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Matthew Scott Montgomery, who appeared in "So Random!" and other series, says he was subjected to shock therapy as part of his supposed treatment.

The Disney Channel put Matthew Scott Montgomery on the road to stardom more than a decade ago, but privately, the actor was grappling to come to terms with his true self.

Appearing on Tuesday’s episode of “Vulnerable With Christy Carlson Romano,” Montgomery recalled his decision to seek out so-called gay conversion therapy during his early years in Hollywood.

“In the environment that I grew up in, you’re taught that you deserve to be punished all the time,” said the North Carolina native, who appeared on “So Random!” and “Sonny With a Chance,” among other Disney Channel series.

“At the time, the career stuff was going so well that I was still in this broken prison brain of thinking: ‘I’m on red carpets. I’m on TV every week. This is too good. I should be punished on my days off.’”

He added: “Disney had nothing to do with it. It was not their idea. They didn’t know; no one knew. My cast mates did not know at the time.”

Montgomery said he visited a center in Los Angeles that was known for working with men in entertainment, though he didn’t identify anyone by name.

“Their selling point was, you look at any billboard in LA and see any male actor — they’ve been through these walls before,” he said. There, he was subjected to both electroshock therapy and hypnosis as part of his supposed treatment.

“They would kind of do a hypnosis-y kind of thing where you would imagine scenarios,” he explained. “You imagine the world is post-apocalypse and it’s a decimated Earth, and the only person left on Earth is a straight man. ... You go and you walk up and hug a straight man. And when you hugged the straight man in my mind, they would zap my hands, like the electric shock.”

Conversion therapy, sometimes referred to as “reparative therapy,” is an unfounded and harmful practice that attempts to change an LGBTQ person’s sexuality or gender identity. It has been explicitly discredited by the American Psychological Association and other top medical groups.

At present, 22 U.S. states have banned conversion therapy ― which has been known to treat LGBTQ identity as though it were an addiction ― on minors. Last year, President Joe Biden signed an executive order directing the Department of Health and Human Services to “explore guidance to clarify that federally-funded programs cannot offer so-called ‘conversion therapy.’”

However, as Montgomery’s remarks demonstrate, the practice continues to be promoted by some, especially within conservative religious communities. The actor described his parents as “very, very conservative,” and said they “were really upset” when he came out as gay at 18.

“My mom collapsed sobbing when she found out,” he said, adding that his father told him, “Being gay is a choice.”

Ultimately, Montgomery came to the realization that he could live as his authentic self after appearing in a production of Del Shores’ “Yellow,” in which he played a queer teenager who is taken in by a loving family after being rejected by his birth mother, a conservative Christian.

“That was the therapy I actually needed because I got the experience of what it was like to have a family not only love me, but celebrate me and really accept me,” he said.

These days, Montgomery’s career is once again on the upswing. Last year, it was announced that “Howdy, Neighbor!” — an LGBTQ-inclusive horror film featuring a script he’d written — had been picked up for production. He also recently reunited with Demi Lovato, a fellow Disney Channel veteran, on the Peacock documentary series “Unidentified.”

In his “Vulnerable” interview, he described Lovato as “my soulmate” and “the person who loves me the deepest,” and he credited the pop star with helping him “curate a life that was filled with love and art and expression.”

Bijou Phillips filed to end her 12-year marriage to the "That '70s Show" star less than a week after she said she would be standing by him.

Danny Masterson’s wife, Bijou Phillips, has filed for divorce from the former “That ’70s Show” cast member just weeks after he was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for raping two women.

TMZ is reporting that Phillips filed divorce documents in a Los Angeles-area courtroom on Monday.

Her lawyer, Lauzon Paluch, told the website that Phillips “has decided to file for divorce from her husband during this unfortunate time” and said “her priority remains with her daughter.”

Paluch said the effect of the recent events “has been unimaginably hard on the marriage and the family” but stressed that Masterson “was always present” for her “during her most difficult times of her life” and “is a wonderful father to their daughter.”

The filing comes less than a week after sources close to the former actor and model told People that she had no plans to end the 12-year marriage despite being “distraught” by the course of events.

Phillips’ divorce filing has become part of the chain reaction among Masterson’s friends and family since his conviction.

His former “That ’70s Show” cast mates Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis came under fire after writing letters calling for leniency on Masterson’s behalf. Both then stepped down from a nonprofit organization that Kutcher co-founded in 2009 with then-wife Demi Moore that seeks to combat child sex abuse.

Manson blew his nose on a concert videographer in New Hampshire in an “egregious” assault, a judge said

Marilyn Manson has been sentenced to 20 hours of community service and a fine of about $1,400 for spitting and blowing his nose on a concert videographer, The Associated Press reports. The incident took place at a 2019 concert in Gilford, New Hampshire. Manson pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor simple assault charge after turning himself in to authorities some 18 months after his arrest warrant was issued.

In a court statement read in her absence, the videographer, Susan Fountain, said, “I’ve never been humiliated or treated like I was by this defendant. For him to spit on me and blow his nose on me was the most disgusting thing a human being has ever done.” The judge described the assault as “egregious,” according to The Associated Press.

Manson must also alert police to any concerts planned for New Hampshire for the next two years and complete his community service by Sunday, February 4, 2024. He is permitted to carry out the service in California, where he resides.

When reached by Pitchfork, a representative for Marilyn Manson offered no comment.

In 2008's Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Kristen Bell and Russell Brand were thrown into raunchy sex scenes - but Bell made sure of no funny business off-screen

Kristen Bell threatened to "lop Russell Brand’s nuts off" if he tried anything with her on the set of Forgetting Sarah Marshall.

The pair were brought together for the 2008 Hollywood rom-com - also starring Jason Segel, Mila Kunis and Jonah Hill - as celebs whose secret romance was just uncovered (to the heartbreak of her ex-boyfriend).

However, following accusations of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse against Brand in a documentary - accusations he’s fervently denied - prior comments about his behaviour across his career have started resurfacing.

To promote Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Kristen was grilled on Brand’s known sexual lothario image of the time, and how that tied into his role as sex-crazed rockstar, Aldous Snow, in the film.

Not one to mince her words, Kristen - who is married to comedian Dax Shepard - declared that he "didn’t try to mess with her or get in her pants".

“He knew I would lop his nuts off,” she bluntly told the interviewer.

In another chat, she said that she had clearly shut down the idea of any sexual activity with the British star from the outset.

“I made it really clear from the beginning that I would sock him in the balls if he tried anything. So he was intimidated,” she said.

However, in a chat with Empire magazine, Kristen acknowledged Brand as a "gentleman" during sex scenes.

Leslie Jones told People magazine while promoting her new memoir, “Leslie F*cking Jones,” that her longtime friend Chris Rock went to counseling after Will Smith slapped him at the 2022 Academy Awards. Rock wrote the foreword to Jones’ new book.

“That shit was humiliating. It really affected him,” Jones said. “People need to understand his daughters, his parents, saw that. He had to go to counseling with his daughters.”

Variety has reached out to Rock’s representative for comment.

Jones added that the Oscars slap “infuriated” her, adding, “You don’t know that I was going to jump in my car and roll up there. I was so fucking mad on so many levels… Chris Rock did a fucking joke. I know Will, too… I was like, you couldn’t handle that shit afterwards? This is the Oscars. The whole world is watching.”

Rock was presenting the Oscar for best documentary when he made a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith’s bald head, despite her public battle with alopecia. Smith reacted by taking to the stage and slapping Rock across the face. He returned to his seat and yelled at Rock, “Keep my wife’s name out of your fucking mouth.” Smith, who went on to win the Oscar for best actor that same night, ended up resigning from the Academy amid backlash to the slap. The Academy then banned Smith from its membership and from attending events such as the Oscars for 10 years.

Sean Penn recently graced the cover of Variety magazine and lambasted Smith for the Oscars slap.

“I don’t know Will Smith. I met him once,” Penn said. “He seemed very nice when I met him. He was so fucking good in ‘King Richard.’ So why the fuck did you just spit on yourself and everybody else with this stupid fucking thing? Why did I go to fucking jail for what you just did? And you’re still sitting there? Why are you guys standing and applauding his worst moment as a person?”

Jones’ memoir will be released on Sept. 19.

The late-night host has faced harsh criticism after announcing the return of his show last week.

Bill Maher is the latest host to walk back plans to return to TV without WGA writers amid the Hollywood strikes.

Maher credited reports that the AMPTP would soon return to negotiations with the striking WGA as the reason for this reversal. "My decision to return to work was made when it seemed nothing was happening and there was no end in sight to this strike," Maher tweeted on Monday. "Now that both sides have agreed to go back to the negotiating table I'm going to delay the return of Real Time, for now, and hope they can finally get this done."

After announcing last week that Real Time with Bill Maher would return to production "sans writers or writing," the host faced immense pushback. Keith Olbermann, for example, tweeted: "As somebody who's known you since 1978: F--- you, Bill."

Real Time with Bill Maher joins The Drew Barrymore Show, The Talk, and The Jennifer Hudson Show in delaying their planned returns amid pressure from strikers.

Now that the unions have flexed their power and demonstrated the public's continuing sympathy with the strikers, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) is returning to the negotiating table. Deadline reports that the AMPTP will resume bargaining with the WGA this Wednesday.

Russell Brand’s upcoming live shows have all been postponed following allegations of rape and sexual assault.

“We are postponing these few remaining addiction charity fundraiser shows, we don’t like doing it – but we know you’ll understand,” said a one-line statement from the promoters of Brand’s Bipolarisation tour in the past few minutes.

Brand was due to perform tomorrow at the Theatre Royal Windsor, with further dates in Wolverhampton and Plymouth.

Brand’s management and bosses at the Theatre Royal had spent this morning deciding whether to proceed with tonight’s show. A Theatre Royal statement said it will be “offering ticket refunds in line with our Terms & Conditions of sale.”

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/2450775

Hudson's is the latest daytime show to halt production, following similar announcements from The Drew Barrymore Show and The Talk.

The Jennifer Hudson Show has paused production and pushed back its return to the air following backlash from the writers' strike, EW has learned.

The EGOT's daytime talk show was set to premiere its newest season on Monday, Sept. 18, but that was before Drew Barrymore attempted to cross the picket line.

Barrymore had announced her decision to resume her eponymous talk show on Sept. 18 in spite of the Writer's Guild of America strike, now in its 18th week. The Never Been Kissed actress faced a heap of criticism for the move, leading her to pause her show's return until the resolution of the strike.

"I have no words to express my deepest apologies to anyone I have hurt and, of course, to our incredible team who works on the show and has made it what it is today," Barrymore wrote on social media earlier today.

Shortly after that news, The Talk followed suit, pausing its season premiere, which was also set for Sept. 18. A rep for CBS told EW the network would "continue to evaluate plans for a new launch date."

Since the strikes began, other daytime talk shows, including The View, Tamron Hall, and Live With Kelly and Mark, have been filming new episodes. The Sherri Shepherd Show is currently scheduled to premiere its new season as planned on Monday.

After more than two months of picketing, the WGA writers were joined by SAG-AFTRA actors in striking against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), bringing Hollywood to heel. While SAG card-carrying performers can technically still appear on talk shows, they can't promote any work distributed, produced, or financed by AMPTP studios or streaming platforms.

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/2450622

"I have listened to everyone, and I am making the decision to pause the show's premiere until the strike is over."

Drew Barrymore is officially hitting "pause" on production of her daytime talk show.

After days of enduring backlash surrounding her decision to resume The Drew Barrymore Show amid the writers' and actors' strikes, the host announced that she will no longer move forward with new episodes until the strikes end.

"I have listened to everyone, and I am making the decision to pause the show's premiere until the strike is over," Barrymore wrote on social media Sunday. "I have no words to express my deepest apologies to anyone I have hurt and, of course, to our incredible team who works on the show and has made it what it is today."

She added, "We really tried to find our way forward. And I truly hope for a resolution for the entire industry very soon."

Barrymore announced plans last week for her Daytime Emmy–winning show to resume production without its three Writers Guild of America writers who, along with the rest of their union, have been on strike since May, demanding higher wages, clearer contract provisions, and more.

The star quickly became the center of controversy, earning criticism from striking members of the WGA and the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), in addition to others of the industry. Following her decision, the National Book Foundation also rescinded its invitation for Barrymore to host its annual awards event.

Her show resumed filming last week as picketers protested the choice outside the CBS Broadcast Center in New York. Some audience members said they were escorted out of tapings for wearing WGA-branded pins. A spokesperson for the show told EW in a statement that Barrymore was "completely unaware of the incident" and that their team is "in the process of reaching out to the affected audience members to offer them new tickets."

Barrymore initially defended her decision in a now-removed video she posted on Friday, explaining, "This is bigger than me and there other peoples' jobs on the line."

She continued, "I weighed the scales and I thought if we could go on during a global pandemic and everything that the world experienced through 2020, why would this sideline us? I just wanted to just put one foot in front of the other and make a show that's there for people regardless of anything else that's happening in the world."

Barrymore, a member of SAG-AFTRA, insisted that the show's return was "in compliance with not discussing or promoting film and television that is struck of any kind," according to strike rules. When season 4 was first announced, a CBS spokesperson confirmed to EW that the series would "not be performing any writing work covered by the WGA strike."

While Barrymore herself was not in violation as the series' host — daytime talk shows fall under a separate contract, the Network Television Code contract — resuming production meant that it left its writers behind. As the WGA-East announced on social media, "The [Drew Barrymore Show] is a WGA-covered, struck show that is planning to return without its writers… Any writing on The Drew Barrymore Show is in violation of WGA strike rules."

Cristina Kinon, a writer for the show, told The Daily Beast that she was disappointed to see Barrymore resume production on the series without its writing team. "It is frustrating," she said, "because it will prolong the strike, and we just want it to end."

When news broke that the series was coming back for a fourth season, CBS issued a statement to EW. "While our show has been largely an unscripted talk show from the beginning, the new shows we are producing this season will be completely unscripted until the strike ends," it read in part. "No one on our staff will fill a writing position. If you watch the show, it is obvious that Drew has always brought raw, unfiltered, spontaneous, open, and honest conversations to her viewers, and that will continue. The show also moves forward with important consideration to our staff and crew comprised of over 150 people, as well as our loyal viewers. We fully support Drew and her entire team 100 percent."

The show was set to return with new episodes on Monday, Sept. 18.

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/2414370

An investigation by the Sunday Times and Channel 4's Dispatches has accused Russell Brand of rape, sexual assaults and emotional abuse, which he strenuously denies

Comedian Russell Brand had to have a 'no sex' clause written into his contract when he landed the Big Brother spin off show presenting job, it has been claimed in Channel 4's Dispatches programme.

The 48-year-old, who has starred in Hollywood films, been a stand-up and is now a Youtube star, is accused of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse, allegations which he has vehemently denied. Dispatches claims to have spoken to women who have been assaulted or emotionally abused by the Arthur actor.

While the show was being aired, Brand was performing in front of a crowd of 2,000 fans at the Troubador Theatre, Wembley, the first time he has been seen since the allegations were first made by Dispatches, the Sunday Times and The Times. He told the crowd: "I really appreciate your support. I love you. I want to do a fantastic show for you. I've got a lot of things to talk to you about. There are obviously some things that I absolutely can not talk about - and I appreciate that you will understand."

It comes less than 24 hours after Brand took to his own Youtube channel to address the claims in a statement last two minutes and 45 seconds. Brand said: "I've received two extremely disturbing letters or a letter and an email. One from a mainstream media TV company, one from a newspaper listing a litany of extremely egregious and aggressive attacks, as well as some pretty stupid stuff like community festival should be stopped, that I shouldn't be able to attack mainstream media narratives on this channel.

"But amidst this litany of astonishing rather baroque attacks, often very serious allegations that I absolutely refute. These allegations pertain to the time when I was working in the mainstream, when I was in the newspapers all the time, when I was in the movies. And as I've written about extensively in my books, I was very, very promiscuous."

One of the women interviewed as part of the Dispatches documentary claims Brand had a 'no sex' clause written into his contract, which she says he told her about after they had slept together when he is said to have urged her to keep it a secret. She said: "One of the memories which is very vivid is I must’ve gone to see what he wanted for lunch, he saw it was me and turned around. I wasn’t close to him but I saw he had his penis out of his shorts.

"I was scared to rock the boat, I felt very anxious, I was scared of what the repurcussions would be. I wasn’t going to tell anyone what he’d done because I didn’t want to lose hey job. His flirations grew stronger with me, I wss flattered, I was sucked Ito his world, He was a very intoxicating person."

Brand's colleague met up with him and they had sex for the first time and it was then that she claims he told her she "couldn’t tell anyone else on the crew, it had to be a complete secret. He had it written into his contact he wasn’t allowed to have any sexual contact with anyone working on Big Brother." In Brand's own autobiography, he admits his agent had to sign a contract saying the star would be no trouble."

If you've been the victim of sexual assault, you can access help and resources via www.rapecrisis.org.uk or calling the national telephone helpline on 0808 802 9999.

"I’m trying to mature here and realize I can just walk away from the parts of this that no longer make me happy” said the singer-songwriter

Maren Morris released the songs “The Tree” and “Get the Hell Out of Here” on Friday — and announced she’s also getting out of the country music industry.

The singer-songwriter, 33, revealed in an interview with the Los Angeles Times that she’s leaving the genre and plans to release music on Columbia Records, instead of Columbia Nashville, moving forward. The Grammy winner also opened up about her decision to “take a step back,” explaining that she’s felt “very, very distanced” from industry and its politics.

“I thought I’d like to burn it to the ground and start over,” Morris told the outlet of country music. “But it’s burning itself down without my help.”

The “Middle” singer opened up about the challenges of advocating for progress in the country industry and being outspoken about her progressive beliefs — which have included supporting the LGBTQ+ community, taking a stand for the Black Lives Matter movement, and critiquing people like Jason Aldean’s wife Brittany Kerr Aldean for making transphobic comments.

“I’ve always been an asker of questions and a status quo challenger just by being a woman. So it wasn’t really even a choice,” Morris said. “The further you get into the country music business, that’s when you start to see the cracks. And once you see it, you can’t un-see it.”

The pop artist explained that she tried to advocate for change, but only found that made her unpopular. She added, “I’m trying to mature here and realize I can just walk away from the parts of this that no longer make me happy.”

The star continued, “Being one of the few women that had any success on country radio, everything you do is looked at under a microscope. You’re scrutinized more than your male peers, even when you’re doing well. So I’ve had to clear all of that out of my head this year and just write songs. A lot of the drama within the community, I’ve chosen to step outside out of it.”

Morris also commented on the popularity of songs like Aldean’s, 46, controversial “Try That in a Small Town,” which received backlash for what many interpreted as having a pro-violent, conservative message. “People are streaming these songs out of spite. It’s not out of true joy or love of the music. It’s to own the libs,” she said.

Fans speculate that the performer’s music video for “The Tree,” which she’s released as a double single project called The Bridge, includes references to the Aldean video. As the new clip also includes posters that read, “Lunatic Country Music Person,” it also appears to include a nod to how former Fox News pundit Tucker Carlson labeled her as such.

The hitmaker also recently spoke to Billboard in their Pride issue cover story about her commitment to being an ally.

"I have heard the term 'Shut up and sing' more times than I can count — that’s always the cutesy little threat that they like to make," the CMA award winner said. "So I would say to my peers who are artists and to record-label heads, publishers, songwriters: I don't think any of us got into this art form to be an activist, but that’s ultimately thrust upon you to exist in this space and to feel like you can sleep at night."

Apple has become the latest entertainment company to suspend additional overall and first-look deals this month as the WGA strike is getting past the four-and-a-half-month mark.

As has been the case with the other recent suspensions at Disney, NBCUniversal, Warner Bros. TV and CBS Studios, impacted are non-writing producers who are not currently rendering services due to the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. I hear the handful of pacts that are being suspended include those for Natalie Portman’s MountainA, the company she formed with producer Sophie Mas, and Adam McKay’s Hyperobject Industries. A rep for Apple declined comment.

A number of the streamer’s high-profile deals with non-writing producers are still ongoing as they are working on projects, including Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman’s Playtone, which is behind the upcoming Apple series Masters of the Air. Martin Scorsese, who signed a film and TV deal with the streamer in 2020, also has been busy finishing and promoting his upcoming Apple feature Killers of the Flower Moon.

Disney’s suspensions, enacted earlier this week, included deals with Gina Rodriguez and ThIs Is Us alums Justin Hartley, Milo Ventimiglia and Mandy Moore at 20th Television, Yara Shahidi and Marc Webb at ABC Signature as well as Hiro Murai, Billy Porter and Stacey Sher at FX Productions. The studios will provide salaries for the impacted assistants through the end of 2023 and development executives through the first week of October.

WBTV’s list of suspensions included marquee names such as Greg Berlanti, Bill Lawrence and Mindy Kaling. The NBCUniversal studios — both film and TV — suspended the pacts for Lorne Michaels’ Broadway Video and Dwayne Johnson’s Seven Bucks Prods, among others. CBS Studios put on pause deals with such companies as Phil McGraw’s Stage 29 and DeVon Franklin’s Franklin Entertainment. The studio also will continue to pay salaries to assistants associated with the suspended term deals through the end of 2023.

TV studios initiated the first wave of suspending overall and first-look deals –- primarily with writers — in early May, just days into the WGA strike. There have been more rolling suspensions over the past couple of months as more producers wrapped work on shows amid an industry production shutdown.

The new round comes as the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes are stretching into the fall. In the first piece of good news in weeks, the WGA and AMPTP said yesterday that they have agreed to meet next week.