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Is it time to let bygones be bygones?
Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke's daughter Maya Hawke has been cast in Quentin Tarantino's newest star-studded film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, according to Deadline. Other new additions to the cast include Lena Dunham of Girls fame, The Carrie Diaries' Austin Butler and Chilean film star Lorenza Izzo.
Hawke is slated to appear in Netflix's Stranger Things season 3 after starring in the TV miniseries Little Women.
What makes Hawke's casting in the film stand out is her mom's relationship to the famous director. Earlier in the year, Thurman spoke about her rocky relationship with the Inglorious Basterds director and how she felt unsafe while performing a stunt for Kill Bill. In a New York Times  profile, the Pulp Fiction actress said she felt uncomfortable driving now infamous blue convertible because the car had been changed from a stick shift to an automatic. Tarantino allegedly refused her request to have a stunt double drive in the scene. "That was a death box I was in," she said. 

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Inside Quentin Tarantino's Complicated History With His Leading Ladies

Thurman ended up maneuvering the car herself in the scene, but crashed and suffered multiple injuries. "The steering wheel was at my belly and my legs were jammed under me. I felt this searing pain and thought, ‘Oh my God, I'm never going to walk again,'" she told the Times.
In February, the actress shared a video on Instagram of the grisly moment she hit a tree. Reflecting on that scene, she told the Times, "Quentin and I had an enormous fight, and I accused him of trying to kill me. And he was very angry at that, I guess understandably, because he didn't feel he had tried to kill me."

Tarantino provided Thurman with the reel of her crash—15 years after it happened. The two of them had back-and-forth arguments about the footage, including one "fateful fight" in 2004 when Tarantino refused to let her see the footage. According to an interview with Deadline, Tarantino offered his side of the story: "She wanted clarity on what happened in that car crash, after all these years. She asked, could I get her the footage? I had to find it, 15 years later."
The director expressed that he and Thurman have their differences about the fate of the crash. "I never talked to Uma about this, but I don't exactly know exactly what caused the crash, and Uma doesn't know exactly what caused the crash. She has her suspicions and I have mine," he said.
Tarantino told Deadline how guilty he feels about the crash and how it impacted their relationship. "It was heartbreaking. Beyond one of the biggest regrets of my career, it is one of the biggest regrets of my life. For a myriad of reasons," he explained.

Despite the crash and the past, Thurman and Tarantino's relationship might not be over forever. She told Entertainment Weekly in May that she would be open to working with him again "If he wrote a great part!"
Well, one part has now been handed down in Thurman's family line. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood takes place in 1969 Los Angeles during the "Helter Skelter" era in Hollywood around the time of the Sharon Tate murder. Stars headlining the film include Leonardo DiCaprio Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie as Tate, Dakota Fanning, Al Pacino and mor

Ben-Affleck-Checks-Back-Into-Rehab-After-Intervention-Staged-by-Jennifer-Garner

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Ben Affleck is checking back into rehab, according to reports.
A source tells E! News a "visibly shaken" Jennifer Garner was spotted driving her soon-to-be ex-husband  to rehab, just days after his breakup from Saturday Night Live producer Lindsay Shookus. The mom arrived at the actor's home in the Pacific Palisades with her bodyguard in tow on Wednesday at 6 p.m., where the actress staged an intervention for the father of their three children, Violet, Serafina and Samuel.
The insider says the mother-of-three told the paparazzi it "wasn't a good time and to please leave the house," after which she, Ben and a bodyguard got in their car and drove off.
Another source tells E! News the Batman star had been drinking since Monday and knew he needed help. "He told Jen and was not resistant. He asked her to take him and she wanted to be there for him," the insider reports.

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Affleck has long struggled with alcohol addiction, but appeared to have stuck to his vow to stop drinking since announcing he had completed rehab in March 2017. And while he had successfully finished his stint in rehab, the actor continued to seek outpatient treatment. Only recently did the Good Will Hunting star's sobriety come into question, following his breakup from Shookus and subsequent dates with Playboy model Shauna Sexton.
In a statement shared on Facebook in March of last year, the producer said, "I have completed treatment for alcohol addiction; something I've dealt with in the past and will continue to confront. I want to live life to the fullest and be the best father I can be. I want my kids to know there is no shame in getting help when you need it, and to be a source of strength for anyone out there who needs help but is afraid to take the first step."

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"I'm lucky to have the love of my family and friends, including my co-parent, Jen, who has supported me and cared for our kids as I've done the work I set out to do. This was the first of many steps being taken towards a positive recovery," he concluded.
And like she did in 2017, Garner is sticking by her co-parent in his time of need. "She wants to see him healthy and at his best. She knows that's what's best for the kids and the family," a source previously told E! News. 

TMZ was the first to break the news.

Asia-Argento-and-Anthony-Bourdain's-Complicated-Relationship:-A-Bizarre-wist-to-an-Already-Tragic-Love-Story

This was not the posthumous revelation about Anthony Bourdain that anyone was expecting.
Known to have been dating Asia Argento since late 2016, a picture of an unconventional relationship with the Italian actress and filmmaker started to take shape after his suicide in June.
"Anthony and Asia had a free relationship, they loved without borders of traditional relationships, and they established the parameters of their relationship early on," wrote the couple's friend Rose McGowan, who had gotten to know both of them as fellow champions of the #MeToo movement. McGowan and Argento were among the first of the famous women to publicly accuse Harvey Weinstein of sexual assault and harassment last fall, and Bourdain spoke up as a fierce advocate for his girlfriend and the entire cause.
Now, almost a year after the New York Times ;and The New Yorker paved the way for an avalanche of accusations against Weinstein and countless other men in varied positions of power—including celebrity chef Mario Batali, whom Bourdain had previously expressed endless admiration for—McGowan is understandably disappointed in Argento. And the Italian actress and filmmaker's description of Bourdain as her "rock" and "protector" has taken on new meaning.

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Audiences can watch Anthony Bourdain and Asia Argento falling for each other on the "Rome" episode of the award-winning CNN series Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown, on which Argento appeared as a guide to the Italian capital's off-the-beaten-path culinary delights and culture, taking him to eat pasta ringside at a boxing club and to her sister's house for a home-cooked meal.
"As so many have found throughout history, it's easy to fall in love with Rome. She is seductively beautiful," Bourdain intones as he and a similarly leather-jacketed Argento are seen strolling a narrow street together, two misfits on a mission. "She has endured and survived many things."
Whether his passionate narration was inspired by the new woman in his life is anyone's guess—but it certainly makes for a powerful metaphor if so.

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Writing about the episode on CNN.com, Bourdain stated that it wouldn't have been possible without the "truly magnificent" Argento as he detailed the myriad experiences she introduced him to.
"If you ask Asia a question, you are going to get an answer—and she doesn't care if it reflects badly on you—or on herself," Bourdain noted. "She's going to give it to you straight. Actors and film people are generally a frightened bunch. They fear saying or doing the wrong thing—of somehow finding themselves no longer able to work in film."
So, basically, everything he ever wrote or said, especially in the last couple years of his life, was eerily prescient and profound.
When he met Argento, who's mother to daughter Anna Lou and son Nicola from previous relationships, Bourdain was separated from his second wife, Ottavia Busia, the mother of his daughter Ariane. He and Busia never ended up officially divorcing, but he told People in September 2016 that he and Busia had been leading "very separate" lives for years.
"There's no drama here. We get along really, really well and it's not a big lifestyle change happening here," the author and Emmy winner said.

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Anthony Bourdain: A Life in Pictures

After the initial splash they made as a couple, Bourdain and Argento went on to have a fairly private relationship, sharing the occasional photo on Instagram in which they inevitably looked ravenously in love and also often like two world-weary travelers who'd found each other at last. They bonded over their nomadic tendencies, and till the end of his life Bourdain never stopped crisscrossing the globe for Parts Unknown.

Talking to Popula in February, Bourdain once again considered and automatically dismissed the idea of himself ever settling down, at least geographically.
"It's helped me a lot that Asia is the same way," he said, also confiding that the two of them had resumed their respective smoking habits together. "That there's no shame in this, you know...She'll point out the ridiculousness of kicking back on the beach, because she'll say right up front...'This doesn't appeal to me at all! This is a living death.' I can't do it. I can do it for a few days at a time."
He also said, "I'm a renter by nature. I like the freedom to change my mind about where I want to be in six months, or a year."

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On its own, Bourdain's relationship with Argento didn't attract that many headlines until her allegations against Weinstein were first detailed by Ronan Farrowin The New Yorker last fall. She accused the disgraced production mogul (who's since been charged with and pleaded not guilty to sex crimes in an unrelated case) of forcing oral sex on her and other misconduct starting when she was 21 years old.
"I know he has crushed a lot of people before," Argento told Farrow. "That's why this story—in my case, it's twenty years old, some of them are older—has never come out." She later had consensual encounters with Weinstein, she said, though she really felt "obliged" to comply, for fear he'd harm her career. (Weinstein has denied all allegations of non-consensual sex.)
"Proud as hell," Bourdain captioned a photo of Argento flipping the bird on the red carpet, which he posted on Oct. 10, the day the article was published.
In a harbinger of things to come, he had tweeted Oct. 6, reacting to the initial New York Times story that McGowan was mentioned in, "@rosemcgowan has been way out in front of this thing . Took a lot of courage."

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Every Star Who Has Spoken Out Against Harvey Weinstein Amid His Sexual Harassment Allegations

On Late Night With Seth Meyers later that month, Bourdain, who rocketed to fame on the momentum of his funny, eye-opening and thoroughly entertaining 2000 memoir Kitchen Confidential combined with his own raw charm, acknowledged that restaurant culture was historically problematic when it came to how women were treated.
"I think it's going to have to change," he said. "...You're going to have to account for yourself. 'What did I do when at-that-important moment,' you know? 'What did I say? What kind of person was I?' You're going to have to take responsibility for what you see, not just what you take part in."

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When numerous accusations of misconduct against Mario Batali were brought to light in December by Eater New York, prompting ABC to immediately dismiss the celebrated chef and restaurateur from The Chew, Bourdain took to Medium to expand on his thoughts on the subject.
"In these current circumstances, one must pick a side," he wrote. "I stand unhesitatingly and unwaveringly with the women. Not out of virtue, or integrity, or high moral outrage — as much as I'd like to say so — but because late in life, I met one extraordinary woman with a particularly awful story to tell, who introduced me to other extraordinary women with equally awful stories. I am grateful to them for their courage, and inspired by them. That doesn't make me any more enlightened than any other man who has begun listening and paying attention. It does makes me, I hope, slightly less stupid."
Bourdain concluded, "To the extent which my work in Kitchen Confidential celebrated or prolonged a culture that allowed the kind of grotesque behaviors we're hearing about all too frequently is something I think about daily, with real remorse."

On May 19, Argento gave a much talked about speech at the Cannes Film Festival, calling the glittering annual event Weinstein's past "hunting ground," noting that it was during Cannes in 1997 that Weinstein allegedly assaulted her.
"And even tonight, sitting among you," she said during the festival's closing ceremony, "there are those who still have to be held accountable for their conduct against women, for behavior that does not belong in this industry, does not belong in any industry or work place. You know who you are, but most importantly—we know who you are and we're not going to allow you to get away with it any longer."

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Women's March at 2018 Cannes Film Festival

"Brava @asiaargento An absolutely fearless off-script nuclear bomb of a speech to a stunned crowd at #Cannes," Bourdain tweeted. He added, "How to lob a grenade into a huge industry event and make them thank you for it..." He also retweeted several other comments and stories about the speech.
Quite unlike the overwhelmingly appalled response to the reports about Weinstein and other men in the United States, the response to Argento coming forward in her native Italy was much more accusatory—toward her. "I don't see what I can do there," she said in an October TV interview from Germany, having left her home country. "I'll come back when things improve to fight alongside all the other women."

When Argento tweeted that Spike Lee was the only person who came up to her with "kind words" afterward, Bourdain too wrote, "Thank you Spike Lee for your kindness and thoughtfulness . You stood up when others didn't . @asiaargento." The next day he added, "Again. I want to thank Spike Lee. For making the extra-ordinary effort of walking and squeezing his way across a crowded room at Cannes to do the right thing. Above and beyond. It was remembered . It was much appreciated."
A few days later Weinstein turned himself in after being charged with sexual assault. Bourdain tweeted, "When you went on record, @AsiaArgento you were sure this day would never come, that you would be crushed, that you were alone. And yet you did it anyway. #perpwalk."
An outpouring of grief over Bourdain's shocking death and appreciations for his copious contributions to the cultural discourse proceeded to consume longtime and brand-new fans for the next two months. CNN announced it would put together more Parts Unknown episodes from the footage of Bourdain's final trips, and a network documentary is in the works. And that conversation will continue.
But as if there weren't enough questions left unanswered already, there are now even more.

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It was just revealed this week that this past November, with Argento having become one of the faces of the #MeToo movement, a young man notified her of his intent to sue her over an alleged sexual assault that took place in 2013 and asked for $3.5 million in damages.
The New York Times reported Sunday that Jimmy Bennett, a former child actor who at 7 years old played Argento's son in her 2004 movie The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things, had alleged that Argento initiated sex with him in a California hotel room when he was only 17 (the age of consent in California is 18) and she was 37. The alleged assault took place in 2013. Documents sent to the Times indicated that Argento had agreed in March to pay Bennett $380,000, starting with a lump sum of $200,000 in April, followed by monthly installments of $10,000.
At first the Times, which explained that the encrypted documents were sent to the paper anonymously, couldn't get a direct comment from either party, though Bennett's lawyer emailed the newspaper, "In the coming days, Jimmy will continue doing what he has been doing over the past months and years, focusing on his music."
And though one accusation doesn't negate another, needless to say a groan of disappointment sounded collectively among the leaders and supporters of the #MeToo movement. (Weinstein's lawyer Ben Brafman immediately stated that the story revealed a "stunning level of hypocrisy by Asia Argento.")

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"I got to know Asia Argento ten months ago," McGowan tweeted on Monday. "Our commonality is the shared pain of being assaulted by Harvey Weinstein. My heart is broken. I will continue my work on behalf of victims everywhere." When her words were inevitably twisted to suit certain opinions about the #MeToo movement, she fired back, "Oh for f--k's sake I'm not defending."
"I've said repeatedly that the #metooMVMT is for all of us, including these brave young men who are now coming forward," #MeToo founder Tarana Burke tweeted Monday. "It will continue to be jarring when we hear the names of some of our faves connected to sexual violence unless we shift from talking about individuals...and begin to talk about power. Sexual violence is about power and privilege. That doesn't change if the perpetrator is your favorite actress, activist or professor of any gender."
More men coming forward would be key to the strength of the movement as well, Burke wrote.
Alyssa Milano, who helped make the #MeToo hashtag go viral last fall, wrote in an essay for The Wrap, "The fact is, these two truths can exist at once: A victim of assault can also be an offender. It is sad and infuriating to say the least, but one victim's alleged horrid behavior does not nullify an entire movement." Ashley Judd, who shared her experience with the NY Times for its initial article on Weinstein, tweeted out Milano's article, adding, "Indeed, accountability is at the very heart of the #MeToo movement. We hold any and every abuser accountable, regardless of their gender, race, socioeconomic status, public visibility or popularity. Sexual violence is wrong, full stop." Mira Sorvino, who talked to Farrow for the same New Yorker story as Argento, tweeted that she was "heartsick" over the allegations and, if true, there was "no lens that makes it better."

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Argento broke her silence on Tuesday morning, sending a statement to New York magazine and Huffington Post contributor Yashar Ali, who shared it in full on Twitter, in which she said she strongly denied and opposed the "absolutely false" contents of the Times piece.
"I have never had any sexual relationship with Bennett," she stated. Once she was in the news with regard to Weinstein, Argento alleged, Bennett, who was having financial difficulties and had accused his parents of withholding his own earnings from him, "unexpectedly made an exorbitant request of money from me. Bennett knew my boyfriend, Anthony Bourdain, was a man of great perceived wealth and had his own reputation as a beloved figure to protect."
She continued, "Antony [sic] insisted the matter be handled privately and this was also what Bennett wanted. Anthony was afraid of the possible negative publicity that such person, whom he considered dangerous, could have brought upon us. We decided to deal compassionately with Bennett's demand for help and give it to him."
And it was Bourdain who paid Bennett, Argento claimed.

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"Anthony personally undertook to help Bennett economically, upon the condition that we would no longer suffer any further intrusions in our life," she further stated, calling the Times report "the umpteenth development of a sequence of events that brings me great sadness and that constitutes a long-standing persecution."
According to the Times report, however, among the documents they received was a selfie of Bennett and Argento lying in bed together.
And on Wednesday, TMZ published what appears to be that selfie, as well as screengrabs of portions of text exchanges purportedly showing Argento writing to a friend, "I had sex with him it felt weird. I didn't know he was a minor until the shakedown letter." (Yashar Ali noted Wednesday that TMZ's report directly contradicted the first part of Argento's statement to him.)
In one screengrab, Argento sent a photo of a note she said was from Bennett, in which he wrote, "I love you with all my heart. So glad we met again and I'm so glad you're in my life." Argento wrote in a text, "He wrote me this afterwards and kept sending me unsolicited nudes all these years up until 2 weeks before the attorneys [sic] letter."

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Bennett—whose acting credits include the 2005 remake of The Amityville Horror, Gilmore Girls, Evan Almighty, Bones and the Amazon series Bosch—broke his silence Wednesday.
"Many brave women and men have spoken out about their own experiences during the #metoo movement, and I appreciate the bravery that it took for each and every one of them to take such a stand," began a statement, obtained by E! News, from the now 22-year-old musician.
"I did not initially speak out about my story because I chose to handle it in private with the person who wronged me. My trauma resurfaced as she came out as a victim herself. I have not made a public statement in the past days and hours because I was ashamed and afraid to be part of the public narrative. I was underage when the event took place and I tried to seek justice in a way that made sense to me at the time because I was not ready to deal with the ramifications of my story becoming public.
"At the time I believed there was still a stigma to being in the situation as a male in our society. I didn't think that people would understand the event that took place from the eyes of a teenage boy. I have had to overcome many adversities in my life, and this is another that I will deal with, in time. I would like to move past this event in my life, and today I choose to move forward, no longer in silence."

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How Anthony Bourdain Evolved From Brash, Boys' Club Chef to Passionate #MeToo Supporter

There's been no further word yet from Argento's camp.
She had joined Italy's X Factor this summer as a judge and on Tuesday Sky Italia and producer FreemantleMedia Italia stated that if the allegations printed by the Times "were to be confirmed, the issue would be absolutely inconsistent with Sky's ethical principles and values and therefore—in full agreement with FremantleMedia—we would have no choice but to take note of it and put an end to the collaboration with Asia Argento."
On Wednesday the international music festival Le Guess Who? announced that Argento had stepped down as curator of this year's event, scheduled for November in the Dutch city of Utrecht, "due to the volatile nature of the accusations" against her.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department confirmed to E! News this week that they had not located any police report alleging criminal activity in their jurisdiction in relation to the incident detailed in the media, but that the LASD's Special Victims Bureau was attempting to reach out to Bennett and his representatives "to appropriately document any potential criminal allegations."

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Meanwhile, the voice that's glaringly missing right now is Bourdain's.
"In her statement she doesn't actually take responsibility for what happened or the chain of events," Liz Plank, an executive producer at Vox Media and host of the online series and podcast Divided States of Women, told E! News (before TMZ published the photo and screengrabs). "She actually either blames the victim or blames Anthony Bourdain, for not only being responsible for paying off Jimmy Bennett, but also for it even being his idea in the first place. Anthony Bourdain is unfortunately no longer with us and cannot defend himself."
The Times reported Sunday that Bourdain's lawyer Richard Hofstetter had also been representing Argento last November, and was the recipient of the intent-to-sue notice from Bennett's attorney. Argento then turned to attorney Carrie Goldberg to handle matters for her, according to the story. (Neither Goldberg, Hofstetter nor Bourdain's agent commented for the piece.)

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Bourdain sang Argento's praises in a guest column for The Hollywood Reporter, published June 2, in honor of the "Hong Kong" episode of Parts Unknown, which his girlfriend directed.
"I needed a director, someone with whom the notoriously unpredictable [Christopher] Doyle would feel a rapport," Bourdain wrote, explaining how much he wanted to work with Doyle, filmmaker Wong Kar Wai's go-to director of photography.
"Fortunately, I'd met Asia Argento two years previously, on our Rome show," he continued. "I'd initially reached out to her because of my admiration for her last directorial effort, Incompresa—and because of her fascinating Twitter feed, filled with iconoclastic references to films, music, books and artists I'd thought only I'd ever heard of. That turned out to be one of the better decisions of my life. I thought, 'If Chris Doyle is going to get along with anybody, it's an outlier, don't-give-a-s--t-about-convention workaholic, like Asia.'"
For a behind-the-scenes feature, Argento recalled to Parts Unknown producer Helen Cho in May that the original director fell ill and she got a last-minute call from Bourdain, so two days later she flew to Hong Kong. Though she was "completely unprepared," she said, she was familiar with how his crew worked and she quickly adapted.
Asked if she would want to collaborate again, with Bourdain and Doyle, Argento said, "I would love to. Christopher is a precious cinematic partner in crime. He and Anthony got along famously. We made a great trio—the good, the bad, and the ugly. Figure out who is which."

"It was the most intensely satisfying experience of my professional life and a show that I am giddily, ecstatically proud of," Bourdain wrote in THR, adding that he planned to get Doyle's name in the original Mandarin, Du Kefeng, tattooed somewhere on his body. "As you might have guessed," he concluded, "I already have an Asia Argento tattoo."
Less than a week later, Bourdain killed himself in his hotel room in the Alsace region of France, where he was shooting yet another episode of Parts Unknown.
"Anthony gave all of himself in everything that he did," Argento wrote in an Instagram post later that day. "His brilliant, fearless spirit touched and inspired so many, and his generosity knew no bounds. He was my love, my rock, my protector. I am beyond devastated. My thoughts are with his family. I would ask that you respect their privacy and mine."
On June 17, she posted an image featuring the message, "Everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about. Be kind. Always." Her caption: "For nothing is concealed that won't be revealed, and nothing hidden that won't be made known and brought to light #TruthWillPrevail."

#The_Truth_About_Prince _Harry_and_Meghan_Markle's_Friendship_With_George_and_Amal_Clooney

Getty Images/Instar; Melissa Herwitt/E! Illustration

George Clooney's Lake Como spread has played host to the best of the best.
Tucked behind a row of hedges and a cluster of trees, the 18th century villa's garden is well-hidden from would-be looky-loos who board ferries hoping to catch a glimpse of Laglio, Italy's most famous artist-in-residence. As such, it's the perfect spot for the actor and his attorney bride Amal Clooney to dig into a discussion of headline news with CNN executive producer turned Glamour editor in chief Samantha Barry, debate politics with former presidential adviser David Gergen or talk shop with Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston. (Though in our mind that chat is laced with a few well-meaning jabs at Brad Pitt's current hairstyle.)
But this month the two-time Oscar winner's modern day Algonquin Round Table ("I was always enamored of that idea," he told The Hollywood Reporter of the set-ups. "All these really interesting, smart people, sitting around having conversations,") played host to perhaps its most famous pair. Just last weekend, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex—that would be Prince Harry and his new wife Meghan Markle—claimed one of Villa Oleandra's 25 rooms and a seat at George's famed table.    

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George Clooney's Famous Friends

Turns out the Clooneys' surprise invite to Harry and Meghan's May vows wasn't simply a bid to up the already impressive star quotient. After all, everyone from David and Victoria Beckham to Idris Elba to Elton John to even Oprah Winfrey selected their finest fascinators and joined the crew of blue bloods aboard the buses to the Windsor Castle affair. Nor were the couple in need of an extra bartender to sling Casamigos tequila-based cocktails at their raucous late-night reception. (Though they got that and an excitable dance floor fixture in the former liquor brand owner, who grabbed both Meghan and her sister-in-law Kate Middleton for a dance.)
Instead, they scored the coveted invite because the foursome are actually quite close. Like, hey, wanna borrow my private jet and spend the weekend at my waterfront Italian villa close.
Even before the Catch-22 actor-producer, 57, dispatched his plane and an unmarked motorcade to ferry the royal pair (and their ever-present protection officers) to Italy Aug. 16, the quartet was regularly meeting up for dinners in London and bunking together at the Clooneys' $25 million Berkshire manse. "They all have a lot in common," an insider explains to E! News, "so it just clicked as a four." 

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At first, the easy assumption was that Amal, 40, and Meghan, 37, were the connectors. Two well-heeled women with impressive pedigrees (Amal earned an undergraduate degree from Oxford before hopping across the pond for law school at New York University while Meghan double-majored in theater and international studies at Northwestern University, working as an intern at the U.S. Embassy in Argentina before committing herself to acting) and a passion for human rights who just happen to have their impossible perfect manes shorn by the same stylist? Sure, that checks out.
But while the two women have become quite close in the past few years, it turns out they can thank their husbands for that bond, not their shared hair pro Miguel Martin Perez.
Having floated through the same philanthropic circles for years (well before he and Amal created the Clooney Foundation For Justice, George co-founded Not On Our Watch in an attempt to curb the genocide in Sudan) the actor and the Sentebale co-founder, 33, connected at a private charity function in the UK, a palace source reveals to E! News: "They have been friends for more than two years." 

So that would be right around the time the globe's most famous bachelor was introduced to a little-known TV actress. And as Harry and Meghan's summer romance went from blind date to adventures in Africa in a matter of weeks, the prince realized it was time to integrate the Suits star into his clan. While the world breathlessly awaited reports Meghan had lunched with Kate or sipped tea with Queen Elizabeth II, Harry was quietly arranging a get-together with some other bold-faced names.
"When he started getting serious with Meghan, Harry introduced her to George and Amal," the palace source shares, "and the couple quickly started hanging out regularly."
As anyone who's been on an awkward double date knows, the trickiest part of forming couple friendships is seeing if the unfamiliar spouses can get along as well as the original pals. So it had to be quite the relief for Harry and George to watch their better halves gel instantly.

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We'd imagine it wasn't hard for the two to find common ground after they'd cycled through the initial small talk. Both women, after all, had the unique experience of finding relative notoriety in their chosen fields only to skyrocket to the loftiest levels of fame not due to their professional accomplishments, but because of the more famous men on their arms.
Or as Tina Fey deftly summed it up at the 2015 Golden Globes, "Amal is a human rights lawyer who worked on the Enron case, was an adviser to Kofi Annan regarding Syria, and was selected for a three-person U.N. commission. So tonight her husband is getting a lifetime-achievement award."
It's a heady experience few would understand. But thanks to photographers capturing her very first official date with George back in 2013, Amal learned quickly that being out in the public space as a Hollywood celebrity rather than an internationally acclaimed human rights barrister would be tricky. "We definitely do more things in our home to ensure privacy in a context where we can't otherwise get it," she recently noted to Vogue. "But that whole side—invasions of privacy and paparazzi, all of that—has happened because of something so happy and so important in my life." 

Chris Jackson/Chris Jackson/Getty Images

Meghan's entree into the most glaring of spotlights was trickier, what with Harry having to defend his love from the nastiest of trolls who took umbrage with her nationality, her profession, her marital status and, sadly, even her race. But she also seemed to adopt an it is what it is attitude toward the attention. "It has its challenges, and it comes in waves—some days it can feel more challenging than others," she told Vanity Fair ahead of last year's proposal. "And right out of the gate it was surprising the way things changed. But I still have this support system all around me, and, of course, my boyfriend's support."
Amal is in her corner as well, not only commiserating about the pressure to always appear just so while going about your business of changing the world, but also offering up a few restaurant recommendations as well, plus the aforementioned hair stylist intro. "Amal put Meghan and me together when she moved here," Perez told The Mail on Sunday. "I do her color, her cut and her styling." (Though the honor of wedding day glam went to Serge Normant with Perez tending to Amal's wavy tresses.) 
"Amal has been helping Meghan settle into London life," an insider told People in the weeks following the nuptials. "It was a very natural friendship from day one."

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Amal Clooney's Jackie O Style

Natural enough that after a series of weekends at George and Amal's four-acre Sonning-on-Thames spread—located conveniently close to Harry and Meghan's Cotswolds rental—the Hollywood heavyweight and the Columbia Law School senior fellow issued an open invitation. Their royal highnesses should feel free to join them in Lake Como whenever they could jam a weekend away into their trying schedule of appearances and charitable planning meetings.
That moment came last Thursday. Well-versed in dodging cameras himself, George arranged for his pals to make the 700-mile flight on his jet, then step straight from the tarmac into a set of waiting chauffeured sedans. Once safely ensconced in the outsized spread, which boasts tennis courts, a screening room, gym and even a pizza room, the quartet was able to relax. George and Harry played around with his collection of motorcycles and competed in a few basketball games, Good Morning America reports, before joining the ladies for dinners al fresco catered by some of George and Amal's local favorites, including nearby Il Gatto Nero. 

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The women, meanwhile, were content to lounge near the villa's pool for much of the three-day stay as they fussed over George and Amal's 14-month-old twins Ella and Alexander and talked about any manner of topics.
Because at this point the women have long since passed the we're friends simply because our husbands are friends stage. An insider reveals to E! News the pair have formed their own deep connection in the two years since Meghan started dating Harry: "Amal is like a confidante to Meghan."
Their check-ins have only increased in frequency since Meghan uprooted her life in Toronto—where she filmed Suits—to join Harry at his Kensington Palace cottage. "It helps they're both UK-based now, but they have been able to relate on a lot about their lifestyles," explains the insider, "especially how to deal with being thrust into new situations in the public spotlight."
In fact these days it's more likely that Amal and Meghan would be nudging their guys to set up a group date versus the other way around. "Amal and Meghan are much more friendly with each other and talk more regularly than George and Harry do," notes the insider. "They have become really close friends." 

The_Bachelorette's_Ashley_Hebert_and_J.P._Rosenbaum_Renew_Their_Vows

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Ashley Hebert and J.P. Rosenbaum just said "I do" for a second time.
After almost six years of marriage, The Bachelorette star and her hubby renewed their vows on Eagle Beach in Aruba.
The reality star shared a picture of her kissing her groom during a beachfront ceremony on Wednesday. The bride wore a white dress and flower crown for the occasion.
"We are loving Aruba!" part of her Instagram caption read.
She also posted another photo of the happy couple enjoying a second smooch and celebratory glass of champagne.
"Renewed and it feels so good!" she wrote.
Rosenbaum also took to Twitter and wrote, "Thanks to our vow renewal, we are good for at least another 5 years!"
Fans met Hebert on the 15th season of The Bachelor, where she competed for Brad Womack's heart. She then handed out the roses on the seventh season of The Bachelorette. Rosenbaum ended the season by proposing to Hebert in Fiji. The two then married in a televised wedding in 2012. They now share two children.

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Bachelor & Bachelorette Status Check: Find Out Who's Still Together!

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Like any couple, the duo faced their fair share of ups and downs. Fans watched them overcome a few hurdles on Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars. However, the vow renewal proves the couple is still going strong.
Hebert and Rosenbaum weren't the only reality stars to renew their vows that day. Former Real Housewives of Orange County star Lydia McLaughlin also retied the knot with her husband Doug McLaughlin.

Hebert and Rosenbaum also aren't the first couple from The Bachelorette franchise to renew their vows. Trista Sutter and Ryan Sutter renewed their vows back in 2013.

Congratulations to the happy couple!

Ariana_Grande_Throws_Shade_at_Nicki_Minaj's_Rival_Travis_Scott

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Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj are thick as thieves.
During a Sweetener Session at The Vic in Chicago Wednesday, Grande threw shade at Travis Scott, who's been the target of numerous attacks by Minaj on both Queen Radio and Twitter. Grande's manager, Scooter Braun, predicted onstage that her album would "100 percent" debut at No. 1. "We got three days left," Grande said. "You don't know what Travis could pull!"
Minaj first dissed Scott after his album, ASTROWORLD, beat her album, Queen, holding on to the No. 1 spot for the second week in a row, with the equivalent of 205,000 albums in the U.S. According to Nielsen, Scott sold 78,000 complete albums and had 167 million streams. Queen, by contrast, debuted with 185,000 equivalents, including 78,000 sales and 129 million streams.
Minaj accused her rival of using his girlfriend, Kylie Jenner, and his daughter, Stormi Webster, to promote his music, while also arguing his merch bundles and concert tickets contributed to inflated album sales. Minaj accused Spotify of suppressing promotion of her album to "teach me a lesson" for playing Queen on Apple Music's Beats 1; a rep for Spotify denied the rapper's claims. "I spoke to him," Minaj told her followers over the weekend, referring to Scott. "He knows he doesn't have the #1 album this week. I love my fans for the #1 album in AMERICA!"

Neither Jenner nor Scott have publicly responded to Minaj's tirades.
On Tuesday, four days after Queen was first released as a 19-track album, Minaj added an additional track: "Fefe," a collaboration with the rapper 6ix9ine that came out in July. The "Chun Li" rapper also included copies of her album with merch sales and concert ticket bundles. Minaj delayed her tour this week, promising to reschedule North American shows in 2019.
Grande is featured on "Bed," the sixth track on Queen, while Minaj is featured on "The Light Is Coming," the third track on Sweetener. Minaj's album was originally slated to drop in June, but it was delayed until Aug. 10 due to her "perfectionism." In late July, while attempting to clear a Tracy Chapman sample used in one of her songs, Minaj asked fans whether she should push back her album release until Aug. 17—the same date Grande was releasing Sweetener, her highly anticipated four studio album. Rather than view Minaj as competition, Grande laughed off their rumored rivlary on Twitter. "That's my f--king sister. She's clearing a sample," she wrote on Twitter, in part. "These numbers don't mean as much to the artist as they do to y'all."

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What's in Ariana Grande's Beauty Kit?

Similarly, Minaj tweeted, "I love this woman. Can't wait for the fans to benefit from all the hard work on both ends. We love your passion. You guys will be VERY happy. Trust. That's all I'll say."
Grande and Minaj—who previously collaborated on the songs "Bang Bang," "Get on Your Knees" and "Side to Side"— were seated next to each other Monday at the 2018 MTV VMAs. The rapper avoided a run-in with Scott, who arrived after she left Radio City Music Hall (and later took her seats). But Minaj did cross paths with Jenner as she walked outside of the venue.
Like Scott, Grande has been bundling copies of her album with limited edition merchandise, including backpacks, enamel pins, eye masks, fanny packs, fragrances, hoodies, socks and tees.

Blake Lively Has the Perfect Comeback for Instagram User Who Calls Out Her Typo

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Blake Lively isn't afraid to be the punchline.
The Simple Favor star was sharing a few photos from her night out with famous husband Ryan Reynolds when a fan noticed a minute error.
"Best friend. Owner of @aviationgin. Sexy AF. Here's lookin' at you, kid. @vancityreynolds," the star caption a series of shots of her and the Deadpool actor together earlier this week. However, the star made the itty bitty mistake of not leaving a space between her emoji and her tag for Reynolds' Instagram account.
"I'm crying at her and the fact that she doesn't know she needs to put a space after an emoji for the tag to work," the Instagram user wrote.
Well, the comment did not go unnoticed by the mother of two, who issued a comical comeback by throwing herself under the bus.
"Good point! @blakelively is so dumb!!!!" she responded. 

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Blake Lively's Best Looks

The response sparked a flurry of praise for Lively from fans. "This is why I LOVE HER," one fan wrote. "You literally complete me," another said to the actress.
Lively and Reynolds both are not afraid to have some fun on social media, especially with each other.
When it came time to promote her upcoming mystery drama, Lively wiped her Instagram clean and unfollowed all of Hollywood colleagues—including her partner of more than five years.
"I'm very sad about that. Definitely stinks. It's a terrible way to find out that I've been kicked out of the house, to be honest. Absolutely terrible," the actor played along in response. "I don't know where rage like that comes from."

Days later, the star reinstated her Instagram feed and got back to following Reynolds.
Meanwhile, Lively is just as happy to crack jokes about herself in her photos. In honor of New Year's Eve, the Gossip Girl alum shared a particularly glamorous headshot from a decade earlier.
The caption? "Just a little #makeupfreeselfie to round out the year. #2007#aunaturale."