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Emma Corrin on ‘Deadpool 3’ Villain Role, Being in Awe of Marvel: “It’s a Phenomenon”

Emma Corrin is opening up about their upcoming role as the villain in Deadpool 3.

In an interview with Empire Magazine, Corrin, who broke out on The Crown and goes by they/them pronouns, shared they were “really excited to play a villain” — however, which villain still remains a secret.

“I haven’t done that, and it’s an itch I want to scratch,” Corrin said. Director Shawn Levy approached the actor after seeing them onstage in a production of Virginia Woolf’s Orlando. “I’d heard about the project but, classic Marvel, they couldn’t tell me anything about it,” they continued. “Absolutely nothing. Zilch. So, I met him being like, ‘I don’t know what this is about.’”

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The actor explained that stepping into the Marvel universe was new for them in more ways than one since they weren’t very familiar with the heroes.

“I’ve watched Spider-Man and Black Panther. I was like, ‘Look, you’re gonna have to debrief me into this,’” they continued. “It’s such an intricate world. There’s so much to it. It’s an absolute mind-fuck. All the language and the Easter eggs, and this person is related to that person who did this, and this person came back and this person’s dead… it’s amazing.”

Corrin has stepped up to the plate, however, studying the character, as well as other Marvel stalwarts.

“I really understand why it means as much as it does to so many people,” they said. “It’s a phenomenon, and I feel really lucky to be part of it, especially Deadpool because I love the fact that it’s self-aware, and critical of its own inner workings.”

Deadpool 3 sees the return of Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine, who will be donning his famous yellow suit once again. The film had begun production in London before the actors strike began July 14 but has since been put on hold. Ryan Reynolds stars as the foul-mouthed antihero, Jennifer Garner plays Elektra after a nearly 20-year hiatus and Succession star Matthew Macfadyen joins the film in an unknown role.

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Eugenia Cooney’s ‘thin’ figure sparks worry amid eating disorder: ‘Knocking on death’s door’

Fans are worried for YouTuber Eugenia Cooney after a recent TikTok video posted to her social media page.

In the clip, which has amassed more than 16.8 million views since it was posted on July 21, shows Cooney wearing a hot pink outfit from head to toe, inspired by the film “Barbie.”

“Hiiii im Barbie,” wrote Cooney, who often posts fashion content on her YouTube channel with more than 2.13 million subscribers, in the caption of the TikTok post.

However, some fans seemed to be alarmed by her extremely thin appearance, which they expressed in the comments section.

“Wishing you health and happiness,” one person wrote.

Another agreed, typing, “Wishing you good health hun hope your able to feel strong and healthy… your energy is beautiful.”

The clip was also reposted by internet personality Oli London on the platform X, formerly known as Twitter, in which he noted her “worryingly thin figure.”

Users flooded the comments with concern.

Some fans worried about Eugenia Cooney after seeing a new TikTok video. Tiktok / eugeniaxxcooney

Eugenia Cooney is a YouTuber with more than 2 million subscribers. Tiktok / eugeniaxxcooney

“This is extremely concerning,” one user wrote in response to London’s repost. “She’s been like this for a long time, I’m surprised thus far she hasn’t received help for her problems.”

“As a lifelong anorexic that’s currently in recovery, I am horrified that this is being promoted on her social media,” another claimed. “This imagery is not healthy for any young women to view. It’s very triggering.”

“I am surprised she has the energy to stand, let alone walk,” an X user wrote in response to London. “I hope she finds peace and help for her anorexia.”

“She is literally knocking on death’s door,” a second X user typed. “This is exceptionally sad.”

The Post reached out to Cooney for comment.

In 2019, Cooney starred in a documentary on YouTuber Shane Dawson’s channel after she had taken some time away from the internet to focus on her health.

In the video, she acknowledged that she had an eating disorder and went to rehab, Metro reported.

In 2019, she starred in a documentary on Shane Dawson’s channel. Tiktok / eugeniaxxcooney

As a lifelong anorexic that’s currently in recovery, I am horrified that this is being promoted on her social media This imagery is not healthy for any young women to view. It’s very triggering

— Mrs Pink (@IAmMrsPink) July 31, 2023

She is literally knocking on death’s door. This is exceptionally sad.

— Viking Queen (@MuadDib420) July 31, 2023

Previously, in 2016, some fans begged the YouTube star to seek help for what appeared to be an eating disorder.

A petition, which has since been deleted, was started on Change.org by some viewers who called for her to be banned from YouTube, as her thinness was “triggering to her fan base,” according to a report from Yahoo! Beauty at the time.

“She may not be intentionally influencing her viewers, but showing more than 50% of her body in her videos and pictures [is] not helping girls with Anorexia or any eating disorder,” the petition read.

She claimed that she went to rehab in 2019. Tiktok / eugeniaxxcooney

Cooney opened up about her battle in the video. Tiktok / eugeniaxxcooney

In 2019, she spoke to PAPER Magazine about her journey.

“I was never trying to cause any harm to anyone or asking them to lose weight,” Cooney told the outlet, as she pointed out that she never spoke about her weight. “But you still see people judging you and not realizing that you don’t have any bad intentions.”

She also added that when people are battling with an eating disorder or mental illness, it’s “not really something” that they choose to have.

“It would be great if the internet just tried to be positive to people,” Cooney said. “If they’re concerned, even if the person may not listen immediately, showing concern in a kinder way would be way better.”

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Face of 45,000-year-old woman reconstructed 70 years after skull found

An international team of researchers has approximated the face of a woman whose 45,000-year-old remains were discovered more than 70 years ago.

The severed skull of the Zlatý kůň woman — the oldest modern human to be genetically sequenced — was found buried in a cave system in the Czech Republic in 1950.

Scientists created the digital face using data from the 2018 CT scans of her reconstructed skull, according to an online paper published last month.

One image shows a woman with dark, curled hair, light brown skin, and brown eyes set on a strong face with proportionally wide features.

Interesting Engineering noted that the woman’s nine-piece skull is under the care of the Department of Anthropology of the National Museum in Prague, and the researchers didn’t have access to the bones for their facial experiment.

The severed skull of the Zlatý kůň woman — the oldest modern human to be genetically sequenced — was found buried in a cave system in the Czech Republic in 1950.Cicero Moraes

Scientists created the digital face using data from the 2018 CT scans of her reconstructed skull.Cicero Moraes

The study authors reported the skull is missing part of the nasal bone, part of the maxilla, the left orbit, and the left part of the frontal bone.

“An interesting piece of information about the skull is that it was gnawed by an animal after her death,” co-author Cícero Moraes, a Brazilian designer, told Live Science. “This animal could have been a wolf or a hyena ([both were] present in the fauna at that time).”

Nodding to her Neanderthal ancestry, Moraes noted the woman’s “robust” jaw and large brain cavity.

“We looked for elements that could compose the visual structure of the face only at a speculative level since no data was provided on what would be the color of the skin, hair and eyes,” Moraes said.

He added: “Once we had the basic face, we generated more objective and scientific images, without coloring (in grayscale), with eyes closed and without hair. Later, we created a speculative version with pigmented skin, open eyes, fur and hair.”

The woman’s nine-piece skull is under the care of the Department of Anthropology of the National Museum in Prague, and the researchers didn’t have access to the bones for their facial experiment.Cicero Moraes

Moraes and his team used a similar technique to create a 3D approximation of King Tut’s face.

Those findings were reported in May.

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I’m a former inmate — my jail hacks will change your life

A TikToker who claimed to serve time behind bars is now serving up “jail hacks” that can be used in the outside world.

Tina Tsakonas is a recovering drug addict who was in and out of jail for many years, she said.

She’s now seven years sober and working as a bartender and content creator, amassing 1.3 million TikTok followers.

But as she revealed in her latest viral video, Tsakonas still swears by four “jail hacks” that she still uses.

She starts the 13-second clip by eating a yellow mustard packet, claiming it helps heartburn.

Then Tsakonas rubs hair conditioner on her skin and shirt in place of perfume.

“Deodorant for razor burn,” Tsakonas suggests next, pointing to her bikini line.

And, finally, Tsakonas suggests using toothpaste — and a toothbrush — to clean your shoes.

Tsakonas swore by yellow mustard to deal with heartburn. Tiktok / @tinassee

“Going viral the first time was so cool,” Tsakonas told The Post on Tuesday about the success of her hacks video.

“I’m very grateful to be clean, alive, and get to share my experience, strength, and hope. What matters the most to me is being able to help people,” she continued.

Tsakonas added: “It’s so much more than going viral. We are able to change and save lives.”

Some of Tsakonas’ previous videos showed how she made her own mascara and laundry detergent, as well as how she “decorated” her jail cell.

Tsakonas’ recent jail hacks video amassed more than 4.1 million views, as well as nearly 1,000 comments from people stunned by her advice — specifically about the mustard shocker.

She has used hair conditioner as perfume. Tiktok / @tinassee

Tsakonas is now seven years sober. Tiktok / @tinassee

“Not my preggo self literally climbing out of bed at 11 pm to try the mustard hack,” one woman wrote.

“The mustard one WORKS. I’ve lived by this,” someone else backed Tsakonas up.

Another claimed: “Hahaha my friend in prison told me about the mustard! i didnt believe him lol.”

“Bro mustard is the last thing I would have thought for heart burn,” a third commented.

Meanwhile, another declared: “DEODORANT FOR RAZOR BURN HAS BEEN MY BEST KEPT SECRET OF MY ENTIRE LIFE

“I’ve been doing that deodorant trick for forever! also helps with chaffing,” another advised.

Others were wowed by the toothpaste hack.

“We use toothpaste on my daughter’s cheer shoes for competition day so they are white and shiny!!” offered one fan.

TikTok viewers agreed with Tsakonas that using toothpaste to clean shoes is effective. Tiktok / @tinassee

One more user even recommended another use for it.

“I still clean my shoes with toothpaste and use toothpaste to get rid of my pimples,” they wrote. “I learned it when I was in a long term youth development center.”

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‘Splash’ star Daryl Hannah’s bizarre Barbie hoax fools media outlets

No Ken do.

“Splash” star Daryl Hannah, 62, claimed in a YouTube video Tuesday that Mattel chose her to announce its “groundbreaking commitment to stop using plastic by 2030.”

However, the Barbie manufacturer is not making this promise. A company spokesperson told The Post on Tuesday: “This is a hoax and has nothing to do with Mattel or any of its products.”

The Post has contacted Hannah for comment.

The eco-activist also announced a fictional line of MyCelia EcoWarrior Barbies, which included dolls inspired by fellow activists Greta Thunberg, Julia Butterfly Hill, Nemonte Nenquimo, Phoebe Plummer, and even Hannah herself.

The fake line of dolls included Barbies modeled after popular activists.Youtube / MyCelia Barbie

These fictional dolls would be produced using mushrooms and other organic materials, per a fake commercial.

“Pussy Riot masks sold separately,” the video claimed, referring to the Moscow-based band imprisoned in 2012 for protesting against Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Hannah’s announcement was accompanied by a realistic promotional campaign that launched early Tuesday, including press releases and fake, yet seemingly authentic Mattel websites, as well as MyCelia Barbie accounts across major social media platforms.

Daryl Hannah claimed the fake EcoWarrior Barbie would be made with compostable materials. Youtube / MyCelia Barbie

The Washington Times even published an article about the announcement — only to later release an editor’s note revealing it was bamboozled by the hoax.

“I am honored to join forces with Mattel in their visionary efforts to create a better world through play,” Hannah even told People in a since-removed article.

The video was uploaded to MyCelia Barbie’s YouTube channel, which was presumably created to make the announcement seem real. Youtube / MyCelia Barbie

“Barbie has changed in many ways since I was a girl, but under the surface, she’s still toxic. Now, when she’s done being used, instead of persisting forever as a poison Barbie will be able to return to the earth, just like all living things. I am thrilled to be a part of this exciting journey,” she added.

On Tuesday evening, the “Kill Bill” actress posted a bizarre video message from two unidentified members of the “Barbie Liberation Organization” to her Instagram.

“This is a message for Mattel and every other company: Stop making plastic crap,” two young voices said into a microphone as Hannah blurred their faces.

Hannah continued to post about the fake announcement into Tuesday night. MyCelia Barbie

“You are ruining our future. Stop pink washing your environmental crimes,” the people added.

“I love animals. I love the planet,” one voice continued. “Don’t take them from us. I think adults should just stop messing with our future.”

The youngsters concluded in unison: “The Barbie Liberation Organization has spoken.”

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My mom has dementia — she’s thrilled to ‘meet’ her grandkids every day

Like any other grandparent, Josie Hunt excitedly gives her grandchildren a loving hug when she sees them.

The sad difference is that the 65-year-old Australian woman suffers from an alcohol-induced form of dementia called Korsakoff syndrome — and thinks she’s meeting the children for the first time each time they visit.

“It’s a bittersweet moment when she sees the kids,” her 35-year-old daughter, Jade Mead, told SWNS.

Mead, a fitness instructor from Perth, said when she takes her children, Marli, 3, and Lottie, 3 months, to see Hunt, she always replies: “Jade, you didn’t tell me you had children.”

Mead added that she doesn’t remember her sister, Hayley Hunt, 41, has a baby either.

Josie Hunt with her granddaughter Lottie.Jade Mead / SWNS

Her condition means she forgets she has grandchildren.Jade Mead / SWNS

Hunt with her daughter, Jade Mead, 35.Jade Mead / SWNS

Mead believes her mother developed Korsakoff syndrome after drinking alcohol following a gastric sleeve operation in February 2020.

Her condition deteriorated quickly, Mead said, and she was officially diagnosed with the memory disorder in October 2020.

“I believe it stemmed from the gastric sleeve operation,” the mom of two explained.

“Her health started declining from there, [and] she looked so frail,” Mead continued. “She had been drinking alcohol, which we didn’t know about, and you shouldn’t do that.”

Mead has two children: Marli, 3, and Lottie, 3 months.Jade Mead / SWNS

Mead said Hunt’s reaction is bittersweet when the children visit.Jade Mead / SWNS

Korsakoff syndrome results from vitamin B1 deficiency and is associated with alcoholism.

It damages nerve cells and supporting cells in the brain and spinal cord, as well as the part of the brain involved with memory, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

Mead said she’s been told her mom shouldn’t decline further — at least for a while.

“My 3-year-old doesn’t ask any questions, but I just tell her, ‘Nanny forgets,’” she shared. “She’s always been very loving.”

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X, formerly Twitter, now lets paid users hide their checkmarks

Social media company X, formerly Twitter, now lets paid users hide their verification checkmarks. The Elon Musk-owned company introduced paid verification last year with the Twitter Blue relaunch. The service was renamed to XBlue during the ongoing rebranding exercise.

The company has updated the help page for paid subscriptions, which is titled ‘About Twitter Blue’, saying that even if you hide the checkmark it might be visible in some places. The company didn’t give any further details about those placeholders.

“As a subscriber, you can choose to hide your checkmark on your account. The check mark will be hidden on your profile and posts. The checkmark may still appear in some places and some features could still reveal you have an active subscription. Some features may not be available while your checkmark is hidden. We will continue to evolve this feature to make it better for you,” the page reads.

This will supposedly help users benefit from subscription features without showing that they are a verified account. The option to hide the checkmark will show up in the “Profile customization” section of account settings.

Image Credits: X/Twitter

In March, the app reverse engineer, Alessandro Paluzzi noted that Twitter is working on a feature to hide checkmarks with ID verification.

#Twitter keeps working on the ability to control everything related to account verification and identity by adding the option to show or hide your blue checkmark on your profile pic.twitter.com/6uTjBON21N

— Alessandro Paluzzi (@alex193a) March 21, 2023

There was a lot of uproar about paid verification as it was hard to distinguish between legacy verified accounts of notable people and users who had paid for the checkmark.

In April, Twitter removed legacy checkmarks, but later it reinstated the checkmark for top accounts — even if they didn’t pay for it.

Since the relaunch, the company has introduced features like a 10,000-character limit for posts, a 3-hour-long video upload limit, fewer ads on the timeline, and most recently ad revenue sharing for subscribed users in order to incentivize people to post more on the platform. In May, the platform also enabled features like encrypted DMs for verified users.

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Ola’s Aggarwal sets eyes on AI, semiconductor design

Indian entrepreneur Bhavish Aggarwal, co-founder of ride-hailing firm Ola and electric vehicle startup Ola Electric, is venturing into fresh terrain as he navigates his businesses towards initial public offerings.

He has set up an AI startup that seeks to develop a large language model and is currently scouting two U.S.-headquartered AI startups for a potential acquisition, people familiar with the matter said. Aggarwal is also in talks to raise over $50 million for the new AI venture, the people said.

The entrepreneur, who founded Ola over a decade ago, has also floated the idea of setting up a semiconductor design firm, one person said, requesting anonymity as the details are not public. It’s unclear whether the semiconductor design firm will be part of the same AI venture.

A spokesperson for Aggarwal declined to comment Monday.

AI and semiconductor designing are the latest of a long-list of areas that Aggarwal has explored in the past decade. Ola leads the Indian ride-hailing market whereas Ola Electric has assumed a leader position in India’s electric scooter market with nearly 250,000 vehicles sold in the past year and a half, according to Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles.

He told Bloomberg last month that Ola had turned profitable whereas Ola Electric had “grown and matured faster” than initial plans, prompting him to advance the timeline for the EV startup’s initial public offering.

The recent surge in AI interest has prompted a boost to the tech economy, delivering a rally in tech stocks and generating a flurry of startup activity. OpenAI’s unveiling of ChatGPT has been a key trigger for the enthusiasm, leading investors to deploy over $20 billion into AI startups in the past quarters. However, India, despite being one of the most significant startup ecosystems, appears to be lagging in this race.

“Normally science enables technologies. AI technology will enable significant acceleration of scientific progress. Science today is still experimental, empirical and relies on the time and creativity of the scientist,” he tweeted last week. “AI will give the scientist significant creative and intelligence leverage. Can we in India become a leading science ecosystem by adopting AI across scientific domains?”

On the other hand, Aggarwal’s assertive expansion into new and often unrelated sectors and their subsequent corporate structures have previously rattled some of his investors. Many backers of Ola, for instance, have expressed concerns about not getting a stake in Ola Electric, which spun out of the ride-hailing firm, people familiar with the matter said.

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Playtika acquires Youda Games for up to $165M

Missed the GamesBeat Summit excitement? Don’t worry! Tune in now to catch all of the live and virtual sessions here.

Playtika, a social casino and casual mobile games pioneer, has agreed to pay $89.4 million to $165 million to acquire Azerion‘s Youda Games portfolio of games.

The acquisition ranges in price from an initial cash consideration of $89.4 million as well as an earnout based on performance that could take the total price up to $165 million, or 150 million euros.

“The acquisition of Youda Games’ card game portfolio, with its strong IP, is in line with Playtika’s strategic incremental growth approach of leveraging our unrivaled LiveOps expertise and proprietary technology stack to optimize and scale games, strengthening our market position,” said Craig Abrahams, president and CFO of Playtika, in a statement. “We believe this acquisition will be accretive to our financial performance and is part of our strategy to acquire proven franchises where we can add value.”

Azerion Group is one of Europe’s largest digital advertising and entertainment media platforms. With the deal, Playtika will pick up titles such as the social card themed game Governor of Poker 3.

Playtika’s core services

“Over the past few years, we have transformed our business by scaling our digital advertising capabilities, developing our strategic portfolio of partner-led content and extending the presence and reach of our in-market commercial teams,” said Azerion Group’s chief revenue officer Sebastiaan Moesman, in a statement. “As a result of this dynamic shift towards our digital advertising platform, social card games have become less strategic for Azerion, whilst remaining an attractive investment opportunity for an industry partner such as Playtika. This divestment will further simplify our business and help us to continue investing in and delivering on our growth ambitions.”

The transaction is currently expected to complete by the end of the third quarter 2023 subject to closing conditions. Amsterdam-based Azerion will provide further information relating to the transaction alongside its interim financial results for Q2 and H1 2023.

Playtika, based in Herzliya, Israel, was founded in 2010. Its foundation is in free-to-play social games on social networks and mobile devices.

GamesBeat’s creed when covering the game industry is “where passion meets business.” What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you — not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings.

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Rapyd acquires a piece of PayU from Prosus for $610M to scale its fintech-as-a-service platform

Rapyd, the fintech-as-a-service startup that provides APIs to enable payments, card issuing, digital wallet and other financial services to companies like Uber and Ikea, is taking a significant step forward in its growth with a big acquisition: it is paying $610 million to acquire a giant piece of PayU — the payments group of internet giant Prosus that focuses on emerging markets.

While full financial terms of the deal are not being disclosed, Arik Shtilman, Rapyd’s CEO and co-founder, told TechCrunch that his company is “in [the] final stages of closing a new financing round of $700 million,” which points to how the deal will be financed. He also confirmed that Prosus does not become a shareholder with this acquisition.

Rapyd is currently valued at $8.75 billion and has raised more than $806 million, with its current investors including the likes of Fidelity, Dragoneer, General Catalyst and Target Global, as well fintech giant Stripe.

PayU’s operations span some 50 countries, and Prosus is not selling all of these: it is selling what it calls the “Global Payment Organisation” (GPO) and will continue to hold on to PayU’s operations in India, Turkey and Southeast Asia, arguably the three biggest regions for the business.

The deal underscores both ambitions for Rapyd — with roots in Israel but now headquartered in London — to build out more scale and reach globally for its wider payments operations en route to an IPO, with its fuller customer list now including Meta, Netflix, Adidas, Inditex (owner of Zara) and some 100 other major enterprise businesses.

“With the acquisition PayU GPO, Rapyd will now have 41 licensed or regulated countries we are operating from,” Shtilman said, adding that one important element of the deal is that it enhances Rapyd’s ability to offer a broader range of card acquiring capabilities across Latin America and parts of Europe which complements the over 1,200 local payment methods we can offer our customers globally.

On the other side, it also points to Prosus’ efforts to streamline its operations and to cut out assets that are dragging it down.

In quarterly results reported in June, Prosus said it made $903 million in consolidated revenues from its payments business, with India profitable and driving the growth rate of the overall segment. But it also said that the GPO business contributed to overall trading losses of $83 million. (Prosus’ wider business, which was founded originally as part of South African conglomerate Naspers and also has significant stakes in companies like Tencent, also faced issues due to problems in other operations such as BYJU’s).

The deal must still go through regulatory clearance, Rapyd said, but Shtilman added that if it does, it will stand as the largest deal so far in 2023, with the fundraise to finance it accounting for 3% of all fintech fundraising for the year.

It will also provide more fuel to Rapyd for its next steps. IPO plans are so far not specific. “Timing will be dictated by a range of factors,” Shtilman said. “Like any other company that is weighing the benefits of going public, we are looking at multiple factors including market conditions, desire of investors, and the ability to fund a specific set of future initiatives for global expansion.”

At a time when privately-backed fintechs, as well as those trading on the public markets, continue to face a lot of negative pressure amid a wider downturn in technology finance, Rapyd plans to take advantage of that and make more acquisitions, Shtilman said.

Ironically, that was also the strategy for PayU over the years, acquiring businesses in Turkey, Latin America, India, and more, as well as taking stakes in a number of other fintech businesses. Some of those plans did not pan out as it hoped: a $4.7 billion acquisition of BillDesk abruptly got cancelled in October 2022, even after meeting regulatory approvals.

“PayU has built and scaled its GPO business successfully over a number of years. It is important to us that a company with a track record like Rapyd will take the business to the next level, expanding the GPO solutions to meet the evolving needs of the dynamic fintech landscape globally,” said Laurent le Moal, PayU’s CEO, in a statement. “I wish Rapyd every success as it continues to build its global payments platform.”

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