By Wonderwall.com Editors
8:55am PST, Feb 21, 2023
Gisele Bundchen shows off her insane abs at Carnival in Brazil
Newly single Gisele Bundchen flew back home to Brazil for Carnival on Sunday (Feb. 18), and wasted no time getting into the swing of things. Shortly after she was photographed stepping off a plane with a bright smile on her face, the supermodel headed out with friends to the 2023 Carnival parade at Marquês de Sapucaí Sambodrome in Rio de Janeiro. Wearing a black and gold crop top that showcased her insane abs, Gisele caught the Mocidade Independente de Padre Miguel samba school and more from the stands while cheering for the performers and occasionally waving to the crowd. "It was so special to return to Carnival and honor this beautiful celebration of our Brazilian culture," Gisele wrote on Instagram on Monday, sharing pics from the parade. Last week, she shared a video of herself rocking out to the song "Balenca Pema" alongside choreographer Justin Neto. "Getting in the mood for carnival! 💃🏼✨🎉," she captioned the video. Gisele previously returned to Brazil in December, to spend her first holiday season since she and Tom Brady called it quits with family — including their children — in Rio Grande do Sul, where she was born. Carnival in Rio begins on the Friday before Lent and ends on Ash Wednesday, which this year falls on Feb. 17 through Feb. 22.
RELATED: Tom Brady shares photos of exes Gisele Bundchen, Bridget Moynihan after retirement announcement
'Baptized by the flames of fame'
Megan Fox sent a public display of appreciation to Machine Gun Kelly's guitarist, Sophie Lloyd, after fans implicated her in the drama between Megan and her fiance. Megan returned to Instagram on Sunday (Feb. 18) after deactivating her account amid split rumors about her and MGK. As soon as Megan was back on the platform, she responded to a photo Sophie uploaded, using the comments to advise the "insanely talented" artist to "ignore" the chatter, presumably about MGK, as much as possible.
"How me making a joke in order to absolve this girl of a hurtful accusation somehow turned into a confirmation of it — I will never understand. Why are people so….so dumb," Megan wrote, referring to her own response to a fan who'd claimed on Instagram last week that MGK "got with Sophie." ("Maybe I got with Sophie," Megan snapped at the time.) "Sophie you are insanely talented," the actress wrote over the weekend. "Welcome to Hollywood. Your first unwarranted PR disaster. You have now been baptized by the flames of fame. It only gets worse from here unfortunately." She added, "Just ignore it as much as you can." Sophie apparently appreciated Megan's comment and replied, "The internet is so wild! Sending so much love." In a post on her own page over the weekend, Megan denied rumors and "baseless news stories" about "any … third party interference" in her relationship with MGK.
RELATED: Megan Fox's wildest fashion and beauty moments
Alec Baldwin's manslaughter charges, potential prison time reduced in 'Rust' shooting case
The involuntary manslaughter charges Alec Baldwin is facing in Halyna Hutchins' fatal shooting on the set of "Rust" have been reduced, which in turn reduces the amount of prison time he'll face if convicted. On Monday (Feb. 20), a spokesperson for the New Mexico First Judicial District Attorney's Office told CNN that in order "to avoid further litigious distractions by Mr. Baldwin and his attorneys," the firearm enhancement charge was being dropped. "The prosecution's priority is securing justice, not securing billable hours for big-city attorneys," the spokesperson said. Alec's lawyers previously filed a motion to dismiss the enhancement charge for multiple reasons, including the fact that the statute allowing that charge wasn't on the books in New Mexico in October 2021, when a prop gun Alec was holding discharged a live round of ammo, killing the "Rust" cinematographer and injuring the movie's director. "Rust" armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed's manslaughter charges have also been reduced, sparing both Alec and Hannah from the mandatory five year prison term attached to the firearm enhancement charge. Lawyers for both Alec and Hannah and said their clients are innocent in the shooting.
MORE: 'Law & Order: SVU' actor dead at 78, more stars we've lost in 2023
Austin Butler honors Lisa Marie Presley at the 2023 BAFTA Awards
"Elvis" star Austin Butler added another best actor award to his growing collection over the weekend at the BAFTA Film Awards. He also acknowledged the "bittersweet" experience of being honored for his portrayal of "The King" following the death of Lisa Marie Presley, who died unexpectedly in January. Thanking the Presley family for their "love and for sharing with me who Elvis truly was," Austin said — in full Elvis twang — "I hope I made you proud, this means the world to me." Speaking to press backstage later, the actor said, "It's been a really unimaginably tragic time, you know, and grief is a long process, and so my heart and my love was with [the Presleys] always," according to Variety. The star added, "I feel honored to have been welcomed into the family. It's a bittersweet time."
Lisa Marie died at 54, just two days after supporting Austin and the other stars of Baz Luhrmann's "Elvis" at the 2023 Golden Globe Awards last month. Her mother, Priscilla Presley, has since launched a legal battle for control of Lisa Marie's estate, which the singer and actress left to her daughter, Riley Keough. Austin, meanwhile, is up for another best actor award at the Oscars on March 12.
Allison Holker thanks fans for giving her hope after Stephen 'tWitch' Boss' death
After last week's Los Angeles memorial for Stephen "tWitch" Boss, the late TV personality and dancer's wife Allison Holker shared her gratitude for the love and support of fans in a moving video message. "It has been very challenging and emotional, but you guys have brought so much hope and inspiration to us by sharing stories and memories and moments and different ways that Stephen impacted your life," Allison said of the "So You Think You Can Dance" and "Ellen" star, who died by suicide at age 40 in December 2022, on Instagram over the weekend. "He was someone that was just beautiful and he lived his life from love and he made you feel a certain way," she continued. "My family and I always said that we wanted to make sure that our purpose was lived out by bringing joy to people, joy to people's homes from dance or love. That's not going to change for us. It's going to feel a little bit different, but we know that that's our purpose and we'll still do that." In closing, she explained how she wants to keep his memory alive going forward. "I hope that we can remember the feeling he gave us and remember that we can still move from there, we can still move and choose love and we can still choose grace and we can still choose kindness," she said.
Allison's video was met with more support from friends including Ellen DeGeneres, who assured her, "His light is still so bright. So is yours." Jenna Dewan, Derek Hough and others who've worked with tWitch and Allison also commented on the post, sharing their love for the family.
If you or someone you know needs mental health support, call or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org.
Don Lemon absent from 'CNN This Morning' again amid backlash over remarks on women and age
Once again, Don Lemon was absent from "CNN This Morning" on Monday (Feb. 20), amid ongoing fallout from his remarks about women and age on the show last week. Don's co-host Poppy Harlow said her colleague "has the day off." Don's last appearance on the show was on Thursday, when he said Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley is not "in her prime" at 51. Pressed on what he meant, Don said, "A woman is considered to be in their prime in [their] 20s and 30s and maybe 40s." Poppy and fellow co-host Kaitlan Collins were taken aback by the comments, which have been widely deemed as sexist. Don was absent from "CNN This Morning" the following day, but he did call in to an editorial meeting, where CNN chairman Chris Licht said Don's "remarks were upsetting, unacceptable and unfair to his co-hosts," according to the New York Times. Don then apologized to the rest of the staff on the call. A spokesperson for CNN told the Times that Don had not been "formally suspended" as of Friday, though his absence from the show on Monday suggests that may change. Asked if he'd return to the air on Tuesday, a CNN rep had no comment for the Associated Press.
