By Wonderwall.com Editors
4:14pm PST, Feb 17, 2022
Jake Gyllenahaal finally addresses Taylor Swift and the 'All To Well' drama
In the wake of Taylor Swift's release of her new, longer version of "All Too Well" — a song long believed to have been inspired by her 2010 relationship with the actor — Jake quietly turned off his Instagram comments. The move signaled a response, of sorts, to fans' reaction to the song, which seemed to reveal more about the failed romance. He said nothing else publicly about the matter at the time. But he addresses it in a new interview with Esquire. "It has nothing to do with me. It's about her relationship with her fans," he explained in the piece, published Feb. 17. "It is her expression. Artists tap into personal experiences for inspiration, and I don't begrudge anyone that." Pressed on how whether commenters' criticism of him "affected his life," he put the problem in high-level terms. "At some point, I think it's important when supporters get unruly that we feel a responsibility to have them be civil and not allow for cyberbullying in one's name," he said. "That begs for a deeper philosophical question. Not about any individual, per se, but a conversation that allows us to examine how we can — or should, even — take responsibility for what we put into the world, our contributions into the world." Asked if he's listened to "Red (Taylor's Version)," the album the song appears on, Jake says simply, "No."
Keep reading to see why Britney Spears could be headed to Capitol Hill …
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Britney Spears invited to discuss conservatorship on Capitol Hill
Last year, a group of Congress members expressed interest in bringing Britney Spears to Capitol Hill to discuss her conservatorship battle. Now that the conservatorship has been terminated, Britney sounds somewhat open to the idea. On Feb. 16, the singer shared a photo of a formal invitation from Rep. Charlie Christ and Rep. Eric Swalwell "to meet with us in Congress … to describe in your own words how you achieved justice," as "we would appreciate learning more about the emotional and financial turmoil you faced within the conservatorship system." The letter also assured her, "There is no doubt that your story will empower countless others outside the millions that are already inspired by you and your art." In a lengthy caption on Instagram, Britney explained: "I received this letter months ago … An invitation to share my story … I was immediately flattered and at the time I wasn't nearly at the healing stage I'm in now." She said receiving the invitation left her feeling "heard and like I mattered for the first time in my life." Later in her post, she wrote, "In a world 🌎 where your own family goes against you, it's actually hard to find people that get it and show empathy 🤷♀️🙄 !!!! Again, I'm not here to be a victim although I'm the first to admit I'm pretty messed up by it all … I want to help others in vulnerable situations, take life by the b**** and be brave 💪 !!!" Adding that she wishes she had been brave sooner, she explained she was just "so scared and nothing is worse than your own family doing what they did to me." Before signing off, she wrote, "I'm lucky to have a small circle of adorable friends who I can count on … In the mean time thank you to Congress for inviting me to the White House." Britney's fiance, Sam Asghari was along the many commenters on the post. "Your courage will inspire others, your strength will motivate many, your voice has and will change lives," he wrote. "You're powerful. Beautiful. And strong. This is why I call you lioness ♥️."
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John Mayer explains why calls himself 'America's ex-boyfriend'
John Mayer has a new nickname for himself and it's not the most positive moniker. "I am America's ex-boyfriend," he says in a TikTok clip posted by Sirius XM Radio earlier this week. "I'm America's 'I can't,'" he continues, speaking to his close friend, Andy Cohen, in the interview. "I'm America's … Just, I'm JM. You know? I'm JM. I'm America's He Who Shan't Be Named," he explains. The singer and songwriter is presumably talking about his much-storied romantic past with a strong of high-profile women, including Jessica Simpson, about whom he infamously shared locker room-worthy details about in Playboy years ago, coining the phrase "sexual napalm," among others, to describe her. (Jessica wrote about her negative experience with John in her memoir; he has said he won't be reading it because he "lived it.") John's also been linked to Katy Perry, Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Love Hewitt and other celebs. "I mean, if you think about it, I kind of am," he tells Andy in the clip of his "America's ex-boyfriend" status. "Because people are super into what I do and sometimes people don't follow me on Instagram … It's like, I mean, I love his music, but I can't give the follow."
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Matthew McConaughey wants to hear from Channing Tatum on possible 'Magic Mike' return
As Channing Tatum prepares to shoot the third and final installment of "Magic Mike" in March, Matthew McConaughey is open to discussing a possible return to his Dallas character. Asked if he'd be reprising his role for "Magic Mike's Last Dance," Matthew recently told Variety, "Channing Tatum, call me, bro! I haven't heard from ya!" Later, he added, "I don't know. I'd have to read [the script] first. It was a helluva lot of fun doing the first one. The Oscar-winner's cautious interest comes after Channing told ET he "didn't know if Matthew would want to do it" this time, seemingly referencing the actor's decision not to return for the second movie, "Magic Mike XXL." "He loves what he did in the first movie so much. He was like, 'I don't want to touch it,'" Channing recalled to ET. "I mean, I'm not saying anything about mine or anyone else's performances," he added. "He was the star, he was the movie, it was special." The Steven Soderbergh-directed third installment is set to premiere on HBO Max. No release date has been announced.
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Kristen Stewart on Dylan Meyer engagement: 'I just feel so happy and lucky'
It's a good time to be Kristen Stewart. The "Spencer" star just scored her first Academy Award nomination — she's up for best actress for her turn as Princess Diana in the film — and in November, she announced her engagement to screenwriter Dylan Meyer. But there's even more in the works for the 31-year-old, who recently told Vanity Fair she and Dylan, 35, are working on a TV series together. Kristen would ideally star in the show, but she was pleasantly surprised to find how well it went when the two tried writing together. "I love being engaged," she gushed to the outlet. It's different .… I just feel so happy and lucky." She went on to admit she was nervous about how working with Dylan would go. "You don't want that to affect this beautiful relationship you have," she said. It apparently went so well, however, that they finished writing the first episode in less than two weeks. "Like we discovered a superbrain," Kristen said, adding that Dylan is "a really, genuinely brilliant f****** screenwriter." Asked about a wedding timeline, Kristen said last month on "CBS Sunday Morning," "it'll happen when it's supposed to happen … but I also don't want to be engaged for, like, five years."
Robin Williams' daughter Zelda calls out Twitter users for misquoting her dad
Actress Zelda Williams is calling out social media users who misquote her late father, Robin Williams, which apparently happens all the time. Posting about her frustration with the phenomenon on Feb. 16, Zelda, 32, retweeted a meme that showed an image of her dad next to a quote that was wrongfully attributed to him. "Everyone who tweets this are actually quoting someone else. Pork rind. Hallways.' – Abraham Lincoln, probably," she captioned the sarcastic post. As the day went on, the shared other annoyingly incorrect quotes she's seen her father's name attached to. "To the dudes in my mentions saying 'he was being used as an example, not the person who said the quote!', nice try," she wrote, "but I've seen this so often, I'm pretty sure someone's Granny has it needlepointed on a pillow by now." Zelda must have gotten more pushback though, because she later shared: "I get that the 'I take other people's random memes and jokes from the internet and post them for retweets' guy isn't worth the battle. H***, I'm a sarcastic nihilist, none of this is — but man, it really does annoy me to see Dad repeatedly turned into a s***** yearbook quote." Finally, she conceded hers is a "unique … experience," since "very few people on this earth know what it's like to see their loved one turned into other people's ventriloquist dummies after they're gone …" Alas, by the next morning, she noticed the back-and-forth had "gone bonkers" the night before. "While all this was in support of Dad on my part, researching quotes and claims in general is always a good practice. If a quote is good enough, it won't need to be buoyed up by someone unrelated's face," she advised. It wasn't long before Zelda was dragged into defending herself against users who argued they should be able to quote her father at will. At one point she noted Robin "had a clause in his will prohibiting the use of his likeness" as proof he "would hate this s***." Shortly after that, she said she was taking a break from "this space" until things blew over. Robin Williams died in August 2014 while suffering from diffuse Lewy body dementia and depression.
Ed Sheeran gets a green light to build 'burial crypt' on his estate: Report
It's a happy birthday, indeed, for Ed Sheeran, who turned 31 on Feb. 17. That's thanks, in part, to the Grammy-winner's recent approval on his request to build a "burial chamber" on his massive estate in Suffolk, England. According to The Sun, Ed was already granted permission to "build a church in his garden," but he applied last month to add a 9-foot by 6-foot crypt beneath the church. None of this sits well with at least one neighbor, who complained formally in an effort to block the construction from taking place. "The area is well served by local churches and I feel there is no need for a well-known person to create his own island of calm when lovely places of worship abound in the area," a woman named Anna Woods wrote in a letter of objection, per The Sun. "I also note there will be a burial chamber in the building," Anna added. "Are celebrities now so detached from reality that their every living breath, and now even the act of dying, be apart from the rest of us?" Apparently so — because the outlet reports East Suffolk Council's environmental and conservation officials gave Ed the go-ahead.
Rush Limbaugh's widow remembers controversial radio personality one year after his death
On the first anniversary of Rush Limbaugh's death from lung cancer at age 70, his widow, Kathryn, appeared on "Fox & Friends" to discuss her husband's controversial legacy. "[He] always led us to believe that America's best days are ahead. He would say I'm just a voice on the radio, but he was so much more. I call him America's Winston Churchill," Kathryn, 45, said on the Fox show on Feb. 17, according to People. Despite his long history of making racist and misogynistic comments, Rush developed a massive audience over his many years on the air. "[He was] always mentally engaged, whether it was watching a television program or reading his iPad," Kathryn also said on the show. "He always said that life is show prep and I think it was very much, in his case." Asked how she's faring since his death, she said, "I'm doing well for the most part. It's been very difficult but knowing how many people are out there praying for me, praying for Rush, I very much think this was the nation's loss." She also noted she believes "he would be rather furious" about the state of the U.S. in 2022. "He would be upset with the United States not being as strong as it has been and should be. I know he would say it's not time to panic," she shared.
