBS and stream on Paramount+ starting at 5 p.m. PT.

In addition to marking Noah’s final turn as host, this year’s show will be the last to air on CBS, its home network since 1973. After that, it kicks off a 10-year run with Disney. The Grammys will air on ABC, Hulu and Disney+ beginning in 2027.

Kendrick Lamar led the 2026 Grammy nominations with nine, including album and record of the year. Trailing just behind were Lady Gaga and producers Cirkut and Jack Antonoff, with seven nominations each.

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Noah himself is also up for a Grammy Award this year for his audio narration of his children’s book “Into the Uncut Grass.”

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Unpaarvayil Movie Review: A By-The-Book Psycho Thriller That’s Blind To Its Flaws

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Unpaarvayil Movie Review: A By-The-Book Psycho Thriller That’s Blind To Its Flaws
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The Times of India

TNN, Jan 13, 2026, 1:24 PM IST

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Un Paarvayil Movie Synopsis: When her twin sister dies under mysterious circumstances, Bhavya goes on a hunt to find the murderer, but the fight isn’t easy as she loses her vision.Un Paarvayil Movie Review: The opening sequence of Un Paarvayil reminds one of a few finely written scenes from films about twins like Charulatha (2012) or Thadam (2019) where we learn about their special bond. In Un Paarvayil, Bhavya (played by Parvati Nair) gets on stage to receive the Best Business Woman award. Parallely, her twin, Dhivya (also played by Parvati Nair), is stuck in a dangerous situation. As the latter faces difficulty, Bhavya, who is on stage, also feels like she is being choked and struggles to breathe – an instant telepathy of sorts that suggests her sister is in danger. Without a lot of words or too many scenes, this one sequence conveys the bond between the sisters Bhavya and Dhivya. However, this narrative creativity is never seen on screen again throughout the film’s run time.Everything about Un Paarvayil is right on paper. With a textbook formula, Un Paarvayil has the right recipe for a psycho thriller – a scary bungalow, a loving but mysterious husband, and a psycho killer. But that’s about it. The stage is set, writing is done, and actors deliver the dialogues, but these don’t come together cohesively. In most scenes, the dialogue delivery is bland, and the writing becomes increasingly predictable. For instance, Bhavya is informed very early on in the film that Dhivya has a best friend with whom she shares all her secrets. However, the writing is so contrived that until the last moment, Bhavya never thinks about reaching out to this friend to learn more about her sister. It’s as though Bhavya forgot that piece of the puzzle.Which is why it feels like the film suffers from progressive amnesia. For instance, at one point, it looks like the cops give lethargic explanations for a murder, but we are not sure if they are just lethargic or are partners-in-crime with the psycho killer. And we keep wondering – but we never get to know that because the film has forgotten such a sequence existed. Likewise, Bhavya learns about an important CCTV evidence and pursues it. Still, before she uncovers the truth, she begins to track down another clue, and the CCTV evidence is never mentioned again. Remember how we see the twins share a unique connection in the opening sequence? It is also depicted only once and gets forgotten. Just like this, the film keeps jumping from one sequence to another, with all the old clues left behind and forgotten, before another new clue randomly reaches Bhavya. So, the next time we find a missing puzzle, we are no longer curious about it.That said, the film did have some interesting scenes. Whenever the psycho killer is on screen, the tension rises, and we are hooked to what’s next – but such sequences are very few. By the book, it might look like the film has a perfect premise, and some really good performances from Parvati Nair and Mahendran do make things intriguing, but the film turns a blind eye to its basic cinematography and contrived writing, leaving us in the dark for the most part.

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Record exec L.A. Reid settles sexual assault lawsuit

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Record exec L.A. Reid settles sexual assault lawsuit

Record executive Antonio “L.A.” Reid has settled a sexual assault lawsuit from former employee Drew Dixon, avoiding a jury trial that was set to begin Monday.

In 2023, Dixon filed a lawsuit under the New York Adult Survivors Act, alleging abuse from Reid including sexual harassment, assault and retaliation while she worked under him as an A&R representative at Arista Records.

Dixon alleged in her suit that Reid “digitally penetrated her vulva without her consent” on a private plane in 2001, and groped and kissed her against her will in another incident months later. She claims in her suit that Reid retaliated against her after she spurned his advances, berating her in front of staff after she brought in a young Kanye West for a label audition.

Reid said in court filings that he “adamantly denies the allegations,” but they contributed to the former mogul’s declining reputation within the music industry, after Reid left Epic Records in 2017 following separate claims of harassment.

Reid’s attorney Imran H. Ansari said in a statement to The Times that “Mr. Reid has amicably resolved this matter with Ms. Dixon without any admission of liability.” Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

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In a statement to The Times, Dixon said that “I hope my work as an advocate for the Adult Survivors Act helps to bring us closer to a safer music business for everyone. In a world where good news is often hard to find, I hope for survivors that today is a ray of light peeking through the clouds. Music has always been my greatest source of comfort and joy. Even as a kid, I had an uncanny knack for predicting the next cool artist or album, the more eclectic the better. While I have focused on sexual assault advocacy in recent years, I have never stopped fighting for my place in this industry.”

The jury trial was slated to have testimony from some high-profile figures including John Legend, whom Dixon had tried to sign to the label. Dixon also accused the Def Jam mogul Russell Simmons of sexual assault in a 2017 New York Times article and in the 2020 documentary “On The Record.”

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