2022 brought the drama, from a cringe-worthy trial to mega-star breakups, not to mention a year filled with new music and Academy Award nominations. Here’s a recap of the year in entertainment.
“Top Gun: Maverick” felt the need for speed and broke records at the box office. During opening weekend, the movie earned $126 million, later earning $1 billion worldwide.
After 13 years, “Avatar” returned for its sequel film, with director James Cameron bringing audiences back for an epic adventure to the world of Pandora, in “Avatar: The Way of Water.”
Marvel’s “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” held the number one spot five weeks in a row and delivered a powerful tribute to late star Chadwick Boseman.
Awards season ended in a slap to the face for Chris Rock. At the 94th Academy Awards, Will Smith hit the comedian on stage after making a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith.
Will later won Best Actor for his role in “King Richard” and later resigned from the Academy. He was also banned from attending events for 10 years.
The movie “CODA” made Oscars history in the Best Picture category for being the first film with a predominantly deaf cast to take the title, and actor Troy Kotsur being the first deaf male actor to win an Oscar.
The high-profile trial between Johnny Depp and his ex-wife, Amber Heard, lasted six long weeks, with a jury ruling in favor of Johnny in the $50 million libel lawsuit. At its center was the 2018 Washington Post op-ed and accusations of assault on both sides.
Johnny was awarded $10 million in damages, and the jury found favor in one of Amber’s counterclaims, awarding her $2 million.
The year saw new music from Taylor Swift, with her album “Midnight.” The tunes from her 10th album made her the first artist in history to have all top 10 spots on the Billboard hot 100 at the same time.
Ticketmaster quickly became the antihero with Swifties, as fans who tried to get presale tickets for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour saw the site crashing, along with the cancellation of the general sale.
Later, Ticketmaster offered verified fan presale participants another shot at catching Tay’s concert, at the request of Taylor’s team.
Beyoncé also dropped some new tunes with her album “Renaissance.” The album quickly earned the top of the all-genre Billboard 200.
Queen Bey is going into the 2023 Grammys as the top nominee with 9 noms.
The year saw plenty of breakups and make-ups among the Hollywood elite.
Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen called it quits after 13 years of marriage, while the world saw power couple Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez — aww, still so cute — reunite and tie the knot.
2022 saw Kim Kardashian and Kanye West finalize their divorce settlement.
Kanye’s name was in the headlines throughout the year for his antisemitic remarks, earning him a suspension from Instagram and Twitter, and brands like Adidas dropped him like it’s hot.
He was allowed back on Twitter … before violating Twitter’s rules with another antisemitic post and for inciting violence.
Happy New Year!
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