Queer SNL cast member Bowen Yang exited the show in the middle of his eighth season there, Variety reported. His last turn as a cast member was the Dec. 20 episode that was hosted by his Wicked co-star Ariana Grande with Cher as musical guest. His exit follows the major exodus that came ahead of season 51, which premiered Oct. 4; Ego Nwodim, Heidi Gardner, Michael Longfellow, Devon Walker, Emil Wakim and John Higgins departed the series.
Out British actor Ben Whishaw—best known for being in productions like Skyfall, The Lobster, Black Doves and 2023’s Passages—recently talked with The Guardian about the tricky business of gay actors succeeding in Hollywood, Out noted. “It’s complicated and probably different for every individual, but I think it’s still something to do with the fact that if you want to be really successful, you have to conform to what is deemed to be heterosexual taste,” Whishaw said. “Or be sexy in a heterosexual way. I’m always amazed by how much sex is underneath everything, actually. Or desire. There’s still a lot of homophobia and hatred.”
Becca Tilley and singer Hayley Kiyoko are engaged again after the Bachelor alum proposed to her in Kyoto, Japan, E! News noted. “To forever & everywhere with you,” Tilley posted on Instagram Dec. 12. “(She said yes!)” The proposal came five months after Kiyoko first popped the question during a romantic trip to Mallorca over the summer.
And in other Kiyoko-related news, she revealed on Instagram that her directorial debut, Girls Like Girls, will hit theaters on June 19, 2026, per Deadline. Maya da Costa and Myra Molloy star in the Focus Features film, which is based on Kiyoko’s hit song and viral music video of the same name.
Iconic singer Barry Manilow posted a statement on social media in which he shared that he has been diagnosed with lung cancer, CNN noted. “As many of you know, I recently went through six weeks of bronchitis followed by a relapse of another five weeks,” Manilow, 82, wrote. “Even though I was over the bronchitis and back on stage at the Westgate Las Vegas, my wonderful doctor ordered an MRI just to make sure that everything was OK. The MRI discovered a cancerous spot on my left lung that needs to be removed.” Adding that it was “pure luck (and a great doctor)” that enabled the early detection, Manilow wrote that he will soon be going into surgery.
Tony winner Billy Porter shared an update on his health after he was diagnosed with “a serious case” of sepsis, People reported. “I’m here, first and foremost, to say happy holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Hanukkah and everything in between,” Porter said in a video. “It was not easy. It’s been a very, very challenging four months. And I want everybody to know that I am on the road to a full recovery. I’m not there yet but I’m on the road to that.”
Jonathan Bailey was Hollywood’s highest-grossing actor of 2025, according to an LGBTQ Nation article that cited Variety. According to the outlet, the latest installment in the Jurassic Park franchise has grossed more than $850 million globally, while the Wicked sequel has made more than $450 million—adding to more than $1 billion. Variety added that Bailey (recently named People’s Sexiest Man Alive) is the first openly gay actor to lead the pack.
Jimpa—starring Olivia Colman, John Lithgow, Aud Mason-Hyde and Cody Fern—will be in select theaters on Feb. 6, per a press release. In the movie, filmmaker Hannah (played by Colman) takes her trans nonbinary teenager Frances (Mason-Hyde) to Amsterdam to visit their gay grandfather, lovingly known as “Jimpa” (John Lithgow). Jimpa director Sophie Hyde (she/they) is a founding member of Closer Productions and the social-impact company The Unquiet Collective. In 2022, Hyde directed Emma Thompson in the BAFTA- and Golden Globe-nominated comedy Good Luck To You, Leo Grande.
Gay City News released its list of the best LGBTQ+ films of 2025. Kill the Jockey—starring out gay actor Nahuel Pérez—was named the Best Queer Film while Assembly, a movie about artist Rashaad Newsome, was named Best Documentary. trans actress Tommy Dorfman’s debut as a writer/director, I Wish You All the Best, was named Best Coming-of-Age Film and Cactus Pears was Best Debut Film. Also, Dylan O’Brien received the Best Nudity honor for Twinless while there was also a Worst Film: Hot Milk.
Legendary singer Dionne Warwick is being sued by a rights firm that claims she has backed out of a deal that entitles them to “hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars” for work recovering her royalties, Pitchfork noted. Artists Rights Enforcement Corporation cites its negotiation of terms and payment for the “Walk on By” sample in Doja Cat’s “Paint the Town Red” as something for which it is owed an ongoing cut of royalties. Artists Rights claims that, since its 2002 deal with Warwick, the company has skipped upfront fees in exchange for half of any royalties and settlements it negotiates and collects on her behalf.
LGBTQ+ British musician Yungblud released an acoustic version of his Best Rock Song Grammy®-nominated hit “Zombie,” a press release noted. The ballad is widely regarded as one of his most profound releases to date, written for his late grandmother who died from alcoholism. The musician said, “The song was written initially about my grandmother going through serious injury and trauma, leading her to become a different person to who she was before. It’s about the feeling of deterioration and ugliness; shutting out the world and the people we love out of the fear of becoming a burden or an embarrassment.” Watch the official music video here.
The L.A.-based and LGBTQ+-inclusive girl group KATSEYE was named TikTok’s Global Artist of the Year, winning more than 30 billion views and 12 million creations using their music on the social video platform, per USA Today. Made up of six members—three from the United States and others from Philippines, South Korea and Switzerland—KATSEYE also recently earned two Grammy nominations, including Best New Artist. Also, TikTok named the late Connie Francis’ “Pretty Little Baby” its Global Song of the Year and its top U.S. song.
Actor/comedian D.L. Hughley clapped back at rapper Nicki Minaj after she went on an online MAGA rant criticizing California Gov. Gavin Newsom for his support of transgender kids, according to Them. “Nicki Minaj shouldnt [sic] post anything about kids cuz her husband can’t be within 1000 ft of one!” Hughes wrote on Threads. “It ain’t Gavin [Newsom], it’s [To Catch a Predator host] Chris [Hansen] she should be worried about.” Minaj’s husband, Kenneth Petty, was charged with first-degree rape and pled guilty to attempted rape in 1994, serving four and a half years in prison, per the New York Times; Petty was arrested in March 2020 for failing to register as a sex offender in California.
On Dec. 17, HBO Max kicked off the holiday season with a special gift-wrapping pop-up at Westfield Century City Mall in Los Angeles. The festive activation featured complimentary wrapping stations with irreverent, NSFW designs inspired by HBO Max’s most iconic series—plus appearances from cast members of I Love LA and the queer-centered Heated Rivalry. Guests brought their own gifts and received complimentary professional wrapping with themed designs celebrating hit series including The Gilded Age, Heated Rivalry, I Love LA, IT: Welcome to Derry, The Pitt, Sex and the City, Succession, The Sopranos and The White Lotus.
Embattled gay actor Kevin Spacey is returning to the small screen for the first time since he was fired from Netflix’s House of Cards in 2017 amid allegations of sexual misconduct, per Variety. The actor is set to star in Italian comedy series Minimarket for Italy‘s state broadcaster RAI. In the show, the two-time Oscar winner plays himself as the imaginary mentor of a young man who works in a Rome convenience store and dreams of becoming a TV star. The 10-episode series will launch on RAI’s RaiPlay streaming service starting Dec. 26.
Out HGTV personality David Bromstad revealed he attended a treatment center while filming his new special, which premiered Dec. 19, according to USA Today. Bromstad said he struggled with substance abuse after a storm destroyed his dream home in Florida mid-renovation, according to a clip from My Lottery Dream Home: David’s Happy Ending that People shared. Bromstad stated that extreme water damage, flooding and excessive mold required him to destroy his “childhood fantasy” home and start from the beginning; realizing the toll the devastation took on his mental health, he decided he had to address his own personal struggles.
Below Deck star Fraser Olender, 33, revealed he suffered a heart attack due to “vape poisoning”—a condition that left him grappling with severe chest pains, difficulty breathing, and a terrifying brush with death, per Instinct. In an emotional Instagram post, the LGBTQ+ reality star detailed his experience, which began in November when he was rushed to the hospital; in part, he explained that the vaping device he had been using caused a coronary artery vasospasm. He encouraged his followers to rethink their own vaping habits and take their health more seriously. “We do not know enough about these horrific things,” he said.
Corey Feldman denied claims that he accused the late actor Corey Haim of molesting him, People noted. In a statement that Us Weekly obtained, Feldman’s legal team said that a new Apple TV documentary, Corey Feldman vs The World, mischaracterized Feldman’s recollection of specific events involving Haim, who died in 2010 at the age of 38. The producers of the film made the film without Mr. Feldman’s knowledge and obtained the footage through dishonest means,” the statement read. The statement also said that while Feldman claimed that Haim made advances on him, Feldman did not say that Haim sexually assaulted him. The documentary’s director, Marcie Hume, said, “The scene, and the film itself, reflects his statements as given, in his own voice.”
The founder of the iconic underwear brand Andrew Christian recently announced that the company would be shutting down after two decades in business, per Out. He told Queerty that the fashion industry is facing new challenges amid the rise of fast fashion and the current political landscape. “There’s been a clear shift in consumer behavior, with many people—especially younger generations— buying from fast fashion platforms like Shein and Temu, where you can get underwear for $3,” he said.
Actor Timothée Chalamet (Dune; Call Me By Your Name) became the first person to appear atop Sphere in Las Vegas as the venue’s iconic Exosphere transformed into a giant ping-pong ball, a press release noted. The activation, which was executed in partnership with Cash App, marked a major milestone in the lead-up to Chalamet’s new film Marty Supreme, which was expected to expand nationwide in theaters on Christmas Day. The film’s storyline concerns young Marty Mauser pursuing his dream of becoming a champion table-tennis player.
Rush Hour director Brett Ratner, who is behind First Lady Melania Trump’s upcoming documentary, is in a photo in the latest batch of Jeffrey Epstein files that the Justice Department released, per USA Today. A photo (without a date or context) shows the filmmaker posing with a shirtless Jean-Luc Brunel, the late French modeling agent and longtime Epstein associate. Brunel died by suicide in 2022 in his jail cell while facing charges in France of raping a minor and supplying minors to the disgraced financier. Many prominent names appear in photos among the newly released Epstein files, including former President Bill Clinton; actors Kevin Spacey and Chris Tucker; and music icons Mick Jagger, Michael Jackson and Diana Ross.
British actor/comedian Russell Brand has been charged with two more counts of rape and sexual assault, Deadline noted. Authorities said that Brand’s charges relate to two additional women on top of the previous charges, which were two of rape, one of indecent assault and two of sexual assault, and he will appear in court on Jan. 20 next year in relation to the charges.