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CBS says it will turn over an unedited transcript of its October interview with Kamala Harris to the Federal Communications Commission, part of President Donald Trump's ongoing fight with the network over how it handled a story about his opponent. Trump sued CBS for $10 million over the “60 Minutes” interview, claiming it was deceptively edited to make Harris look good. Published reports said that CBS' parent company, Paramount, has been talking to Trump's lawyers about a settlement. The network said Friday that it was compelled by Brendan Carr, Trump's appointee as FCC chairman, to turn over the transcripts and camera feeds of the interview for a parallel investigation by the commission. “60 Minutes” has resisted releasing transcripts for this and all of its interviews, to avoid second-guessing of its editing process. Khaby Lame joins UNICEF as goodwill ambassador The case, particularly a potential settlement, is being closely watched by advocates for press freedom and by journalists within CBS, whose lawyers called Trump's lawsuit “completely without merit” and promised to vigorously fight it after it was filed. The Harris interview initially drew attention because CBS News showed Harris giving completely different responses to a question posed by correspondent Bill Whitaker in clips that were aired on “Face the Nation” on Oct. 6 and the next night on “60 Minutes.” The network said each clip came from a lengthy response by Harris to Whitaker's question, but they were edited to fit time constraints on both broadcasts. In his lawsuit, filed in Texas on Nov. 1, Trump charged it was deceptive editing designed to benefit Harris and constituted “partisan and unlawful acts of voter interference.” Trump, who turned down a request to be interviewed by “60 Minutes” during the campaign, has continued his fight despite winning the election less than a week after the lawsuit was filed. The network has not commented on talks about a potential settlement, reported by the Wall Street Journal and New York Times. Paramount executives are seeking Trump administration approval of a sale of the company to another entertainment firm, Skydance. ABC News in December settled a defamation lawsuit by Trump over statements made by anchor George Stephanopoulos, agreeing to pay $15 million toward Trump's presidential library rather than engage in a public fight. Meta has reportedly paid $25 million to settle Trump's lawsuit against the company over its decision to suspend his social media accounts following the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the US Capitol.

Khaby Lame, the Senegal-born world’s most popular TikTok personality who never says a word in videos watched by millions of followers, addressed the youth in his native country on Friday when he was appointed as UNICEF goodwill ambassador. The 24-year-old influencer, who has over 162 million followers, rose to fame with charming videos of his reactions to everyday life in which he never says a word. His following surged during the pandemic, when he was fired from his factory job and used the extra time on his hands to make and upload more videos. Being a UNICEF ambassador will allow him to “see all the world and its problems,” Lame said, adding that he hoped he could contribute to solving some of them. “It’s a true honor to be appointed as a UNICEF goodwill ambassador and be part of an organization that puts children’s rights front and center every day,” Lame said in a statement. “From my own experience as a child fearing poverty, struggling to find my passion at school, and losing my job during the COVID-19 pandemic, to finding my place and calling in the world, I know that all children can thrive when they are given a chance and opportunity.” UNICEF appoints 16-year-old Gargee as new youth advocate in Bangladesh  Senegal is a major source of irregular migration to Europe. Over 60% of Senegalese people are under 25, and 90% work in informal jobs. They have watched for years as money made from natural resources has gone overseas, and many say they have no other choice but to embark on treacherous journeys in rickety fishing boats across the Atlantic. “I tell them to dream big,” Lame said when asked about his message to Senegal's youth. “Try and do your best to accomplish your dreams, even though there are people telling you that you cannot reach them.” Lame moved to Italy from his native Senegal when he was an infant with his working class parents, but was only granted Italian citizenship when he was 20. “I’ve been in Italy for 20 years since I was only 2 years old,” Lame told The Associated Press in Dakar. Looking sharp in a beige suit and a matching tie, he added: “My blood is from Senegal, but I feel Senegalese and Italian at the same time.” Lame's appointment to UNICEF came at the end of a four-day visit to Senegal where he met children and young people who are driving positive change in their communities.

Chris Martin-led British band Coldplay made history last week when it performed its biggest show yet at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on January 26. However, his next stop is the Grammy Awards ceremony this Sunday on February 2. Chris Martin to perform at Grammys On Wednesday, the official X handle of Recording Academy, the organiser of Grammy Awards, shared a picture of Chris and stated in the caption, “Chris Martin of @coldplay will join our roster of performers at this year's #GRAMMYs (gramophone emoji).” Other performers at this year's ceremony include Academy Award-nominated Wicked star Cynthia Erivo, John Legend, and Stevie Wonder among others. In light of the catastrophic wildfires that have swept through Los Angeles, the Recording Academy announced that this year's Grammys will take on a significant new role. The telecast will raise funds to aid Los Angeles wildfire relief efforts and honour the bravery of the first responders who have risked their lives in combating the flames. Lady Gaga announces March release for new album 'Mayhem' The Recording Academy had initially considered postponing the event or airing it as a fundraiser, but ultimately decided to proceed with the show as a platform for both celebration and giving back to the community. The show will still take place with Beyonce leading the nominations with 10 nods. Other artists who have received multiple nominations include Taylor Swift, Charli XCX, Post Malone, Sabrina Carpenter, Kendrick Lamar, and Chappell Roan. Coldplay's India tour Chris Martin and his girlfriend and actor Dakota came to India on January 16 for the Coldplay's musical tour. Chris, along with the members of Coldplay, had concerts lined up in Mumbai and Ahmedabad. Their last show of the Indian leg of Music of the Spheres tour was conducted at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Republic Day. The historic show, attended by 1.3 lakh spectators, was live-streamed on Disney+ Hotstar. Source: with inputs from Hindustan Times

Incarcerated men in the Alabama prison system risked their safety to feed shocking footage of their horrifying living conditions to a pair of documentary filmmakers. The result is “The Alabama Solution,” which premiered this week at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City. Filmmakers Andrew Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman became interested in Alabama prisons in 2019. Jarecki, the filmmaker behind “The Jinx” and “Capturing the Friedmans,” and Kaufman first gained access to the restricted grounds through a visit with a chaplain during a revival meeting held in the prison yards. There men pulled them aside and whispered shocking stories about the reality of life inside: forced labor, drugs, violence, intimidation, retaliation and the undisclosed truths behind many prisoner deaths. The Associated Press has written extensively about the problems in the state’s prison system, including high rates of violence, low staffing, a plummeting parole rate and the use of pandemic funds to build a new supersized prison. This process eventually led them to incarcerated activists Melvin Ray and Robert Earl Council (also known as “Kinetik Justice”) who had for years been trying to expose the horrifying conditions and deep- seated corruption across the system. They helped feed dispatches to the filmmakers with contraband cellphones. “We’re deeply concerned for their safety, and we have been since the first time we met them,” said Kaufman. “They’ve been doing this work for decades and as you see in the film, they’ve been retaliated against in very extreme ways. But there are lawyers who are ready to do wellness checks and visit them and respond to any sort of retaliation that may come.” On Tuesday at the first showing of the film, she had Council on the phone listening in. They put the microphone up to the cellphone so that Council could speak. “We thank you all for listening, for being interested,” Council said. “On behalf of the brothers of Alabama, I thank you all.” Several family members of their incarcerated subjects were also in the audience, including Sandy Ray, the mother of Steven Davis, who died in 2019 at William E. Donaldson Correctional Facility, his face beaten beyond recognition. Prison officials said Davis was killed in self-defense because he didn’t put down his weapons. The prisoners tell a vastly different story. Akshay Kumar reveals most dangerous stunt of career Alelur “Alex” Duran, who spent 12 years in prison in New York, also helped produce the film. Jarecki said they wouldn't have taken on the subject without the expertise of someone who had been incarcerated. “What you’re seeing in this film is going on all over the nation,” Duran said. Also embedded in the story is Alabama’s long history of contracting prisoners to do work at private companies from Burger King to Best Western, an issue that the AP investigated for over two years. The cheap, reliable labor force has generated more than $250 million for the state since 2000 — money garnished from prisoners’ paychecks, the AP wrote in December. Parole numbers have also plummeted in recent years. “We want to show viewers the truth about a system that has been cloaked in secrecy,” Jarecki said. “We hope the film sparks an effort to allow access for journalists and others so the public can have transparency into how incarcerated citizens are treated and how our tax dollars are being spent. We hope to inspire Alabama’s leadership to acknowledge the crisis and to overhaul its prison system and its use of forced labor.” The film will have a theatrical release before it debuts on HBO sometime this year, but the specific dates and details are still being worked out. And while it is in its early days, the impact, Jarecki said, has already been seen, including in a class action labor lawsuit.

Stakeholders of Bangladesh's film industry have called for the establishment of a separate Ministry of Film Affairs to address the challenges and reforms necessary for the development of the sector at the National Film Conference 2025, held at Dhaka University's Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Building on Wednesday. Organized by the Bangladesh Film Students Association (BFSA) under the slogan "Reform film, change the country," the event brought together around 500 participants, including film students, teachers, filmmakers, actors, journalists, and several other stakeholders from across the industry. BFSA President Sadman Shihir emphasized the urgency of the demand, calling on the interim government to establish the ministry within three months. Stakeholders collectively agreed on the formation of the proposed ministry to address bureaucratic complications and ensure better coordination among relevant authorities. 'Bangladeshi and Swedish Baba' Photo Exhibition launched in Chattogram Speakers highlighted the limitations of managing film-related activities under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and called for structural reforms, including the creation of a Film Reform Commission to oversee proposed changes and action plans. More than 18 key demands raised at the conference included reform of the Bangladesh Film Certification Act, restructuring of the Bangladesh Film Development Corporation (BFDC), implementation of digital distribution, e-ticketing, and box office systems, establishment of a National Film Centre, investment in film education and training, revitalization of Gazipur Film City, opening up the import-export of films, formation of an Anti-Piracy Cell, and increased government investment in the industry. Cultural Affairs Adviser Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, who joined as a special guest, echoed the need for a separate ministry, calling on stakeholders to develop a comprehensive reform blueprint through workshops. “The Ministry of Culture is failing to prioritize films. A separate ministry could address these challenges effectively,” he said, urging stakeholders to amplify their demands towards the concerned authorities at the interim government to ensure action. Bangla Academy entitled to work independently: Farooki

Veteran Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar, fondly known as 'Khiladi Kumar' for his penchant for action-packed roles, has reflected on one of the most perilous stunts of his career. The feat, performed for the 1998 film Angaaray, saw him leaping from the seventh floor of one building to the fourth floor of another, separated by a narrow road below. Recalling the nerve-wracking moment during an interview with The Quint while promoting his latest film Sky Force, Akshay shared an amusing yet alarming anecdote involving the film’s director, Mahesh Bhatt. February 2025 South Indian Movie Releases: Top 12 Must-Watch Films “There was a stunt in Angaaray where I jumped from a seven-floor building. In between, there was a road, but only one lane, and there was another building on the other side. So, I had to jump from the seventh to the fourth floor,” Akshay explained. What made the incident even more unforgettable was Mahesh Bhatt’s reaction. The veteran filmmaker, fearing for Akshay’s life, decided to flee the scene before the actor could execute the daring leap. “During that, my director ran away,” Akshay revealed with a chuckle, recalling the palpable tension surrounding the stunt. Akshay Kumar, who has built a reputation for performing his own stunts throughout his illustrious career, has often credited his dedication to pushing boundaries for his success. His thrilling performances have earned him admiration from fans and colleagues alike. Film actress Nipun banned for life from Shilpi Samity While Akshay successfully executed the stunt in Angaaray, the anecdote highlights the risks he has taken to bring authenticity to his roles. His latest venture, Sky Force, further showcases his commitment to delivering high-octane performances. For Akshay, the journey of performing dangerous stunts continues to be a testament to his love for cinema, even if it occasionally leaves his directors in a state of panic. Source: Indian media  

For author Percival Everett, libraries have long been a source of knowledge and discovery and pleasure, even of the forbidden kind. “I remember making friends at age 13 with the librarian at the University of South Carolina, and she used to let me go through the stacks when I wasn't supposed to," Everett, who spent part of his childhood in Columbia, said during a telephone interview Sunday. “One of the wonderful things about libraries is that when you're looking for one book, it's surrounded by other books that may not be connected to it. That's what you get (online) with links, but (in libraries) no one's decided what the links are." Everett's latest honor comes from the country's public libraries. On Sunday, the American Library Association announced that Everett's “James” was this year's winner of the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction, which includes a $5,000 cash award. Kevin Fedarko's “A Walk in the Park: The True Story of a Spectacular Misadventure in the Grand Canyon” was chosen for nonfiction. Everett's acclaimed reworking of Mark Twain's "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" from the perspective of Jim, Huck Finn's enslaved companion, has already received the National Book Award and the Kirkus Prize and is a finalist for a National Book Critics Circle award. “James” has even topped The New York Times fiction hardcover list, a rare feat in recent years for a literary work that wasn’t a major book club pick or movie tie-in. “Percival Everett has written a modern masterpiece, a beautiful and important work that offers a fresh perspective from the eyes of a classic character,” Allison Escoto, chair of the award's selection committee, said in a statement. “Kevin Fedarko’s unforgettable journey through the otherworldly depths of the Grand Canyon shows us the triumphs and pitfalls of exploration and illuminates the many vital lessons we can all learn from our precious natural world.” Read: Rare 1904 Olympic gold medal up for auction Fedarko is a former Time magazine correspondent whose work also has appeared in The New York Times and Esquire. A Pittsburgh native fascinated by distant places, Fedarko has a long history with libraries — Carnegie libraries. He remembers visiting two while growing up, notably one in the suburb of Oakmont near the hairdressing salon his parents ran. He would read biographies of historical figures from George Washington to Daniel Boone, and otherwise think of libraries as “important threads running through his life," windows to a “wider world.” Now a resident of Flagstaff, Arizona, Fedarko says that he relied in part on the library at the nearby Northern Arizona University campus for both “A Walk in the Park” and its predecessor, also about the Grand Canyon, “The Emerald Mile.” “The library has an important and unique collection about the Grand Canyon, and it's the backbone of the kind of history that helps form the framework of both books,” he says. “Neither of them could have been done without the library.” Previous winners of the medals, established in 2012 with a grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, includes Donna Tartt’s “The Goldfinch,” Colson Whitehead’s “The Underground Railroad” and Doris Kearns Goodwin’s “The Bully Pulpit.” This year's finalists besides “James” in the fiction category were Jiaming Tang's “Cinema Love” and Kavin Akbar's ”Martyr!" Read more: Prince Amyn Aga Khan conferred with Municipal Merit Medal Adam Higginbotham's “Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space” and Emily Nussbaum's “Cue the Sun! The Invention of Reality TV" were the nonfiction runners-up. All three fiction nominees were published by Penguin Random House and all three nonfiction finalists by Simon & Schuster.

Rose Byrne plays a mother in the midst of a breakdown in the experiential psychological thriller “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You.” Anticipation was high for the A24 film, which will be released sometime this year. Its premiere Friday at the Sundance Film Festival was easily the hottest ticket in town, with even ticketholders unable to get in. Those who did make it into the Library theater were treated to an intense, visceral, inventive story from filmmaker Mary Bronstein that has quickly become one of the festival’s must-sees. Byrne plays Linda, who is barely hanging on while managing her daughter’s mysterious illness. She’s faced with crisis after crisis, big and small — from the massive, gaping hole in their apartment ceiling that forces them to move to a dingy motel, to an escalating showdown with a parking attendant at a care center. The cracks in her psychological, emotional and physical wellbeing are become too much to bear. “I’d never seen a movie before where a mother is going through a crisis with a child but our energy is not with the child’s struggle, it’s with the mother’s,” Bronstein said at the premiere. “If you’re a caretaker, you shouldn’t be bothering with yourself at all. It should all be about the person you’re taking care of, right? And that is a particular kind of emotional burnout state that I was really interested in exploring.” Byrne and Bronstein went deep in the preparation phase, having long discussions about Linda with the goal of making her as real as possible before the quick, 27-day shoot. Byrne said she was obsessed with figuring out who Linda was before the crisis. The film was in part inspired by Bronstein’s experience with her own daughter, but she didn’t want to elaborate on the specifics. “That’s her story to tell,” Bronstein said. Part of Linda’s story involves her therapist, played by Conan O’Brien, who joked that he didn’t realize he was in a movie. “I’m not looking out for movie scripts or anything. But when I got a call from A24 that they wanted me to read something, I’m not stupid,” O’Brien said. “I showed it to my wife, who is one of the smartest people I know, and she read through it and she said, ‘I didn’t know they made movies like this anymore.’” He was particularly in awe of his director and co-star, saying he felt like a fraud standing beside them. “It was an amazing experience, one of the best experiences of my life, just to be with them and watch them work,” O'Brien said. “I don’t know how (Byrne) did that and not check into a hospital afterwards, because I haven’t seen any actor, man or woman, sustain that level for an entire movie.” Read: AI will rip off artists, Paul McCartney warns “I feel like I have to go to a hospital now, because this was the first time I watched it,” he added. “I’m a mess.” A$AP Rocky also co-stars, as a man Linda meets at the motel, but was not in Park City for the premiere. He is currently on trial, charged with firing a gun at a former friend. The film is full of ambiguity, metaphor and just plain artistic expression that Bronstein hesitated to explain, from the name itself to the hole in the ceiling, which takes on a somewhat supernatural quality. “When we have nothing left to give, we have an emptiness inside of us,” Bronstein said. “And that emptiness is actually not empty: It’s filled with all the darkness and self-hate and doubt and fear and dread and regret and everything. … That to me is what the hole is.” Some of it, she said, she doesn’t even fully understand. The point is the experience, and critics and Sundance audiences are already fully on board. Bronstein, a bit of a cult figure in the film world, made her directorial debut in 2008 at the SXSW festival with “Yeast,” which featured a pre-fame Greta Gerwig and was hailed by by New Yorker critic Richard Brody as a “mumblecore classic.” Read more: The Brutalist honours my family's hardships and loss, says actor Adrien Brody “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” is only her second feature. “This is the first time that anybody else has paid for me to make art,” Bronstein said. “I’m proud to say that this is the film that came directly from my head to the screen.”

Centuries-old stone Buddha statues and precious jewelries repatriated by the Dutch government to its former colony are on display at Indonesia's National Museum, providing a glimpse into the country's rich heritage that the government had struggled to retrieve. The collection is part of more than 800 artifacts that were returned under a Repatriation Agreement signed in 2022 between Indonesia and the Netherlands, said Gunawan, the museum's head of cultural heritage. The objects are not just those looted in conflict, but also seized by scientists and missionaries or smuggled by mercenaries during the four centuries of colonial rule. “I was so amazed that we have all of these artifacts,” said Shaloom Azura, a visitor to the museum in Jakarta. She hoped other historical objects can be repatriated too, "so we don’t have to go to the Netherlands just to see our own cultural heritage.” The agreement to return cultural objects was inspired by the new era of global restitution and repatriation efforts. In 2021, France said it was returning statues, royal thrones and sacred altars taken from the West African nation of Benin. Belgium returned a gold-capped tooth belonging to the slain Congolese independence hero Patrice Lumumba. Cambodia in 2023 welcomed the return of priceless stolen artifacts that had been seized during periods of war and instability. Many of the items returned so far have come from the United States. And the Berlin museum authority said it would return h undreds of human skulls from the former German colony of East Africa. The Dutch government announced the same year the return of the Indonesian treasures and looted artifacts from Sri Lanka. Only a few objects made it back before a deal was struck The repatriation “is not something out of the blue” but followed a lengthy process, said I Gusti Agung Wesaka Puja, former Indonesian ambassador to the Netherlands who also headed the government's team tasked to recover the objects. He said negotiations with the Dutch government have been ongoing since Indonesia’s independence in August 1945, but it was only in July 2022 that Indonesia formally requested the return of its cultural objects with a list of specific items. “This repatriation is important for us to reconstruct history that may be lost or obscured or manipulated,” Puja said. “And we can fill the gap of the historical vacuum that has existed so far.” The Dutch government in 1978 returned the famous 13th-century statue of princess Pradnya Paramita from the Javanese Singhasari Kingdom. During the same visit to Indonesia, then-Queen Juliana also returned a saddle and spear seized from Prince Diponegoro, a Javanese nobleman considered a national hero for his struggle against colonial rule in the 19th century. The prince's scepter was returned in 2015. In 2020, Dutch King Willem-Alexander handed over Diponegoro's gold-plated kris dagger in his first state visit to Indonesia. Also pending is the return of the “Java Man” — the first known example of homo erectus that was collected by Dutch paleoanthropologist Eugene Dubois in the 19th century. Read: Emilia Pérez leads Oscar nominations with 13 “The importance of the most recent repatriation is knowledge creation, that will give society a more complete knowledge of our past history,” said Puja. He said the recent repatriation efforts seem to also be motivated by practical considerations, such as when the Delf city administration sent back 1,500 objects in 2019. They were part of the bankrupted Nusantara Museum collection. Focus on protection of repatriated artifacts However, Marc Gerritsen, the Dutch ambassador to Indonesia, said the repatriation would only focus on cultural objects that are requested, rather than emptying out European museums. “There is a huge interest from the Dutch public in Indonesian history and Indonesian culture, so we do know that if Dutch museums put these objects on display, there will be an interest,” Gerritsen said, “But again, the heart of the matter is that the colonial collections artifacts that were stolen during the colonial period are returned on the basis of this process that was established.” He said the Netherlands, the largest investor from the European Union in Indonesia, has a unique relationship with Southeast Asia’s biggest economy. “Of course, we have elements of which we are not proud, but we are really grateful for the fact that Indonesia is so much attached to preserving that history,” Gerritsen said. To support its former colony in safeguarding its repatriated cultural heritage, the Dutch government has offered to assist in improving museum storage conditions and staff expertise. Some researchers have criticized Indonesia, the world’s largest archipelago nation of 17,000 islands, for a lack of legal framework to protect its rich cultural heritage and natural conservation. At least 11 cases of museum thefts were reported between 2010 and 2020, according to a 2023 report by Rucitarahma Ristiawan, a lecturer of cultural science at Gajah Mada University, and two other researchers. Read more: Meagan Good says goodbye to 'Harlem,' hello to her future with Jonathan Majors In 2023, dozens of ships dredged the bottom of the Batanghari River in Jambi province, and the crews looted archaeological objects including porcelain, coins, metal and gold artifacts, which are believed to have been sold abroad, the report said. “I think there is a lot to be reviewed from our historical works that are still kept in other countries,” said Frengky Simanjuntak, who marveled at the Repatriation Exhibition at the National Museum, on display since October. “So it’s not just about bringing them back home, but how to protect them."

Meagan Good is in a season of harvest, reaping rewards from the hard work she’s sowed throughout her three-decade career. For the “Harlem” star, gratitude is her mantra. “As crazy as, not even just this last year, the last few years have been for me, this is the happiest I’ve been in a long time. And it’s pretty wonderful,” said Good last week with tears welling in her eyes, emotions heightened as she thought of her relationship with Jonathan Majors, her time on “Harlem” and the Los Angeles wildfires.“I’m just thankful for the journey and I’m thankful to be loved.” Much of that love has been provided by embattled actor Jonathan Majors, and the fluctuating journey includes their scrutinized relationship, leading Tyler Perry’s “Divorce in the Black” film and starring in the third and final season of “Harlem,” premiering Thursday on Prime Video. “It’s incredible that the people who have supported us and have watched the show have waited on us like ‘Game of Thrones,’” said Good, who plays Camille, a Columbia University professor of sex and love. “It’s really cool to be a part of something so amazing that people love.” The resilience of ‘Harlem’ “Harlem” has been a survivor, emerging from the coronavirus pandemic and the Hollywood actors and writers strikes. The Tracy Oliver dramedy follows four women in their 30s (Good, Grace Byers, Jerrie Johnson and Shoniqua Shandai) living in Manhattan’s historic Black neighborhood as they navigate love, friendships and careers. While the series didn’t reach the acclaim of Issa Rae’s “Insecure,” it earned a staunch fan base. “If you really think about shows about New York, it’s almost like purposefully excluding Black people ... so when we reflect on shows like ‘Friends’ or even ‘Sex and The City,’ I probably can count on one hand how many Black people I’ve seen in those shows. But in New York, it’s unavoidable because Black people have created the culture here, specifically in Harlem,” said Johnson, who plays Tye, a queer dating app designer for LBGTQ+ people of color. “We loved our ‘Living Single,’ and that’s why we loved it because we love seeing these women meeting in this small little apartment to commune with each other ... that’s why we have such a cult following because there was a hole in the market that Tracy brilliantly filled.” Good, 43, said the relationship she shares with her cast, crew and streaming platform is one she hadn’t experienced. “This definitely has been the best professional experience I’ve had in my entire career in terms of emotionally, mentally, professionally, spiritually.” It’s an emphatic declaration by the former child star whose first major film appearance came in Ice Cube’s 1995 classic “Friday,” shined in “Eve’s Bayou” and became a household name to kids on Nickelodeon’s “Cousin Skeeter” series. Good on her relationship with Jonathan Majors and the cost of fame Adored for beauty throughout her relatively drama-free career, many fans questioned her relationship with Majors, the rapidly rising star of “Creed III” and “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.” It began toward the end of 2023 following the 35-year-old’s arrest for allegations of escalating incidents of physical and verbal abuse toward ex-girlfriend Grace Jabbari. But the “Think Like a Man” and “Shazam! Fury of the Gods” actor said her Christian faith and life lessons prepared her for the backlash. “I think about being in my 20s and you see the Media Take Outs and it’s a hundred nice things and there’s like one or two bad things. And I would just internalize it and I would cry and it would hurt my feelings so much,” said Good, who also cited criticism from fellow Christians about her attire and film choices, false skin-bleaching allegations, and the end of her near decade-long marriage with pastor and Hollywood executive DeVon Franklin as perseverance-builders. “I had been praying for maybe like five or six years, ’Lord, please deliver me from what people think about me. … But I will say the part of it that is still hard for me is to see them drag people I love.” Read: Your complete guide to the 2025 Sundance Film Festival Majors was convicted of one misdemeanor assault charge and a harassment violation. He avoided jail time but was ordered to complete a yearlong counseling program. He also settled a civil suit with Jabbari, but the ordeal nearly extinguished his career. Good, who was by Majors’ side at court dates and became in engaged to him in November, is optimistic his career will regenerate. (Ironically, Good starred in 50 Cent’s “21 Questions” hit music video in which he proposes scenarios to a potential girlfriend to see if she’d stand by him, including incarceration.) “The idea that people are like, ’Well, she got paid,” said Good, rolling her eyes at suggestions it’s a publicity stunt — “it could be hurtful, but I just don’t care anymore. And that’s a good feeling.” What’s next for Good Good, who aspires to star in an action film, has been open about her desire to have children and is focusing on her future with Majors, including launching a health and wellness brand together. Admirers and industry colleagues believe Good deserves much more recognition. “People have tried to pigeonhole her in a certain area that now she’s breaking free. I always tell her that this is her phoenix moment ... the ashes actually being a metaphor for people’s expectations of her,” said Johnson. “About 75% of my favorite movies that shaped my upbringing have Meagan Good in them ... I’ve learned so much about transitioning into womanhood and adulthood through the characters that she’s played.” Good, however, stresses her focus is not on recognition or major awards, but reaching the hearts of people. She circles back to gratitude for a career that has defied Hollywood odds. “To have any appreciation is a gift,” said Good. “I feel like my best is yet to come. And I feel like even now, I’m kind of just getting started.”