Brian Thomas

Disney Junior really introduced a Black superhero named Captain Durag, whose durag becomes his mask and cape. Critics accused Disney of turning a racial stereotype into “representation.”

A man says he has spent $67,000 on more than 100 facial procedures and plans to spend up to $1.3 million to keep looking “perfect.”

Olive Garden is bringing back its Never-Ending Pasta Pass for the first time in six years. For $100, you can eat unlimited pasta as many times as you want for 13 weeks.

Penn Badgley nearly played Jesse Pinkman in Breaking Bad. The final decision came down to him and Aaron Paul.

Tim Lincecum is younger than Justin Verlander. Lincecum hasn’t pitched in the majors since 2016, while Verlander was still going a decade later.

Laurie Metcalf played Sheldon’s mother on The Big Bang Theory. Years later, her real-life daughter Zoe Perry was cast as the younger version of the same character on Young Sheldon.

Orlando Bloom’s blue contact lenses for Legolas scratched his corneas so badly that he could not wear them every day. In some shots, his eye color had to be changed digitally instead.

Richard Gere was ready to walk away from Primal Fear because the filmmakers could not find the right actor. Then an unknown Edward Norton appeared at an open casting call, landed his first film role, and earned an Oscar nomination for it.

In 1948, Mary’s father told her she would never be welcome home again if she married Jake, a Black man from Trinidad. She chose Jake, and they remained married for 71 years until his death in 2019.

Robert Capron became famous as Rowley in Diary of a Wimpy Kid, but after losing weight, he said Hollywood no longer knew how to cast him. The change he thought would help his career actually made it harder for him to find roles.

In 2001, a 13-year-old Boy Scout went missing near Yellowstone and survived the night alone in rain and sleet. When a rescue helicopter finally found him, the pilot was Harrison Ford.

Sam Neill, the actor who brought Dr. Alan Grant to life in Jurassic Park, has died at 78. Rest in peace to a true movie legend. 🕊️

A woman bought this bust at Goodwill for $34.99 and later learned it was a priceless 2,000-year-old Roman artifact. But after making the find of a lifetime, she was told she could not keep it or sell it.

Michael C. Hall and Jennifer Carpenter played brother and sister on Dexter. While filming the show, they began dating, got married, divorced, and still continued playing siblings on television afterward.

As a rookie, Giannis Antetokounmpo wired nearly all of his money home to his family in Greece, then realized he had no cash left for a ride to the Bucks’ arena. So he started running through the freezing Milwaukee cold until a couple recognized him and gave him a ride.

Mary Scheer received only a basic description when she auditioned to play Freddie’s mother on iCarly. She transformed the role into the anxious, overprotective Mrs. Benson, creating one of the show’s most memorable recurring characters.

Dolly Parton earned millions in royalties from Whitney Houston’s version of “I Will Always Love You.” She later used some of the money to buy an office complex in a historically Black Nashville neighborhood, saying, “This is the house that Whitney built.”

In 1954, Betty White was pressured to remove Black tap dancer Arthur Duncan from her show. She refused, kept him on the air, and gave him even more airtime instead.

Harrison Ford was working as a carpenter when he was asked to read Han Solo’s lines during the Star Wars auditions. He thought he was only helping other actors audition, but George Lucas liked his performance so much that he gave Ford the role instead.

Nicolas Cage paid $276,000 after reportedly outbidding Leonardo DiCaprio for a dinosaur skull. Years later, investigators discovered it had been illegally taken from Mongolia, forcing Cage to surrender it without getting his money back.