Our monthly round-up of trending entertainment news.
Ted Lasso is officially returning for Season 4
With how much bad news there is these days, it’s nice to relax with shows that give you the warm fuzzies. So, it’s a pleasant surprise that one of the fuzziest, cosiest series in recent years, Ted Lasso, will be returning for a fourth season, promising more episodes where people are nice and where the world is kind.
The Emmy-winning Apple TV+ series had originally concluded with its third season, with Ted Lasso returning to Kansas to coach his son’s football team. Other storylines were also neatly wrapped up. So, where does the show go from here? While the fourth season’s plot is currently being written, news on the ground says the titular character, played by Jason Sudeikis, will be coaching a women’s football team. Since Keeley Jones (Juno Temple) had pitched an AFC Richmond women’s team to club owner Rebecca Welton (Hannah Waddingham), it makes the most sense that this is the route the new season will take.
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Lady Gaga to perform in Singapore in May
Little Monsters all over Asia have been in a tizzy since Mother Monster made this announcement. Singapore is the only Asian city Lady Gaga will be performing in — on 18, 19, 21, and 24 May — for her tour, so it’s no surprise that competition for tickets is fast turning into a bloodbath.
At the time of writing, news of scalpers doing their dirty, dirty business has been causing outrage. The first of a series of ticket pre-sales was launched on 18 March, and while several lucky fans scored their coveted spots, opportunistic scalpers also jumped at the chance to make a profit, with some selling VIP tickets at an eye-watering S$38,888 on online marketplace Carousell.
Jessica Simpson performs for the first time in 15 years, debuting new songs
Just two months after announcing a split from her husband of 10 years, the star performed her first live show in over a decade (her last live performance was at a 2010 Christmas tree lighting ceremony) at SXSW in Austin, Texas. Notable among the covers and originals she sang is her new song “Leave”, a catchy scorned-woman anthem purportedly about her ex’s cheating, containing spicy lyrics like “Oh, I want you to leave/I don’t even wanna breathe the air you breathe”.
Hot on the heels of this live set is the announcement of her new EP, Nashville Canyon, Pt. 1, whose second part will be released in the summer of 2025; this is also her first album of original songs since 2008. Could this be Simpson’s big musical comeback, a pivot from years of focusing on being a businesswoman and a mother?
Rolling Stone drops a bombshell, possibly destroying Jonathan Majors’ redemption arc
Majors was convicted in 2023 of misdemeanour assault and harassment towards his ex-girlfriend, Grace Jabbari. While his reputation had been shattered over the past few years, the court of (Hollywood) public opinion seemed to slowly shift back in his favour recently, allowing him back into Hollywood’s good graces. His friend and Creed III star, Michael B. Jordan, spoke up and enthusiastically promoted him in a GQ profile. A Hollywood Reporter article published this year also gave an immensely sympathetic view on the disgraced star, sparking outrage from many.
Then came Rolling Stone’s bombshell article about a damning, recently unearthed audio of the star admitting to strangling Jabbari. Shortly after, it was announced that Majors had wed actress Meagan Good, his biggest defender in public. Talk about highly predictable Hollywood PR machinations. Will this mean anything for Majors’ redemption arc?
Conan O’Brien will be returning to host the 98th Oscars
The popular talk show host will be returning next year for another round of wacky, witty, and smartly self-deprecating Hollywood humour as the host of the Academy Awards ceremony. His emcee duties at this year’s Oscars were well-received — a remarkable achievement, as the role is widely known to be a tough, thankless job that many other well-known comedians are inclined to turn down. Responding to the announcement, O’Brien quips in his characteristic style: “The only reason I’m hosting the Oscars next year is that I want to hear Adrien Brody finish his speech.”
Nearly thrice the production budget of Anora was spent on its marketing, including Oscar campaign
Showbiz trade publication Variety reported that Neon, the production company that bought the North American rights to Anora, had spent US$18 million on marketing the movie — thrice that of the film’s US$6 million production budget.
This caused wagging tongues to snidely question the film’s indie status. But heavy awards-season campaigning is just standard industry practice, set in motion by disgraced movie producer Harvey Weinstein years ago.
Ben Stiller says Barack Obama turned down role in Severance Season 2
Ben Stiller, who is an executive producer and director of the critically acclaimed Apple TV+ hit Severance, revealed on Jimmy Kimmel Live! that he’d asked Obama to come on board for a surprising role in Season 2. The part was for a short voice narration of a propaganda video from the show’s main antagonistic entity, Lumon Industries. Showing the importance of networking, Stiller managed to send the request via a friend who knew Obama’s lawyer. Unfortunately, he ultimately came away with just a polite and friendly rejection from the ex-president. The role, which was uncredited, eventually went to Keanu Reeves, the internet’s boyfriend.
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John Lithgow confirms casting as Albus Dumbledore in Harry Potter TV series
John Lithgow declared that “[this role] is going to define the last chapter of my life” upon confirmation that he’s going to play the much beloved Hogwarts headmaster in the upcoming Harry Potter TV series. So far, Lithgow’s casting is the only confirmed one. This gesture is a move that walks back on creator J. K. Rowling’s previous insistence — for the films, at least — that there would only be British actors playing the Harry Potter characters. Is this decision acknowledging Harry Potter’s international appeal or simply the need for recognisable big names? Perhaps both.
Images: © AppleTV+, © Universal Music, ©2025 WBEI, Flickr(Gage Skidmore)