Maria is away this week so you get me covering for her in this space which should give you some insight about my algorithm and you know who is always showing up in all my feeds, no matter what time of year but especially THIS time of year? Mimi, obviously. Four days ago was the official start of Mimi season, aka festive season, aka the gateway to her immortality. 

 

Speaking of immortality, Mimi got a wax figure at Madame Tussaud's. The likeness is uncanny. If Mimi hadn't moved, it would be impossible to tell them apart.

@mariahcarey

My new bestie! @MadameTussaudsUSA

♬ original sound - Mariah Carey

You know the grinchiest thing that could ever happen during Mimi season? Everyone knows, she talks about it all the time, it’s her kryptonite: overhead lighting!

@mariahcarey

Moments! #bts #itstime

♬ original sound - Mariah Carey
 

Mimi will be taking over all our timelines in the weeks to come. Meanwhile, Wicked has been the timeline for the whole year – and they’ve dialed that up to yet another level of onslaught now that the cast is on the ground on carpets and doing the junkets. Sarah just posted about the premiere in Australia and how much she enjoyed Jonathan Bailey’s “louche” look. What I enjoy about him the most is that the more famous he becomes, the more fun he seems to have doing press. We saw it with Fellow Travelers last year, we’re seeing it again now. Whoever decided to pair him with Jeff Goldblum for some of these interviews is brilliant. I need ten minutes of Jonathan teaching Jeff how to use queer terminology. 

 

Gen Z is coming out hard for Wicked. One of Gen Z’s biggest stars, Billie Eilish, was in Atlanta this weekend doing double duty. She played two shows on her Hit Me Hard and Soft tour there and also, yesterday, held a conference called Overheated alongside her mother, Maggie Baird, to raise awareness about climate change. Also, Georgia is a battleground state and with 48 hours to go until the US election (as of yesterday), Billie also took a moment during the show to encourage her fans to vote. 

@thedemocrats

this is your sign to vote!

♬ original sound - The Democrats
 

You know who was junketing this weekend? Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. Their studio, Artists Equity, produced the film Small Things Like These, starring Cillian Murphy. 

And for the first time since, you know, Ben talked about Jennifer Lopez. He was asked about Unstoppable, which he and Matt also produced, and the film is opening soon. His remarks are strictly about her performance of course but it’s enough to get the headline. 

 

Can we go back to Cillian though? Is there a filter on his camera? Or is he still wearing his Oscar glow? The skin is skinning! Oh and by the way, here’s my new favourite (from an old interview) thing about him – his position on emojis, which I also never, ever, ever use. Because I prefer words!

A few months ago I posted about the breakout success of Korean drama Lovely Runner and its lead male star, Byeon Woo Seok. He and Matt Bomer posing together at the Prada show in the summer nearly broke my brain. Not surprisingly he’s just been announced as Prada’s brand ambassador. Which is great for him but I really don’t like the styling here. The suit is beautiful, his face is stupidly beautiful, but the hair is making me crazy. 

 

And finally, because this is what happens when I take over this space… 

We end with BTS. 

Jin’s solo album, Happy, comes out a week from Friday. To promote the album, and his partnership with Gucci, he covers the upcoming issue of GQ Japan. That olive green leather jacket is sublime. And I love the olive shirt under the black suit with the olive trim on the lapels that gives the illusion that the jacket is actually a kimono.