Tony Gilroy and Genevieve O’Reilly on the set of "Andor." (Photo by Des Willie /Lucasfilm)
As outrage over ICE raids flared in Minneapolis and elsewhere last month, "Andor," the "Star Wars" drama centered on rebellion against authoritarian power, seeped into the real-world protests. Demonstrators began carrying signs bearing lines like “I Have Friends Everywhere” and “Rebellions Are Built on Hope,” as slogans from the acclaimed television series rippled through crowds and across social media.
That symbolism has not been lost on series creator Tony Gilroy, who was finishing work on an upcoming film as the anger intensified following the killings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good. To Gilroy, who co-wrote “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” before conjuring an Emmy-nominated prequel around Cassian Andor, the “Andor”-related wave reflects the power of storytelling, and how people use fiction to navigate these unsettling times.
In an interview with Status this week about the series’ resonance with Donald Trump in the White House, Gilroy spoke plainly, choosing not to mince words. He said…
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In this week’s episode: We discuss how Jeff Bezos left The WaPo twisting in the wind, ignoring pleas from his staffers as he slashed a third of the storied newsroom—all while cozying up to Pete Hegseth. Plus, Bari Weiss stands by her new wellness contributor Peter Attia, even as DOJ-released documents expose his close ties to Jeffrey Epstein. And Netflix boss Ted Sarandos gets dragged into the MAGA culture wars on Capitol Hill, while Donald Trump unleashes a sexist attack on CNN’s Kaitlan Collins.
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A television camera inside of Levi's Stadium ahead of Super Bowl LX. (Photo by Don Juan Moore/Getty Images)
Winning the Super Bowl of Ads: Because there’s not much premiering at the box office this week, let’s pause to consider Super Bowl ads, as much a part of the experience as the game itself in the NFL’s annual holiday celebrating television, marketing and gluttony.
Although instant analysis has become the click-friendly norm, the metrics used to judge the ads in consumer surveys don’t really tell you much about their effectiveness, which, after all, is why companies spend millions producing them and $8 million or more this year to buy 30 seconds of time.
Unscientific polls notwithstanding, advertising experts say that…
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