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The terrifying 'It' trailer people are obsessed with just broke a viewing record

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It Warner Bros final

There seems to be a lot of excitement for the new "It" movie. 

The latest scary adaptation of the classic Stephen King novel had its trailer premiere on Wednesday, and it completely blew up. In the first 24 hours, the trailer was viewed globally 197 million times. 

That's a new record, according to Deadline.

The previous record holder was "The Fate of the Furious" back in December with 139 million views in a day. According to the trade, 81M views and over 1.8M shares of the "It" trailer came from US Facebook instances alone.

The movie about the frightening clown Pennywise and the seven kids who try to destroy him doesn't hit theaters until September, so expect a few more trailers before then.

But New Line and Warner Bros. are certainly pleased with the reaction so far.

Watch the trailer (again) here:

 

SEE ALSO: The best movies and TV shows coming to Amazon, iTunes, Hulu, and more in April

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People are quickly losing interest in 'Iron Fist,' Netflix's panned Marvel show

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marvels iron fist netflix

"Iron Fist" is losing viewers at a very fast rate – faster than any other Marvel-Netflix series.

That's according to Parrot Analytics, which has developed a way to measure demand for shows, considering factors like viewing, peer-to-peer sharing, social-media chatter, and viewer-generated ratings, among other sources.

Data from companies like Parrot Analytics are helpful for analyzing the popularity of Netflix shows since the streaming company doesn't release viewership information.

In the case of "Iron Fist," the numbers show that demand for the show in its premiere week was pretty high compared to other Marvel-Netflix series. Only "Luke Cage" had more initial demand than "Iron Fist."

This may reflect increased interest created by "whitewashing" allegations against the show and a flood of negative reviews

parrot analytics marvel show ratings netflix

What's interesting is that about a week later, the demand for "Iron Fist" was cut by half. This could mean that people started binge-watching the show in its first few days and then didn't come back to finish the season the next weekend.

In a theory called the “Netflix demand binge curve,” Parrot has seen that demand is high in the first few days of a show while people are binge-watching, and then they return the following weekend to finish up the show. In the case of "Iron Fist," the 50% fall may signify that viewers didn't feel compelled to stick with it.

When it comes to retaining its demand, "Luke Cage" saw the least amount of decrease the week after its premiere with a 37% decline. "Jessica Jones" had the second-best demand retention with a 40% decline. 

The graph below shows just how dramatically people are losing interest in "Iron Fist" compared to the other Netflix-Marvel shows, according to Parrot Analytics.

Iron Fist launch March30

SEE ALSO: VH1 is in the middle of a ratings resurgence and beating its cable competitors — here's why

DON'T MISS: Critics are throwing daggers at Netflix's 'hammy' and 'uninspired' new show 'Iron Fist'

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NOW WATCH: INSIDE 'JEOPARDY!' — We spent a day on the set with Alex Trebek

Verizon has spent at least $200 million on video for its go90 service, which has 2.1 million monthly app users (VZ)

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go90 qb1Verizon spent $200 million last year on programming for its millennial-focused video service go90, according to a former member of the go90 team with knowledge of the matter.

Multiple other former go90 employees confirmed that this number sounded accurate, based on their knowledge. Verizon declined to comment on the figure. That figure doesn't include the $80 million marketing push reported by The New York Post.

Go90, which was conceived as an ad-supported cross between YouTube and Netflix that would broadly appeal to young people, has struggled since its debut in October 2015.

In preparation for go90’s debut, Verizon made big content deals with little oversight, often for slates of shows over multiple years, according to multiple go90 insiders interviewed by Business Insider. The initial wave of content, however, didn’t get the type of massive audience go90 was hoping for.

Since that time, the hiring of a trio of execs with deep experience in online video has brought more discipline to the go90 process. Go90 is more narrowly targeting audience segments based on what has worked in the last year and half, go90 GM Chip Canter told Business Insider in a recent interview. That includes live sports; sci-fi and gaming; music; and dramas primarily focused on young women.

But still, at 2.1 million monthly active users in the US in February — according to the app-analytics firm App Annie — go90 hasn’t gotten the user numbers that would make its ad-supported model a big moneymaker for Verizon.

One piece that has hampered go90 since launch has been the tech platform. Put simply: It’s been really hard to navigate the go90 app and discover new videos beyond the ones prominently featured.

On Wednesday night, Verizon made a sweeping attempt to fix this by releasing a total overhaul of the tech platform. This new version was built by a team from Verizon-acquired Vessel, after Verizon fired over 150 people from go90 in January, mostly those working on the tech.

If you want to read more about Verizon’s experience with go90, and the fight to save it, see our feature on it published Thursday.

SEE ALSO: Verizon is planning to launch a low-price cable TV competitor this summer

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Here are the 15 people who get the most likes on Instagram

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selena gomez

Athletes, musicians, and reality TV stars have the highest number of likes on Instagram. 

That's according to a study conducted by Project Know, an online platform for substance abuse education. The study aimed to find out how celebrity Instagram posts affect teens, and how often drugs and alcohol crop up in those posts. 

But the research showed that the most-followed users aren't always the one getting the most engagement on their posts. For example, while Selena Gomez is the most-followed person on Instagram with a whopping 115 million followers, her posts don't rack up the most likes — that honor goes to one of the world's most famous soccer players.

Here are the 15 artists, entertainers, and athletes with the highest number of likes on average. 

SEE ALSO: Here's why you'll soon start seeing blurred photos on Instagram

15. David Beckham — 515,405 likes on average

No. of followers: 34.7 million 



14. Kim Kardashian — 535,693 likes on average

No. of followers: 96.5 million 



13. Kendall Jenner — 538,945 likes on average

No. of followers: 77.5 million 



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How the original 'Ghost in the Shell' changed sci-fi and the way we think about the future

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ghost in the shell 1995 anime movieYou probably didn't know about "Ghost in the Shell" until the Scarlett Johansson live-action adaptation, out Friday, came around. That movie has now been clouded by the controversy surrounding alleged "whitewashing" of what was originally a Japanese character — a necessary, though complicated, conversation about the story's origins and how Hollywood operates. But if nothing else, hopefully the new movie sends people back to the bold, brilliant manga and anime franchise on which it's based.

"Ghost in the Shell" has had a cult following in the US since the 1995 release of the anime movie directed by Mamoru Oshii (and it's big business in Japan). But it has also quietly influenced many of the movies you watch, and how we think about the future of technology and humanity for decades. You've seen bits and pieces of it before.

The Wachowskis openly cited the anime movie as an inspiration for "The Matrix." James Cameron called "Ghost in the Shell" "a stunning work of speculative fiction," and the future of his "Avatar," in which humans remotely operate alien bodies, certainly bears a resemblance to the anime.

But the Wachowskis' movie looks closest to "Ghost in the Shell." The 1999 blockbuster even has the same holes in the backs of characters' necks to "plug in." The "digital rain" of green Matrix code contains reversed Japanese characters, a shoutout to its predecessor. 

The ideas that drove "The Matrix" are also ripped straight (lovingly so) from "Ghost in the Shell." Oshii and the creator of the "Ghost" manga (a type of Japanese comic) Masamune Shirow posed serious philosophical questions about a potential future when our human bodies have been intimately fused with technology — mechanically enhanced and able to plug into the internet straight from our minds.

the matrix and ghost in the shell

In the '95 "Ghost in the Shell," Major Motoko Kusanagi is a brain inside a manufactured body, the "ghost" inside the "shell." Her robotic parts are owned by the government, and she does the bidding of an anti-cyberterrorism task force known as Section 9. She questions who she is, who she was, and what it even means to be human. If even your brain has been augmented by technology, are you still you? 

In one crucial scene, Major explains that she thinks about becoming someone else. She feels constrained by her cyborg self and dreams of something more. Meanwhile, a hacker known as the "Puppet Master" who was designed as a government tool has gone rogue and is hijacking people's brains, implanting false memories.

At the end of "Ghost in the Shell," in an unsettling twist that speaks to the deeper philosophical meaning of the movie, Major actually merges with her ostensible enemy, the Puppet Master, who is not chained to a body. The old Major does not exist, and neither does the Puppet Master, but rather they've created a new being, who's free to roam around what Major calls "the net," which is "vast and infinite."

You know what else is vast and infinitie? The Matrix, where human beings live out programmed lives while their physical bodies atrophy in pods. As in "Ghost in the Shell," their memories have been implanted. The question of what is "real" and what is virtual — and whether the difference even matters — is at the heart of both movies.

"Ghost and the Shell" and "The Matrix" became central to what was known as "cyberpunk" sci-fi in the 1990s. It's often remembered for its aesthetics — the dark trench coats, that mix of grimy urban sprawl with futuristic computer enhancement — but cyberpunk was also a movement that, at the end of the millennium, challenged people to think about how technology would fundamentally change what it means to be human. 

Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks bought the US movie rights to "Ghost in the Shell" nine years ago, and it's not hard to see why. Spielberg's 2001 movie "A.I." resembles "Ghost in the Shell" not only in its cyberpunk atmosphere, but also in its own wrenching philosophical conundrum: If you build a "robot who can love," is his love any different from a human's? Is his love "real"?

Of course, "Ghost in the Shell" hardly invented these questions. They've vexed people as long as technology itself. But it did wrap up those themes in a cool-looking package that continues to hook filmmakers and cult-movie fans. The recent acclaimed indie hit "Ex Machina" imagines the power (and possible destruction) of a robot who can think for herself — and dress up just as if she were a real woman. (Sound familiar?)

Ghost in the shell

The new "Ghost in the Shell," while full of thrilling cyperpunk action and visual detail, sadly takes only small stabs at the deeper philosophy of the franchise. In the most provocative scene, Major hires a female prostitute simply so she can feel the woman's flesh-and-blood body, what it's like to be "fully human." When asked what she is, Major says, "I don't know." You can feel Scarlett Johansson doing everything to convey the character's anguished searching for herself, how she lives between cyborg and organic worlds. But by the end, the movie cops out with a corny and racially uncomfortable backstory reveal that, as one critic points out, is more "Bourne" than cyberpunk.

Johansson's "Ghost in the Shell" may not live up to its source material, but the "vast and infinite net" imagined by the groundbreaking anime movie is still out there, haunting our dreams of the future.

SEE ALSO: 'Ghost in the Shell' is a stunning sci-fi thriller — but it has one massive problem

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WWE has a 'Roman Reigns problem' heading into WrestleMania

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WWE fans are gearing up for the company's biggest annual event: WrestleMania. The top WWE superstars will face off this Sunday in Orlando in an event that the company spends the entire year building towards. One of the biggest matches on the card features WWE superstars The Undertaker squaring off against Roman Reigns.

Thanks to Reigns, the company finds itself in what can arguably be considered a creative conundrum. For the last three years, the company has pushed  Reigns as a top "babyface," otherwise known as a "good guy." However, whenever Reigns enters an arena he's consistently met by a deafening chorus of "boo's" from the crowd that would make the casual observer think that Reigns is indeed a "heel" or "bad guy." 

We talked to Jeff Ashworth, editor of "The WWE Official Book of Rules," which was written by Jeremy Brown, Trevor Courneen, and Carlos Mejia and illustrated by Nick Harran. Ashworth worked as a digital writer for WWE from 2009 to 2012, and he thinks that the problem with Roman Reigns may not necessarily be a problem at all.

 WrestleMania airs Sunday, April 2 at 7 pm ET live on WWE Network.

Following is a transcript of the video.

You can write a character, whether you're writing for a drama or a comedy. It doesn't matter. You can write them how you want. But you can't dictate how the audience is gonna perceive that character. 

In the case of Roman Reigns, I think there is a subset of the fanbase that doesn't like to be force-fed — doesn't like to be told "this is the guy we should be cheering for."

And you can see that in the way fans respond to John Cena, who's clearly a good guy and has been for decades. 

WWE is unique in that they have a group of fans who are young children. They have fans who have been with the sport since they were young children and went through an evolution during the "Attitude Era" where the superheroes of their childhood like Bret Hart are suddenly being booed because it's not cool to be booed by Bret Hart. 

You can't determine who people are going to cheer for or why. I would say that, on the whole, if you're a WWE superstar, it's less important whether you're getting booed or cheered. It's that you're getting that reaction, whatever it is. 

Is it easier, as someone who's coordinating a television show, to know who your heroes and your villains are? Sure! But that's not how the world works.

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The director behind 'The Fifth Element' has waited over a decade to make his latest sci-fi epic

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valerian and the city of a thousand planets STX

Director Luc Besson has been responsible for some of the most memorable movies ever made, including “La Femme Nikita,” “Léon: The Professional,” and “The Fifth Element,” but this summer he's out with a movie that’s been on his mind most of his life.

“Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets” is based on the French sci-fi comic series “Valérian and Laureline” that was first published in 1967 and has gone on to become legendary. It follows the adventures of Valérian and his female companion Laureline as they go on adventures across the galaxy.

Besson, 58, was a kid when the comic came out and remembers the excitement of getting a new chapter to the “album” weekly.

“I read it starting at 10 years old,” Besson told Business Insider along with other reporters on Monday in New York City after showing the latest trailer of the movie in 3D, which shows off the movie's insanely stunning visuals. “I would get two pages of the story on a Tuesday and wait a whole week for another two pages. At the end of the year I had the entire album. That was the Christmas present. It was the first time we saw a couple in space, it was very new. And [Laureline’s] kicking ass. She was my first love.”

Valerian_and_Laureline WikipediaAs Besson began to build clout in the filmmaking world he never forgot about “Valérian and Laureline” but also didn’t think it could ever be adapted into a movie. That’s why he made “The Fifth Element” instead in 1997.

“When I did ‘The Fifth Element’ I hired the designer from ‘Valerian’ and I worked with him for six months and he said, 'Why are you doing this stupid "Fifth Element" movie? When are you going to do "Valerian"?' And I said I like it but you can't do it, it's impossible," Besson said.

But 10 years ago he started writing a “Valerian” script, just in case the technology caught up.

“Then 'Avatar' was made and then everything is possible,” Besson said.

Opening on July 21 through STX Entertainment, “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets” follows Valerian (played by Dane DeHaan) and Laureline (Cara Delevingne) as they go in search of the evil forces that are trying to destroy Alpha, the peaceful home of species from a thousand planets.

The film also stars Rihanna, Ethan Hawke, and Clive Owen.

Watch the trailer below:

 

SEE ALSO: Here are all 44 movie sequels and reboots coming out in 2017

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NOW WATCH: Watch the new teaser trailer for 'Game of Thrones' season 7

Inside Gwyneth Paltrow's $10 million 'breezy,' all-white New York apartment

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gwyneth paltrow loft

Oscar-winning actress and newly appointed Goop CEO Gwyneth Paltrow is looking for another home.

Paltrow put her New York City penthouse on the market in March 2016, but struggled to sell it. And that might have to do with the slight eeriness of the all-white-everywhere design (it looks almost like a chic, futuristic hospital, if hospitals had shag rugs all over the place).

In March 2017, the apartment, located in Manhattan's Tribeca neighborhood, went under contract with a buyer for $9.95 million. According to Curbed, the original asking price was $14.25 million. 

Paltrow purchased the penthouse in 2007 for $5.1 million with her then-husband, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin. The couple famously "consciously uncoupled" in 2014. The signifcant price upgrade is probably what turned off buyers for so long.

Tribeca is the most expensive neighborhood in New York City. The real-estate company listing Paltrow's loft, in addition to touting its "breezy modernism," also boasts "direct elevator access to the indoor garage providing discreet arrivals and departures" — in case you happen to be famous.

For more information about the penthouse, you can take a look at the Compass listing.

Take a look inside Gwyneth Paltrow's Tribeca penthouse:

SEE ALSO: Inside Drake's $8 million mansion with a pool that puts Hugh Hefner to shame

The design firm Roman and Williams designed the three-bedroom and three-and-a-half-bath space, giving it a light and airy feel.



They mixed modern elements with old ones.



The white-on-white kitchen, where basically the only thing that wouldn't show is spilled milk.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

A 16-year veteran writer of 'The Simpsons' shares what it's like in the writer's room

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Joel Cohen, a 16-year veteran writer on "The Simpsons" talks about his work and what it's like in the writer's room of the iconic show. He has also just released a new book "How to Lose a Marathon" which chronicles his training journey leading up to the 2013 NYC Marathon. Following is a transcript of the video.

Simpsons is amazing. I mean, it’s it’s — I am the dumbest person in any room I’m in, but particularly in that room. It’s a lot of Ivy League educated, really smart, funny, talented people who have this job that they just are creating what’s become this iconic, cultural fixture for almost 30 years. And it’s great. It’s people sitting around yelling stuff at each other and at a TV screen trying to get the next joke in to move us to the next joke. And we do it every day for 52 weeks a year and crank out 22 episodes. It’s amazing.

I’d say every day there’s a joke I go home with that is like one of my favorites that somebody has pitched that’s really funny. A joke that I will — that I can think of just at the spur of the moment is, we had an episode once where I think Lisa was making a movie for the Sundance, Slamdance film festival, or some version of Sundance film festival, and she decided to film her own family and she was assigning roles, and she said “Homer you’ll play yourself” and then Homer said “Why, ‘cause I’m fat?” So, I thought that was funny.

In the course of a day, we write without exaggeration — 50 jokes go in the script and to get there we’re pitching 1,000 jokes. So, a lot of times at the end of the day, when we go back, or when we talk about it in the room, who wrote that joke? We can’t even remember because, often there’s so many, and often to get to the final joke that goes in the script, it’s kind of building upon two other people’s pitches. So, it’s hard — I know that’s not a satisfying answer, one of many not-satisfying answers today. But, it’s hard to think of an individual joke that I’ve written.

Most of the people there, we really are not employable anywhere else, so we’ve stayed there for the bulk of our time. But, yeah, I’d say there’s a little bit of turnover, but, you know, I’ve worked there 16 years and I’m middle of the pack seniority-wise. And our rookies have only worked there three years. But there's people longer than me as well.

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54 of the most hilariously bad Amazon movie reviews (AMZN)

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monsters inc review

For the past few years, Joe Grabinksi has chronicled the most hilariously bad Amazon reviews of popular movies.

Grabinski's Twitter account, "Amazon Movie Reviews," has amassed almost 200,000 followers, and is a pitch-perfect mixture of extremely misguided reviews and just plain wacky ones.

We asked Grabinksi to update a list of his favorites he put together for us last year. These are the best of the bad. The ones he chose range in tone from clueless to angry, to some that we truly hope were meant as a joke. A few things we noticed: Parents tend to blame movies for everything, and at least one person still really cares about VHS.

Get your popcorn ready.

Hunger Games (2012)



Sinister (2012)



The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1 (2014)



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'The Boss Baby' soars as 'Ghost in the Shell' bombs at the weekend box office

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the boss baby 20th Century Fox

DreamWorks Animation, which is behind classics like the "Shrek," "Madagascar," and "Kung Fu Panda" franchises, looks to have another hit on its hands with its latest release, "The Boss Baby," taking in an estimated $49 million over the weekend, according to Boxofficepro.com.

That dethrones Disney's "The Beauty and the Beast," which has been No. 1 at the box office for the last two weeks. The movie came in second with $47 million.

The live-action remake now has a domestic total of $395 million, $876 million worldwide.

But all wasn't well for DreamWorks this weekend. Its long-developed, $110 million live-action retelling of the popular Japanese manga, "Ghost in the Shell," only earned $19 million over the weekend.

"The Boss Baby," starring Alec Baldwin voicing the baby and released by 20th Century Fox, was perfectly scheduled on the calendar. The kids who had finally seen "Beauty and the Beast" enough times to get their fill of the remake of Disney's 1991 animated classic (or were a little too young to go see it) were ready to be entertained by a baby wearing a suit.

Ghost in the Shell Paramount copyParamount's "Ghost in the Shell" just never seemed to have any momentum going all the way back to its casting of Scarlett Johansson as the movie's main character, Major. That led to accusations of whitewashing after critics saw the movie that didn't let up into opening weekend.

But a controversy like whitewashing typically doesn't enter the mind of the average moviegoer. So there's a little more that goes into the movie's failure than that. Though "Shell" is visually stunning, it's likely its lack of substance (a deep psychological story about keeping your soul in an age of cyborgs) that might have gone over everyone's head. Or just didn't motivate them to go see the movie opening weekend and wait until it's available to stream. 

However, don't be surprised if the movie rebounds at the international box office. The big reason to cast a star like Johansson is she has as much international clout as she does domestically. Despite all the whitewashing talk, she could be the movie's saving grace.

SEE ALSO: 33 documentaries on Netflix right now that will make you smarter

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NOW WATCH: The first full 'Justice League' trailer is here and it looks incredible

A director explains what it was like casting Rihanna in his movie: 'She's the queen'

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Rihanna Valerian STX final

Luc Besson has always had an eye for casting actresses who are mesmerizing on the big screen.

There was Natalie Portman in her breakout role in "Léon: The Professional," model-turned-action star Milla Jovovich in "The Fifth Element," Scarlett Johansson in "Lucy," and for his latest movie, "Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets," you can add two more names: Cara Delevingne and Rihanna.

Delevingne is one of the leads in this adaptation of the legendary French sci-fi graphic novel, while Rihanna plays a shape-shifting entertainer named Bubble.

Having already become one of the biggest artists in the music industry, Rihanna has moved her attention to movies and TV of late. She played Marion Crane in the latest season of “Bates Motel” and recently wrapped on the female-focused “Ocean’s Eleven” movie, “Ocean’s Eight.”

Besson talked to Business Insider and other press on Monday after showing the trailer for "Valerian," and when Rihanna came up, he pointed out the surprising ease of working with the pop superstar.

“What was amazing was all the entourage is out, she's on the set by herself, totally open, and you can mold her how you want,” he said. “There's no distance, nothing. She waits for you to do something with her. She offers herself like clay.”

He admits, however, that he was shocked to get her on the set at all. It seems she basically never has free time.

“The most difficult thing was trying to catch her to get her on set,” Besson said. “I think her schedule is worse than any president in the world — I couldn't believe it. She can land at midnight, work until 2am, and I thought I was busy. But she's the queen.”

“Valerian” opens in theaters through STX Entertainment on July 21. See the trailer below:

 

SEE ALSO: Here are the 10 highest-grossing movies of all time

Join the conversation about this story »

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Tina Fey has a warning for white women who voted for Trump

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While speaking at the #StandForRights telethon to support the American Civil Liberties Union on Friday, Tina Fey had a message to women who voted for President Donald Trump. Specifically white women.

"A lot of this election was turned by white, college-educated women who now would maybe like to forget about this election and go back to watching HGTV," Fey said during the telethon, shown on Facebook Live. "I would want to urge them to like, 'You can't look away,' because it doesn't affect you this minute, but it's going to affect you eventually."

Exit polls show that 53% of white women voted for Trump, compared with only 43% who voted for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

"Again, open two windows. Do watch HGTV," Fey said in a segment of the show in which the comic was interviewed by the New York Civil Liberties Union's executive director, Donna Lieberman, and the ACLU's deputy legal director, Louise Melling, urging people not to "turn our attention away from what is happening."

Fey added: "I personally will make my own pledge as a college-educated white woman to not look away, to not pretend that things are happening now won't eventually affect me if we don't put a stop to it."

Watch Fey talk on the matter below:

SEE ALSO: Who's winning and losing late-night TV under Trump

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NOW WATCH: Watch the new teaser trailer for 'Game of Thrones' season 7

We finally know the answer to the mystery on 'Big Little Lies,' and it was so satisfying

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Big Little LiesWarning: There are spoilers ahead for the "Big Little Lies" series finale.

If you haven't been watching "Big Little Lies," watch it right now and stop reading — there are seriously big spoilers ahead. 

On Sunday night, we finally found out the resolution to the big mystery that "Big Little Lies" has been leading up to ever since the first episode. 

Every episode provided some clues via the Greek chorus of school moms, dads, and teachers — and Madeline (Reese Witherspoon) going up and down some stairs despite the caution tape — but it was all vague enough that we could never tell who murdered whom, and how. 

The intense, thrilling, and chilling series finale answered every question we had in a completely satisfying way. (Just as satisfying as watching Sansa Stark leave Ramsay Bolton to his hounds on "Game of Thrones.")

Most importantly, the murder didn't take away from the show's best and arguably most important storyline: Perry's (Alexander Skarsgård) abuse of Celeste (Nicole Kidman) and Jane (Shailene Woodley). Perry's death puts the women at the forefront and doesn't diminish the domestic-abuse storyline that the show so impressively pulled off.

The twist that Perry was the man who raped Jane and was Ziggy's father was expected. But the wordless and beautifully acted scene in which this is revealed was the perfect way to tell the audience. We didn't need an explanation, because we've pretty much known the whole time. We just needed a confirmation with some of the best facial acting HBO has ever seen.  

A lot of people also expected Perry to be the one to die, but expected Jane, Celeste, or Madeleine to be the one pulling the trigger. But there was no trigger, and none of the leading ladies killed him. Instead, it was Bonnie (Zoë Kravitz), a secondary character who, up until murdering Perry, mostly minded her own business. At some point, everyone who watched the show probably asked themselves, "What is Zoë Kravitz doing here?" Well, Zoë Kravitz was there to push Perry down some very violent stairs. 

Another satisfying thing about the "Big Little Lies" finale, and the show in general, was the sense of female unity and empowerment. The limited series ends with all the women (Madeleine, Celeste, Jane, Bonnie, and Renata) on the beach with their kids, smiling and laughing and having a good time, as if they didn't murder anyone. So often women in television and film are pitted against each other. And while throughout the series some of these women hated each other, it ends with them being friends — something that is sadly rare and a delight to see on TV. Sure, it took an abusive man getting impaled by some stair construction to get there, but here we are. 

SEE ALSO: Why you need to be watching HBO's 'Big Little Lies'

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NOW WATCH: Actor Kal Penn shows scripts that reveal racial stereotypes Hollywood wanted him to play

John Oliver slams 'Devin f---in' Nunes' for his role in Trump's 'stupid Watergate'

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john oliver devin nunes donald trump russia last week tonight hbo

John Oliver is beside himself with annoyance at Congressman Devin Nunes and his part in the ongoing saga of President Donald Trump's wiretapping claims and the investigation into his team's potential collusion with Russia.

On Sunday's "Last Week Tonight," the host referred to Nunes as "the guy every 13-year-old wishes her mom would stop dating."

Nunes, the head of the House Intelligence Committee looking into Trump's possible Russian collusion, came forward with information that Trump and his associates possibly had their communications "incidentally collected" by the intelligence community during the transition period. Despite the fact that several US and international intelligence agencies have debunked Trump's claims that President Barack Obama had him wiretapped during the election, the president said he felt "somewhat" vindicated by Nunes' findings.

"Which is not really surprising," Oliver said of Trump's statement as a doctored photo of him holding a Dunkin' Donuts cup flashed on the screen. "Trump feels vindicated by dubious sources all the time. 'We don't have to invest in clean energy. It says right here on the cup that "America runs on Dunkin'."'"

After Nunes came forward with the information, reports stated that his sources were actually White House officials. Nunes is facing increased scrutiny and calls by other members of Congress for him to step down from the committee.

"The surveillance Nunes was studying concerned the Trump transition team, of which one member was, yeah, you guessed it, Devin f---in' Nunes," Oliver said, "which seems like a clear conflict of interest."

But in a recent MSNBC interview, Republican Congressman Ted Yoho said Nunes works both for his constituents as a member of Congress and for the president — a line Oliver and others have criticized.

"No, no, you do not! You do one of them and explicitly not the other!" Oliver yelled. "That's literally the whole point of Congress. And that is why this story is stupid Watergate. It can very well take down the government, but nobody involved understands why or how to cover it up, or what the government f---in' is, or possibly how to breathe without getting the reminders."

Watch John Oliver in the video below:

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Facebook is testing a second News Feed without posts from your friends (FB)

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Don't be surprised when you eventually see a new rocketship tab in your Facebook app.

The tab is essentially a second News Feed, except without any posts or baby pictures from your friends. Instead, Facebook is using the tab to only show recommended videos and articles based on what you already like and watch in your main News Feed.

Facebook has been quietly testing the new tab in different parts of the world for the past several weeks, a company spokesperson told Business Insider.

“We are testing a complementary feed of popular articles, videos, and photos, customized for each person based on content that might be interesting to them," the spokesperson said. "We've heard from people that they want an easy way to explore new content they haven't connected with yet.”

Facebook frequently tests changes to its apps that are never rolled out to all of its 1.8 billion users. But now that more people, including those in the US, are starting to see the rocketship tab, Facebook appears close to making the feature available to everyone.

Creating a second News Feed could help Facebook overcome a looming threat to its ad business. The company has warned that it's nearing the limit of ads it can stuff into the News Feed, and this new tab could let it show more ads in videos and between stories.

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A Trump impersonator just got his own late-night show on Comedy Central

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Anthony Atamanuik Donald Trump The President Show Comedy Central

Comedy Central is making a new late-night show hosted by a Donald Trump impersonator, the cable channel announced on Monday.

Created by and starring Anthony Atamanuik, "The President Show" will air weekly on Thursdays following "The Daily Show with Trevor Noah" beginning Thursday, April 27, at 11:30 p.m.

The show imagines a scenario in which Trump (played by Atamanuik) bypasses the media, with whom he has had a contentious relationship, and does his own late-night show from The White House Oval Office. Like other late-night shows, it will include desk segments, field pieces, and guest interviews. And Vice President Mike Pence (Peter Grosz) will be his sidekick.

Atamanuik has played Trump on comedy tours and on sketch specials for Fusion, "The Howard Stern Show," ABC’s "The View," and "CNN Newsroom," and he cohosted a weeklong Trump takeover of Comedy Central’s "@midnight with Chris Hardwick."

Viewers may also recognize Atamanuik from his recent public feud with "Saturday Night Live" Trump impersonator Alec Baldwin while both were lobbying to play the president at the upcoming White House Correspondents' Dinner.

See Atamanuik in action in the video announcement of the new Comedy Central show below:

SEE ALSO: John Oliver slams 'Devin f---in' Nunes' for his role in Trump's 'stupid Watergate'

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A ‘Cheers’ veteran explained the big problem with current network TV

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cheers finaleTV networks are thinking about themselves too much as “brands,” and it’s a problem for audiences, according to writer-producer Rob Long, a veteran of “Cheers” who was recently brought on to right the ship at the CBS sitcom “Kevin Can Wait.”

“The sad thing that’s happening to network television is the networks are thinking of themselves as 'branding it,'” Long said on the KCRW podcast The Business. “Our brand is this, our brand is that. And I always found that silly. I roll my eyes. As if the audience ever thinks that way. They never think that way.”

Long’s position is that the network would be better served having a mix of content: big splashy comedies, grown-up workplace ones, straight-ahead family shows, young-people ensemble shows, and so on.

“I’m not quite sure I know why a network has to be branded. It always seems like they are trying to outsmart the audience, which is never ever ever a way to be successful,” he said.

One reason there could be an increased focus on a network having a specific “brand identity” is that network execs envision a future where they have to sell that brand directly to customers.

CBS, where Long’s current sitcom lives, has made a huge effort to sell its Netflix-like streaming service, “CBS All Access.” Beyond letting you watch CBS shows on-demand, All Access also has its own original shows that don’t play on TV, like “The Good Wife” spinoff “The Good Fight,” and the upcoming Star Trek show. Last month, All Access was nearing 1.5 million subscribers, who each pay either $5.99 a month or $9.99 for the commercial-free plan.

If you have to convince people to fork over $5-10 a month directly, it's good if the name CBS means something to them. Still, even if the future favors a-la-carte streaming services, that doesn’t mean the brand has to be narrow. Netflix’s brand isn’t tied to a particular show sensibility, and its content is as tonally expansive as its $6 billion budget.

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Here's why there's probably going to be a 'Big Little Lies' season 2

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After Sunday's delicious finale of "Big Little Lies," it's hard for many fans to cope with the idea that that could be it. Well, does it have to be the end? It depends on who you ask.

In an interview with Vulture posted on Monday, the show's director and one of the executive producers, Jean-Marc Vallée, talked about the potential for another season, and it wasn't promising.

"No, no, this is the perfect ending. There is no way; there’s no reason to make a season two," he said. "That was meant to be a one-time deal, and it’s finishing in a way where it’s for the audience to imagine what can happen. If we do a season two, we’ll break that beautiful thing and spoil it."

The show wrapped its two big mysteries in the finale: who was violently bullying Renata's (Laura Dern) daughter and who was murdered during a fancy school fundraising event that involved all of the main characters. But the show left the door open for more developments by implying that the women were still being watched after the investigation was closed.

While it's clear where Vallée stands on a second season, the show's two biggest stars offered a different take that makes it seem like more episodes are possible and even likely.

Reese Witherspoon (who's also an executive producer) and Dern did a live talk on Facebook and Instagram on Sunday. During it, Witherspoon said there have been discussions about another installment of the show.

"One of the main questions everyone keeps asking us is is there going to be a season two," Witherspoon said. "We've been talking with the writer [of the novel the show is based on], and you guys should Facebook Liane Moriarty and tell her how much you want to see 'Big Little Lies 2.' That would be good. She's thinking about ideas, and so we would love to hear ideas."

And Nicole Kidman also registered her desire to continue delving into the characters' stories.

“The backstory of Bonnie is complicated, and not fully explored, which is probably why we need to do a season two,” she told Entertainment Weekly about Zoë Kravitz’s character. “It indicates that every woman is holding some sort of secret or damage or something and that’s not fully explored. We don’t have any plans for a season two, but the beauty of this is there are so many deep stories here that are ripe for mining. There are so many different ways to go with all of these women."

HBO hasn't publicly said whether a second season is under consideration. But if you've got big ratings, as "Big Little Lies" did, and the writer and A-list stars willing to return, then we have a hard time imagining HBO saying no.

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Netflix just dropped the trailer for 'Girlboss,' its new show about a fashion mogul

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Netflix just released the first trailer for its new series, "Girlboss."

It's based on the best-selling 2014 book of the same name by Sophia Amoruso, the founder of the fashion brand Nasty Gal.

Britt Robertson ("Under the Dome," "The Secret Circle") plays Amoruso in the 13-episode series debuting April 21. It follows the foul-mouthed mogul's climb from selling vintage clothes on eBay to building a multimillion-dollar fashion empire by 27 years old.

It has some pretty big executive producers behind the show, including Amoruso, actress Charlize Theron, and Emmy-nominated "30 Rock" writer/producer and "Pitch Perfect" screenwriter Kay Cannon as the showrunner.

Watch the "Girlboss" trailer below:

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