Holly to Bolly: Jennifer Lawrence tops list of best-paid actresses, Cher insults Trump, and more

AFP

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AFP

Jennifer Lawrence tops list of best-paid actresses

Oscar-winner Jennifer Lawrence is the world's highest-paid actress for a second year running, with estimated pre-tax earnings of US$46million (Dh169). The 26-year-old American raked in the lion's share of the cash from a profit-sharing for the final Hunger Games movie, which grossed $650m, Forbes magazine said. An upfront fee for the upcoming space thriller Passengers also helped the 26-year-old push her wages above second-ranked Melissa McCarthy, who pocketed $33m. The 10 highest-paid actresses earned a total of $205 million in the 12 months from June 1, 2015, before fees and taxes, said Forbes. The male actors' list, due to be published on August 25, is expected to show that once again men are earning considerably more than their female counterparts. The issue of pay disparity hit the headlines in 2014 after a leak of stolen emails from Sony Pictures Entertainment showed that Lawrence was paid less than her male co-stars in the movie American Hustle – which was the closing movie at the 10th Dubai International Film Festival. Lawrence, who took the best-actress Oscar for 2012 comedy-drama Silver Linings Playbook, saw her earnings dip from $52m last year, although she is still Hollywood's female star by some way. – AFP

Aretha Franklin cancels shows on doctors’ orders

Soul legend Aretha Franklin has scrapped upcoming shows for health reasons, the latest in a series of cancellations dating back to last year. “Regretfully, due to doctors’ orders I will have to cancel a few concerts for the next month or so,” she said on Monday without giving any further details. She has called off several shows since 2015, including a Las Vegas concert a year ago, at which time she cited exhaustion, and put off a small tour of Florida in March 2016, blaming problems with her backup band. The latest cancellations mean Franklin will no longer participate in a 90th birthday celebration for singer Tony Bennett at Radio City Music Hall in New York. Known as “The First Lady of Soul”, Franklin, who has won 18 Grammys, is best known for her feminist-tinged cover of Otis Redding’s Respect. – AFP

Paul McCartney’s vegetarian vow for The Simpsons

Beatles legend Paul McCartney persuaded the producers of The Simpsons to make one of its characters a vegetarian in exchange for a guest spot. The Huffington Post reported that the team behind the iconic animated sitcom agreed to make daughter Lisa a vegetarian in exchange for the former Beatle's agreement to play himself in a 1995 episode, appropriately titled Lisa The Vegetarian. Actor Hank Azaria, who has voiced several characters during the show's 27-year run, told the blog: "I can tell you, over the years, they were tempted a bunch of times to have Lisa break her vegetarian vow." – IANS

Cher insults Trump, with gusto, at Clinton fund-raiser

Singer Cher unloaded a freewheeling barrage of insults aimed at Donald Trump during a private fund-raising event for Hillary Clinton, comparing him to Hitler and saying he reminded her of the actress who played a murdering child in the film, The Bad Seed. Speaking on Sunday in Provincetown, Massachusetts, the singer and actress gave a stinging – and at times profane – assessment of the Republican presidential nominee. Invoking the classic 1956 horror movie The Bad Seed, she said: "He's so Patty McCormack [the actress who played the killer child in the film]: consummate liar, doesn't care who she hurts, insane." A video of Cher's remarks at the LGBT summer celebration was posted on Facebook. – AP

PT Usha deserves a biopic, says Sonam Kapoor

Actress Sonam Kapoor thinks a biopic should be made celebrating the life of Indian track-and-field athlete P T Usha. Speaking at the event to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of the Ladies’ Wing of the Indian Merchants’ Chamber, she said: “I do believe that we need to make a biopic on PT Usha.” The sprinter is regarded as one of the greatest athletes of India and is called as the queen of Indian track and field. We always celebrated the success of athletes, like we made Milkha Singh’s biopic. I hope many runners get inspired by that. There is such a huge population in our country – I think there are so many talented persons whose biopics can be made.” - IANS