277: On the Tonys, Obsession, Backrooms

Summary

Every Outfit — Episode 277: On the Tonys, Obsession, Backrooms

Hosts: Chelsea Fairless & Lauren Garroni
Release Date: June 12, 2026

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Episode Overview

This week, Chelsea and Lauren dive into a packed agenda of pop culture obsessions: their chaotic movie theater experience trying to see Obsession and Backrooms, a breakdown of the "wildest" Tonys in years, Madonna’s much-buzzed-about short film/music video "powered by Dolce & Gabbana", fast fashion collaborations (with a Marisa Berenson/Zara deep-dive), and the latest on the Romy and Michele sequel. With trademark bitchy humor, they also dissect the state of horror cinema (including major spoilers and film industry insider talk!) and reflect on the new generation of filmmakers coming from YouTube.

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Movie Theater Fight Club: The AMC Backrooms Incident

[03:52–13:05]

• The Set-Up: Lauren and Chelsea recount the unhinged saga of seeing two horror films back-to-back at AMC (scheduling thanks to Lauren’s solo-parenting duties).
• Obsession screening (10:20am): “Chill. Sparsely attended.” ([04:51])
• Backrooms screening (1:00pm): The real drama begins.

Key Moments:

• Discovering someone in their assigned seats. The culprit had "snuck in" and was rude when asked to move. ([05:14])
• Escalating conflict:
  • The girl: “I don’t have to pay like you losers.” – reported by Chelsea ([06:36])
  • She calls them "dumb bitches," leading to Tatiana (Chelsea’s wife) getting management, and eventually, a screaming match in front of a packed audience.
  • The girl attempts to spit on Chelsea: “She was looking kind of dehydrated…didn’t have enough saliva…it fell just short of my face.” – Chelsea ([08:08])
  • Tatiana confronts the girl, who is ejected by AMC; the trio receive free movie passes as compensation.
• Reflections: “It’s been a long time since I’ve gotten into a really intense fight with a random person.” – Chelsea ([09:03])
• Chelsea waxes nostalgic about epic movie theater brawls: “There’s something about movie theaters where I do think people are weirdly close to snapping in certain scenarios.” ([11:49])

Notable Quote:
“You can’t go around spitting in people’s faces and expecting that they won’t retaliate in a violent way, especially towards their wives.” – Lauren ([08:44])

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Diva News: The 2026 Tony Awards & Broadway's Bizarre Era

[14:51–34:01]

Pink Flies in as Peter Pan—Literally

• Pink hosts the Tonys, channeling both Mary Martin and her own brand of “gender-nonconforming, addicted-to-aerial-stunts” chaos.

  • “She’s never met a wire she didn’t love.” – Chelsea ([15:46])
  • Neil Patrick Harris is forcibly (safely?) lifted by Pink during the opening, leading to debate on his weight and Pink’s quad strength.

• The truly wild mashup: Pink’s “Lady Marmalade” reworked as “Leading Lady Marmalade” with guest spots, Gitchy-Gitchy-Carrie Coon, and the child actors from the Ragtime revival. Chelsea: “This performance is only going to hit for a very specific gay…” ([18:08])

Broadway’s Current Vibe:

• Megan Thee Stallion stars as the MC in Moulin Rouge.
• Revivals are everywhere: Rocky Horror, Ragtime, The Lost Boys (the musical!?).
• Rocky Horror: Rachel Dratch instructs the “Time Warp,” Luke Evans rocks the most jacked Dr. Frank N. Furter. Nostalgia about midnight screenings and what subcultures go now.
• Parasocial fandom: Real-life Rocky Horror obsessives smuggling bags of rice to throw onstage ([23:12]).

Tony Moments & Winners

• Book of Mormon: Original stars return, with new “spooky Mormon hell dream” references including Charlie Kirk and Jeffrey Epstein, “filling in new jokes for the next generation.” ([25:37])
• Schmigadoon! wins Best Musical (transplanted from canceled Apple TV show to Broadway phenomenon).
• Leslie Manville, John Lithgow, and Laurie Metcalf among acting winners.
• Red carpet moment: Rosie O’Donnell upstages everyone with a facelift “hard launch,” processed both in poem and Instagram stories ([30:15]).
  • “I do look like me—a slightly more well-rested, emotionally stable version of me. I’m quite pleased with the whole thing.” – Rosie (read by Lauren) ([31:16])

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Madonna’s Short Film: Camp, Couture, and Confessions 2

[35:17–44:33]

• Madonna releases a 13-minute “short film” (really a six-song video medley) directed by the duo Torso. Both hosts are thrilled:

  • “This is the first music video I’ve liked of hers in a really, really long time...I have lingering trauma from ‘I’m Madonna’ and all of that.” – Chelsea ([36:03])
  • Strong Guy Bourdin visual references—a classic Madonna move, also recently copied by Paper magazine.

• Scene Highlights:

  • SWAT team of “Mugler models,” BDSM masked dancers, Lourdes as a SWAT member, green laser beams from dancers’ crotches, epic lipstick-on-airbag sight gag.
  • Surprise celebrity cameos: Julia Garner, Kate Moss (after “cocaine” is sung), Debbie Mazar, Gwendoline Christie, and (randomly) Benedict Cumberbatch.
    • “I wonder if they, like, cleared that with (Kate Moss) first.” – Chelsea ([40:02])

• Julia Garner’s ongoing role as Madonna’s own “avatar,” referencing the abandoned Madonna biopic.

• Brand involvement: “Powered by Dolce & Gabbana,” Grindr paid partnerships.

• Industry & Image:

  • Linda Perry’s controversial, “She used to be a leader and now she’s a follower” commentary. Lauren and Chelsea debate: Is Madonna just hiring the best people, or chasing trends?
  • “It’s really nice to see her do stuff like this that seems to be resonating with people and is cool.” – Chelsea ([44:33])

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Fashion Talk: Marisa Berenson x Zara

[46:13–51:06]

• Both deeply approve: The collection includes clothing and home goods—a first for Zara collabs.
• “This is very Chelsea Fairless-coded… I got a black turban with sequins.” – Chelsea ([48:34])
• Items sold out quickly, with praise for the more “timeless” direction of the collection.
• Liza Minnelli/Zara jokes abound: “Marissa, these turbans are great.” – Lauren ([46:47])

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The Romy and Michele Sequel Is (Finally) Real

[51:12–53:57]

• Official production announced via suspiciously AI-looking back-of-the-heads photo—hosts are skeptical but excited.

• Original writer and much of the cast returning, but uncertain about costume designer Mona May.

• “Will I watch it? Yes. Will I have it on in the background as I fold laundry? Of course.” – Lauren and Chelsea ([53:53])

• Tangent into the new Legally Blonde prequel series, with Lauren (barely) containing her cynicism and Chelsea, predictably, already committed to viewing.

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The Girlfriend From Hell Double Feature: Obsession & Backrooms

[54:30–79:19]

Obsession

[54:30–66:47]

• “It’s great. And it falls within a film genre that we love, which is girlfriend from hell.” – Chelsea ([54:46])
• Plot: An awkward guy wishes for his crush to become obsessed with him. She does (magically) to horrifying and often hilarious results.
• The film blends incel wish fulfillment with sharp feminist subversion (the spellbound girl “gets revenge” quickly).
• References: Bedazzled, Fatal Attraction, The Crush, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days.
• Standout: Indie Navarret’s star-making, genre-defying performance.
  • “One of the all-time great horror performances.” – Chelsea ([58:13])
• Director Curry Barker and the YouTube origin story:
  • YouTube short The Chair leads to financing, Toronto festival, sold for $15M, global phenomenon with huge ROI.
• Industry controversy: Art director Sally Choi’s viral post about low wages and the resultant crew-payment dilemma in “surprise hit” films.
  • Hosts dissect the logistics of indie film profit-sharing; debate the pros/cons and career risks of industry whistleblowing.

Backrooms

[67:53–79:19]

• Created by Kane Parsons, who started his Backrooms lore as a teen on YouTube (Kane Pixels), grossing millions of views and subscribers before A24 scouts him for a feature.
• Film premise: “If you’re not careful and you noclip out of reality...you end up in the Backrooms.”
  • Chelsea: “Guys, I’m not even going to try to explain this movie because it’s impossible to describe.” ([71:06])
• Production design lauded for referencing Urs Fischer, Robert Gober, Vetements, Moschino, even fashion window displays.
• “Visually, this would blow your mind if you’ve never been to a museum, truly.” – Chelsea ([73:15])
• Underlying themes: horror of liminal spaces, the “death of the mall and office,” and how Gen Z’s ambient anxieties get filtered through YouTube aesthetics and VHS-style filmmaking. ([76:24])
• The film is credited with “reinventing” found footage horror within massive, analog-inspired sets—built, not CG.
• New paradigm: YouTube as training ground for stylish, innovative young directors and the continuing “YouTube to horror movie” pipeline.
  • “YouTube is now movies, but only horror movies. Like, where’s the YouTube to rom com pipeline?” – Chelsea ([79:41])

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Short Takes and Internet Culture

• Scary Movie 6: More Scream and Halloween than “elevated horror” parody. Only “the substance” (a reference to the film The Substance) gets the upmarket treatment.
• Streaming culture bemoaned (Romy and Michele sequel goes straight to Hulu/Disney+), while Hocus Pocus 3 is getting a theatrical release.

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Notable Quotes (w/ Timestamps)

• “You can’t go around spitting in people’s faces and expecting that they won’t retaliate in a violent way, especially towards their wives.” – Lauren ([08:44])
• “This performance is only going to hit for a very specific gay…” – Chelsea, on the Tonys ([18:08])
• “There’s something about movie theaters where I do think people are weirdly close to snapping in certain scenarios.” – Chelsea ([11:49])
• “This is the first music video I’ve liked of hers in a really, really long time...I have lingering trauma from ‘I’m Madonna’ and all of that.” – Chelsea ([36:03])
• “One of the all-time great horror performances.” – Chelsea, about Indy Navarret in Obsession ([58:13])
• “YouTube is now movies, but only horror movies. Like, where’s the YouTube to rom com pipeline?” – Chelsea ([79:41])

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• AMC Brawl & Moviegoing Drama: [03:52–13:05]
• Tonys/Diva News: [14:51–34:01]
• Madonna’s Short Film: [35:17–44:33]
• Marisa Berenson x Zara: [46:13–51:06]
• Romy and Michele Sequel: [51:12–53:57]
• Obsession Review & Industry Talk: [54:30–66:47]
• Backrooms Discussion: [67:53–79:19]
• Scary Movie 6 Brief Chat: [81:00–84:44]

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Overall Tone & Style

• Breezy, irreverent pop culture and industry analysis with equal parts high-low fashion snark and genuine cinephilia.
• The hosts’ signature blend of witty asides, deep knowledge, and playful sarcasm ("It’s only for a certain gay"; “The most natural facelift possible”) keeps things lively and niche-friendly.

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Recap for the Uninitiated

This episode isn’t just a run-through of recent events: it’s a survey course in today’s pop cultural metabolism, covering:

• The evolving etiquette (or lack thereof) of LA movie theaters
• The anything-goes casting and staging on modern Broadway
• Madonna’s most compelling visual since 2003—and how legacy artists borrow from the kids
• Fashion collaborations that (almost) justify shopping Zara
• Viral film industry controversies and the new frontier of YouTube-bred auteurs
• The shifting landscape of how and why we watch movies

Whether you crave diva glamour, horror genre deep-dives, or just bitchy best-friend banter, this episode is a pop culture feast.

Transcript

[Chelsea Fairless]

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[Lauren Garrone]

Is that for every outfit? Tv for sure.

[Chelsea Fairless]

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[Lauren Garrone]

Well, I'm very happy for you.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Chelsea, what have you been buying?

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, I bought a Tom Ford era Gucci top that when it arrived, it had the original tags on it, which mean it's never been worn before. Wow. Another thing that I've started doing on the realre is brands that would otherwise be out of my reach financially. Even on the RealReal. I'm talking about your Tom Ford's, your Celine. I search for it in my size and then I go lowest price to highest price. And you can find some great things for under $100.

[Chelsea Fairless]

That is a very good hack. Did you buy that Thierry Mugler suit that I sent you?

[Lauren Garrone]

Okay, just so you guys know, we did discuss this in the episode. Chelsea has a specific vision for me for every Alpha tv and that is to look like Gail Weathers.

[Chelsea Fairless]

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[Lauren Garrone]

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[Lauren Garrone]

I spent $40,000 on what's the matter, Morty? Turn to my arm.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Coral the Sting. Great gowns.

[Lauren Garrone]

Beautiful gowns.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Fashion has changed. No, it hasn't.

[Lauren Garrone]

Hi, I'm Lauren Garrone.

[Chelsea Fairless]

And I'm Chelsea Fairless.

[Lauren Garrone]

And welcome back to the Every Outfit podcast.

[Chelsea Fairless]

So much to discuss today.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yes, we finally saw Backrooms and Obsession. We are the last two podcasters probably to be discussing these movies. But before we get into the episode, I think we need to discuss what happened at the AMC when we saw these movies.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, we need to debrief because I have a bit of trauma. I have to say, I feel like,

[Lauren Garrone]

honestly, this is all my fault. So I owe you an apology.

[Chelsea Fairless]

It's not your fault. Although you were in charge of scheduling,

[Lauren Garrone]

I am solo parenting this week. I only bring this up to say that Chelsea and Tatiana graciously accommodated my childcare schedule, which meant that we had to see obsession at 10:20 in the morning and backrooms at 1pm Such intuitive

[Chelsea Fairless]

times to watch horror movies.

[Lauren Garrone]

You would think that the problem would have happened at the 10:20 screening of Obsession. But that screening was chill.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Extremely chill and sparsely attended. Not many people want to see horror movies quite that early.

[Lauren Garrone]

As we were coming in, there were a bunch of strollers because of course at 10:20 in the morning there is a Mommy and Me music class, which makes a lot more sense than seeing a horror film at that time of day. But no, the issues happened at the 1pm screening of Backrooms.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Because when we walked in, the movie had already started and. And this girl was in one of our seats. So obviously we politely asked her to move. She kind of huffed and puffed and was obviously annoyed and sat behind us

[Lauren Garrone]

because the seating numbering is confusing. I don't know why they do it where it's like, instead of just 1, 2, 3, it's like, 14, 1, 2. So I genuinely thought she was mistaken when she huffed and puffed and then was like, it's not that big of a deal. Is when I realized, like, oh, she's snuck into this movie.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yes, absolutely. Which I do not begrudge a that sneaks into a movie. We've all done it. It's fine. But when you sit in someone's assigned seats, you then have to move. Especially when it's a packed movie. Like this one was Also, if you're

[Lauren Garrone]

going to sneak into a movie, I mean, be slicker at it. Sit in the first three rows, sit in the back row, stand in the goddamn aisle until 10 minutes into the film.

[Chelsea Fairless]

She was not that savvy. So I hear her say, it's not that fucking deep, which obviously pisses me off. I turn around and I'm like, excuse me, what's your problem?

[Lauren Garrone]

You were also like, I mean, we paid for these seats. These are our seats. And then she said something along the lines of, like, well, I'm smart enough. I'm smarter than you guys because I didn't pay to get into this movie.

[Chelsea Fairless]

She said, I don't have to pay like you losers.

[Lauren Garrone]

Oh, God.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Is what she actually said. Then she called us dumb bitches, which

[Lauren Garrone]

is when Tat left to go get management to have her thrown out of the theater because we are cool with people sneaking into films. Up into a point.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Absolutely. And then, I don't know, we got into it. I do remember saying something to the effect of like, you are the rudest bitch that I've met in a really long time.

[Lauren Garrone]

Which is when she stood up, called us dumb bitches again, and then spat on you.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Okay, to be fair, she attempted to spit on me, but because, I mean, she was looking kind of dehydrated. Frankly, I think she didn't have enough saliva in her mouth to, like, actually get it to my face. It fell just short of my face, but obviously I was enraged at that point.

[Lauren Garrone]

And you went after her, so therefore, I was like, it's on, so I went after you.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Well, and we're now in a very loud screaming fight during a packed movie. So there is an Audience.

[Lauren Garrone]

And also because the film has already started. This didn't even happen during the Nicole Kidman AMC ad. Like, you know, backrooms. This is not a spoiler, but we're

[Chelsea Fairless]

in the back rooms.

[Lauren Garrone]

No, but like any horror film, it has a horror esque cold open. So, like, people are screaming on screen while you're screaming at this woman.

[Chelsea Fairless]

So I'm screaming, this bitch spit on me. I'm chasing her out of the theater because she's run out because she's about to get kicked out or whatever.

[Lauren Garrone]

I'm now chasing Chelsea.

[Chelsea Fairless]

And then I guess Tat was coming back with one of the ushers. She heard me screaming about how this woman spit on me. So she just immediately jumped up and clocked her. Thank God.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yes. I mean, this person was quite tall. It sort of. It landed somewhere in like the shoulder region.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, she had to jump up because this woman had some height for sure. But I was so impressed with my knight in shining armor. You can't go around spitting in people's faces and expecting that they won't retaliate

[Lauren Garrone]

in a violent way, especially towards their wives. Which, when we all got back in our seats, we all turned around and apologized for the commotion. But Tat was like, that is. This is my wife. Okay? I can't let that happen to my wife. And everyone was like, yeah, well, we

[Chelsea Fairless]

did get four free passes to the AMC for some reason.

[Lauren Garrone]

Forever.

[Chelsea Fairless]

No, not forever. Just like, as an apology, the woman did get thrown out. I guess before we had even gotten in the theater, she had already gotten in an altercation with someone else. So they were just like, done with her at that point, I guess. But it's crazy. It's been a long time since I've gotten in a really intense fight with a random person.

[Lauren Garrone]

I don't know about you, but I was on edge the entire film. It was a real immersive experience for an anxiety inducing movie.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Well, I was just glad that she was gone. But my favorite part was when she was screaming at the ushers. Being like, this assaulted me. And Tat was like, and I do it again,

[Lauren Garrone]

slow clap. I assume they gave us four free passes so we wouldn't go online and talk about it, which technically we're not. We just went on our podcast and discussed it.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Well, shout out to the manager of the AMC and the ushers. They were great.

[Lauren Garrone]

So anyway, later in the episode, we'll get into our thoughts about the movie's obsession and back rooms.

[Chelsea Fairless]

But now, but also, I'm curious, Lauren, you didn't get into it with her. Why?

[Lauren Garrone]

I guess the New Yorker in me was like, let the crazy person do the crazy thing and it will stop. But I. I always make this mistake that LA crazy. And I stand by this LA crazy way crazier than New York crazy.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Well, you obviously have to make a call if someone that's accosting you is like a foaming at the mouth crazy person or just like a regular bitch. This chick was very much just a regular bitch. It didn't give me that vibe. But I don't know, if I was in my 20s, I think I would have just sat there and let her call me a b. Tch. And then sat through the whole movie with her sitting behind me being anxious, feeling like shit about myself. But now I just cannot let someone fuck with me like that.

[Lauren Garrone]

I also thought she was going to leave the theater. Like, obviously it turned when she spat on you, and that is. Although you were chasing her, you could not see that I was chasing after you. Like, I was ready to get into it then. I was hoping she would just do her crazy thing, leave, and that would be the end of it.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Well, thankfully we have Tatiana to defend us. Thank God, because I would never get into a physical altercation with someone. I mean, obviously she started it by spitting in my face.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah, who could have predicted that?

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, a low blow.

[Lauren Garrone]

But I don't know if you remember this, but when we saw it opening weekend in the Cinerama Dome, there was nearly a fist fight in front of us because a person was on their phone and a guy got into it with him.

[Chelsea Fairless]

See, I love a fight in a

[Lauren Garrone]

movie theater, just not when you're the one on the receiving end.

[Chelsea Fairless]

No, I obviously don't like being assaulted by random crazy at the Grove, but I appreciate the entertainment value of a fight in a movie theater. And I've seen some great ones. Once I was at the IFC center and this chick had been texting, like on her very bright, very large iPhone throughout the whole movie. So finally this guy just snapped, grabbed it out of her hand and threw it at the screen. And then they got into a physical fight and she chased him out. It was incredible. There's something about movie theaters where I do think people are weirdly close to snapping in certain scenarios.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah, there was a lot of talking during the screening of Back Rooms. I kind of shushed you guys because I was in such a panic state because obviously you and Tat were debriefing. And I was like, guys, guys. Because I was afraid someone else would tell us to shut the fuck up and then another fight would erupt.

[Chelsea Fairless]

But anyway, no, everyone in the theater just felt bad for us.

[Lauren Garrone]

So much so. And this is really telling of how much of a distinctive look you and Tatiana have. Someone that was in the theater that witnessed this. When we left the theater, we had gone to a couple stores. We were about to exit, stopped you in town, and we're like, we were there and we're so sorry that happened to you.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Well, we live to tell the tale.

[Lauren Garrone]

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[Chelsea Fairless]

Oh, so this is for people who are on the verge of a menti bee, which is most of our audience.

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[Chelsea Fairless]

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[Chelsea Fairless]

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[Chelsea Fairless]

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[Lauren Garrone]

All right, on to some diva news.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yes, so much diva news this week. I did watch the Tonys. I was still a little bit tipsy from your child's birthday Party. So I wouldn't say that I was as present as I could have been, but I did get the general gist.

[Lauren Garrone]

I mean, I was busy cleaning up said child's birthday party, so I did not watch the Tonys.

[Chelsea Fairless]

You would never watch the Tonys.

[Lauren Garrone]

I know. That was cope. I would never actually willingly watch the Tonys. But I can't imagine what it must have felt like being tipsy, being out in the sun all day, coming home and then seeing Pink spinning as Peter Pan.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yes, Pink was the host and her opening number started as a tribute to the Mary Martin version of Peter Pan. Because Pink is famously Jennifer gender non conforming and like addicted to flying aerial stunts.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yes.

[Chelsea Fairless]

She's never met a wire that she didn't love.

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, I was under the impression that Pink was on Broadway or maybe was announcing that she was going to be in a Broadway musical. But no, she's just hosting the Grammys.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah. I have no idea why, but it kind of worked. Although, I don't know, there is something about an adult woman playing a little boy that has always really disturbed me. You know, like, normally cross dressing would be something that I'm into, but like, I don't want it like this.

[Lauren Garrone]

I think the most upsetting woman as Peter Pan would be Alison Williams in that live musical on NBC of Peter Pan.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I totally forgot about that. Extremely disturbing.

[Lauren Garrone]

Anyway, Pink is Peter Pan. Neil Patrick Harris goes on stage to stop her. She then lifts him up, which I'm like, is he on wires? Like, she lifted him up 15, 20ft in the air and it did not seem like he was attached to anything.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I think Neil Patrick Harris is like 80 pounds.

[Lauren Garrone]

I mean, but even 80 pounds soaking wet, that is putting a lot of faith in the strength of Pink's thighs.

[Chelsea Fairless]

So basically the bit is that Neil Patrick Harris is like, you should just be yourself when you're hosting the Tonys. Like, you don't have to dress up as Peter Pan. Be Pink. So then she does a rendition of Lady Marmalade, but they change it to Leading Lady Marmalade. And it involves a lot of the best actors actress nominees.

[Lauren Garrone]

Get you, get you. Carrie Coon.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Gitchy, Gitchy. Leslie Manville did get me as well as Squibby. Squibby, Squibby June. Oh, boy, this did make me feel crazy.

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, the other thing that made me feel crazy was a lot of people from Broadway participated in this shows that were nominated, shows that were not nominated. And seeing Whitney Levitt, who is playing, I believe, Roxy Hart in Chicago, who comes from the real lives of Mormon wives was just crazy to see of like you were a woman that was doing TikTok dances six years ago and now you are coming to us live from the Tonys.

[Chelsea Fairless]

That is crazy. I didn't recognize her obviously.

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, she's had quite the glow up.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Let's say this performance is only going to hit for a very specific gay. Like someone that wants Pink's version of Lady Marmalade to be interrupted by the child actors from the Ragtime revival.

[Lauren Garrone]

That was upsetting.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Or like someone that enjoys Neil Patrick Harris in a like non Gone Girl context but also wants to see Megan Thee stallion do the Lil Kim part of Lady Marmalade.

[Lauren Garrone]

Okay. There's a lot of crazy shit going on on Broadway. That's what this year's Tony's taught me. One of which is that Megan Thee Stallion is in Moulin Rouge.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Oh, I didn't know that.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yes, she plays the mc, which is typically a male role. I had to look this up because I'm like, wait, is this just a special appearance or is she actually part of Broadway? And the answer is yes.

[Chelsea Fairless]

That's wild. See, I like watching the Tonys because I rarely have seen many of the plays or the musicals. You know, I grew up watching the show as a kid, never seen any of that shit. So I like to be acquainted with what's happening. Like I didn't know that Moulin Rouge was on Broadway or that Ragtime was on Broadway and apparently is major. Who knew?

[Lauren Garrone]

Who knew that Joel Schumacher's 1987 film the Lost Boys is now a musical and is evidently good and so good that it is Tony nominated. You're telling me that the Heathers musical is not on Broadway anymore but the Lost Boys is a runaway success?

[Chelsea Fairless]

Well, to be fair, the Heather's musical could have used some better music. But anyway, very intrigued about Lost Boys.

[Lauren Garrone]

So it seems like there's a lot of revivals going on. Ragtime. Rocky Horror Picture show is back.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Can't wait to see that. And that performance was good, I have to say. And Luke Evans, a very respectable Tim Curry, I thought.

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, yeah, I mean in the sense that every Hollywood actor needs to be jacked. He's the most jacked Dr. Frank N. Furter I think we've ever seen.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Totally. I also love that Rachel Dratch is the person that explains to you how to do the time warp in the song.

[Lauren Garrone]

Juliet Lewis is also evidently in this Rocky Horror Picture show musical. I truly understand what Carrie Coon meant when she said in a recent CBS Sunday morning interview. I was in the White Lotus, so now I get to be in a Broadway play. It's all Hollywood actors now in plays and musicals.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Believe me, I've noticed. I forget, were you a Rocky Horror person at all?

[Lauren Garrone]

I've dabbled in the Rocky Horror. I've been to the screenings. I do wonder, I mean, obviously the success of the Rocky Horror show musical lends to the fact that still popular and in the zeitgeist. But I do wonder, do Gen Z kids still go to the midnight screenings?

[Chelsea Fairless]

I wonder, because you used to sort of have to go to the Rocky Horror midnight screenings if you were either like gay or trans or just kind of like gothic alternative or like fully perverted, you know, it was more like a meetup for people in different subcultures.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah. I feel like if you were an art school kid, which is how I identified in high school, like you had no choice but to go to Rocky Horror screenings.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Totally. I wasn't like obsessed with it. Like, I would never say, like I was like a big Rocky Horror person, but I probably went like five or six times when I was in high school.

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, yeah. And it was also, I feel like one of the sanctioned ways that you could get out of the house past midnight where it's like, I'm not partying, mom and dad, I'm just going to a midnight screening of the Rocky Horror Picture Show.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, it's like one of the few sort of adult things that you can do as a teenager that doesn't involve like drinking, you know, because you can't go to bars and clubs and stuff when you're a teenager.

[Lauren Garrone]

Very true. And you're not going to go to an all ages club. Although I doubt in Humboldt there were all ages clubs. That was more of a thing in la.

[Chelsea Fairless]

No, there definitely were, but I would just like never set foot.

[Lauren Garrone]

Of course not.

[Chelsea Fairless]

But Rocky people, like people that are really obsessed with it, are full blown freaks.

[Lauren Garrone]

Oh yeah. There was a recent TikTok video about what happened to all the rockabillies. And the answer was that they've become Disney adults. And I feel like that's in the world of people who are obsessed with the Rocky Horror Picture show and make it their lifestyle.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Totally. And also friend of the show, Leah DeLaria was in the previous Broadway revival of Rocky Horror. It was like her and Joan Jett, but she said that it was like kind of a nightmare because all of the Rocky Horror people that see the movie like every single weekend would now be seeing the show every single day. And they have like no boundaries in the sense that like, you know the part where like there's the wedding and you throw rice at the screen?

[Lauren Garrone]

Yes.

[Chelsea Fairless]

She said people would smuggle in like 20 pound bags of rice, throw them on the stage, then like the dancers would fall and like shit like that.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yikes.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, they're crazy.

[Lauren Garrone]

The original parasocial relationship.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Totally.

[Lauren Garrone]

Can we discuss the Book of Mormon performance? Because it's the rare example, we were just talking about how many Hollywood stars are in musical. But it's the rare example of. Of musical stars that because of the success of a Broadway show, became big Hollywood stars who are now returning to reprise their roles. I am of course referring to Andrew Rannells and Josh Gad, who originated the roles in Book of Mormon, came back for a 15th anniversary performance.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Look, man up is not my favorite Book of Mormon song, but I feel like they needed to give Josh Gad his Tony's moment because when it was first nominated, Andrew Rannells did a solo performance of which is like the big song or the best. Tony's song from Book of Mormon, I would say.

[Lauren Garrone]

Right.

[Chelsea Fairless]

So this time it was man up into.

[Lauren Garrone]

I forget, don't look at me, I won't know the answer.

[Chelsea Fairless]

It was good.

[Lauren Garrone]

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[Chelsea Fairless]

Also, I talked to someone who went to see the Book of Mormon recently and Jeffrey Epstein and Charlie Kirk have been added to the spooky Mormon hell dream sequence.

[Lauren Garrone]

Right. Andrew Rannells and Josh Gad were interviewed sometime after the Tonys where they were being asked what was it like? Was it like riding a bike, doing the performance again? They were saying, yeah, the first time we rehearsed we had no idea what we were. By the second time we fell back into it. But they were noting that in the 15 years there have been so many added references and jokes that that's where they were like, wait, what?

[Chelsea Fairless]

Did you see the original cast of Book of Mormon?

[Lauren Garrone]

I think I did. I must have because that's when we were living in New York. And I think that was one of those things where my parents came to town. That was the big musical. And we went, yeah, I saw the original cast.

[Chelsea Fairless]

And then I saw it maybe like 12 years ago in New York. Gavin Creel, may he rest in peace, was in the Andrew Rannells role also. Amazing. It is just such a timeless and incredible show. But it is shocking that it is still on Broadway just because it is so subversive.

[Lauren Garrone]

It has continuously been running for 15 years.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yes.

[Lauren Garrone]

Oh, wow.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I think so.

[Lauren Garrone]

I think you are correct in that. Should we talk about some notable winners? Sure. So I'm obsessed with the show that won best musical, which is Schmegadoon. I'm obsessed with this only because it was a canceled Apple TV series. Did you know that this was an Apple TV series?

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yes, and I've been meaning to watch it forever because I love the premise. It's basically about a couple who, their relationship is on the rocks. I think they're on like a backpacking trip or something like that. And then they basically like find this town and everyone is like trapped in a mid century musical essentially. And so are they. And they can't get out until they like repair their relationship.

[Lauren Garrone]

The irony or the humor that it was a television series that was a musical that got canceled. So then they just made it a traditional musical that has now won best musical.

[Chelsea Fairless]

It's great. Julie Klosner wrote for the TV show so I always wanted to see it. I'm sure it's hilarious.

[Lauren Garrone]

Our girl Leslie Manville won best actress for Oedipus Bless. John Lithgow won over Nathan Lane for the play Giant. Which at first I was like, oh, they adapted the film Giant. But it's like, no, this is about how Roald Dahl is an anti Semite. Yes. And then Laurie Metcalf won best featured actress for Death of a Salesman.

[Chelsea Fairless]

That's also what Nathan Lane was in.

[Lauren Garrone]

Nathan Lane was in Death of a Salesman. Yes.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Also desperate to see that. Supposed to be fab. I also loved when Maya Rudolph and Cola Scola presented very funny. Very funny joke about Oedipus where Cole was like a play that asked the question, can women really have it all?

[Lauren Garrone]

It's really good.

[Chelsea Fairless]

So good.

[Lauren Garrone]

I know Maya Rudolph was in O Mary. Is she still in Omari?

[Chelsea Fairless]

I think she's still in O Mary.

[Lauren Garrone]

Okay.

[Chelsea Fairless]

And it is pretty crazy that she's in Omar. Ana Gasteyer is in Schmigadoon and Rachel Dratch is in Rocky Horror. Simultaneously, Tina Fey's dance card.

[Lauren Garrone]

Very busy. She's promoting the Four Seasons. She's got Knicks games to go to. And half of her female cast members at SNL are in Broadway plays or musicals. That she must see. Can I ask you a question? Why was Rosie o' Donnell there?

[Chelsea Fairless]

Rosie o' Donnell has always been a huge Broadway person. She's hosted a million times.

[Lauren Garrone]

She's a Tony's ally is what you're saying.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, if she presented, I missed that same.

[Lauren Garrone]

But I only watch clips from the Tonys. But what I did see was her being interviewed on the red carpet about her facelift, which we briefly touched on a few weeks ago. But the clip that I saw, Rosie was discussing the fact that not since she had her talk show has the paparazzi met her at the airport and they wanted to photograph her new face, which I gotta say looks great.

[Chelsea Fairless]

It looks so good. I'm so happy for her. I knew that she had fucked up the facelift reveal by posting selfies.

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, she hard launched her facelift with a before and after that did not really look like a before and after. And then also did a very extensive substack post about it.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yes, she wrote a very long poem that kind of started being more about her facelift and how she always considered herself to be the kind of woman that would never have a facelift.

[Lauren Garrone]

Oh, Chelsea, I. I have the poem right here. If you would like me to read a few words from it, please do. And this is from her substack Roro subs My life post TikTok and IG here in Ireland and around the world. Save democracy, resist. In a May 25 post she wrote or poemed. I used to feel very strongly about facelifts. Not casually, morally. I had assigned myself as Head of all women who would never ever. I thought it was a betrayal of feminism, of aging, of our team, of women worldwide. And then I lost 50 pounds. I can go on if you would like.

[Chelsea Fairless]

No, it's okay. You don't have to. Unless you want to get into the

[Lauren Garrone]

part where her 13 year old, 17

[Chelsea Fairless]

year old, non binary child told her she couldn't get a facelift because I

[Lauren Garrone]

wouldn't be able to respect you if you did it. I wanted a limit. I wanted to still be me, just less haunted. And it worked. I do look like me. A slightly more well rested, emotionally stable version of me. I'm quite pleased with the whole thing.

[Chelsea Fairless]

As she should be. It's the most natural, flattering, restrained facelift possible.

[Lauren Garrone]

Or as she says at the end of her poem, it's what a lower deep plate facelift looks like when it minds its own business.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Good for her.

[Lauren Garrone]

I think she wrote this poem and hard launched her facelift because at one point during her poem she goes, and guess what? No one has noticed. Not one person, not a friend, not a stranger, not even people who owe me compliments. I think she wanted people to be like, holy shit, you look great. And she does.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Well, now she's getting that because she stepped out of the house wearing makeup with her new facelift instead of just posting a selfie like taken from below, backlit, like in a scary little room in Ireland.

[Lauren Garrone]

I think that 13 year old was still mad that she got the facelift. So they were like, I'm gonna take a shitty photo of you to show it off.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Also, I saw Rosie post on Instagram that It is the 30th anniversary of the Rosie O' Donnell show, which is crazy.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yes, it is a perfect time capsule. I'm glad she ended the show when she did. Yeah, because then we would have never gotten her on the View.

[Chelsea Fairless]

This is true.

[Lauren Garrone]

Is that your favorite era of the View with Rosie? Yeah.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Oh, absolutely.

[Lauren Garrone]

First time, not second time?

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yes, first time. I would say second time got a little toxic because she never really got on with Whoopi and that was always weird. But she was so genius on the View. I really wish there was a progressive voice like her on the View presently, but what can you do?

[Lauren Garrone]

That's a whole other episode that I would love to hear and I'm sure other would, which is your fan casting of the View.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Once again, we have been blessed because this episode is sponsored by the Real Real, the world's largest and most trusted source for authenticated luxury resale.

[Lauren Garrone]

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[Chelsea Fairless]

So what have you bought recently?

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, I have been seeing a lot of cool girls wear this jean brand called still here and they're a little expensive and so I went on the realreal because I wanted a pair of still here jeans that have little cuts around the knees.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Oh, I think I've seen you in those.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yes, they're my new favorite jeans. I wear them all the time and I got them for a steal on the RealReal.

[Chelsea Fairless]

See, I've been trying to avoid buying clothes. Although I'm always lurking, I'm always watching. I'm always checking my obsessions and seeing if they've sold or not. I have been contemplating this like really insane 80s gown. I will not mention the designer because I don't want anyone to get ideas and steal it from me. But it is non returnable. So if it looks bad on me, that sucks. But also you can sell things back to the RealReal even if you can't return them, which is cool.

[Lauren Garrone]

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[Chelsea Fairless]

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[Lauren Garrone]

But moving on, Madonna released a short film. Is that what we're calling this? It's 13 minutes long. Well, it's 10 minutes with three minutes of credits at the end. Yeah.

[Chelsea Fairless]

And it was essentially a medley of I think six different songs from the upcoming Confessions 2 album directed by Torso, who have had a really major month between this and the Charli XCX video that we talked about a couple weeks ago.

[Lauren Garrone]

Do you think this is the way to go with our attention deficit economy that you know, if Beyonce pioneered the visual album where every single song on the album gets a music video, this is sort of like what if I gave you a two minute music Video for six songs that will be on this album.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I think it's great. I'm a huge Madonna fan, but this is the first music video I've liked of hers in a really, really long time. Like, I obviously have lingering trauma from I'm Madonna and all of that, you know.

[Lauren Garrone]

When was her last good music video? The one with Justin Timberlake?

[Chelsea Fairless]

I would say before that at American Life, probably. Yeah. I think the Hollywood music video was probably the last Madonna video that, like, was really on my radar in an intense way. Although she did get sued by the Guy Bourdin estate, and I believe she settled with them.

[Lauren Garrone]

I was just about to say, I think why we love it is because it rips off Guy Bourdin photographs. So much so that you are correct, his estate sued her.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I wonder if the Guy Bourdin estate is coming for Paper magazine because of that photo shoot they just released with Meg Stalter and Paul Downs, which recreated the sort of French made Gibbordan photo, which I think Madonna also did recreate in the Hollywood music video.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah, I do love that. Again, are we calling it a short film, a music video?

[Chelsea Fairless]

I'm calling it a music video.

[Lauren Garrone]

Okay. I do love that. The music video opens with this play on this action movie trope where, you know, the SWAT team is coming in with their guns and their scopes out, but instead it's just scantily clad BDSM masked women with steadicams.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, it's like a SWAT team of like Mugler models, essentially, one of which

[Lauren Garrone]

is Lourdes, who's revealed later in the music video. Then you have what I'm calling the Jennifer Lopez waiting for tonight. Green laser beams coming out of dancers and vaginas.

[Chelsea Fairless]

That was my favorite part. I loved that. That I have never seen before.

[Lauren Garrone]

There really needs to be a word beyond camp because that's what this music video is.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, I don't know that that's camp. It is outrageous is what it is. It's funny. Deliberately so.

[Lauren Garrone]

I mean, there is a lot going on. At one point, there is a first person POV shot of car footage of presumably Madonna driving a car very fast, which feels like the beginning of Basic Instinct 2. If you know, you know.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yes. Also a bit of a smack my bitch up vibe. I liked the part where the car crashes and there's a lipstick print on the airbag.

[Lauren Garrone]

There's a brief interlude with Sabrina Carpenter, their song that they have together on the album that they performed at Coachella. But I think the part that everyone's talking about is the section for the song Danceateria, which is where you get Julia Garner, Richard E. Grant, Kate Moss, Debbie Mazur, Gwendoline Christie, Benedict Cumberbatch.

[Chelsea Fairless]

That was random.

[Lauren Garrone]

So I was looking around to see if there was any connection between the two, and all I could find was that Benedict Cumberbatch had auditioned for Madonna and it did not go well. And he told the story on Graham Norton. Didn't you audition for Madonna, Benedict? Oh, God, yes, I did. And, yeah, she just sort of came in breezily, very late and had a clipboard in hand and said, yeah, Benedict Cumberbatch, Is that really your name? And I went, yes, it is Madonna.

[Chelsea Fairless]

What was he auditioning for?

[Lauren Garrone]

I have to guess that it was for that film she directed about Wallis Simpson.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I guess that makes a bit more sense. But he did feel a little random, considering, like, Debi Mazar. We obviously understand why she was there. She was physically present at Danceteria. Honey Dijon, an iconic nightlife personality. That makes sense. Same with Arca. Kate Moss, Gwendoline Christie.

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, Madonna saying cocaine and then Kate Moss appearing.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I wonder if they, like, cleared that with her first.

[Lauren Garrone]

I think so. They must have.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I would think so, too.

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, can we get into Julia Garner's inclusion in this music video? Because the fact that Julia Garner, who was cast in the Madonna biopic that Madonna was going to direct and then promptly fell apart, it just seems like Julia Garner is her de facto avatar. Because we know in the next season of the studio, there's going to be a plot point about Madonna making a biopic about herself with Julia Garner that will be featured in the show.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I love that. And Julia Garner is, like, permanently stuck in the true blue Madonna era.

[Lauren Garrone]

Blonde, curly, pale.

[Chelsea Fairless]

It's like the perfect look for that. We also saw interesting details, like an actor playing Martin Burgoyne, who is one of Madonna's closest friends and early collaborators, name dropped in the Danceitaria song, of course. I also like how they recreated the moment where Madonna famously went to Danceateria, handed the DJ a cassette single of everybody.

[Lauren Garrone]

Right?

[Chelsea Fairless]

They played it, and that's how she started her career, essentially. So much lore in this video and in that song.

[Lauren Garrone]

Very full circle. So we are mere weeks away from Confession 2 coming out.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Also, I don't know if you watched the credits, but did you see that this music video was powered by Dolce and Gabbana?

[Lauren Garrone]

I did see that, yes.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I also feel like Grindr must have given them some money because you see the Grindr logo in a bathroom Stall. Also, Grindr, I believe, did pay for the Times Square performance that she did for this album in conjunction with New York Pride.

[Lauren Garrone]

Right. And thanks to Grindr, we got the answer of who was the best in bed according to Madonna. And because she said JFK Jr. But do you know the context of why she said JFK Jr. Because she

[Chelsea Fairless]

said she'd only talk about dead people.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yes.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Like, was it Warren Beatty? We don't know.

[Lauren Garrone]

I think in her mind she said it in Truth or Dare. I think still to this day, the love of her life is Sean Penn. I don't co sign on that. I just unfortunately think that that is true.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Also, I'll link to it in the show notes. But if you are a Madonna fan, you have to listen to the Madonna series on the podcast Band Splain, which is hosted by Yassi Salak. It traces Madonna's entire career over episodes. And there's a lot of amazing guests, guests that have been on every outfit, like Mel Ottenberg, Patrick Sandberg. It's a really incredible public service for the true Madonna heads and the Madonna. Curious, I suppose. Oh, also, have you seen that clip of Linda Perry talking shit about Madonna that has been circulating recently? Maybe she basically said, I've always wanted to collaborate with Madonna. Madonna never wanted to record any of my songs. But also she is really salty and basically, like, Madonna used to be a leader and now she's a follower. She's trying to compete with Charlie, you know, etc. Etc.

[Lauren Garrone]

It's tough. I mean, it's a real substance situation going on. You know, you would not have Charlie, you wouldn't have Sabrina without Madonna. But now she is, by virtue of putting out an album in the same pop culture space that these two exist in, you know, in competition with them.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Totally. Charlie definitely wouldn't exist if not for Madonna. But also I have noticed that Madonna is hiring a lot of Charlie's collaborators, including like the same art director that did the Brat album cover, did the Confessions album cover. Obviously Torso did a lot of stuff for Charlie. I think Madonna's also now using her hair stylist, or at least did on this project.

[Lauren Garrone]

That's interesting.

[Chelsea Fairless]

And then the Times Square performance also. But, you know, know, no shade. She also kind of has to hire the best people, so I get it.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah. Is she a follower or is she just hiring the best people of the moment, which has always been her thing?

[Chelsea Fairless]

Well, clearly someone on her team is making really good decisions around this album because that hasn't historically been the case or the last few albums have been hard for me. You know, I never got into the rebel heart of it all.

[Lauren Garrone]

No, no, that doesn't exist in my mind.

[Chelsea Fairless]

So it's really nice to see her do stuff like this that seems to be resonating with people and is cool.

[Lauren Garrone]

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[Chelsea Fairless]

Sure.

[Lauren Garrone]

For those who don't know Marissa Berenson, model, actress, granddaughter of Elsa Schiaparelli, style

[Chelsea Fairless]

icon, friend of Liza as we learned from Liza Minnelli's memoir, Marissa Berenson is still one of her closest friends a million years after they start in cabaret together.

[Lauren Garrone]

Do you think Marissa Berenson gifted her good friend Liza Minnelli some of these wares from her Zara collection?

[Chelsea Fairless]

I hope so. At the very least, the turbans would be perfect for Liza.

[Lauren Garrone]

Marissa, these turbans are great.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I'm trying to imagine how Liza Minnelli would pronounce Zara. It might be weird.

[Lauren Garrone]

I think she would pronounce it the way that Kanye does or Yay, does. Zara. Zara.

[Chelsea Fairless]

That's it.

[Lauren Garrone]

No, now that's me doing an impression of the AI voice of Liza Minnelli that we heard in her audiobook. To my knowledge, this is the first Zara collaboration collection that spans from clothing to home goods.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yes. In between this Zara's Willy Chavarria collaboration and this upcoming Galliano partnership, someone there is making smart decisions.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yes, it does make it difficult to be an ethical shopper and not shop fast fashion when the collaborations are this good.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Well, I do think it's cool that they clearly are trying to differentiate themselves from Fashion Nova and H M and, you know, whoever.

[Lauren Garrone]

Shein.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Shein. Of course.

[Lauren Garrone]

I also think there is a concerted effort to, even though they are a fast fashion label, to create products that you keep for more than a season. Yeah, they're trying to be not as trendy because, you know, if you're thinking of the youth audience, I don't know if you necessarily think of Marissa Baronson.

[Chelsea Fairless]

No, this is definitely engineered towards older people. Although on the clothing side, I liked that there were pieces that young Marissa Berenson would have worn and pieces that present day Marissa Berenson would wear. There's something for everyone.

[Lauren Garrone]

So what did you purchase from this collection? Because this is very Chelsea Fairless coded.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Totally. I did a pretty conservative buy on this one. I got a turban, a black turban with sequins.

[Lauren Garrone]

Now where do you plan to wear that?

[Chelsea Fairless]

I don't know. With a black gown to something. It's not as if I've never worn a turban before. Although it has been a minute.

[Lauren Garrone]

I thought you were going to be like around the house. Duh.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I got that. I got a fan, like a paper fan that has her face on it, which is the most bizarre thing that they made.

[Lauren Garrone]

Did you get the mirror?

[Chelsea Fairless]

No, it's a. It's a fan. It's not a mirror.

[Lauren Garrone]

Oh, okay.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, it's a paper fan. I at first thought it was like a handheld mirror, but no. And then I got this tassel necklace with the shell on it that will just work with all of my black caftans and stuff.

[Lauren Garrone]

I mean, I don't know how much of each skew was produced, but I'm looking at the website now. Pretty much everything, especially the home goods are sold out.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I think the home goods are better than the actual clothes on the whole.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah. The clothing quality wise, you never know what the photos could be quite hit or miss. Miss. I'm surprised you didn't get this long, pink kind of polo V neck dress.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I saw that. I didn't get it because it's linen. And I have some linen stuff, like some linen caftan type dresses. But I don't need a lot of them because I'm too, like, OCD for it.

[Lauren Garrone]

The boots look pretty fab. Although I'm just personally not a wedge boot person.

[Chelsea Fairless]

No, no one should be a wedge boot person.

[Lauren Garrone]

Except Marissa Berenson.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Except Marissa.

[Lauren Garrone]

All right, moving on. The long rumored Romy and Michelle sequel is finally in production. Hallelujah.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah. Although I feel like the image that they released to announce this was definitely A.I.

[Lauren Garrone]

oh, yeah. Because it's purportedly, or at least I guess we're supposed to get the sense that it's Lisa Kudrow, Mira Sorvino seen from the back. Back in their director's chairs in a

[Chelsea Fairless]

location that is a diner on a soundstage.

[Lauren Garrone]

And they're holding hands as if they're Thelma and Louise about to cruise off a mountain range.

[Chelsea Fairless]

That did disturb me a little bit.

[Lauren Garrone]

The final ride, Romy and Michelle.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Just the AI of it all. It made me scared about the costume design a little bit. Although because it's an AI image, I assume this isn't what it will actually look like. Look like.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah. It's funny that you mentioned costumes. I went to the IMDb page to look at who was working on the film because a lot of the original cast, the original writer, Robin Schiff, is coming back to write it, although it's a different director. I wonder if Mona May is coming back to do costumes.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I hope so.

[Lauren Garrone]

Presumably the plot of the film is that it is now their 30th, 40th, potentially high school reunion. Reunion.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Oh, God, if it's their 40th reunion, I'm gonna kill myself.

[Lauren Garrone]

Probably 30th reunion. Because they graduated in 1986. The first film was their 10th year anniversary, which was 1996. Would have been cool if they could have gotten their act together. So this film could have come out in 2026, but it will be coming out next year in 2027. Streaming. They're not going to put this in theaters, which I think is a very dumb move. If the Devil Wears Prada to box office is anything.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, it's going to be on Hulu and Disney plus. Allegedly. But in a bit of good news, it is confirmed that Alan Cumming, Janine Garofalo and Cameron Manheim are all returning.

[Lauren Garrone]

But what about that fabulous lesbian who worked for Vogue?

[Chelsea Fairless]

I Hope she's coming back too.

[Lauren Garrone]

And they are also adding Keegan, Michael Key, Robin Hubel, Brecken Meyer, Patrick Warburton. Curious what roles they will be filling. Very curious to know what has become of Romeo Michelle's clothing line. Yeah, I imagine that their clothing line maybe went the way of the Juicy Couture girls or Betsy Johnson, where it got bought by some conglomerate that drove it into the ground. And now, like old Romy Michelle pieces are grail pieces online.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, I wonder. Also, is Lisa Kudrow still married to Alan Cumming?

[Lauren Garrone]

I'm gonna guess that their divorce. And she got a huge payout in the divorce.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Also, this isn't on the dock, but have you seen the trailer for this Legally Blonde prequel series?

[Lauren Garrone]

I press play and then noped out after the first 10 seconds, but it seems like you watched it, so tell me.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I watched it. It's an interesting premise because the whole thing is that young Elle woods obviously grew up in Bel Air or whatever, but at some point during high, parents moved to Seattle and it's like peak 90s grunge sort of culture.

[Lauren Garrone]

Wait, wait, I'm sorry. So this is the movie Fear, which Reese Witherspoon starred in as a teenager who lived in Seattle, basically.

[Chelsea Fairless]

And she obviously doesn't fit in at the high school in Seattle. And I'm kind of into this premise.

[Lauren Garrone]

Really.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I know the show is going to be trash, but will I watch it?

[Lauren Garrone]

Yes.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yes, I will.

[Lauren Garrone]

Will I have it on in the background as I fold laundry? Of course.

[Chelsea Fairless]

And so will you. So don't act like you're above watching the Legally Blonde prequel series coming soon to Amazon.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah, well, I need something to hold me over before the streaming release of Romeo and Michelle. Oh, that's the other movie I was going to reference. Goddamn. Hocus Pocus 3 is going to be a theatrical release. We can't get a Romeo Michelle sequel theatrically released. Released.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Okay, well, at least it's happening for hocus pocus 3. Hocus pocus 2 was not so fortunate.

[Lauren Garrone]

All right, let's move on from movies we want to see to movies we

[Chelsea Fairless]

actually saw, starting with Obsession.

[Lauren Garrone]

My expectation for this film was pretty high. It's been out for almost a month. It has amazing word of mouth. And usually when that happens, I come away being disappointed by But I fucking love the movie.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, it's great. And it falls within a film genre that we love, which is Girlfriend from Hell.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah, I mean, this is more like bpd Girlfriend from Hell.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, but is that not also Fatal Attraction?

[Lauren Garrone]

Very true. This movie is also, I mean, the simplest logline. Right. Guy is infatuated with girl, can't share his feelings, so instead he finds a magical stick that will grant any wish. He wishes that she will be obsessed with him, and she is. To devastating results.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Be careful what you wish for.

[Lauren Garrone]

But I do think this is such a successful horror film because it plays into an incels fantasy and it is played out to its logical, although unbelievably heightened and horrifying conclusion.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, I don't think the goal of this film was to make a feminist horror movie movie, but it is one because the female protagonist is put under this spell, forced to date, and this guy that she's not interested at all. And pretty immediately she starts getting revenge and making his life a living hell. And I'm not going to spoil the ending, but it wasn't the Fatal Attraction type ending that I was expecting.

[Lauren Garrone]

This movie for me, I felt like it referenced so many other films in a great way. Like, there's always this intention in Hollywood to remake already successful films instead of borrowing from movies that worked or didn't work to create something new. Like the wish logic of this film reminded me so much of Bedazzled, where because it's such a simplistic wish, there's all this room for it to go wrong.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah. And it is a subversion of the manic pixie dream girl trope.

[Lauren Garrone]

Also, it also did something that is my pet peeve with psychological horror films or psychological thrillers, where oftentimes it's like, is something supernatural happening or is this person just mentally ill? And oftentimes at the end of these types of movies, it's like she was just mentally ill or he was just mentally ill. And in this film, it's great because there is a supernatural reason why this girl is acting this way way. But everyone around them, the two main characters, just think that she's having a manic episode.

[Chelsea Fairless]

It's great and it's really funny. It also kind of reminded me of the Crush, that Alicia Silverstone movie, just in the humor of it. In the humor of this hot girl sort of acting in these increasingly deranged ways.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah. Do you remember in how to Lose a guy in 10 days, when Kate Hudson crashes Matthew McConaughey's guys night?

[Chelsea Fairless]

No, I don't remember that. It's been too long.

[Lauren Garrone]

That's essentially how this character behaves. Like Kate Hudson is so deranged. That's another. I think whether the writer, director Curry Barker, was meant to satirize this but you know, there was a certain point in rom coms where women were just acting insane for the premise of the the romantic comedy where it's like, oh, they're just crazy. Like people would be disturbed by this behavior. And I saw a letterbox review for Obsession that was like, this is just Sex in the City from Big's perspective.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Totally. The script is obviously fantastic, but what makes this movie great is the performance by Indy Navarret. Navarret, I don't know but she's a genius and I feel like this is one of the all time great horror performances.

[Lauren Garrone]

It is a star making role for sure.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Because normally a performance that over the top and animated would be too funny to be genuinely scary. But she managed to accomplish both somehow. And I think this woman has an incredible career ahead of her at the very least as a scream queen.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah, it's an interesting performance because it is dramatic as you spoke about out. You would think because, or at least I thought going into this film. A 26 year old guy wrote and directed this film. He has Primarily a comedy YouTube background that there wasn't going to be this rich interior life in the female character. And there is. This actress can go in, in many directions. She can go in comedy, she can go in drama. It's as I said, a star making performance.

[Chelsea Fairless]

And the lead actor is great also. Although he did look way too much like Charlie Kirk. Let's be real. Not his fault. But especially after the non consensual haircut that he received in this film.

[Lauren Garrone]

The non consensual haircut he received.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Remember when he woke up and was like hey, did you cut my hair?

[Lauren Garrone]

Oh, I might have gone to the bathroom during that scene. Another thing that I enjoyed about this movie and it's something that it shares with the substance is is the vague customer service person that like is not helpful at all. Yes, you just go with it. But like the logic, magic is never really explained in this film which is absolutely fine with me. But I do love how in the substance and this film, unlike the show the Beauty, which is a batshit show with many problems but like if there was a substance or a magical solution that could make you younger. Grant any of your wishes. Wishes. I'm sorry, you don't think a billionaire would be trying to market this. Like in the substance and this film there are these obscure toys. They are sold for a relatively economic value.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah. This movie also reminded me of the craft a bit because of the constant returning to the witch store or the crystal store or wherever he bought this thing.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah, I do wonder if Curry Barker is a fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer because the magic store in this film is very similar to the Magic Box in Buffy where the proprietors are very sarcastic and you are unsure of like, do they know what's going on? Are they behind all of this? What's happening?

[Chelsea Fairless]

It is very funny that throughout the film no one seems to care about his predicament really.

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, he doesn't let anyone in.

[Chelsea Fairless]

There's that. But ultimately I feel like this is a movie about how young people struggle with, with dating and with in person communication.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah, we were talking about this a little bit after the movie. You were like, that's the most unrealistic part that he couldn't just say to a girl that he likes her. I'm like, I think and I'm going to sound a hundred years old when I say this, but like that is an issue with Gen Z. Like they are dating less, they're having sex less. And I wonder if part of the success of this film and why it resonates with the younger audience is it is for the first time in media kind of displaying that, that predicament that the Gen Z and Gen Alpha has with interpersonal relationships.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Totally. This man would rather cast a spell than risk being rejected by a girl that he likes.

[Lauren Garrone]

So as I was saying, this film was written and directed by Curry Barker. He is a 26 year old. He and his friend Coop, who plays the lead's best friend in the film. They have a YouTube channel which has over a million subscribers called that's a Bad Idea how this came to be because I don't think since the Blair Witch Project there has been a low budget film with essentially no stars that has grossed hundreds of millions of dollars. I know you might say insidious, but I don't know it. It feels quite similar to the phenomenon that was the Blair Witch Project.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Totally.

[Lauren Garrone]

So I guess Curry Barker in 2023 did a short film called the Chair, which from the log line seems to be about a haunted chair there which garnered 10 million views on YouTube. You can still watch it on YouTube to this day. It caught the attention of a producer at a production company called Tea Shop. The film was financed by a company called capstone for only $750,000. It premiered at the Toronto Film Festival where there was a bidding war. Focus Features One, buying the film for $15 million. Focus Feature is the independent label under Universal, which also is home to Blumhouse, which is their horror army. This is where Jason Blum was brought in on as a producer, I am explaining all of this in granular detail because its Runway success at the time of the recording, the worldwide box office has it sitting at $234 million has led to some controversy, especially in the film Twitter Reddit world. Last week, the art director of Obsession, Sally Choi, went on Instagram to discuss what she feels was unfair wages that she was paid in light of the film's financial success. She says that she made only $300 a day, which came out to $6,741 after taxes. This has caused an interesting conversation. I think in light of the film's success, she feels, rightly so, that those that participate, especially below the line, should be compensated with bonuses. But I don't think that was ever in the contract, so it'll be interesting to see what happens. Happens, yeah.

[Chelsea Fairless]

If a little independent film ends up doing crazy numbers like this, of course people should be compensated. But if that wasn't part of anyone's contract, it's not really on the creators to go back and retroactively pay people.

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, also, the way that film financing works is that yes, it's made $230 million, but you cut that in half because theaters get half of those Tickets. Tickets. You also have the people who get paid first. It came out this week that Jason Blum is potentially getting a 17 million dollar payout even though he's a producer basically in name only after the film was made. Although because he has Blumhouse, which has done movies like get out and a bunch of other horror films, probably his marketing of the film has helped make it the success that it is. But it came out the other day that the company that financed the film Capstone, will be seeing 45 to $50 million from the success of the film. According to the Wrap, they will share this with the creative team, including Curry Barker. But to Sally Cho's point in her Instagram post, she is below the line. And who's to say that her or other people below the line would see a bonus? It's sort of a catch 22, because if I were Curry Barker or Capstone, I would, even though it's not in the contract, be giving people bonuses. For sure.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Sure, it's the right thing to do.

[Lauren Garrone]

However, when I read that post and I talked to other people who work in the industry, we all had the same second thought, which was no one's gonna hire her again.

[Chelsea Fairless]

No, of course not.

[Lauren Garrone]

By the way, that's not me saying that she shouldn't get hired. It's just a really fucked up reality of the world. Like, she might be the reason that people will get bonuses, but she probably won't get a job because people are going to be too worried that. That, you know, if she is treated in a way that she doesn't like, she's just going to go public.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Right.

[Lauren Garrone]

For sure.

[Chelsea Fairless]

And she did agree to the rate that she did the movie for. Also.

[Lauren Garrone]

And also, this is such a one in a million shot how successful this movie is.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah. And it does suck that she is probably going to be punished for this when it should be such a great

[Lauren Garrone]

thing for her career because the production design. So she's an art director, which means she did set dressing. She gets into this post that, you know, when you work on an independent feature of this small size, you wear many hats. So she was set dresser, Pennsylvania, background actor. The film looks incredible. We should say.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, it does. Even though it's very simple. There's not many locations. It's very bare bones. Although you don't really notice that there

[Lauren Garrone]

is a bar scene towards the beginning of the film. And I was like, wow, this scene has more extras than a cafe scene. And then just like that, that.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Okay, well. And just like that. Really set a new standard with that. Especially season one pandemic season when it's literally just like Carrie and Seema in an empty restaurant.

[Lauren Garrone]

So reportedly, Curry Barker's next film is to direct the Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Cool.

[Lauren Garrone]

Which I guess it will be the second remake. Hmm.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I don't think I saw the first one. But I'm also not a big Texas Chainsaw Massacre person. Not my favorite.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah. I don't need something inspired by Ed Gein. I'm okay. I didn't watch that season of Monsters.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah.

[Lauren Garrone]

Silence of the Lambs is as far as I go in kind of any Ed Gein flavored horror. All right, should we talk about backrooms? Sure.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Which I really enjoyed. Despite my somewhat traumatic movie going. Going experience.

[Lauren Garrone]

I left the theater and I said to you. I'm like, I don't even know if I enjoyed that film because I truly. I spent the first half of it in such an anxious state. And it was a pack theater. There were a lot of people talking throughout the film, which is fine. But also a lot of people getting up from their seats. And I was like, I'm ready to go.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Like, is that coming back? Yeah. I liked it. It not as much as Obsession, which is not Backroom's fault or that woman

[Lauren Garrone]

who accosted us fault, but I thought

[Chelsea Fairless]

it was a solid horror movie. And it's not really like anything else. It is original.

[Lauren Garrone]

You are correct. I think my favorite part of the film is at a certain point when Chiwetel Ejiofor is exploring the backrooms, you turn to me and you go, I would love this gallery.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah. If I was down there, I would be like, whose fabulous gallery is this? Because that's exactly what it looks like. And the production design in that film draws so much from contemporary art and from sculptures that are made with furniture, found objects, what have you.

[Lauren Garrone]

And Kane Parsons, who is the director of the film, only 20 years old old. He created a series of short films on YouTube. YouTube again, about the back rooms, which is. Do you know the lore of back rooms?

[Chelsea Fairless]

A little bit, but why don't you explain?

[Lauren Garrone]

Yes. Given that our audience is elder millennials like us, I'm sure that they are not current on the backroom lore, which started from a photo that was posted in 2019 on 4chan. Only in 2024 did people discover where the photo, the original photo was actually taken, which it was taken in 2002 as a former site of an Oshkosh, Wisconsin furniture store.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Oh, not like Oshkosh Bagosh.

[Lauren Garrone]

No, Oshkosh, Wisconsin. But then someone added this paragraph to the photo and then this is how the lore of backrooms really got started. If you're not careful and you no clip out of reality in the wrong areas, you'll end up in the background back rooms where it's nothing but the stink of old moist carpet, the madness of mono yellow, the endless background noise of fluorescent lights at maximum hum buzz at approximately 600 million square miles of randomly segmented empty rooms to be trapped in. God save you if you hear something wandering around nearby, because it sure as hell has heard you.

[Chelsea Fairless]

So just some random person posted this?

[Lauren Garrone]

Yep.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Did they get credit?

[Lauren Garrone]

I don't believe so. I believe it was an anonymous account. Kane Parsons is not the one that wrote this. With that, I also noticed he didn't write the script to backrooms, which is interesting. So the phrase no clip, which I had to go look up, is a video game term, which means to navigate through a game environment with collisions disabled so that you are able to pass through solid walls, which would explain the main conceit of this film, which is that you can just pass through walls.

[Chelsea Fairless]

One wall, specifically. Guys, I'm not even going to try to explain this movie because it's impossible to disagree. Describe.

[Lauren Garrone]

No, I think the more interesting thing and why I wanted to get into the creator of Backrooms and its lore is that as you pointed out, there is so many fine art references, including at one point a very Basquiat esque mural that there's.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I'm sorry, the Basquiat mural took me out because I was already like wrapping my head around this sort of Urs Fisher Rock, Robert Gober looking sculptures and installations in the back rooms. But Basquiat was crazy and I tried

[Lauren Garrone]

to look for interviews where maybe Kane Parsons referenced his love of fine art. I could not find anything. So it's just an interesting case of parallel thinking because so much of the art and architecture of the back rooms is clearly from fine art that probably these teenagers that were writing this creepypasta had no conception of.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Totally. That's all on the production designer. But it even goes beyond those sorts of fine artists. There is also, like fashion stuff in there. Like the piles of clothes in the back rooms that reminded me of. Remember when Vetmont did all of those window displays everywhere. There was one at Maxfield. It was just like a giant pile of clothes.

[Lauren Garrone]

Right?

[Chelsea Fairless]

Or like when they started meeting, like the people in the back rooms. Like the guy that has three faces and he had that polo shirt where the collar of the polo shirt and the neck was like on the chest of the shirt. I was like, that is like that Moschino collection that came out a couple years ago. Like, there are a lot of surreal things that are very reminiscent of things that already exist, which no shade. Like, who would think to use that imagery like this?

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah, it seems like a lot of the world of Backroom comes from the mind of Kane Parsons. But a lot of other people on the Internet who again, I assume are teenagers who don't know these references or maybe they've seen them briefly and interpreted

[Chelsea Fairless]

them totally and visually, this would blow your mind. If you've never been to a museum, you know, truly.

[Lauren Garrone]

No, you are. You are correct.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I'm like, if you've never seen, like, how an artist could take a familiar domestic object like a chair and make changes to it, episode is no longer functional. Like, this movie will blow your mind.

[Lauren Garrone]

I guess if you're a teen seeing this film, which I think there were a few in our audience, because there's one scene, and I don't think I'm spoiling it because you see it in the trailer of Like a Christmas Tree. I don't know if you remember this. There were like some kids who were like, oh. And I'm like, okay, so this is clearly a reference to something.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Oh, the Christmas Part was the best. I was like, is Nadia Lee Cohen and Kim Kardashian about to do another Santa baby situation? It looked really cool. And to your point about the Blair Witch Project, also, the use of VHS or a VHS effect, as we later found out, was effective.

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, yeah. I mean, just when you thought the found footage genre was dead, this completely reinvents it. Although it is funny to be looking at, at footage that is treated to look like old VHS footage from the 90s blown up on a, you know, however big the screen is.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, look, it did look very cool.

[Lauren Garrone]

It did. And I was researching how this film came to be because as I said, the director is now 20 years old. He took his first meeting with a 24 three years ago when he was 17. He was, was on the Zoom with a 24 with his parents. And I was like, how the, like truly, how do you get from YouTube to an A24 film? And the answer is that Shawn Levy, who is a film director, has a production company called 21 Laps. And his assistant at the time named Lucas Ford was tasked with going through and looking for interesting content creators on YouTube, on TikTok. And he found Kane Parsons. And Kane Parsons goes by the name Kane Pixels on YouTube. He amassed 3.3 million subscribers, over 300 million views for his 25 episode series about the backrooms that expands the lore. And he made all of this in a VFX program called Blender.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Extremely cool.

[Lauren Garrone]

What's funny is he's anti AI, which I think is very funny. Funny.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Well, isn't the film itself kind of about AI or at least that's how I interpreted it.

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, I know that they physically built all those sets. They built 30,000 square feet of sets where the cast and crew got lost on a daily basis.

[Chelsea Fairless]

I believe it. But interesting for a film that I perceived as criticizing AI and this sort of degraded versions of things that we end up seeing. It's interesting to me that, like I said, the backrooms themselves were so reminiscent of so many people's work.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah, I don't, I don't know. I saw a take that was. You know, why so much horror that resonates with a younger generation is about the liminal space is because they grew up during the death of the mall and kind of the death of the corporate office. And so there's nothing scarier than that.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Right. And they also grew up watching POV style YouTube videos and playing Pokemon Go. And like that we sound a hundred years old. No, but I do, I do really think it does Inform people's fears and a certain visual style that this movie clearly has.

[Lauren Garrone]

I mean, as I've said, he's 20 years old, but it was spooky to see that he was born in 2005. We have filmmakers who were born after 9, 11.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Hey, if they're good, I have no qualms about that. This does feel like a modern movie. Whether or not it's about AI, it has to be about the Internet to some degree. No. Or like the algorithm or just the idea that you just keep going like the back rooms is almost just like a algorithm that just gradually degrades everything, you know?

[Lauren Garrone]

Yes. Even though the back rooms in the world takes place in the 90s. Yes. It's definitely a comment on the dead Internet theory or the inshittification of the Internet and of everything.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Totally. And also of human memory and how we remember things and how our memories evolve over time and stuff like that.

[Lauren Garrone]

For sure. And of course the back to back releases and success of obsession and backrooms has started this dialogue about are the new filmmaker coming from YouTube?

[Chelsea Fairless]

They should be. They're already making movies.

[Lauren Garrone]

Yeah, I think there's something to that in the way that, you know, film school was for the Spielbergs, Lucas Coppolas than it was the video store was to Tarantino and Kevin Smith and that Gen X slacker generation of filmmakers. This seems to be the new breeding ground for creators and I think, think for the last 15 years there's been a real struggle that traditional media has had with the Internet, I think the apex of which was the creation of Quibi. This idea of like, oh, we should take traditional media formats like television and movies and just break them down into 10 second clips. Where I think Curry Barker and Kane Parsons have proved that YouTube is its own format where you can do short form content but people still design entire film. That they have proved their talent in a short form. But there is a need to tell things in a long form format and people still want to go to movies even if they might get spit on.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, exactly. Well, also I feel like we should mention those Australian YouTubers.

[Lauren Garrone]

Oh, the guys that did talk to me.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yes, the brothers that did talk to me and then did bring her back. Those are some of the best horror movies of recent years that are completely born of YouTube. YouTube.

[Lauren Garrone]

It's a wild, wild world, as I love to say podcaster TV.

[Chelsea Fairless]

YouTube is now movies, but only horror movies. Like where's the YouTube to rom com pipeline?

[Lauren Garrone]

You said it. I think because that's the realm of, of books still, books to TV series to film romantic comedies.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Well, for a romcom, I feel like that would require a woman or perhaps a young gay to start making rom com, like short form YouTube videos.

[Lauren Garrone]

It's all possible. It's also funny that a lot of these YouTube horror directors are comedy guys. Or like, didn't the talk to me directors do YouTube stunts or something?

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, well, and there's definite humor in back rooms also, while it is scary. Also, who was that clavicular ass guy guy in back rooms?

[Lauren Garrone]

Oh, the assistant manager's boyfriend.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah.

[Lauren Garrone]

I don't know. But he was very hot and really made a strong point that men should be wearing crop tops.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Crop tops that say end apartheid, Specifically,

[Lauren Garrone]

that you then find in a pile

[Chelsea Fairless]

of clothing by the pirate in the back rooms.

[Lauren Garrone]

All right, well, if we're in full spoiler territory, then. You saw a scary movie. Is it six?

[Chelsea Fairless]

Six, yes.

[Lauren Garrone]

Which I did not. And we agreed that it's probably much more entertaining for you to tell me about scary movie 6 than us having both watched the film.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Okay, well, you didn't miss much. I'm not the biggest scary movie person. My wife loves those films. But I was curious what they would parody within the sort of modern A24 horror movie landscape. Escape.

[Lauren Garrone]

Because horror films, since they last made a scary movie film, have become more prestigious.

[Chelsea Fairless]

But this movie did not speak to that at all because it's still a parody of Scream. It's closer to a recent Scream movie than anything else. Obviously there are moments within it where they're referencing other things, but they did not go into prestige horror at all, apart from Sinners.

[Lauren Garrone]

Oh, that's interesting. No hereditary references, no get out references.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah, there was a get out thing, I believe that turned into like a K pop demon hunters parody, which actually was quite funny.

[Lauren Garrone]

I mean, in scary movies defense, there was another Scream film that came out earlier this year, so it's still in the zeitgeist.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Totally. But I would say it was mostly referencing Sinners, the TV show Wednesday. The most recent Halloween movie. Like the Anna Faris character just became Jamie Lee Curtis, like, in her crazy,

[Lauren Garrone]

like, gray wig and her bunker booby trapped.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Her booby trapped house. Yeah. Which was funny. Like, that's the perfect thing to do with that character. Sherry Oter was still Gail Weathers.

[Lauren Garrone]

Oh, right, right, right, right. Is there still the Dewey?

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yes, Dewey was there. This movie was politically incorrect as ever. Because if you'll remember, in the first scary movie, I believe the crime was committed by a parody of Deputy Dewey, who is portrayed as Severely developmentally disabled, labeled.

[Lauren Garrone]

Right. They do a Usual Suspects thing where all of a sudden he's sleek and suave and gets into a car at the end of the film. Yeah, that's pulling at the recesses of teenage Lauren's mind.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Totally. But apparently the best part was a parody of the substance, which involved Sherry O. Terry, which I did not see because I went to the bar and at amc, which, as you know, takes forever and missed that entire part of the movie.

[Lauren Garrone]

I won't lie. I did see a clip of something from scary movie 6 from someone's phone that was recorded in the theater. And I think there's a. A White Chicks reference within that substance sequence as well. I didn't know until I started watching clips of Shawn and Marlon ways doing press for this that people are clamoring for a White Chicks 2, but I've never seen White Chicks 1, so.

[Chelsea Fairless]

So White Chicks 1 has its moments. It does have a fun fashion show sequence, as I remember, but not for me.

[Lauren Garrone]

All right, so were those the best moments of Scary Movie 6?

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yes. I would say one thing that Scary Movie 6 did offer was great commentary on the tension between legacy characters in horror franchises and the new cast. And ultimately the legacy characters were like, fuck these new characters. Who cares if they live or die die. Which I thought was a funny subversion.

[Lauren Garrone]

Right.

[Chelsea Fairless]

But that was the only aspect of this movie, to me, that, like, really hit the nail on the head in terms of satirizing modern horror or whatever.

[Lauren Garrone]

Well, now, between obsession and back rooms, there are plenty of things for them to parody in Scary Movie seven. Maybe that's when they'll touch upon prestige horror.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Yeah. Anyway, enough horror movies for one week.

[Lauren Garrone]

All right, guys, we will be back next week with a Sex in the City rewatch episode. What episode will we be doing? We don't even know.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Thank you for listening as always.

[Lauren Garrone]

Oh, and if you've been wondering why we haven't touched upon Gwyneth Paltrow's recent reveal of her political affiliation, the Los Angeles mayoral race, or the Michael Jackson documentary and film, it's because we deem those topics too hot for main feed. So we will be doing a special VIP episode that will be out early next week week about such topics.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Until then.

[Lauren Garrone]

All right, guys, see you next week.

[Chelsea Fairless]

Bye.

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