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    Late Night Isn’t Threatened by Trump’s Latest Stunt

    This week, Donald Trump said Republicans should not be voting in the 2022 or 2024 elections. “Wow, he’s been out of office so long, he’s forgotten how threats work,” Seth Meyers said.Welcome to Best of Late Night, a rundown of the previous night’s highlights that lets you sleep — and lets us get paid to watch comedy. Here are the 50 best movies on Netflix right now.Is That a Threat?In a written statement this week, Donald J. Trump said Republicans would not be voting in the 2022 or 2024 elections.“Wow, he’s been out of office so long, he’s forgotten how threats work,” Seth Meyers said in his opening monologue Thursday.“That’s right, Trump is urging Republicans not to vote in the midterm elections unless the ‘fraud of the 2020 elections’ is uncovered, but for some reason, the thought of only Democrats voting still isn’t reassuring to me.” — SETH MEYERS“I do like that Trump is constantly making life difficult for Republicans who just want to use him to win power. Sorry, you guys bought a ticket on this train wreck, and now you can’t get off.” — SETH MEYERSThe Punchiest Punchlines (Election Fraud Edition)“In a new statement, former President Trump is suggesting that unless the issue of election fraud is addressed, Republicans should not vote in 2024. Democrats heard and were like, ‘Let’s get this guy back on Twitter.’” — JIMMY FALLON“Did Nancy Pelosi write this for him?” — JIMMY KIMMEL“It seems like he’s telling Republicans not to vote. And of course, this brings up the age-old question, how do you solve a problem you made up?” — JIMMY KIMMELThe Bits Worth WatchingOn Thursday’s “The Daily Show,” Trevor Noah looked into why no one wants a job anymore.Also, Check This OutBrian Cox in the new season of “Succession” premiering Sunday on HBO.Graeme Hunter/HBO“Succession” returns this Sunday for Season 3, in which the Roys resemble wealth more than they do real people. More

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    Bill Cosby Is Sued; Woman Says He Sexually Assaulted Her in 1990

    The suit was filed under a change in New Jersey law that extended the deadline to sue in cases involving allegations of sexual assault.A woman sued Bill Cosby in New Jersey on Thursday, accusing the entertainer of drugging and sexually assaulting her at a hotel in Atlantic City in 1990, when she was 26.The woman, Lili Bernard, now 57, an actor and visual artist, has long been public about her accusations against Mr. Cosby. She was able to file the suit because New Jersey overhauled its laws on the statute of limitations for sexual assault cases in 2019.Under the old laws, Ms. Bernard would have been time-barred from filing suit because lawsuits had to be filed within two years of the alleged assault. The reforms extended the time limit to seven years and created a special two-year window, ending next month, to bring cases regardless of how long ago the alleged assault might have occurred.Ms. Bernard, a former guest star on “The Cosby Show,” said in court papers that Mr. Cosby had acted as her mentor before an incident in which she said he drugged and raped her at the hotel, the Trump Taj Mahal. She began to feel dizzy after drinking something he gave her, she said in the court papers.“I have waited a long time to be able to pursue my case in court and I look forward to being heard and to hold Cosby accountable for what he did to me,” she said in a statement. “Although it occurred long ago, I still live with the fear, pain and shame every day of my life.”The suit comes more than three months after Mr. Cosby, 84, was freed from prison in Pennsylvania where he was serving a three-to-10-year prison sentence after being convicted of sexually assaulting another woman, Andrea Constand. The 2018 conviction was overturned by the state’s Supreme Court on due process grounds.In a statement, a spokesman for Mr. Cosby, Andrew Wyatt, denied Ms. Bernard’s allegations and attacked the so-called “look back” reforms.“These look back provisions are unconstitutional and they are a sheer violation of an individual’s Constitutional Rights and denies that individual of their Due Process,” he said in a statement. “This is just another attempt to abuse the legal process, by opening up the flood gates for people, who never presented an ounce of evidence, proof, truth and/or facts, in order to substantiate their alleged allegations.”The suit against Bill Cosby was based on a change in New Jersey law that expanded the statute of limitations governing lawsuits in cases involving allegations of sexual assault.Dominick Reuter/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesMr. Wyatt said that in 2015 Ms. Bernard had made a criminal complaint to the New Jersey authorities who decided against moving forward with the case. Lawyers for Ms. Bernard said she was told her complaint fell outside the criminal statute of limitations.New Jersey eliminated the criminal statute of limitations for most cases of sexual assault in 1996.More than 50 women have accused Mr. Cosby of a range of sexual assault and misconduct, including rape. Ms. Constand’s case was the only one that proceeded criminally and other women have said their efforts to sue Mr. Cosby on sexual assault grounds have been blocked by statutes of limitation.Ms. Bernard had lobbied for changes in California’s laws on sexual assault, joining legislative efforts by other women who had similarly accused Mr. Cosby. More

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    Seth Meyers Berates Fox News for Its Reporting on Vaccine Mandate

    Meyers took Tucker Carlson to task for not “being certain” while reporting falsehoods.Welcome to Best of Late Night, a rundown of the previous night’s highlights that lets you sleep — and lets us get paid to watch comedy. Here are the 50 best movies on Netflix right now.This Week in Fake NewsSeth Meyers tackled Southwest Airlines’ chaotic week on Wednesday night, scolding Fox News for reporting that its recent flight cancellations were caused by vaccine mandates. Meyers noted that Tucker Carlson admitted that he “couldn’t say for certain” that the mandate had caused the issue, but reported they were behind them, anyway.“You can’t say for certain? Well, then, please, by all means, put it on television. We all know that’s how journalism works. Who can forget the famous Woodward and Bernstein headline, ‘Did Nixon Do Watergate? Seems Like the Kind of Thing He’d Do, but Who Knows?” — SETH MEYERS“I’ll never tire of Tucker’s ‘just asking questions’ routine: [imitating Tucker Carlson] ‘Were these protests against Biden’s vaccine mandate? Did Joe Biden secretly replace all the real pilots with communist antifa woke-anistas, or were the delays caused because the flight attendants refused to give you a second bag of Biscoff cookies when you asked for one?’” — SETH MEYERS“American, Southwest, United, JetBlue, Alaska — most of the major airlines have mandates. The only big one that I know that doesn’t have it is Delta, which is nuts. If any airline should have a vaccine mandate, it’s the one named after the variant.” — JIMMY KIMMELThe Punchiest Punchlines (Shatner in Space Edition)“Blue Origin, the company founded by Jeff Bezos, prime-delivered their second group of civilian passengers into space and back today. And guess who’s in that rocket? T.J. Hooker himself, William Shatner.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“Shatner’s the second old guy this month to risk his life in a tracksuit.” — JIMMY FALLON“But, yeah, oldest person ever to go to space, which is amazing. Like, I don’t know about you, but I love it when old people break records, you know? That is why so many people support Tom Brady. I mean, your grandpa can’t throw like that.” — TREVOR NOAH“I will say it is pretty cool that he gave an Amazon review about his trip to an actual Amazon guy. That is pretty cool. No one gets to tell Jeff Bezos about his products to his face.” — TREVOR NOAH“But he made it back alive, Bill did — thank God. Can you imagine if Jeff Bezos killed Captain Kirk?” — JIMMY KIMMELThe Bits Worth WatchingRosario Dawson talked about her role in Hulu’s new drama series about OxyContin’s origin story, “Dopesick.”What We’re Excited About on Thursday NightThe “Impeachment” star Beanie Feldstein will appear on Thursday’s “Late Night.”Also, Check This OutSelma Blair said that since she went public with her diagnosis, she’s been offered roles for aging or disabled characters: “I might be those things, but I’m still everything else I was before, and I shouldn’t be relegated to that.”Magdalena Wosinska for The New York TimesThe actress Selma Blair shares her story about living with multiple sclerosis in the new documentary “Introducing, Selma Blair.” More

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    Many 'Star Trek' Fans Are Eager to See William Shatner Go to Space

    The voyages of Captain James T. Kirk and the starship Enterprise in the 1960s created a fandom that has expanded exponentially over the decades, much like the cute but deadly tribbles of the original “Star Trek” television series. Now many “Trek” fans are excited as William Shatner, the man who embodies that role, readies himself to venture into space — for real.“I think this is fantastic for the ‘Star Trek’ mythos, to have the guy who really started it all to go into space,” said Russ Haslage, who co-founded the fan organization The Federation, also known as the International Federation of Trekkers, with Gene Roddenberry, the creator of “Star Trek,” in the 1980s.Through the lens of “Star Trek,” human space travel has typically had a rosy tint. Much of the show’s universe takes place hundreds of years in the future, with humanity venturing into the Milky Way after surviving a brutal 21st century. Homo sapiens expand from our solar system under the flag of United Earth, a founding member of the United Federation of Planets, an egalitarian alliance of intelligent species. That vision, started in Mr. Roddenberry’s original TV series, is a culmination of the events set in motion by Yuri Gagarin in 1961, when he became the first human to travel to space.Captain Kirk is arguably the most extreme incarnation of the show’s high-minded, moralistic vision.“He’s the guy who’s at the center of all of this,” said Mr. Haslage, who’s planning to offer live commentary on the launch’s livestream via The Federation’s YouTube and Facebook pages. “There wouldn’t be any of this without Captain Kirk.”Carly Creer, a moderator for a “Star Trek” Facebook group with over 150,000 members, grew up watching the original series with her father. Mr. Shatner is a regular at an annual “Star Trek” convention in Las Vegas that she often attends.“If we didn’t have Captain Kirk and that awesome force that he created, we wouldn’t have the amazing fandom that we’ve got,” Ms. Creer said.The involvement of billionaires like Jeff Bezos selling private spaceflight experiences to wealthy customers has generated considerable criticism. But among fans like Ms. Creer there is a fascination with what both NASA and private companies are working to accomplish.“I’ve really appreciated how SpaceX and Blue Origin have stepped in,” she said. “I really think it’s just amazing. It’s been so wonderful to watch, because as a fan of ‘Star Trek’ all you want is to see that future that Gene Roddenberry created so well.” More

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    Late Night Shames Moderna for Refusing to Share

    “Imagine only making one thing and billions of people want it,” Jimmy Kimmel said. “This must be how the Baha Men felt after recording ‘Who Let the Dogs Out.’”Welcome to Best of Late Night, a rundown of the previous night’s highlights that lets you sleep — and lets us get paid to watch comedy. Here are the 50 best movies on Netflix right now.Sick BusinessModerna has come under fire for both refusing to share its Covid vaccine technology as well as denying vaccines to poor countries in desperate need.“The Covid vaccine is Moderna’s only product — it’s the only thing the company sells,” Jimmy Kimmel said on Tuesday. “Imagine only making one thing and billions of people want it. This must be how the Baha Men felt after recording ‘Who Let the Dogs Out,’ you know?”“Look, man, I get it — Moderna is a business and they want to make money themselves, but at least come up with a better excuse, you know, like the vaccine formula is an old family recipe.” — TREVOR NOAH“Apparently, it’s been passed down from generation to generation — just like Mama used to make.” — JIMMY FALLON“So on Saturday, The Times reported that Moderna ‘has been supplying its shots almost exclusively to wealthy nations, keeping the poorer countries waiting and earning billions of dollars in profit.’ I’m sure that’s just a coincidence, right? [Imitating Moderna spokesperson] ‘Guys! We’re doing it alphabetically: America, Australia, Britain, Canada, Denmark — it’s not our fault the rich countries come first. Zambia, Zimbabwe, we’ll get there eventually, hang in.’” — JIMMY KIMMEL“It is a shame that companies think about profit in a time like this when people are dying. But I get it — if they don’t make money doing it this time, they might not bother to work on a vaccine next time.” — JIMMY KIMMELThe Punchiest Punchlines (Offensive Coordinator Edition)“Last night, Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden resigned after old emails came out showing his use of homophobic, racist and misogynistic language. Oh, Lord. Do you know how bad it’s got to be to get kicked out of Las Vegas? They’ve got no rules there.” — JIMMY FALLON“Usually if a coach is fired, the team was playing really, really badly, like the cheerleaders were rooting for the other team bad.” — TREVOR NOAH“The emails were so offensive, the Raiders almost made him offensive coordinator.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“You know you screwed up when you’re not fit to coach a team whose fans dress like actual demons.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“You know, the Raiders are known for being an unorthodox team, but this is the ugliest thing to come out of that organization since their owner’s haircut, which is saying something.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“So he, of course, apologized. He said he ‘never meant to hurt anybody,’ and that if he had known these emails were gonna be published in the newspaper, he definitely would not have written or sent them.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“In a statement, Gruden said: ‘I apologize. My 19,000 offensive emails are not who I am.’” — JIMMY FALLON“Goddamn, this dude hit everybody — Blacks, gays, women, protesters, brain-damage victims. It’s almost like he was competing in a cancellation decathlon.” — TREVOR NOAH“I mean, I can’t believe I have to say this but, people, people — you should not be writing racist emails. Just get up, walk over to your co-worker’s desk and say the N-word in person. It’s called human interaction, people.” — TREVOR NOAH“Besides his coaching job, Gruden also lost an endorsement deal with Skechers. Yup, Skechers said their deal with Gruden no longer made sense and then people were like, ‘Did it ever?’”— JIMMY FALLONThe Bits Worth WatchingAmber Ruffin detailed all that Trump has done for religion on Tuesday’s “Late Night With Seth Meyers.”What We’re Excited About on Wednesday NightThe “Succession” star Sarah Snook will chat with Seth Meyers on Wednesday’s “Late Night.”Also, Check This OutThe characters in “Squid Game” don matching teal-green track suits as they are forced to play children’s games to the death to pay off their debts.NetflixThe Netflix hit series “Squid Game” has had an unexpected influence on fall fashion. More

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    Suspension is lifted for Netflix employee who criticized Dave Chappelle’s comedy special.

    A transgender Netflix employee who was suspended after she criticized a new Dave Chappelle stand-up special said late Tuesday that she was being reinstated.“At the very least, I feel vindicated,” the employee, Terra Field, wrote on Twitter.In all, Netflix reportedly suspended three employees after they attended a virtual business meeting of top company executives without being invited. Netflix said in an earlier statement that Ms. Field had not been suspended because of the tweets critical of Mr. Chappelle’s show.Mr. Chappelle’s comedy special, “The Closer,” made its debut on Netflix on Oct. 5, and was quickly criticized by several organizations, including GLAAD, for “ridiculing trans people.”Ms. Field, a software engineer at Netflix, tweeted last week that the special “attacks the trans community, and the very validity of transness.”In her Twitter post on Tuesday, she included correspondence with the company, which said she was being fully reinstated. “Our investigation did not find that you joined the QBR meeting with any ill intent and that you genuinely didn’t think there was anything wrong with seeking access to this meeting,” the note read. “Additionally when a director shared the link it further supported that this was a meeting that you could attend.”Ms. Field added in her tweet, “I’m going to take a few days off to decompress and try to figure out where I’m at.” More

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    Cecily Strong to Make New York Theater Debut at the Shed

    The “S.N.L.” star steps into a role originated by Lily Tomlin, and Claudia Rankine’s “Help” gets its pandemic-delayed world premiere in the new Shed season.Cecily Strong has twice been nominated for an Emmy Award for her standout “Saturday Night Live” impressions that have included Melania Trump, Ariana Grande and Lin-Manuel Miranda.Now she will be playing 12 characters, with no costume changes or props, in her New York theatrical debut — in a role made famous by Lily Tomlin.Strong, who recently won acclaim for her portrayal of a musical-loving backpacker in the Apple TV+ comedy “Schmigadoon!,” will star in a new production at the Shed of Jane Wagner’s one-woman comedy “The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe.” The production, starting Dec. 21, will be the show’s first New York staging in two decades. It will run through Feb. 6, 2022; Leigh Silverman (“The Lifespan of a Fact,” “Violet”) will direct.In a review of the original 1985 Broadway production, The New York Times critic Frank Rich wrote that the second act — a compressed history of the feminist movement — was “the most genuinely subversive comedy to be produced on Broadway in years,” and praised Tomlin’s “chameleon-like ability to inhabit a wide range of personalities.” The show was adapted into a film, also starring Tomlin, in 1991.The Shed’s 2021-22 season also includes several postponed commissions from 2020, including the world premiere of the author and poet Claudia Rankine’s “Help,” an examination of white male privilege partly based on questions Rankine, who is Black, asked her white male seatmates on airplanes for a New York Times Magazine article. Taibi Magar will direct the production (Mar. 15-Apr. 10, 2022), which follows a middle-aged Black female air traveler on a plane alongside a dozen or so white male characters. Roslyn Ruff (“Fairview”), who starred in two preview performances of the show, is no longer available, so the role will be recast in the coming weeks, said Alex Poots, the artistic director and chief executive of the Shed, at Hudson Yards.“It’s a terrific and shattering piece that I think could not be more relevant now,” he said of the show, which had just two performances before theaters shut down on March 12, 2020.Other highlights of the season include the Berlin-based artist Tomás Saraceno’s exhibition “Particular Matter(s),” a large-scale sensory experience that explores climate change and climate inequity (Feb. 9-April 17, 2022); and a new work by the visual artist, filmmaker and MacArthur fellow Wu Tsang (Apr. 15-17, 2022). Anonymous Club, the creative studio led by the fashion designer Shayne Oliver, will also host three nights of events, titled “Headless: The Glass Ceiling,” with a theme of over-the-top extravagance, or “headlessness,” during New York Fashion Week (Feb. 10-12, 2022).Proof of vaccination will be required for everyone 12 and older for all performances, and everyone age 2 and older must wear a mask.A full season lineup is available at TheShed.org. More

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    Seth Meyers Muses on Trump’s Weekend Iowa Rally

    The host said that seeing the former president speak was like “watching an open-mic night at the senior center.”Welcome to Best of Late Night, a rundown of the previous night’s highlights that lets you sleep — and lets us get paid to watch comedy. Here are the 50 best movies on Netflix right now.Far From the Madding CrowdDonald Trump held a rally in Iowa on Saturday, but Seth Meyers found the crowd lacking enthusiasm for the former president’s routine.“And you can tell Trump was waiting for a crowd reaction, too. I mean, look at him — it’s like watching an open-mic night at the senior center,” Meyers said on Monday night.“He treated supporters to an hour and 43 minutes of bitching about the election he lost and how he didn’t lose it, and how he didn’t concede because it was stolen from him, and all that stupid nonsense that runs on a loop in his brain.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“Wow, and I was worried about bringing audiences back. I never thought I’d say this, but maybe you should go into lockdown. You know, remote shows might be better for you. You could borrow my attic.” — SETH MEYERS“Also, I love the cutaways to sullen Trump fans just standing there in silence like tourists watching one of those gold statue guys in Times Square: [Imitating tourist] ‘So is he going to, like, do something?’” — SETH MEYERSBut if the Iowa rally wasn’t his crowd, Jimmy Kimmel joked about the protesters on Jan. 6 who were. Kimmel reported that Jonathan Karl’s new Trump tell-all, “Betrayal,” details Trump’s bragging about the size of the crowd that stormed the capitol.“Of course, he was. Is there anything this guy won’t brag about? It’s like bragging about the size of your tumor. It’s not good.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“Size matters so much to him. It’s almost as if he’s insecure about something.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“Someday he’ll be looking up from the bowels of hell, elbowing his buddy, Jeffrey Epstein, saying, ‘Can you even believe how many people are dancing on my grave right now?’” — JIMMY KIMMELThe Punchiest Punchlines (Mutually Exclusive Edition)“Happy Indigenous Peoples’ or Columbus Day, depending on which cable news channel you watch.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“Today was Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Now, of course, some people still call it Columbus Day, and to those people, I say: ‘How you getting back to Jersey? Path train?’” — SETH MEYERS“It’s weird to celebrate these on the same day. It’s like celebrating herpes on Valentine’s Day — they don’t really go together.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“He was never here, and yet, we named a whole city in Ohio after him.” — JIMMY KIMMELThe Bits Worth WatchingThe “Tonight Show” guests Chelsea Handler and Finn Wolfhard faced off in a game of True Confessions.What We’re Excited About on Tuesday NightPhoebe Bridgers will perform on Tuesday’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live.”Also, Check This OutJonathan Kent, the new Superman, who is the son of Clark Kent and Lois Lane, shares an unexpected kiss with his friend Jay.John Timms/DC ComicsThe new Superman (son of Clark Kent and Lois Lane) comes out as bisexual in a forthcoming DC comic book. More