Summer is in full swing, and even as Hollywood’s actors circle a July 12 strike deadline, A-listers are finding reasons to celebrate and keep things hopping. While pink is sure to become the color of the season with “Barbie”‘s July 9 premiere, Ashley Park and Stephanie Hsu took a “Joy Ride” into theaters this week, Netflix brought its top chefs to cook for Angelenos and Arnold Schwarzenegger looked to rule the world of coffee table books.
“Joy Ride” Los Angeles Premiere
Regency Village Theatre, Westwood
Hitting the “Joy Ride” premiere was quite a jaunt for comedy lovers in L.A., as Oscar nominee Stephanie Hsu brought some of her pals and costars to the center of Westwood for the fun. Joined by her fellow stars Ashley Park, Sabrina Wu and Sherry Cola, Hsu shared her thoughts about the profound impact she believes the movie will have, saying, “People of all backgrounds will get to associate themselves with this film.”
Front and center were two of Hsu’s biggest fans, Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, the triple Oscar-winning team behind “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” along with “Joy Ride” creatives Adele Lim, Teresa Hsiao and Seth Rogen. Actors Randall Park, Daveed Diggs and Lori Tan Chinn, whose kicks were the talk of the town, also came out to celebrate.
The after party was a lively Chinese street fair, right on the transformed avenue outside, adorned by neon lights, Chinese signs and the aromas of mouth-watering delicacies from all over China. It was a fun- and food-filled night of unity, celebration and cultural appreciation for the Lionsgate film, which hits theaters July 7. – Elijah Gil
“They Cloned Tyrone” Los Angeles Premiere
Post 43 Hollywood Legion Theater, Hollywood
Hollywood was abuzz as “They Cloned Tyrone” rolled into the Post 43 Legion venue, led by stars John Boyega and Teyonah Parris, who arrived driving a sleek old school Cadillac convertible that exuded timeless glamour (and also appears in the comedy thriller). Their stylish arrival set the stage for an evening filled with intrigue and fun, but sadly lacked Jamie Foxx, still recovering from his health scare earlier this year.
Boyega shared his unique perspective on artificial intelligence with TheWrap, joking that, “I’m not worried about AI, do you see the CGI in movies?” The after party sparked more engaging conversations about the film’s underlying meanings and themes, with cloning and other slightly scary “mad scientist” ideas taking center stage. This was one Netflix bash that made everyone look around for Boyega’s double, but in reality, there’s just one guy with so much talent he can play just about anything, even himself over and over again. – Elijah Gil
“The Afterparty” Season 2 Premiere
Regency Bruin Theatre, Westwood
Are you ready to party all over again? At the Season 2 premiere of the Apple TV+ mystery-comedy series “The Afterparty,” star Tiffany Haddish led the red carpet charge, radiating her signature charm and giving us an inside take on the new season. “The cast is different, the circumstances are different,” she revealed. “And the stakes are much higher!”
Much of the talented cast turned out, with Zoe Chao and Poppy Liu definitely dressed to party and John Cho and Ken Jeong cutting it up on the red carpet. Sam Richardson spoke with TheWrap and expressed his sincere desire to be a part of “Hocus Pocus 3,” telling us, “I’d go play on that set any day of the week! You just tell, and I will be there.” But first, he’s still partying on!
– Elijah Gil
“The Summer I Turned Pretty” Season 2 Launch Party
Mr. Purple, New York
Whether you’re #TeamConrad or #TeamJeremiah, fans of “The Summer I Turned Pretty” put their differences aside to celebrate Season 2 of the beloved Prime Video show. With the New York City skyline on the horizon, the rooftop of Mr. Purple was transformed into Cousins Beach.
During the event, guests and cast members were treated to a first look at the official trailer for the new season. “We’ve been working so hard on this,” said series star Gavin Casalegno.
The moment Taylor Swift’s “Back to December” began playing, the show’s breakout star Lola Tung – who made everyone watch the video twice – began tearing up. “I didn’t know they were going to play this song!” she whispered to costar Rachel Blanchard with a hug. “It’s the first time I’d seen it with the music,” she told TheWrap.
The entire event was just like a scene out of the show. Belly and the gang – Casalegno, Christopher Briney, Sean Kaufman and David Iacono – frolicked about the venue as “the moms” (Blanchard and Jackie Chung) chatted nearby with Season 2 newcomer Kyra Sedgwick. Meanwhile, guests enjoyed signature cocktails and pop-up experiences with Sonicare, Blackbough and Sperry, who offered exclusive “The Summer I Turned Pretty” swag. By the time the bash was over, we all left feeling awfully pretty ourselves. – Emily Vogel
Netflix Bites Opening Night Celebration
Short Stories Hotel, Los Angeles
The writers may be on strike in Hollywood, but the chefs are not, as some of the world’s most famous tocques joined forces with Netflix’s co-CEO Ted Sarandos to bring an exclusive dining pop-up to the Los Angeles foodie scene.
Opening night on the Short Stories Hotel patio brought out some of the “Iron Chef: Quest for an Iron Legend” show’s most popular chefs, including Curtis Stone, Dominique Crenn, Ming Tsai and judge Andrew Zimmern.
They each created both appetizers and different courses for the meals being offered, as did “Chef’s Table” standouts Rodney Scott and Ann Kim, along with dessert experts Nadiya Hussain (“Nadiya Bakes”) and Jacques Torres (“Nailed It”).
Big hits on opening night included Curtis Stone’s lamb ribs appetizer and Dungeness crab curry main and Rodney Scott’s pulled whole hog BBQ. Stone, whose catering company is running the pop-up, admitted to TheWrap that being a celebrity chef was never his goal.
“I like my job. I’m the happiest on the line in the kitchen,” he said with that trademark grin. “But I do think that getting to do this stuff gets me out of it enough that I always want to go back to the kitchen.”
BBQ pro Rodney Scott brought his own smoker and had a second hog ready for guests coming the next day, telling us that “it’s that low and slow process that makes it so good, and we’re happy to show people that what we do on screen is real. Here they’ll get to see and taste what they’ve been hearing about and watching on TV.”
To get a taste of your favorite Netflix chef’s creations, book reservations here for this limited-time Los Angeles pop-up. We hear it is mostly sold out into August, however, and the chefs only made the scene on opening night. – JP
Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Hosts an Evening With Arnold Schwarzenegger
David Geffen Theater, Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, Los Angeles
With 1991’s James Cameron-written and -directed “Terminator 2: Judgment Day,” Arnold Schwarzenegger notched his highest-grossing feature to date and cemented himself as an action icon.
The actor, activist and former California governor spoke on that experience and pondered why it’s become an enduring genre classic, as part of the Los Angeles launch of his two-volume book published by Taschen, “Arnold.” The centerpiece of the sold-out evening at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures was a wide-ranging conversation between he and the book’s editor, Dian Hanson, followed by a 3D screening of “Terminator 2: Judgment Day.”
The talk covered any number of topics, from his childhood in post-war Austria to his early days bodybuilding to the hurdles he had to overcome to get a start in Hollywood. But the most riotous moment of the night came when the star remembered his initial reservations about turning his Terminator into a good guy, as compared to the bloodthirsty robot assassin he played in the 1984 original.
“I said, ‘What do you mean a “good” Terminator?’” Schwarzenegger recalled of his early conversations with Cameron. “That is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard!” Of course, he’s since come around.
“It’s the brilliance of Jim Cameron, he’s just such an extraordinary writer and he’s such an unbelievable director,” the actor concluded. – Benjamin Lindsay
Please send party and events invites to Jenny.Peters@TheWrap.com
