Top Pop Culture Moments of 2022
Taylor Swift was up. Elon Musk was in, out and in. Tom Cruise was back. BTS stepped aside, and so did Serena Williams, and Tom Brady too — oops, scratch that.
Ok, so maybe it wasn’t on the level of a moon landing, or selection of a pope. All you have to say now is “the slap” and people will know what you mean — that moment Will Smith smacked Chris Rock at the Oscars and a global audience said, “Wait, did that happen?” Even in the room itself — maybe especially in the room itself — there was a sense everyone had imagined it, which helps explain why things went on as normal, for a bit.
It was over! Well, of course it wasn’t. Live entertainment was encouraged in 2022 as mask mandates dropped and people scrambled to purchase Taylor Swift tickets.
We’ll take any segue to mention Swift, who already had a big year in 2021, but just got bigger — heck, she broke Billboard records And then she broke Ticketmaster. (No word on whether she received her scarf back).
Big comebacks were seen on the big screen. We mourn the loss of our dear star. Chadwick Boseman, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” Was a box office triumph. James Cameron’s “Avatar” Made a splashy December Return
Then there was Cruise, turning 60 in ’22 just like the Rolling Stones, swooping into Cannes His most successful movie And showing you, just like the still-touring rockers that they are telling you “The end is inevitable,” They do in. “Top Gun: Maverick,” You can always respond: “Maybe so, sir, but not today.”
Will audiences one day find Cruise – or the Stones, for that matter – too wrinkled and past the sell-by date? It’s possible, but not this time.
This is our annual, highly selective trip through pop culture in the year 2000:
JANUARY
It’s GOLDEN GLOBES time. But it is a Globes with no telecastRed carpet Globes, or boozy celebs? The Hollywood Foreign Press Association, in turmoil stunning failures over diversityHolds a private event It plans to make a comeback next season. Did you remember the original wardrobe error? JANET JACKSON claims she and JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE made the original wardrobe malfunction. have moved onSo should we. The New York Times buys Wordle, and we’re all thinking in five-letter words (though W-O-R-D-L-E is six, just saying.) Meanwhile, it’s a month of loss, heading off a year of loss: pioneering Black actor, director and activist SIDNEY POITIER dies At 94.
FEBRUARY
BRITNEY is the star of pop culture. Just months after her liberation from her restrictive conservatorshipSpears is believed to have signed a mammoth book deal, but at year’s end we’re still waiting for news. RIHANNA is now pregnant! TOM BRADY is retiring! (Stay tuned for that one. TAYLOR Watch: JAKE GYLLENHAAL speaks up, saying that he truly believes in the concept of “TAYLOR”. has nothing to do with that song.
MARCH
Quick, who won Oscars this month! Well, “CODA” does, This drama is a good time with a deaf cast. TROY KOTSUR becomes the first deaf actor To win an Oscar for acting. Alas, all anyone can talk about is — you know. SMITH, who wins the best actor award not long after slapping Rock over a joke about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, won’t truly address the issue until the end of the year, so keep reading. KARDASHIAN Watch: Kim K is declared legally single again KANYE WEST, a rapper, is currently divorcing YE. And BRADY has been retired for 40-days. “Never mind!”
APRIL
It’s GRAMMY time, and JON BATISTE wins big, taking five statuettes. The musician’s huge year will later include performing at the first state dinner French President Emmanuel Macron, the Biden administration. The next day Macron will meet with MUSK (Thanks Monsieur le Président, for the segue) begins his acquisition of TWITTER this month, leading to untold — and still unfolding — changes at the social media giant.
MAY
So imagine you’re sipping cocktails at the MET GALA and a musician comes sauntering through, playing the melodica — of course it’s BATISTE, because the Met Gala’s that kind of crazy party. KARDASHIAN was spotted on PETE DAVIDSON’s arms. the same sequined, skin tight gown MARILYN MONROE wore To sing “Happy Birthday” JFK in 1962. In movies “Top Gun: Maverick” opens, the highest-grossing domestic debut in CRUISE’S careerHe is also his first to exceed $100 million in opening weekend. Fans of HARRY STYLES should rejoice! His album, “Harry’s House,” It is available.
JUNE
Amazing news for BTS’s global fanbase as the K-pop superstar supergroup announces it’s taking a break to focus on members’ solo projects. The legal side, Virginia jury hands DEPP a victory His very messy libel trial over domestic abuse allegations resulted in him finding out that his ex-wife HEARD had defamed the man in an 2018 op ed. On a happier note, Britney gets married….
JULY
Britney has only one wedding BENNIFER is the proud owner of two! There are 227 million Instagram followers, so maybe Vegas is what stays. A winking reference to being “a” “Sadie” JENNIFER LOPEZ (married lady), directs her fans to her newsletter, where she shares photos of her quickie wedding to BEN AFFLECK. “Love is beautiful,” She writes. “And it turns out love is patient.” Speaking of patience, fans of BEYONCÉ are rewarded for theirs with the release of her long-awaited “Renaissance,” She released her first solo album after six years.
AUGUST
So, we were saying … Bennifer’s second wedding, on Affleck’s compound in Georgia, is bigger and fancier. KARDASHIAN & DAVIDSON have split. Another shocking news story from summer is PRINCESS DIANA. happened 25 years agoAnd whose story is being retold for a new generation in this season of “The Crown.” Only days after the anniversary, that same Netflix series will pause production as a mark of respect for QUEEN ELIZABETH II as Britain — and the world — mourn the beloved monarch, who dies at age 96 After more than 70 years of service to the throne.
SEPTEMBER
The rise of political intrigue in Europe. We mean did the spit fly at the Venice premiere of “Don’t Worry Darling”? Either way the movie, directed by OLIVIA WILDE and starring her boyfriend (alleged spitter STYLES), is saddled – or blessed? – with more than its share of extracurricular drama. The EMMYS is a place to behold SHERYL LEE RALPH, who wins for “Abbott Elementary” and teaches the masses about the power of dreams, self-belief, and how to overcome them. “This is what believing looks like,” She says. Do you know what the other side of believing looks like? Rachel Berry “Glee” – aka LEA MICHELE – at last getting to play Fanny Brice In “Funny Girl” Broadway. Here are four words of wisdom that will resonate with working moms all over the world in sports. SERENA WILLIAMS says she’s stepping aside Tennis, because “something’s got to give.”
OCTOBER
The second HARVEY WEINSTEIN trial opens in Los Angeles. ADIDAS drops YE, Part of a chain of companies who will cut all ties to the rapper because of his antisemitic comments. The MUSK era begins at TWITTER as the world’s richest man carries a sink into the office, to “let that sink in.” HEIDI KLUM’s Halloween costume Is a slimy and glistening rain worm. But before the month worms away from us, let’s cede it to SWIFT for dropping her new album, “Midnights” (Spotify’s most-streamed album in a single day), then adding seven bonus tracksAfter that, it becomes the first artist to occupy all top 10 slots on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Let that sink in! P.S. P.S. BRADY and )GISELE BUNDCHEN split.
NOVEMBER
Did we mention that Taylor Swift was Taylor Swift’s birthday month last month? Millions of eager fans now crowd a presale to purchase her long-awaited Eras Tour. It has resulted in endless delays and crashes. Ticketmaster cancels the general sale, Citing insufficient stock. Multiple state attorneys general announce investigations. The takeaway: Taylor Swift tickets are in high demand. They want tickets to Taylor Swift’s concert at the multiplex. also want their Wakanda. “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” Follows up on one of the most important blockbusters of history, and faces the double challenge losing its biggest star.
DECEMBER
Love ’em or hate ’em, here come HARRY and MEGHAN again, with a Netflix documentary Royalties across the pond watched closely. Over at Twitter, MUSK says he’ll step down as CEO — after polling users — once he finds someone “foolish” It is possible to replace him. Cameron’s “AVATAR” sequel After 13 years, the original broke all records and moviegoers flock to Pandora again, finally, SMITH appears. SMITH appears to promote his album, bringing the year full circle. new film, “EMANCIPATION,” hoping people will forget about … what was it? … at least enough to check out the movie.
In this year of comebacks, will Smith’s be the biggest?
We will be back in 2023.
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