This is a preview of our pop culture newsletter The Daily Beast’s Obsessed, written by senior entertainment reporter Kevin Fallon. To receive the full newsletter in your inbox each week, sign up for it here.
- It’s finally J. Lo’s New Rom-Com Weekend.
- Nathan Chen saves the Olympics.
- I think I miss Che Diaz?
- The most exciting film news in years.
- Another reason to question the value of the Super Bowl.
It was the shock of a lifetime to learn that the Olympics were this week.
I can’t be alone in having less than zero awareness that the world’s greatest sporting event was upon us until roughly the moment people were spinning on ice and dominating the news cycle. A marketing issue? Growing apathy about the Olympics? An inability to discuss anything but Wordle? Who could say.
Nonetheless, as a non-sports fan who, against character, lives and breathes for all things Olympics, hanging every hope and dream for two weeks on the shoulders of Brody McTwist, Surprise Driveway, and Twizzle Skateperson, only to promptly forget their names and existence the moment Closing Ceremonies wrap, this is a thrilling time for me.
I have such fond memories of staying up late to watch Americans snag gold and gushing with friends and colleagues over the Games that this experience stands in such stark relief. When did the Olympics become so depressing?
It’s not just the lack of attention. It’s the human rights issues in China that make you queasy to even participate in any jubilation. It’s the Russian figure skater who made history for landing quad jumps who is now at the center of a drug-test scandal. It’s the abusive stepfather tenor of NBC’s coverage of icon Mikaela Shiffrin’s disappointing performance. It’s the killjoy monitoring of Leslie Jones’ ecstatic online commentary.
It’s the ridiculous and distracting technical score tracker taking up half the screen in figure skating events, like anyone watching is interested in monitoring the triple lutz stock market. It’s the crushing realization that you are geriatric when you watch these athletes and hear analysis about it being historic that a 25-year-old is skating in the Olympics, the oldest woman to do so in 95 years.
But since there’s so much to be depressed about elsewhere in the world, I’m making the bold decision to choose to embrace the elements that have brought me joy.
Chloe Kim’s superstar warmth and charisma is infectious. It’s a strong year for those in the habit of googling “______ shirtless” after each male figure skater performs. (My flannel-wearing Canadian king Keegan Messing produces particularly fruitful results.) I can only strive to one day have the energy of the American skater Jason Brown, who’s like, “I’m not going to do any quads, but I am going to be goddamn GORGEOUS.” And then, of course, there’s gold medalist Nathan Chen, redeeming himself after he was branded a failure at the ripe old age of 18 for falling at the Olympics four years ago. As an American, I could not be prouder of his talent, his fortitude, and his absolutely stunning head of hair.
The force of Chen’s Olympic victory was electric. There has never been a more rousing response to something on television in my living room. (I softly clapped to myself on the couch and whispered a soft, “Yay!”) This is the Olympics experience I’ve been missing.
These are real people doing some of the most superhuman feats of athleticism the human body has ever accomplished. It shouldn’t be so hard—reviving high school arithmetic to decipher when the hell events are airing, ignoring the ugliness that has pervaded the discourse, braving the harrowing streaming waters of Peacock—to discover the rush of positivity that the Games are meant to produce. But this is 2022, after all. Happiness is a chore.
As everyone knows, time is traditionally marked as B.C. or A.D. As in, Before Che and After Diaz.
The arrival of Che Diaz was a biblical event. Their existence caused a stir. There were doubters. There were brave supporters. The human race was fundamentally changed in ways that would reverberate for centuries. Their teachings, gospel via comedy concert, were a spiritual direction for the entire human race. The father, the son, and the holy Rambo.
The Sex and the City sequel series And Just Like That… dominated water-cooler discourse in ways that just doesn’t happen anymore, even if the attention wasn’t always positive. Still, I am living my best life out on the limb of those who relished every single moment of the show—and especially among those who found the making-of documentary that was released alongside last week’s finale to be incredibly poignant. (I… cried?)
But just because it’s over doesn’t mean it needs to be over. I gotta admit it, folks: It’s the first week without an And Just Like That… episode, and I’ve been craving me some Che. And thankfully, one of the best things to happen so far in 2022—Che Diaz memes—have shown no signs of slowing down. I hope they never end. Here are some of my recent favorites:
Let me tell you about the best day of my life.
It was a Wednesday. I was off because I had recently worked an entire weekend covering an award show or a film festival or something or another. As soon as it opened, I went to the closest movie theater, purchased a ticket, ignored the confused raised eyebrow of the cinema worker, and settled in my seat for the weekday matinee screening of Paddington 2, at which I, a grown male, was the only person in the theater.
I’ve been chasing that high ever since. The perfect movie. On the big screen. No one around to bother me. I’ve been so worn down by the last few years that I’ve resigned myself to hopelessness. Surely, I’d peaked. As much as the world wants—it needs—another Paddington movie, the forces of the universe would somehow keep it from happening.
But then this week I read the most beautiful words that have ever been arranged in the English language: “Production of Paddington 3 is expected to start by the end of the year, according to Ben Whishaw.” We are blessed.
I demand a six-part Netflix docuseries about what led to—and what will happen Monday after—this tweet. As Evan Thomas posted in response, “Every day we stray further from His heavenly light
Marry Me: It’s a J. Lo rom-com. Don’t overthink it. (Fri. in theaters and on Peacock.)
Bel Air: A revival of Fresh Prince…, but it’s a drama? It’s not a 30 Rock joke, and it’s not bad! (Fri. on Peacock)
Jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy: Since we’re apparently all talking about Kanye anyway, why not? (Wed. on Netflix)
Inventing Anna: Why isn’t this scam more fun? (Fri. on Netflix)
Super Bowl: What if we all just didn’t watch? (Sun. on NBC)
Love Is Blind: See above. (Fri. on Netflix)