Monday Musings: Big Cringe At The Tonys, ‘The Idol’ Mimics Marilyn, What’s Next For Ted Lasso, Succession & Maisel Alums?

I’m Back To Musing…and Cringing 😬

Hello Friends!

It’s been a while since I delivered a Monday Musings. I went on a research trip to Arizona 🌵 (I’ll share all about that soon!), and I’m finally ready to unpack everything I’ve been musing about.

Tony Awards 🎭 : Cringe & Unscripted

If you haven’t felt the effects of the WGA Writers Strike yet, I can assure you from watching The Tony Awards Sunday night that the writers were dearly missed. The performances were of course amazing (I’m noting Funny Girl, Some Like it Hot, and Kimberly Akimbo are three Broadway shows I must check out!), but the opening monologue and presenter introductions were cringe. Host Ariana DeBose did her best without a script, which was the whole point to highlight Broadway’s and the American Theatre Wing’s support of the WGA Strike, by purposefully having the teleprompter blank. The presenters came out and just stated their names, of whom half I didn’t know who they were because I don’t follow Broadway as closely as I should. I would’ve loved to have known which play each of the presenters were currently starring in. The acceptance speeches were inspiring and most had messages of inclusion which was a perfect way to honor Pride Month 🏳️‍🌈 . You can stream The 2023 Tony Awards on Paramount+. 

Here are some of the 2023 Tony Award Winners:

• Best Musical - Kimberly Akimbo 

• Lead Actor/Musical - J. Harrison Ghee (Some Like It Hot) 

• Lead Actress/Musical - Victoria Clark (Kimberly Akimbo) 

• Best Play - Leopoldstadt

• Lead Actor/Play - Sean Hayes (Good Night, Oscar) 

• Lead Actress/Play - Julie Comer (Prima Facie) 

Great Musical Performances of the Night To Stream

Where Have I Seen This Year’s Broadway Stars? 

• Jodie Comer (Prima Facie) stars in Killing Eve streaming on AMC+ & Hulu

• Sean Hayes (Good Night, Oscar) stars in Will & Grace streaming on Hulu

• Victoria Clark (Kimberly Akimbo) had guest spot on Pose streaming on Hulu

• J. Harrison Ghee (Some Like It Hot) stars in Accused streaming on Hulu 

• Ben Platt (Parade) stars in The Politician streaming on Netflix

• Samuel L. Jackson (The Piano Lesson) stars in The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey streaming on Apple TV+ 

• Jessica Chastain (A Doll’s House) stars in George & Tammy streaming on Showtime

‘The Idol’ Opening Is Actually A Famous Slim Aarons Photograph

HBO’s The Idol - what can I say? I’m two episodes in and my only two thoughts are what happened to having an on-set acting coach? Abel Tasfaye (aka The Weeknd) should’ve stayed behind the scenes, his presence is just awkward AF. Second, most of the show is quite gratuitous, kind of like the 90s film Basic Instinct they reference. One social media comment I read said it is “Gen Z Showgirls” which is just so perfect. Am I totally in? No. Will I keep watching this train wreckage? Of course!

Here’s the NSFW catchy pop song a la Britney Spears they keep playing over and over again in the first two episodes:

However, I did watch the “stay tuned for more after this episode” bit and found out that the opening scene where Jocelyn (played by Lily Rose-Depp) is actually meant to be an homage to a famous Slim Aarons photograph (one of my favorite photographers) featuring Marilyn Monroe. 

If you’re not familiar with Slim Aarons’ work, he photographed wealthy people vacationing in fabulous places like the Swiss Alps, the Amalfi Coast and this famous photo “Poolside Gossip” taken in Palm Springs. 

Speaking of Palm Springs 🍷 ☀️ 🌴 ….

I just got back from my annual writer’s retreat and the weather was fabulous! I enjoyed a bottle of Avaline which is made from organic grapes and contains no sulfates and promises no hangovers! Confession: I’m not a Hemingway writer, I can’t write drunk, and can’t even edit sober, LOL, so this wine is perfect for a “wine” down to the end of the day. P.S. This is Cameron Diaz’ wine label which is a little on the nose since I was enjoying it on ‘Holiday’! 

On My Bookshelf 📚 - Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children

I purchased this book years and years ago when it came out (2013), but I never finished it. I finally read the entire book earlier this year and besides the ending which kind of went off the rails a bit, it was quite enjoyable. I listened to a podcast with author Ransom Riggs a few months ago and he said he went by the old adage “write what you want to read” so he put all these elements into his book like magic and time travel and dark, scary creatures. I watched the film (finally) last week. It was directed by Tim Burton who I have a love/hate relationship with his films — love Beetlejuice and Ed Wood, hate what he did to Willy Wonka and Alice in Wonderland.

However, his adaptation of Miss Peregrine was very close to the book and the visuals were stunning. The exceptional Colleen Atwood was on costume duty like she was on many of his previous films and the always phenomenal Eva Green (Penny Dreadful) played the title role. The movie, as in the book, went bananas at the end, but all-in-all I thought it was a good cinematic representation of the book. 

Buy The Book 📕 : https://a.co/d/4McgvOl

Stream Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children 📺 on Disney+  

New Instagram Account To Follow - @jackylevy25

If you were baffled by Keeley’s wardrobe in Ted Lasso and kept uttering “oh that’s stunning,” at whatever Rebecca was wearing — I have the Instagram account for you! Jacky Levy is the wardrobe director for Ted Lasso and she “tags” every look from the show. Most of the cast is outfitted in high-end labels like Dolce & Gabbana, Versace, and Alexander McQueen, but Ted Lasso (played by Jason Sudeikis) is a little more grounded with Nike and J. Crew. 

My Favorite Series Alumni 2023 - Where Are They Now? 

Three of my very favorite series ended recently — Succession, Ted Lasso, and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. If you’re wondering what projects each of the main cast are working on now — here’s what I uncovered in my sleuthing:

Ted Lasso: ⚽️

• Jason Sudeikis (Ted Lasso) stars in the feature film Fool’s Paradise available to rent or buy on Apple TV+ or Amazon Prime. 

• Brett Goldstein (Roy Kent) will be a featured voice in the forthcoming animated feature of Garfield alongside Ted Lasso’s Hannah Waddingham, Nicholas Hoult, Samuel L. Jackson and Chris Pratt. Release Date: May 24, 2024

• Nick Mohammad (Nathan) will star in a fantasy-adventure series The Ballad of Renegade Nell currently in production.

• Hannah Waddingham (Rebecca) has five projects in development including the next Mission Impossible film and a reimagine of the 80s series The Fall Guy. 

• Juno Temple (Keeley) will star in Venom 3 and a biopic about George Mallory who attempted to climb Mt. Everest in the 1920s co-starring Sam Heughan (Outlander) and Ewan McGregor. 

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel: 👗

• Rachel Brosnahan (Midge) will star in the forthcoming series Lois & Varga about a newly-married couple whose lives begin to unravel once they move to a small island after inheriting an oceanfront property. 

• Alex Borstein (Susie) is currently the voice of Lois Griffin in The Family Guy. 

• Michael Zegen (Joel) will star in the new HBO series The Penguin co-starring Colin Farrell. 

• Tony Shalhoub (Abe) will star in a Monk sequel film Mr. Monk’s Last Case: A Monk Movie. 

Succession: 💰

• Brian Cox (Logan) has over 11 projects in development including a role as Santa Clause in Mr. C Goes To New Yorkand the host of a new reality competition series based on the Bond films — 007’s Road To A Million. 

• Kieran Culkin (Roman) will voice two animated series including an untitled Scott Pilgrim anime series and The Hospital.

• Jeremy Strong (Kendall) is hitting the stage on Broadway in the upcoming revival of Henrik Ibsen’s Enemy of the People. 

• Sarah Snook (Shiv Roy) stars in Netflix’s Run Rabbit Run, a horror film premiering June 28. 

• Nicholas Braun (Greg Hirsch) stars in Cat Person, a film currently making the festival rounds

• Matthew Mcfadyen (Tom) is currently starring in the miniseries Stonehouse on Britbox and will appear in the upcoming Deadpool 3. 

• Alan Ruck (Connor) will star in a horror-comedy titled Crust. 

• J. Smith Cameron (Geri) will star in the upcoming adaptation of John Green’s book Turtles All The Way Down.

Streaming Today and Tomorrow!  📺

June 12

• Tom and Jerry Tales: Seasons 1-2 (Netflix)  

• An Unforgettable Year - Winter (Amazon Prime)

• Spoiler Alert (Amazon Prime) 

• There’s Something Wrong With The Children (Amazon Prime) 

• Chasing Gold: Paris 2024 (Peacock) 

• Prince: The Final Secret (Peacock) 

• Symone (Peacock) 

• Celebrity IOU: Season 4 (HGTV/MAX) 

• Good Karma Hospital: Season 4 (AcornTV/AMC+) 

June 13

• Amy Schumer: Emergency Contact (Netflix) 

• The Little Alien: Movie (Hulu)