From confirmation that Ryan Gosling will perform his hit Barbie song at the Oscars to a new set of Shrek Universal Orlando attractions, here are some of our favorite pop-culture news odds & ends lately.
Ryan Gosling Will Perform Barbie Ballad “I’m Just Ken” at the Oscars
Good news, Barbies. Ryan Gosling is officially confirmed to perform “I’m Just Ken” live at the Oscars. We can’t wait to see how this Barbie movie looks and sounds on stage.
“I’m Just Ken” is one banger of a ballad:
LEGO X Fortnite Introduce Two New LEGO Islands
Get ready LEGO lovers and Fortnite fans, two new LEGO Islands just opened up in the game. ‘LEGO Raft Survival’ and ‘LEGO Obby Fun’ have now arrived and they’ll give you pirate and obstacle-course themed adventures to explore.
Here’s more about LEGO’s big collaboration with Fortnite:
A24 Releases Gorgeous Screenplay Book Honoring Robert Eggers’ The Lighthouse
In celebration of Robert Eggers’ celebrated movie, The Lighthouse, A24 has released a gorgeous Screenplay Book honoring the film. Among other things, the book includes Robert and Max Eggers’ original script, an introduction by Willem Dafoe, full-page stills of Jarin Blaschke’s Oscar-nominated cinematography, select pages pulled from a lighthouse keeper’s guide published in 1881, and more. This The Lighthouse Screenplay Book truly highlights the beauty and atmosphere of its chosen movie. It also marks the 11th edition of A24’s incredible Screenplay Books series. The exquisite tome is the perfect gift for lovers of the movie.
Shrek’s Swamp Among New Attractions Coming to Universal’s Orlando Resort
A few new attractions are heading to Universal Orlando Resort, and among them are some new Shrek adventures. A release shares:
Like ogres and onions, guests can peel back layers of fun in Shrek’s oasis to discover “ogre-the-top” adventures at every turn.
Shrek’s Swamp Meet: Guests can visit Shrek’s Swamp Meet to interact with beloved characters Shrek, Princess Fiona and Donkey, the noble steed eager to joke around and converse with guests, just outside of Shrek’s cottage.
Shrek’s Swamp for Little Ogres: This ogre-sized play area features four fun slides, wet play areas and a playground where guests can climb, bounce and splash around as well as venture into Shrek’s outhouse.
Mama Luna Feline Fiesta: The blockbuster film, Puss in Boots 2: The Last Wish, comes to life with this new interactive experience that takes place in Mama Luna’s retirement home for cats. Here, guests get to play with Mama Luna’s many cats on vivid interactive screens activated by buttons, bells, maracas and levers. They might even spot the one and only Puss in Boots himself.
King Harold’s Swamp Symphony: Guests can create their own melodious masterpiece as they trigger a choir of ever-changing frog ribbits by continually stomping on an array of interactive lily pads.
Swamp Snacks: Families can feast like an ogre at this new kiosk, which will serve scrumptious snacks inspired by Shrek, including Shrekzel, Far Far A Waffle, Frozen Ogre and more.
Other new attractions include experiences for Kung Fu Panda and Trolls.
Universal is also creating a whole new theme park:
Netflix Teases Wild-Looking Parasite Movie, Parasyte: The Grey
Get ready for one intensely creepy-looking movie. Netflix is teasing Parasyte: The Grey, a manga-based monster movie. Its synopsis shares, “When unidentified parasites violently take over human hosts and gain power, humanity must rise to combat the growing threat.” Here we go!
The Last of Us Season Two Star Is Teasing Queer Chemistry to Come
Speaking to ET, in an interview which we saw via GameSpot, Isabela Merced, who plays Dina on The Last of Us season two shares, “I already did one day of shooting–it was technically day zero–but the chemistry that Bella and I have is so palpable. It’s really nice to be able to work with someone like that.” Dina and Ellie, of course, share a close and sometimes romantic relationship in The Last of Us Part II, so we’re happy to hear it.
Here’s what we know so far about The Last of Us season two:
Starlight Children’s Foundation Partners with Nintendo for Mario Day
Starlight Children’s Foundation is “dedicated to delivering happiness to hospitalized children nationwide through the healing power of play.” And they’re partnering with Nintendo for an initiative called Power of Play. A release shares:
The Power of Play campaign aims to raise funds and awareness of the healing power of therapeutic play for kids in hospitals and their families. The month-long campaign seeks to raise $225,000 through different activations. As part of the Power of Play celebrations, our annual Stream ForStarlight (S4S) Spring Stream kicks off with an exclusive Mario Day weekend event. Starlight will start the 50 hours of streaming on Friday, March 8th at 4:00pm ET, featuring our 2023 Battle for Charity winners, Team PB, and we’ll round out the kickoff celebrations with a 48-hour raid train until 8pm ET on Sunday, March 10th. Our mission? To raise a whopping $50K by Mar10 Day! Play isn’t just fun – it’s how kids cope and learn through challenges, and how adults continue to strengthen their spirit. So this March, when you play, kids win!
To get involved, check out the official page here.
AMC Launches Three New Nicole Kidman Ads
We come here to… see if AMC can have lightning strike more than once. The theater chain will introduce three new Nicole Kidman ads to its movies.
One will debut on March 1, while the other will arrive in the coming months. And we’ll have to catch them all like Pokémon. Only time will tell if they capture the magic of the original.
Check out the Nicole Kidman AMC backpack: