By Wonderwall.com Editors
5:45am PDT, Jun 13, 2022
Leah Remini urges fans not to be fooled by Tom Cruise's 'movie star charm'
As Tom Cruise's "Top Gun: Maverick" earned another $50 million at the box office this weekend, Leah Remini and friend Claire Headley criticized the star on social media for his continued participation in Scientology. "Thank you to my friend @claireheadley for your courage," wrote Leah, whose own Scientology background inspired her award-winning A&E series about the church's detrimental effects on members, on Saturday, June 11. "You have continued to speak out despite the non-stop attacks from Scientology," the actress continued. "Tom Cruise knows exactly what goes on in Scientology. Don't let the movie star charm fool you," she added. Leah then shared a long Facebook post from Claire that read in part, "Glad all you Top Gun fans are enjoying the new movie. Personally, recent posts about this movie only serve to remind me of Tom Cruise and his crimes against humanity." She went on to write, "Destroying families is a crime against humanity," asking, "When is the last time Tom talked to his only biological daughter, Suri?" Claire also accused Tom of promoting "a dangerous cult that destroyed my family," and alleged it was "the same cult that forced me to have two abortions" and followed her "across state lines" when she escaped. She then vowed not to see Tom's film or "support" him in any way. "Trust me, Tom Cruise knows exactly who he is supporting and the abuses the organization perpetrates," she wrote. "I worked with him while I was there." After its strong third-weekend box office showing, "Top Gun: Maverick" is poised to potentially earn $1 billion worldwide, Forbes reported on Sunday.
Keep reading for an inside look at Ariana DeBose's Tony Awards hosting debut and more news …
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How Ariana DeBose prepped to lead Broadway's biggest night of 2022
After a history-making awards season run, Ariana DeBose was ready to make her Tony Awards hosting debut "an extravaganza … and possibly surprise some people," the "West Side Story" star told CNN ahead of Sunday's show at Radio City Music Hall in the Big Apple. "I have re-watched countless, countless Tony Award shows and I am no James Corden, I am certainly no Neil Patrick Harris or Hugh Jackman for that matter. And I am no Whoopi Goldberg, but I have been inspired by all of them," she explained. "I'm excited about it because it's a playground for me. I have never done this so I get to just sort of experiment and the good thing is that I love these people and I don't mind falling on my face and looking like a little bit of an idiot for people I love." The Oscar winner's former "Hamilton" co-star, Lin-Manuel Miranda, was also excited to see Ariana shine ahead of Broadway's biggest night. Speaking to Deadline last week, Lin-Manuel predicted "a doozy of an opening number" for Ariana with plenty of dancing. According to LaineyGossip, costumes featured in the opener were created by Ariana's girlfriend, costume designer Sue Makkoo.
RELATED: Scarlett Johansson, Bryan Cranston and more stars you might be surprised have won Tonys
Op-ed writer criticizes Rebel Wilson for going public with Ramona Agruma romance before he published a story on it
In the wake of Rebel Wilson's recent announcement she's found love with Ramona Agruma, The Sydney Morning Herald published an op-ed claiming Rebel didn't play fair when the paper gave her a deadline to comment on an apparently planned story about the romance. "In a perfect world, 'outing' same-sex celebrity relationships should be a redundant concept in 2022," wrote Sydney Hornery. "As Rebel Wilson knows, we do not live in a perfect world." That's why, he said, "out of an abundance of caution and respect," he emailed Rebel's reps "on Thursday morning, giving her two days to comment on her new relationship … before publishing a single word." The writer then appeared to criticize Rebel for not playing nice with the paper's apparent plan to run a story on her romance, regardless of her participation. "Big mistake," the op-ed continued. "Wilson opted to gazump the story, posting about her new 'Disney Princess' on Instagram early Friday morning …" He added that she'd previously used Insta to "brag about" a new, wealthy boyfriend. In real estate "gazumping" is when one party fails to follow through on a perceived, if not finalized, sale agreement. Here, as multiple Twitter users noted, the writer never says Rebel agreed to his timeline for her participation, so it reads like an ultimatum. "So apparently it wasn't @RebelWilson's choice to come out…," journalist Doak Kate posted, per People. "The @smh/@theage have admitted to giving her a heads up 2 days in advance that they were going to 'out' her." Rebel responded to Kate's tweet by writing, "Thanks for your comments, it was a very hard situation but trying to handle it with grace." In a statement following the backlash, The Herald's editor, Bevan Shields, denied the outlet planned to "out" Rebel as gay. "Our weekly Private Sydney celebrity column last week asked Wilson if she wished to comment about her new partner. We would have asked the same questions had Wilson's new partner been a man. To say that the Herald 'outed' Wilson is wrong," Bevan wrote. "… We simply asked questions and as standard practice included a deadline for a response. I had made no decision about whether or what to publish, and the Herald's decision about what to do would have been informed by any response Wilson supplied." The editor added, "We wish Wilson and Agruma well."
RELATED: See how Rebel and other celebs have come out as members of the LGBTQ+ community
Britney Spears' mom, sister react to wedding pics after not being invited
Britney Spears' mom, Lynne Spears, and sister, Jamie Lynn Spears, both supported the singer on social media after she married Sam Asghari, despite not having been invited to the wedding amid tensions dating back to Brit's now-defunct conservatorship. "You look radiant and so happy!" Lynne commented on a gallery of photos on Britney's Instagram feed. "Your wedding is the 'Dream' wedding! And having it at your home makes it so sentimental and special! I am soooo happy for you! I love you!" Lynne added. Jamie Lynn gave the same gallery of wedding pics a "like" on Instagram, according to People. Multiple outlets previously reported Britney's family, including her father and former conservator, Jamie Spears, were not invited to her home for the ceremony on June 9. Britney has repeatedly accused her family members of being complicit in the 13-year long conservatorship she and her lawyer have called abusive and exploitative, both court before the arrangement was terminated last year, and on social media. Brit's also called out her little sister for seemingly piggybacking on her fame and success in pursuit of her own. A source told People after the wedding, "Britney walked herself down the aisle."
Drew Barrymore praises Britney Spears for her 'intrepid journey' after wedding
Drew Barrymore was still feeling the love between newlyweds Britney Spears and Sam Asghari after attending the couple's wedding on Thursday, June 9. Referencing her 1998 movie, "Ever After," and, more subtly, Britney's long fight for freedom from her conservatorship, Drew shared a sweet message on Instagram in honor of the singer's milestone. "What I learned from 'Ever After' is that we must rescue ourselves and yet still want the fairy tale. And that's exactly what Britney did!" Drew wrote alongside photos from the star-packed wedding. "I couldn't not be happier for her intrepid journey !!!!!!!" Drew, 47, told Variety in May that she'd sent Britney, 40, "personal videos" of encouragement during her fight to regain control of her life from her father and other conservators. "We can have a unique conversation," she said at the time. "There's not a ton of us out there who have publicly lost our freedom, had breakdowns in front of everyone, become punchlines and fought our way back." After struggling with substance abuse as a little girl, Drew, who comes from a long line of Hollywood stars, was committed to a mental institution by her mother as a teen.
Taylor Swift says she'd love to write, direct a feature film
Now that Taylor Swift's experienced the thrill of directing her own music videos, she'd love to try directing a feature-length film. But as she told Mike Mills during a Tribeca Film Festival Q&A over the weekend, she initially battled "imposter syndrome" as a director. At a screening of "All Too Well," the short film she wrote and directed to accompany her remade song of the same name, Taylor reflected on her progression from having others direct her videos to trying her hand at directing 2019's "The Man" video and beyond. "I was always very curious. I was always looking, and learning, and trying to absorb as much as I possibly could," she recalled, according to People. "A few music videos [into my career], I just started going into the edit, and making changes. It started with meddling, and it went from meddling with the edit to then writing the treatments for the music videos … That was almost ten years ago." With "The Man," Taylor said, she wrote the video treatment then planned to hire a woman to direct the video, but her favorite options were booked. After getting some advice from Lana Wilson, who was directing Taylor in her "Miss Americana" doc at the time, she decided to direct it herself. "Once I started directing music videos, I didn't not want to do it," she explained. "I think I had this imposter syndrome in my head saying, 'No, you don't do that. Other people do that who went to school to [direct]." Now, though, the singer seems open to continuing in the field. "It would be so fantastic to write and direct a feature," she said. "I don't see it being bigger in terms of scale. I loved making a film that was so intimate with a crew that was relatively small, just a really solid group of people that I trusted."
Ozzy Osbourne to undergo surgery that will 'determine the rest of his life'
Ozzy Osbourne is slated to undergo surgery on June 13 that Sharon Osbourne said will "determine the rest of his life." During an appearance on "The Talk" last week, Sharon explained that she was once again headed back to Los Angeles to support her husband and his ongoing health problems. "He has a major operation on Monday, and I have to be there," Sharon said on the British talk show, according to the New York Post. "It's really going to determine the rest of his life," she added. Though Sharon didn't elaborate on the surgery, Ozzy told Classic Rock Magazine in an interview published in May that he was planning to undergo another round of neck surgery after being badly injured in a bike wreck in 2003. "I can't walk properly these days," he said at the time. "I have physical therapy every morning. I am somewhat better, but nowhere near as much as I want to be to go back on the road." The Black Sabbath frontman's recent COVID-19 diagnosis also forced Sharon to fly back to the U.S. to be by his side.
