Another busy week in pop culture? No problem. Mark Lieberman’s weekly Take 5 column has got you covered.
Greta Gerwig “met your father.”
The first reports of a “How I Met Your Mother” were largely met with howls of derision from the show’s longtime fans and its ardent critics alike. The prospect of copying the show’s formula without the core characters that made it so beloved in its early years left few people content. This week’s news that Greta Gerwig, star of many well-reviewed independent films including “Frances Ha,” will star as the “I” in the new show’s title left many people scratching their heads.
Some wondered if Gerwig is too interesting and idiosyncratic to waste her gifts on a lowly sitcom. Others pointed out that Gerwig will have a hand in writing and producing the show, suggesting that “How I Met Your Father” will differ in tone from the original show. Plus, television isn’t the career death knell that it used to be. Gerwig will now have the visibility to finance the independent projects she’s best known for.
“Saturday Night Live” meets late-night on NBC.
Seth Meyers is just 10 days away from spending every week night on NBC at 12:37 a.m. following Jimmy Fallon’s iteration of “The Tonight Show.” The pieces for Meyers’ “Late Night” are falling into place. The first night will feature a trio of high-profile guests: Meyers’ former “SNL” colleague and longtime friend Amy Poehler; Vice President Joe Biden, who needs no other description; and up-and-coming pop stars A Great Big World. The rest of the week will feature Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen, Lena Dunham, Brad Paisley, the John Mayer Trio and the endlessly controversial Kanye West.
Bonus: every night of the show will feature an “SNL” reunion of sorts, as the multitalented Fred Armisen will serve as the show’s bandleader.
Welcome back to the 80s.
This weekend at the multiplex features not one, not two, but three remakes of films that originally came out in the 1980s. The teen romance drama “Endless Love” is a remake of a 1981 film starring Brooke Shields and the little-known Martin Hewitt (now played by Gabriella Wilde and Alex Pettyfer). The romantic comedy “About Last Night” was inspired by the film of the same name from 1986, starring Rob Lowe and Demi Moore (now Michael Ealy and Joy Bryant) and itself adapted from a play by David Mamet. And the sci-fi thriller “Robocop” is based on the influential 1987 film starring Peter Weller as the eponymous hybrid (now played by Joel Kinnaman).
Worth noting: none of these films have received particularly favorable reviews. Perhaps you’re better off avoiding the nostalgia and seeing “The Lego Movie” again instead.
Drake rails against Macklemore, Rolling Stone and (possibly) “Yeezus.”
This week’s Rolling Stone profile of Drake drew attention for a number of reasons. First, the magazine’s Jonah Weiner asked the wildly popular hip-hop star for his thoughts on the recent Macklemore-Kendrick Lamar dustup at the Grammy Awards. (Quick recap: Macklemore trumped Kendrick, Drake, Jay Z and Kanye West for Best Rap Album. Macklemore felt guilty for winning instead of Lamar, so he sent Kendrick an apology text and posted the evidence on Instagram.) Drake replied that Macklemore handled the situation in “wack” fashion, criticizing the polarizing rapper for attempting to atone for a sin he didn’t perpetrate by apologizing to just one of the four people he “robbed.”
But Drake didn’t reserve his animosity for Macklemore alone. He took to Twitter to rail against Rolling Stone for publishing what he alleges were off-the-record criticisms of a key line on Kanye West’s album “Yeezus.” Drake has now sworn off print interviews entirely.
Jack(man) is back.
After four years of delightful emceeing from the endlessly talented Neil Patrick Harris, the Tony Awards will look a little different this year. Not too different, though: Hugh Jackman will return for his own fourth stint as host. Not much to expand upon here. This is just good news for the most entertaining awards show around.
